Warmed cleaning fluids

I use commercial and homebrew recipe cleaners and found the use of a steaming step helps the cleaning effect of the cleaner. My homebrew is distilled water, detergent (i have used dawn dishwashing detergent, commercial cleansers/degreasers, and recently enzyme based cleaner), and alcohol. I apply the solution cold to the record, use a brush to spread solution, then use the steamer to heat the liquid, followed by a good scrubbing with the brush. I vacuum that followed by a good rinse and vac. Sometimes, if the disk is pretty grungy, i will let the solution sit on the album for a few minutes before and after the steaming. Takes a little longer but sometimes the extra time helps remove more of the gunk. I think just as important as the cleaning is the rinse. I have found some of the white stuff you can find in the grooves is water scale from hard or impure water. Vacuuming actually can cause this if you evaporate the water versus "sucking" it up. Found this out the hard way early in my attempts to clean records.

Am in the process of reviewing a few cleaning fluids and asked Jim Pendleton the same question since enyzme activity is temperature, ionic strength, metal, cofactor, etc dependent. Jim said that the activity of the "industrial" enzymes used, at least in the one step cleaner, are temperature independent.

Myles Astor

I wonder if a warm water pre rinse may help then a wash as usual......warm is a cool idea.

Thats awesome after you rake the snow BTW....I have tried it and it works!!!