Record Care: The Problems

While it is true that proprietary record care accessories such as a cloth wipe, or "Dust Bug" achieve some success in picking up stray dust and grit, many smaller particles get left behind and become embedded in the groove by the stylus, causing irreparable damage.

With most wet cleaners the problems do not end there:
Most liquids used in conjunction with a cloth, brush or spray can dislodge a large proportion of dust deposits, but the problem is removing the liquid again afterwards. Thus the brush or cloth cannot completely achieve this and so the remaining fluid evaporates, the dirt congeals together, and suddenly mini particles have become "mega boulders".

Consider the effects of a passing stylus forcing these into the groove of your most prized LP and it becomes clear that some cleaners can cause more damage than if you hadn't bothered to clean the record at all.