I had a bit of a flood the other week and I thought my box of current favourite vinyl was safe from the water due to the carrying box they were in. However, when I looked tonight it was a bit of a soggy mess (I know I should’ve looked earlier but my mind was on other things like roof, walls etc). In the box I had about 20ish new records and most of the covers are ruined. I’m not too bothered about the covers, but most of the records look ok- but some have the paper inners stuck to the vinyl.

Any suggestions for cleaning ie. solution and brushes? I’ve heard of people using PVA but not sure if that’s an old wifes tale

Just run them under a cold tap and get most of the gunge off.

Don’t scrub or attempt to remove anything. Don’t pick with your finger or be tempted to run something over them.

If you have an expensive cartridge or stylus, remove it and fit an AT95E for a while.

Been there, done that. People kicking drinks over at parties and forgetting to mention it. 😶

Just playing them then cleaning the stylus will get rid of most of the damage.

I use washing up liquid in luke warm water and a soft bylon brush. They play fine after.

Surely you’d claim for them with the insurance. The sleeves are part of the product, so if they’re ruined….

If you have bits really stuck onto the vinyl then I’ve always used what the wise old sage who used to run Beano Records in Croydon used to clean his records, a bit of lighter fluid (the type used in a Zippo) on some lint-free cloth. Works a treat.

Don’t buy expensive ‘record cleaning fluids’, they’re generally just repackaged common products you can find much cheaper elsewhere.

WD40

As above, gentle rinse under the sink to get the worse off. If you still have crud stuck in the grooves get some cheap wood glue and use the method below which I think you will need to do

Dishwasher is easiest, just rack them in the plates drawer and set it off.

If it’s paper stuck to the surface, then soaking for an hour or two will help dissolve it and it should float off. Getting hold of some distilled water, the stuff used for steam irons and batteries is a good idea for rinsing off, because it’s pure, and doesn’t contain any dissolved minerals that’ll leave deposits as it dries.
A bottle of isopropanol with a microfibre cloth is useful as well.

If you’re into vinyl then buy one of these:

https://www.dv247.com/en_GB/GBP/Knosti-Disco-Record-Cleaning-Machine-Goat-Hair-Brush-1-Liter-Fluid/art-DJE0001187-000?campaign=GShopping/UK&ProgramUUID=HADAqJarPzAAAAFlea9yjI.G&campaign=GShopping/UK&programuuid=HADAqJarPzAAAAFlea9yjI.G&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI-NOc9M-84gIVxJrVCh2PJA_3EAUYAiABEgIywPD_BwE

Dishwasher will warp them if it uses hot water or dries with a heating element.

My father has been cleaning thousands of records a year for tens of years an he uses Ambersil Groom and a natural bristle brush like you’d find in the bodyshop attached to a stick for back scrubbing.