Disc Cleaners

You've seen them in stores, or online.  They may be in the form of wet or dry cloths or wipes, or simply a dry anti-static cloth accompanied by an alcohol based spray cleaning bottle.  Does this product really do its job, do you really need to spend 15 to 30 dollars (or more) to clean your CD, DVD or Blu-ray disc, and will it even be worth it?  What will you expect to get?  Improved sound, more crisp and clear, and a sharper, clearer video experience?  Maybe...

Well, we here at VideoCrib have tried some of these products.  To be honest with you, although in our opinion they haven't actually taken away from the experience, made the video or audio appear or sound distorted, for example, we cannot really say that we've seen a significant improvement over not using these products.  We feel you can get just as good or better results using another option.

Are disc cleaners worth it?

Chances are you have exactly what you need to achieve good performance just laying around your house, say under the kitchen sink, in the laundry room or at any spot in your house where you keep your household cleaners and rags.  If you want your discs to look and sound their very best each time you play them, then just round up the following household items:

Items Required:

1) 1 paper towel or lint free, non-abrasive cloth

2) 1 spray bottle of natural 'green type' household cleaner.

We like to use 'Green Works' household cleaner.  If you don't have this brand or some similar type of 'green' household cleaner, then a spray bottle of window cleaner will suffice.  We prefer the green type of cleaner since it is usually coconut-based and a little gentler on the disc than using window cleaner or rubbing alcohol with a cotton swab, which can also be used as a last resort.

Instructions:

1) Spray some cleaner onto the paper towel or cloth

2) With the paper towel or cloth, gently wipe the underside of the disc (the side that has no lettering printed on it like 'DVD-R' or the movie name), wiping from the center of the disc out to the edge in a straight line.  Avoid circular motions so as to mimic the encoding patterns of the disc itself (cleaning in a spiral motion), as this could cause loss of data from the disc.  Make sure the disc is dry before step 3.

3) Voila! - Pop it in the player and enjoy your movie or CD at its very best!

...and no need to spend $$$ on a disc cleaning kit.

Give it a Try, and Happy Viewing!