Cleaning Discs

[CRV]

How do YOU clean (optical) discs?

 

Yesterday, I came to the conclusion that anything you do causes scratches. I cleaned some games I bought recently with a microfiber cloth, and that's leaving scratches. And it turns out, upon closer inspection with a flashlight, the CD cleaner I was using for years (an earlier model of this) was leaving rings around the disc.

[Rybags]

Wipe from inner ring to outer, not in circles. If scratches do occur, they're less likely to cause error if they run at 90 degrees to the tracks.

 

Simple window cleaner should be fine as a first stage of cleaning.

 

Of course it's best to not get the discs dirty to begin with, ie keep in their jackets, and don't hold the things as if they're a ninja throwing star - but of course it's rarely the case if you buy an ex-rental or otherwise used CD.

[Austin]

I use pledge and typically a microfiber cloth. Sometimes soft toilet paper does the trick as well (with pledge).

[CRV]

I'll add that I was using rubbing alcohol.

[Rybags]

A lot of microfibre cloths do more bad than good.

 

I've got one of those ancient yellow cloths that was probably from early 80s intended to clean vinyl records - does much the same job without the harshness.

[gamecat80]

I use one of those CD cleaners that has a little brush on the disc -- it wipes the lens. I also just wipe the CD on my shirt or pants if there is dirt on it.

 

Related question: Does anyone know of something that can buff out scratches on CDs/DVDs? I have some that are scratched, and they skip bad or wont play at all!

[Austin]

Related question: Does anyone know of something that can buff out scratches on CDs/DVDs? I have some that are scratched, and they skip bad or wont play at all!

 

I haven't seen anything worthwhile for consumer/home use. There are professional machines out there that will do it though (at the expense of a slight layer of the plastic on the disc, but you can get the disc looking new again).

[+save2600]

Microfiber cloth and iKlear cleaning solution. Works great and doesn't leave obvious scratches or swirls.

 

Of course, the discs I buy new never get dirty or scratched. Only ever need to clean (or resurface) sumguys used discs. Really is amazing how animalistic and scummy many people are when it comes to this stuff. And what's with all the water (snot, puke, etc.) damaged manuals, covers and inserts lately?

[CRV]

 

I haven't seen anything worthwhile for consumer/home use. There are professional machines out there that will do it though (at the expense of a slight layer of the plastic on the disc, but you can get the disc looking new again).

 

I've gotten a few games working or mostly working with disc repair goop, but I can't say I would recommend it. And the discs look worse after you buff them.

[fiddlepaddle]

I use an eyeglasses cleaning cloth to avoid damage.

 

For cleaning, start with window cleaner, then move to Awsome Orange is that doesn't do it.

 

For minor scratches, you can fill them with "plastic repair" compounds available in the auto-supply section of your favorite store. You can also get an extremely fine abraisive designed for eye glasses repair and manufacturing, but it's hard to find and must be used carefully to avoid causing extra damage. Some used game stores have machines that can polish off minor scratches; Game Crazy near me used to do it for a dollar a disk, but they're gone now.

 

You can also lay a disk down shiny-side up, and dribble a thin layer of 91% alcohol on it and let it set for ten minutes, which sometimes makes a disk more readable, for some reason. After I've done all that, and a disk still doesn't work, I spray it with silicone spray lubricant, let it dry, and buff it until it's shiny. This usually does the trick unless the disk is completely useless.

[CRV]

I use an eyeglasses cleaning cloth to avoid damage.

 

Are those softer than microfiber cloths?

Edited July 9, 2014 by CRV

[fiddlepaddle]

 

Are those softer than microfiber cloths?

 

Well, I'm not sure if they're softer, but they are designed to clean glass, plastic, and polycarbonate lenses without scratching, which anybody who wears glasses will tell you, is the most important thing when looking for a cloth to clean your eyeglasses with.

 

By the way, never clean them dry; always run a bit of water over your glasses (or CD/DVD) first, to avoid swirling around any transient particles of abrasive dust, which will scratch no matter what kind of cloth you use.

[CatPix]

I use one of those CD cleaners that has a little brush on the disc -- it wipes the lens. I also just wipe the CD on my shirt or pants if there is dirt on it.

 

Related question: Does anyone know of something that can buff out scratches on CDs/DVDs? I have some that are scratched, and they skip bad or wont play at all!

I bough some product on eBay - from the USA, BTW. It's a thick liquid you pour on the disc, and you use paper towel stuff (or toilet paper) to rub it on the disc.

It may sound like your fake product that doesn't do much, but it works. I got CD-I games that skipped or won't even load, that now works fine after a year since using the stuff.

It doesn't do miracles, tho.

I can't seem to find it again on eBay, but that was a year ago so maybe the guy doesn't sell it or it changed name and look.