CED is a very fragile system. Plagued with issues all the way back to it’s inception. RCA wanted CED to be like your regular record player. You would open the top of the player, place your disc in, and press play to move the stylus arm onto the disc. Unfortunately they discovered the disc did not hold up well to being handled. The solution was to encase the disc in a caddy so that it’s not touched by human hands. But you do run into another common record problem, stacked records will get crushed grooves and not play correctly. CED is also prone to this issue, the caddy helps but it’s not fool proof. The best thing you can do is to open and inspect every disc before you insert it in your player. This will prevent you from trying to play a damaged disc. Discs that are broken, cracked, or badly scratched can damage a stylus or even destroy a player. This is a costly mistake that can be easily avoided.
So what happens if I play a disc that looks good but it still skips?
When the discs where manufactured they were coated with a layer of silicone called Wang’s Dupont. The silicone prevents wear to the disc and to the stylus. It is coated very thin and over time the silicone on the high parts of the groove will settle down into the groove. When the stylus attempts to play the disc it has to redistribute the silicone up out of the grooves. During this process the stylus can get bogged down and cause a skip. Rewinding back over the skip and playing the part again will usually clear this up. Sometimes if it is especially bad it may take 2 or 3 times before it clears up. If it does not clear up with a few plays, then the disc had crushed grooves from stacking damage and the stylus is skipping over the collapsed grooves. Unfortunately this is irreversible and nothing can be done to fix it.
RCA had a rule that the discs could only be stacked 10 discs high and for a short period of time. This is a good rule to follow. The discs weigh 1.5lbs each and 10 discs would be 15lbs of weight on that bottom disc, the pressure increases the more discs are stacked. If stacked to high that weight presses down on the grooves of the disc and flattens them out to the point where a stylus can no longer track in the groove anymore.
What if a disc is dirty, how do I clean it?
So if there is dust or debris on a disc surface, it can be rinsed with distilled water. Distilled water is free of any contaminants that could affect the silicone layer. This will not remove any fingerprints or scratches. One common issue regarding this is the felt strip on the inside of the caddy. Over time the glue used to hold the strips on will dry out and crack and crumble. This dried glue can fall down into the caddy and cover the surface of the disc. Rinsing the disc with distilled water will help clean off the disc. The caddy can be blown out using a can of compressed air. The felt strips can be removed and re-glued using a glue stick. It helps to sand the surface and blow it clean a couple times first. Let the felt strips dry before putting the spine and disc back in.
My caddy is very dirty, how do I clean it?
The edges of the caddy can be cleaned with almost any cleaner. The label will fade if cleaned with harsh chemicals so you can try to avoid touching the label, or tape it off with blue painters tape. The label is best cleaned with just warm soapy water. I have heard others recommend a magic eraser, but if you scrub too much in one spot this will fade the label as well. Clorox wipes will also work good on the edges, and again lightly on the label. If you need to remove sticker residue, Goo-Gone works good but again can fade the label if used too much in one spot. To remove sharpie from the edge of the caddy, you can use a dry erase marker over the sharpie and then wipe it away with a cleaner. Soft-scrub will also remove sharpie but will fade the label. Spines can be removed and cleaned in soapy water, I have found Dawn dish soap works best. DO NOT WASH THE DISC! Washing the disc will remove the protective silicone and cause damage to your stylus over time. The disc will also wear out much faster, and there is no way to repair it once it is worn.
How should I store my discs?
The best way to store discs is on their edge, on a shelf. Vertical or horizontal does not make a difference, but vertical on the label will cause wear to the label when sliding the discs in and out. The best shelves for this are the cube shelves, most have 18″-19″ cubes. The preferred ones are Ikea Expedit, and Ikea Kallax. Another good option is the Better Homes & Gardens brand from Walmart. Their cube shelves come in a variety of sizes and colors. Some other good storage options are record display shelves. These are usually quite expensive but do look very nice for displaying CED discs.
The discs should be stored in a cool dry location. If stored in a basement, monitor the moisture in the air and get a dehumidifier if necessary. The labels on CED discs can get water damage or discoloration just from sitting on a shelf in a damp environment. Likewise, if stored in an attic or upstairs bedroom, or even a garage or shed, make sure the temperature is not too high. The discs are protected up to several hundred degrees but high heat can cause the silicone to settle down into the grooves, and labels to peel. This can cause problems playing discs.
One last consideration is weight. The discs weigh 1.5lbs each. So several hundred discs will be very heavy. Make sure you get a shelf that can support the weight and more importantly make sure the floor can support the weight. I usually recommend a cement basement floor or cement garage floor. If storing them on an upper level they can be spread out to prevent the weight from all being on one floor joist.
I want to preserve my discs so they look nice, how do I do that?
The final thing I will mention is label protection. The caddies will fit into a XL Ziplock bag or there are tall record bags they will fit in and the top flap can be folded over and taped down. Find a bag that is 10″ by 15″ to allow room for your disc. If you are looking to preserve your labels in mint shape this is a good option.
My label is torn and dirty how do I fix it?
I created a video on how to repair the label from rips and tears. You can clean the caddy and label with a soapy wash cloth or use cleaning wipes, if the cleaning wipes have bleach clean them quickly, do not rub, and dry it off quickly. Bleach left on too long or scrubbed in one spot, will remove the ink from the label. Be very cautious.