2. analog
  3. 152714-1640

A Worthwhile Untrasonic Cleaner

I just purchased these two items from Amazon (PRIME)...

An Album Rotation device - holds 5 albums...
https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07PNCVMZ3/ref=pe_3034960_236394800_TE_dp_1

An Utransonic Cleaning Tub
https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B07HNQ26WT/ref=pe_3034960_236394800_TE_dp_f1

The rotation device is extremely well built and fits the tub perfectly. The tub also looks well made, but is a bit noisy, but that is normal from what I have read..

I have just finished cleaning some 30+ albums and found the complete unit is extremely good at getting rid of those crackles and pops - even finger prints and other grunge - with minimal effort

The tub defaults to a wash time of 5 minute (I used 10 minutes) and I reduced default temperature to 20 Celsius, but the ultrasonic process warms the water up, so by the time I had finished some 35+ albums it was 30 Celsius.

Even had a friend come over with 3 of his dirtiest albums - grunge + finger prints - just plain grubby. Ten minutes of cleaning and voila - shiney like new (apart from the scratches) playing the album was almost noise free - probably needed a second wash.

So the total cost for both units was around $450 from Amazon.ca ($370 from Amazon.com)) for the two pieces - which from what I have been seeing is perhaps the lowest price for an Ultrasonic cleaner out there.

Eager to try the unit that arrived yesterday, I only used distilled water - without any additive

What additive does the absolute best job ?
What difference does it make?
Or should I just stick with distilled water?

Thanks for any feedback.

One of the best analogue related value for money products I have ever purchased

At this rate I’ll clean my entire vinyl library pretty quickly AND do some of the wife’s jewellery :-)

If you are looking for something that actually cleans you vinyl well - consider these products.

Regards - Steve



.
williewonka
antinn
395 posts
 
Anovak,
I need to make a correction here.  Essentially, Tergitol 15-S-9 is a more environmentally friendly (and by DOW data should be more effective) alternative to Triton X100 which because of having components that can mimic estrogen, are toxic to fish, and there is 'some' associated human risk.  DOW for now is continuing manufacture of Triton X100, but do not be suprised if they discontinue manufacture in the future as global environmental regulations increase.  Conservationist (those conserving painting) use surfactants when cleaning/conserving paintings, and are very sensitive to using products that do no harm, or as little as possible.  Some are using a non-ionic surfactant that appears  very similar to the performance of Triton X100 and Tergitol 15-S-9: SURFONIC® JL-80X.  
anovak
60 posts
 
Thank you antinn.  I appreciate your efforts and this will likely lead to a way to improve upon the solution.  I am concerned about the Triton as well regarding environmental issues so the Tergitol seem like a better choice.  I'm going to order some and try it out.  I'll be back....
antinn
395 posts
 
Anovak,
One last item, the concentration to use for the Tergitol 15-S-9 is 0.1% to max of 0.5%.  This product requires about 3 times less concentration than Triton X100.  The technical detail is something called the Critical Miscelle Concentration (CMC), and this specifies the ppm concentration in solute (water) when the non-ionic surfactant-water solution reaches its lowest surface tension.  Beyound this any additional surfactant will not drop the surface tension any lower. However, to achieve best detergency, you want more than the CMC, general guidance is 5 to 10 times more. For the Triton X100 the CMC is 189 ppm, the Tergitol CMC is only 53 ppm.  Yeah, I know, way more than ever wanted to know, but there is method to this madness.
anovak
60 posts
 
"there is method to this madness."
To be sure, antinn, this is very true and since this whole thing is pretty new for most of us, I imagine there will be some trials and experimentation involved but in the end most effective and simplest method will be the one I'm interested in. 

So if I'm reading this correctly, to achieve .5% Tergitol 15-S-9  concentration one would use:

5qts.(total volume of distilled water) =  4,730ml. (1qt. = 946ml. x 5)
4,730ml. at .5% = 23.65ml or 24ml. to keep things sane, is that correct? 

Maybe even make it a bit easier to just use 25ml. since my measuring device has a marker for that and no harm done.  25ml. of the Tergitol to 5qts. distilled water and you're done....sounds like a plan and I'm going to order some later today. 

Will report back on the findings once I have cleaned some records and made comparisons to my present formula.  I believe the Hepastat 256 was recommended as an antistatic measure, so would there be any benefit to using that along with the Tergitol in your estimation?
antinn
395 posts
 
25ml should be more than enough.  If you notice any rinse problems, reduce to 20ml or even 15ml.  Using too much is worse than using not enough.

Hepastat 256 is a Bactericidal, used to disenfect surfaces.  However, it has at 0.5 ounces per gallon, 886 ppm active quaternary ammonium compounds, and these salts are also used for antistatic in shampoos and fabric softeners.  However, if you are going to add Hepastat why use distilled water, you are just adding salt to the distilled water; Hepastat its intended to be used in tap freshwater.  Download the MSDS for Hepastat and look at the ingedients, its a spot cleaning agent complete with non-ionic surfactant and highly alkaline silicates. 

If you want to keep a tank full of the DI water-Tergitol solution for weeks, keep covered, and once a week operate the tank (no records of course) at 165F for about 15-30 minutes, and any criters should be  killed.  PS, the recommendation discussed to store the Tergitol in a non-food refrigerator is based on preventing any accidental ingestion by a child, but at 33-41F, you may need to allow the Tergitol to warm up so can pour it out.

Otherwise, the wet cleaning process will remove any static charge from the record.  Air dry or use an antistatic cloth to dry, such as Kinetronics Anti-Static Microfiber Cloth, 10x18-Inch Tiger Cloth (you can buy Amazon), and you should not cause a static charge to develop post cleaning.

More to discover