Degritter Users

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by WntrMute2, Jun 30, 2019.

  1. VinBob

    VinBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey, USA
    Great info Madrac! :righton:

    Have some questions on the above. For items:

    Item 1) Which upper slot exactly?
    Item 2) Cleaning inside the tank sides or outer sides?

    Thanks as always…

    Cheers,
    Vin.
     
  2. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    Thanks, VinBob

    The upper slot is the one in which you insert the LP. The rubber gasket comes out. It is grooved around the sides which you work back in once done cleaning the ultrasonic (US) tank. It can take some patience. I find starting at one end and working towards the other makes it a little easier, as well as using the toothbrush (handle side) to press the gasket onto the case.

    Cleaning the tank refers to the US tank. I wet the toothbrush with rubbing alcohol and clean the sides/bottom/etc. I may look for a small brush with a flexible handle as that may be a bit more convenient in cleaning the US tank - there are several odd angles/nooks & crannies.

    The water holding tank (the removable one), I just rinse out with warm water when I change the cleaning water. The manual says you can wash this tank in the dishwasher, but I've not tried it as I'm not sure if my dishwasher water is below the max temp (140F, I think) stated in the manual. Better safe than sorry as wouldn't want to warp the tank.
     
  3. VinBob

    VinBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey, USA
    Hey Madrac and thanks for the feedback as always.

    Sorry, but I am being a little thick here and still not fully following all of the above - any chance you can kindly post some pictures with illustrations (where you are inserting the toothbrush etc.) when you have some time which would be really helpful - maybe we can get Degritter to use in a revised version of their manual with a thorough cleaning section we can all follow! :D
     
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  4. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    No worries, VinBob.
    I downloaded a picture from the degritter site and added some notes. Unfortunately, I'm not sure how to embed a jpeg on this site so I'll try to send it to you via PM.
     
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  5. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    VinBob -- Well, seems I can't figure out how to send via pm either. Try this link to my Dropbox. If you still can't access it (or have other questions), feel free to send me your direct email or phone number by PM, if you wish, and we can discuss offline.

    Dropbox - Presentation1.pdf - Simplify your life
     
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  6. VinBob

    VinBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey, USA
    Thanks mate - will take a look later this evening and get back to you - much appreciated...!
     
  7. VinBob

    VinBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey, USA
    Awesome info and illustrations Madrac - Thank You! :righton: - I think I will get some small bottle brushes as a toothbrush I feel is going to be a little challenging and won't offer the level of flexibility. So for step 2, you mention 4 sides and bottom - I assume the four sides are literally front/back and left/right sides of where the insert is into the US tank. I will give that a go but more LP cleaning to do first... ;)

    So I have just cleaned 28 LP's with no leaking whatsoever which is a great improvement and although it hasn't been a week, I think this is the right time to move to the Tergitol fluid from the Degritter. So what would the steps be for me moving to the new fluid and not to mix things? Do I simply do the following steps?

    1) Empty current Degritter + DW fluid from tank
    2) Rinse the US tank with plain warm water
    3) Refill the US tank with DW water
    4) Degas
    5) Add the 1% Tergitol mix (going to do 11ml of Tergitol as recommended)

    And start my cleaning...

    Do I need to do any rinsing within the above 5 steps given the switch to a different surfactant? I would assume so and welcome any help here... Thanks in advance!

    Cheers,
    Vin.
     
  8. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    @VinBob Correct, the four sides front/back/left/right. There are some angles on the left/right sides as I recall; so not exactly "flat". You could always take a flashlight and look inside without removing the gasket.

    As to switching surfactants, your procedure looks fine - assuming you are calling the external water tank the US tank (the latter I consider to be the tank within the unit). I might add a step 3a) and run one or two quick washes without drying to flush out the insides, then rinse the water tank again. It's probably not necessary since the volumes are small, as are the surfactant concentrations...but then again, I'm sometimes OCD.
     
  9. VinBob

    VinBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey, USA
    Thanks mate. Yes, I was indeed referring to the external water tank that you fill with the water.

    I like your idea of a step 3a and I assume this is done without an LP. And when you say rinse the water tank, that would be emptying the water again and adding fresh DW water as a step 3b I guess?

    Also, if I am not switching surfactants, the rinse would not be needed in future correct? I would hate to have to do it every time!
     
  10. robertawillisjr

    robertawillisjr Music Lover

    Location:
    Hampton, VA
    Well it works. My LPs are much quieter (AB comparisons) and sound better.
     
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  11. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    @VinBob The external water tank (that you fill with water) only needs to be rinsed/washed with warm water. It's the internal tank that you clean with the brush/alcohol, rinse, vinegar wash, rinse as described above.

    Yes, all washing/rinsing with cleaning is done without an LP (and without drying, so you'll need to set the fan time to 0, then reset it back to whatever time you are using for the dry cycle). Yes, as well, to emptying the water tank and refilling with distilled after 3a as 3b. Again, probably not really needed as I imagine the internal line volumes are small and will be very little of the old surfactant left inside.
     
  12. VinBob

    VinBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey, USA
    Much appreciated. And for the cleaning of the US Tank (not the external water tank) I am thinking of the following dipped in white vinegar to clean the sides as you recommended before running the rinse cycles:

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DNNT27...wg=nducN&ref_=sbx_be_s_sparkle_mcd_asin_2_img

    Cheers,
    Vin.
     
  13. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    you're welcome, VinBob. Note, isopropyl (rubbing) alcohol was recommended by degritter. That said, diluted vinegar is probably ok (like 100 ml into 1300-1400 ml distilled water)...not sure I'd use vinegar straight.

    These may work a bit better as multiple sizes and the bigger ones should work better/quicker on the bigger surfaces of the US tank.

    https://www.amazon.com/Straw-Cleane...4e073&pd_rd_wg=IZJXt&pd_rd_i=B07MBT6N53&psc=1
     
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  14. VinBob

    VinBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey, USA
    Thanks again Madrac and good one on the other brush options!

    So that's interesting, they recommended using Isopropyl alcohol to clean the internal US Tank per your Step 2 where you mention to insert a tooth-brush (I will use the brushes from Amazon). I was going to use vinegar but I have the alcohol (70% proof), so I can use that instead.

    I am only going to use the 100ml of vinegar into the external tank (DW 1400 ml) to perform the rinse/clean cycles as we have discussed. The thing is and unless I am being really dim here, but by running the rinse cycles using the vinegar in the distilled water, would that not essentially clean the US tank and therefore, render the Step 2 with the brushes unnecessary?

    Sorry, but almost there as it's been a long week...! :laugh:

    Cheers,
    Vin.
     
  15. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    You could probably use the brush without alcohol (or diluted vinegar), just wet with distilled water. I'm guessing the brushing is to get any (if there is any) stuff stuck to the tank that off so it can be filtered out -- or stuff that may not be solubilized easily by vinegar. The vinegar rinse is mainly to dissolve any hard water deposits (same as running vinegar through an automatic coffee pot). Thinking about it, if one is using distilled water, probably not a major need to use vinegar (unless it is also good at killing any microbes, etc that may be in the machine just from having water in general).

    Thank God it's Friday!
     
  16. VinBob

    VinBob Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey, USA
    Yes mate - I would think the brushing is just to get rid of anything that may be stuck to the sides as you said. I will use the water/vinegar mix that I prepare as part of the Step 3 rinse process you kindly documented to perform the cleaning for Step 2. One can easily underestimate the power of White Vinegar - its a very safe, cheap and effective cleaner which can only be helpful to the overall cleaning process. In my current case, maybe even more helpful as I am moving from one surfactant to another - it certainly can't hurt and Degritter themselves have recommended, so why not! :righton:

    Thanks again for the guidance around this and TGIF!

    EDIT: To add, I don't think I need to deal with Step 2 with the brushing as I have only cleaned 28 LP's and nowhere near the recommended period for this - however, I will do the rinse as I am changing out Surfactants...
     
    Last edited: Sep 24, 2021
  17. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    yeah, only need to run the cleaning procedure every 400 or so lps (if I recall from the post earlier in this thread, the range may have been 300-500). I do it around 400 lps as it's the middle although probably could stretch it out further as my lps were all cleaned previously in a home made US cleaner/VPI 16.5
     
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  18. robert perry

    robert perry Well-Known Member

    I am new here. I'm 75 years old and have owned my Degritter for four days. I used a VPI 15 before but I built a new house and have never set up the VPI.
    I am knocked out by the change this has made to my audio enjoyment. I was going so nuts with surface noise on almost new lp's that I was just about to go streaming! But I bought the Degritter at Hawthorne Stereo in Seattle. It has been working fabulously but this morning it started splashing out some foam after I changed the water. I emptied some water and then I got the "low water" message. Do I have too much cleaning fluid in the water?
    Any help would be appreciated. I have a long night of lp cleaning before me. I love this machine.
     
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  19. SpinIt

    SpinIt Musicphile

    Location:
    Paris, France
    Welcome to the site. A fantastic machine, isn’t it?

    After you’ve filled the empty tank with distilled water you need to run the Degas function before you add cleaning fluid. With the message you get, it sounds like there’s simply not enough water in the tank. It’s best to fill the tank as full as possible, just a few mm from the brim. You can ignore the markers on the tank, actually Degritter recommends to ignore them. When it’s time to change the water, always do full water changes, never partial water changes. But sometimes I top off the tank with a bit of additional distilled water, because of evaporation due to washing.

    If you add cleaning fluid to a fresh tank of water, use the pipet to add their cleaning fluid, and don’t add more than 2ml, I usually add about 1.5 which is plenty. Better don’t add additional cleaning fluid if you top off the tank with a bit of additional water. Foam on the records is pretty normal when you have a fresh tank of water, it should get less pretty quickly.

    If you keep getting error messages despite all best efforts, just contact Degritter support through their website. Their customer service is nothing short of stellar.

    Hope it helps!
     
  20. robert perry

    robert perry Well-Known Member

    Thanks Spinit. Looks like I made a combination of newbie errors.
    There are no marks on my tank for water level. I will drain tank and add fresh distilled water to a few mm's from tank top.
    I will then degas. Then I will add 1.5 ml of the cleaning serfactant with a pipet , which I will purchase this morning, it's 4:30 am here now.

    Question: I read about "rinsing". I can't find a "rinse" cycle on the machine. Do I just run a wash cycle with no lp and no drying to get a rinse?
    Given my over bubbled condition, due to what I suspect is way too much serfactant, do I need to do a rinse first with new water before adding my next tub of "working water"?

    Much thanks for your help. I'm an old dog learning a new trick. I'm enjoying it. It's comforting to know this site exists for help.
     
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  21. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    There is not a rinse cycle. You don't necessarily need to run a rinse after a wash cycle (using the recommended amount of Degritter fluid). There should have been a pipette with your degritter (mine came with one). I only use about 1 ml of the degritter cleaning fluid.

    If you used to much surfactant the first time, I'd run one or two quick washes with fresh distilled water to flush the machine, rinse the water tank afterwards, then refill with distilled water, degas, and start cleaning lps again. I generally run 2 - 3 degas cycles to make sure all the tank water has been degassed.
     
  22. robert perry

    robert perry Well-Known Member

    Thanks Mad. That's what I had in mind to do. I did not see a pipet but I still have all the packaging. I'll go through it again. If not I'm sure I can buy one at a local pharmacy. I will run 3 degas cycles as you suggest.
     
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  23. madrac

    madrac Forum Resident

    Location:
    houston, texas
    As I recall, it was either in the bag with the cleaning fluid or the manual, as I recall. Otherwise, like you said, local pharmacy or Amazon.
     
  24. robert perry

    robert perry Well-Known Member

    Thanks Mad:
    I dug through the packaging and found the pipet. I'll use the 1 ml dose for starters.
     
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  25. robert perry

    robert perry Well-Known Member

    Thanks for all the help. I followed the suggestions I received here and my machine is now working beautifully. It does not look like a car wash anymore.
     

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