Optical Media Preservation - Cleaning of Optical Disks

Cleaning of Optical Disks

Optical media disks often require professional preventative or routine cleaning to ensure data accuracy and accessibility; those with no professional experience may scratch the disk surface in their attempt to clean the disk. Build up of dust and oily contaminants on the disk surface, and fingerprints can typically impede the laser beam’s ability to penetrate the substrate to read the data layer, and more often impede writing. Minor interferences with reading is handled by error correction technology. If an audio CD (with a much lower accuracy threshold than a data disk) becomes dirty, it can be cleaned safely with a dry, soft lint-free cloth, holding the disc by the edges or by the center hole. Light dirt that is not removed by this method can be removed with a cloth dampened with water or a suitable optical disc-cleaning fluid. It has been advised that excess dust be blown off an optical disc before reading, to avoid build up of dust in the reader, particularly on the laser.