# Washing CDs/DVDs - Any potential for problems?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washing-cds-dvds-any-potential-for-problems/203708>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [September 25, 2003, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washing-cds-dvds-any-potential-for-problems/203708 "2003-09-25T09:37:44Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Dunmurry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d2c977/32.png) [@Dunmurry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunmurry)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2003, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washing-cds-dvds-any-potential-for-problems/203708/1 "2003-09-25T09:37:44Z")

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I am aware that dirt on CDs can cause problems andI clean them, but what I also do is I rinse them under a tap, and wash them. This is the best way of cleaning them. I leave them for several hours to dry and then they play perfectly. Could I cause any damage to the discs by doing this?

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**Author:** ![Phage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a4c791/32.png) [@Phage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phage)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2003, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washing-cds-dvds-any-potential-for-problems/203708/2 "2003-09-25T10:23:56Z")

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The most likely way of causing damage would be to scrub the surface of the disk, causing scratches. Other than that a CD or DVD is really just a piece of plastic with a metal film, so there is not a lot of room to go wrong.

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**Author:** ![xash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c6cbf5/32.png) [@xash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xash)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2003, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washing-cds-dvds-any-potential-for-problems/203708/3 "2003-09-25T10:26:56Z")

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This thread might interest you:

[Why did boiling a CD work?](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=136774)

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**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\
**Post date:** [September 25, 2003, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/washing-cds-dvds-any-potential-for-problems/203708/4 "2003-09-25T14:41:20Z")

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I dry them (probably have done a couple hundred so far) right after rinsing them under the faucet, pat dry with some paper towels. Don’t let them sit around as it would let the water stains set. I rent a lot of stuff & they are dirty so this works to clean them. If you’re picky you can use distilled water instead.