When Tom Peterson inherited some choice records from a relative, he had to clean them right away. “They’re very good albums, but they were really, really dirty,” he recalls. “It looked like they'd been used in parties a lot — you could see Cheetos paw prints on them!”

Peterson’s friend Geoff Hankerson got really into vinyl during the pandemic, and since 2020 he’s expanded his collection to about 700 titles. “I find used records to be a good deal compared to new vinyl, which is kind of expensive,” he explains, “but of course, then the problem with used vinyl, is it's usually dirty. Sometimes you've got decades worth of crud and mold in the grooves of the record, and you need to try to get those out so that it can sound as good as possible.”

They’re not professional archivists — Peterson is a plant manager at an engineering firm in Bloomington, Minn., and Hankerson is the team lead for web development at Minnesota Public Radio, and hosts a jazz program on WFNU, Frogtown Community Radio — but they both really love listening to vinyl records that sound great. 

Knowing that Record Store Day is fast approaching, the two men were eager to share their experience and advice with this range of tips for cleaning your vinyl records.

Before attempting any of these cleaning methods: If you’re unsure about leaping right into one of the methods described below, Hankerson and Peterson suggest testing the method on a record that needs cleaning but that you don’t care about as much. If you’re comfortable with those results, then you can feel confident using the method on a record that you do treasure more. 

Simple Household Approaches

Here are a couple of entry-level options for cleaning your records. Start by placing a soft towel on a table or counter, then set your vinyl record on top of that. Then try one of these methods:

• Mix, but do not shake, a couple drops of dishwashing liquid in a cup of distilled water; moisten a soft cloth with the solution. Using light pressure, wipe the record in a circular motion (with the grooves). Rinse with clean distilled water, then use a dry felt cloth to remove wet residue. Flip over the record; repeat.

• Use distilled water to wet a melamine pad — example brands include Mr. Clean Magic Eraser or Home Depot’s HDX brand — to wipe the record using light pressure, following the grooves. Again, flip over the record to do the other side.

For ongoing maintenance, purchase a carbon fiber brush purpose built for cleaning vinyl (about $15 retail). The carbon fiber brush, which is statically conductive and will attract the dirt particles into the bristles, can be placed gently on the record while it spins on a turntable. 

Peterson’s tips:
“Some audiophiles say the Magic Erasers are too abrasive; possibly, if you do it all the time. But with the light pressure that I was applying and going with the grooves, I’m not seeing any issues whatsoever, and I’m really happy with the sound.” 

Mid-Range Approach

For those seeking a deeper clean at little cost, Hankerson recommends the Vinyl Vac. “It’s a vacuum extension with a small, soft pad on the bottom side where you can clean the record and then vacuum it off,” he says.

For a dry clean, the Vinyl Vac can connect to the hose on your typical household vacuum cleaner. The record can be placed on a turntable while the Vinyl Vac is applied for wiping and vacuuming.

For a wet clean, a wet dry vac is required. DO NOT attempt a wet clean of your vinyl when the record is on a turntable. To do the wet clean, place the record on a smooth surface or towel. Create a solution using one of the following options:

• Distilled water with mild detergent or dish soap

• Distilled water and isopropyl alcohol

• Distilled water with two to three drops of purpose-made vinyl cleaner, like TergiKleen, a product the Library of Congress recommends for cleaning records. TergiKleen sells for $30 per bottle, but goes a long way

Vinyl Vac comes with a label protector. Place the label protector over the center label, then spray your solution onto the record. Use the Vinyl Vac to wipe and vacuum the record clean.

Hankerson’s tips:
“Vinyl Vac seemed to do a really good job, especially for the investment. It wasn’t 100% perfect, and a record that was really dirty would need another cleaning.”

High-End Approach

For the most thorough clean, Hankerson invested in an ultrasonic cleaner like the one made by Vevor. It sells for about $200, and is a dedicated appliance. “It can be used for jewelry, but it has a special attachment for records,” Hankerson explains. “You can put six records on at once. The machine rotates the records while vibrating the water, and it really helps get all that gunk out of the grooves. It really is more of a professional-level clean.”

It would seem the record labels would get wet, but Hankerson says the machine does not submerge the label. What’s more, the centrifugal force caused by the rotation pulls any water away from the center label.

Hankerson’s tip:
“It does a really great job of shaking all the gunk out of the record’s grooves, but it can unfortunately still dry back on the record, so if you follow it with a wet vac, then you get a really professional result.”

Cleaning the Stylus

The stylus — or needle — on your record player can pick up dust or dirt over time when you play records. When the needle is dirty, the signal that gets sent to the phono pre-amplfier, the speaker amplifier and the speakers will have noise in it. “It's kind of like brushing your teeth with a dirty toothbrush,” Hankerson says.

Keeping the stylus clean will help keep the complete signal path from stylus to the speakers as clear as possible. You can use a stylus brush to clean the needle; another simple household solution is to use an adhesive putty like Blu Tack to get dust and dirt off the stylus.

Sample Results

To help illustrate how cleaning records can affect the sound, Hankerson did a test using Chick Corea’s 1979 album, Delphi 1 Solo Piano Improvisations.

Here is audio of the needle being placed on the record — before cleaning — as it begins to play track 1, “Delphi I.” Notice the surface noise, aka “crackles and pops,” heard as the needle passes over the track band before the music begins.

Now, here is that same record being played after cleaning. Notice how the surface noise at the beginning is far more absent.

The effects of cleaning the record are also visible. Here are waveform representations of the audio before and after cleaning.

Before

After

Additional advice and tips

Peterson stresses that when wiping records with a cloth, melamine pad, or carbon brush, it’s vital that the record is on a firm surface where it cannot flex — and possibly break. “When I get a record that is really dirty, I do the first pass with a melamine pad,” Peterson says. “I use that instead of any type of solvents or surfactants to clean it. For ongoing maintenance, that’s when I use the felt and carbon fiber.”

And Hankerson says there is a limit to what vinyl cleaning can do. “It doesn't fix scratches,” he says. “If your record is all scratched up, unfortunately, as far as I know, there isn't really a solution to that.

“But if it's just dirty,” Hankerson continues, “if it's in good shape, it's going to make a huge difference. It will sound wonderful.”

This feature is part of The Current’s 89 Days series, helping you enjoy the best of the season with weekly guides to events, entertainment, and recreation in the Twin Cities.