Interesting All-in-One Ultrasonic Cleaner - HumminGuru

Here is something on Kickstarter that might be of interest for people here. I'm not really a kickstarter person. I've funded only two projects throughout the years but both worked out successfully.

Here is the direct link via Kickstarter

HumminGuru | All-in-One Ultrasonic Vinyl Record Cleaner

 

Can’t beat the price!

I’ve never done Kickstarter. You pay now and hope it gets built and shipped?

 

Yes, at roughly $299 for the unit and another $60 for shipping, it's quite competitive.

Looking over the product again, it's seems to be well thought out and designed.

 

It looks decent. Seems like one of the ultrasonics you can buy on ebay, but with better design, and not quite as "DIY" and clunky.

 

Looks nice! If I wasn't terrified of ultrasonic record cleaners, I might actually consider becoming a backer.

 

In what way? I've been concerned about how loud some of the ultrasonic units are when in use. Seems a bit off-putting....

 

It's just paranoia I'm sure, but I personally wouldn't risk putting my precious vinyl into a machine that can dissolve metal. I know these cleaners are calibrated to not do that, but I'd always worry that mine was the one that slipped through QC.

 

Ah I see. I don't know anything about that but I understand the concern about not wanting to harm valuable records.

 

interesting, i have a vinylstack now and a tank it does 3 at a time and i often wish it did more but the drying part is the most tedious.
one downside i'd see here is you cant slow down the speed or raise the time , it looks like its moving too quickly based on the video but maybe thats quick clean mode

 

Good observation on the rotation speed. Not sure what the optimal speed is for effective cleaning. Perhaps there is a way to control it? I asked the question in the kickstarter. Let's see if I get a response.

 

slower is usually better since the longer its in the bath the more deep cleaning it gets, but you dont want it there too long.

i run mine 15min which i think i get 2 revolutions at 7min(ish) per.
wonder what temp the water is at, or if its heated.

dont get me wrong any ultrasonic that drys for 299+shipping is far superior to a spinclean

 

I was wondering about heating of the water as well. Does this naturally occur from the ultrasonic process or is a heating element needed?

 

No you heat it, I pre warm my water to save wear n tear on the tank and the stoves faster
I tend to do about 40c

 

Rotation speed doesn't matter one iota....it's the total time in the tank that counts. Also important is the location of the transducers. Most are at the bottom, but these appear to be on the sides directly facing the grooves where they will be most effective.

If this goes ahead it could be a game changer, but it still suffers from the drawbacks common to all US machines, namely a lack of rinse and proper removal of the cleaning liquid from the record.

 

I think it states run time is 7-10min clean time and then a 5min dry time. No reason why you couldn’t do the clean cycle twice I suppose.
Good point regarding the rinsing. Are there any ultrasonic cleaners that have a rinse cycle too?

 

Well yes but a slower speed means more time in the tank, so it either needs to spin slower or have a longer cycle . 5 minutes seems a bit lite on cleaning time but I could see the benefit of that for not too dirty records
And then run twice for an extra cleaning

 

That 7-10 includes dry time
It’s 2min quick clean or 5min deep clean
This could just be a very efficient unit since it’s custom designed


Quick look at similar much pricier machines and they all seem to be 5min cycles.
And no rinse cycle....but at $299 early bird this seems like a steal if it happens

 

Longer is better when it comes to US cleaning times, but the record spends only 40% of the total time actually submerged in the tank, regardless what the speed is. In other words, 10 minutes total is actually only 4 underwater, regardless of how many revolutions that takes.

It's better to have it move fast so the cleaning agents used don't dry on the record. If they do, they have to be dissolved again before the cavitation bubbles can work their magic.

 

Try a Pablo Cruise lp as a guinea pig

 

I think we’re saying the same things just differently, what you said is how my setup is I had to adjust the motor speed to balance time in tank without going too slow it dries

the more I look at this product the more interested I get

 

The "if it happens" is the key point. My understanding of kick starter is that as long as they hit their goal, you can't get your $ back, whether they ever deliver anything to you or not.

I have no idea whether it's a valid premise or not, but intuitively it seems to me that a slower spinning speed is better. Your cavitation bubbles is the mechanism for cleaning, isn't it? So if they're trying to work on a relatively rapidly moving target, it just seems like it would be less effective, even if the target is "within range" for the same total period of time.

 

Thanks. I noticed that too after I reread it.

 

You do bring up an interesting point with regards to agents and drying. To circumvent this, I wonder how effective ultrasonic cleaning can be without adding agents to the water. I know using at least a surfactant is recommended.

 

I think the standard mix is a mostly distilled water, a surfactant as you said, isopropyl alcohol, and a disinfectant/antimicrobial. For the physical cleaning process itself, it doesn't seem like the disinfectant is really required - that's more for solution storage and the benefit of your tank. Isopropyl, when pure, shouldn't leave a residue. So it's really just the residue of your surfactant if you're willing to do without the disinfectant.

In the proportion required to be effective, I don't know how much of a residue the common surfactants leave though. I personally use a vacuum based RCM to vacuum off the ultrasonic bath liquid because I want to sleeve my cleaned records right away. I know people who air dry their ultrasonically cleaned records though, and they don't seem to suffer any ill effects. I've bought pre-cleaned records from a friend who does this, and I've never noticed any visible or audible residue.

 

By dissolve metal, you mean punch holes in aluminum foil? I'd say your paranoia is unfounded given how long the technology has been around. If ultrasonics were punching holes in records, word would have gotten out long ago.