How do I clean a compact disc that has scratches manually?
2006-10-18 05:31:51 · 7 answers · asked by Ricky D 1 in Consumer Electronics ➔ Games & Gear
I agree about the toothpaste method. A friend told me and it sure sounded weird! But I watched her do it and ta-da! It worked.
But I disagree, I guess, with the method the other person suggested.
Instead of squeezing the toothpaste right onto the disk, squeeze it onto your finger. Then apply it to the disk. Add a little water (water does not hurt your CDs). Gently rub the disk using a small circular motion...with the water it will become like a liquid paste, like when you brush your teeth.
When you've rubbed all of the cd, rinse it off with water...you can just put it under the faucet on low pressure. Clean off your finger and continue with the circle motion to get all the paste off that might be stuck on the CD.
When you dry it you have to use a very gentle cloth...personally I wouldnt even use a papertowel because it can be too rough. Instead use a cloth like a shirt, or a tissue. Remember, when you're drying you want to work from the center, and go to the outside of the disk, in a straight motion. Rubbing in circles around the cd isnt good for it.
This method works for smaller scratches, even if there are alot. But if you have a really deep scratch I dont know if there is any way around it...you'll probably just have to buy the CD again.
2006-10-18 05:45:11 · answer #1 · answered by jenNdan18286 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In order to understand how to clean a cd, it's best to understand how the cd works - The digital info (music, software, etc) is UNDER the clear plastic on the underside of the cd. Scratches keep the laser from reading the info by obscuring or distorting the plastic in front of the digital information.
If the scratch is really bad, you need to get your disk "resurfaced." That basically means grinded down so that the scratch is taken out. Thankfully, for smaller scratches, you can do this yourself with a product called Brasso.
Brasso is a metal polish that is slightly gritty. Rubbing it RADIALLY on a cd can remove a lot of the scratches and make cds usable again. I did this with several dvds that nothing else worked on, and Brasso did the trick. You can purchase Brasso for about $3 at Wal-Mart, Home Depot, or Lowes.
I know a recommendation like this can be kind of scary - What if it does more damage then good, eh? So, I 've included the wikipedia link to ease your mind.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brasso
"Brasso is also used to polish CDs prior to ripping them with a utility such as Exact Audio Copy. It is a mild solvent and a mild abrasive, so when applied to the reflective surface of the CD and rubbed radially, it can smooth scratches and reduce their effect. Although the effect is invisible to the naked eye (and often makes the surface look more opaque), it can tremendously improve the ability of many CD-ROM drives to read the disc.
Brasso has also been used to polish out scratches on the reverse side of iPods and similar MP3 players [1].
Because of its usefulness for CD and iPod restoration, there is now significant demand for Brasso in the USA, but it is often difficult to find in American supermarkets.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brasso"
Hope this helps!
2006-10-18 14:30:38 · answer #2 · answered by dansweaza 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Never heard of toothpaste before but sounds good, only one change...
Do not clean in a circular motion. This can result in introducing new scratches that can affect data on the disk since they follow the rotational motion of the disc... clean from center to edge...
2006-10-18 12:48:28 · answer #3 · answered by Andy FF1,2,CrTr,4,5,6,7,8,9,10 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can go to a CD store and they sell different products but if you have non colored non sented chapstick that works just as well... Rub it all over the CD and then gently wipe it off with a tissue. this will fillin the scratches and usually let the CD play again if it didn't before
2006-10-18 12:36:37 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have heard this works:
Peanut Butter. You spread creamy peanut butter on the disk and wipe it off with a dryer sheet (no lint!). It is supposed to clean and fill in the scratches.
2006-10-18 12:41:21 · answer #5 · answered by ktan_the_siren 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I suggest just burning the CD because the copy of it will come out scratch proof. It works for me.
2006-10-18 12:34:30 · answer #6 · answered by Michael T 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
gald you asked!
this sounds weird but i swear toothpaste stops the skipping. you still see the scratches but it works. even on DVD's! all i do is squeeze some on the disk then spread it around. theni take a tissue w/ water on it and wipe it off. i dont know how it works, but it does.
2006-10-18 12:36:26 · answer #7 · answered by m&fn princess 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋