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Isn’t it funny how when they first came out CDs were widely believed to be indestructible, scratch proof, and all sorts of things …. I remember in the 80s an auntie getting a CD player and then washing one of her CDs in the kitchen sink to prove how clever and modern they were.
I was just about to post saying "I remember a host of Tomorrows World (or was it Blue Peter?) smothering one in jam."
But then I thought, I'd check whether it was TW or BP and googled it.
The only reason people remember it as Tomorrows World is because at the time it was a prevalent show. As your link shows it is not a totally false memory just remembered slightly wrong
This is the breakfast show one in full
Looking at the format of that clip you can see how easy it is that it is remembered as Tomorrows World imo
A segment on BBC show Tomorrow's World presented by Kieran Prendiville was partly responsible; he was shown scraping and scratching a Bee Gees CD to demonstrate its resilience, although folklore states that he coated it with strawberry jam. Neither Prendiville nor co-host Maggie Philbin remembers any jam; just Kieran's sceptical pondering over whether it would catch on.
No, it won’t. To damage the disc it would have to either warp, scratch or corrode the plastic, and I very much doubt anything you can put on your hands would be capable of doing that. If it leaves visible smears it may of course fail to play back properly but cleaning it with a soft cloth would fix that.
Thank you for the reply.
I am relieved to read that a bit of dried handwash which might not disappear after a thorough rinse will not cause any damage to a CD or DVD.
Apologies for bringing up an old topic but it has occurred to me whether any soap left in your hands after washing and rinsing can damage CDs and DVDs.
I have noticed that whilst you can easily wash away soap, the 'grease' from the soap stays on your hands and that it is not that easy to fully dry your hands.
I came across his in a Google search which said:
"CDs and DVDs are made from polycarbonate, with a layer of foil (gold or aluminum) protected by a layer of lacquer. That's the same plastic as your eyeglasses!... A mild dish soap that is water-based. Isopropyl alcohol/rubbing alcohol and water - mixed at a rate of 1:1....If you'll be careful to not scratch the disc, the washing itself will not damage the disc. btw, because of the soap can leave some residuals."
This was written in2013 and it's difficult to be sure whether tis way referring to soap which one sues to wash one's hands.
It'll be fine, just use glasses cleaner and I lint free cloth or ven a paper towel would do for cleaning if need be.But who holds a dvd using their fingers on the main surface, always use the edges and the centre hole.
To avoid confusion, I thought it best to re-ask the question in its own discussion topic.
I have noticed that whilst you can easily wash away soap, the 'grease' from the soap stays on your hands and that it is not that easy to fully dry your hands.
I came across his in a Google search which said:
"CDs and DVDs are made from polycarbonate, with a layer of foil (gold or aluminum) protected by a layer of lacquer... A mild dish soap that is water-based. Isopropyl alcohol/rubbing alcohol and water - mixed at a rate of 1:1....If you'll be careful to not scratch the disc, the washing itself will not damage the disc. btw, because of the soap can leave some residuals."
It is this protective layer that is mentioned in this article written in 2013 which stops CDs and DVDs being damaged by soap, especially after the soap has been thoroughly rinsed away, thereby leaving greasy hand?.
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Re: Does soap damage CDs/DVDs?
CDs are more sensitive to damage as the error correction is not as strong as on DVDs so a CD is the thing to test it on.
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Why not try it and see? Surely you have some "mistake purchase" or "unwanted gift" CDs/DVDs you never want to play again. I know I certainly do.
Thank you for your reply.
My concern regarding doing this is that it could damage the device I was playing the disc on.
---------- Post added at 12:30 ---------- Previous post was at 12:28 ----------
Quote:
Originally Posted by heero_yuy
CDs are more sensitive to damage as the error correction is not as strong as on DVDs so a CD is the thing to test it on.
I didn't know that.
I guess it comes down to whether there are protective layers on discs and how well they repel dirt of any kind, as well as washing products which are designed for our hands and not for CDs and DVDs.
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Re: Does soap damage CDs/DVDs?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Halcyon
CD's don't last forever. Always a good idea to back them up to a hard drive.
Yep, regardless of any cleaning products, recordable CDs degrade over time.
Depending on quality, their lifespan could be as short as 20 years. Commercial [eg Music] CDs [should] last a lot longer.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rillington
My concern regarding doing this is that it could damage the device I was playing the disc on.[/COLOR]
In short, No, a CD/DVD player simply shines a laser at the disk.
They wont be damaged any more than a torch would be if you shined it at one.
CD's don't last forever. Always a good idea to back them up to a hard drive.
Just found this:
Code:
Optical disc formats Average longevity
CD-R (phthalocyanine dye, gold metal layer) >100 years
CD-R (phthalocyanine dye, silver alloy metal layer) 50 to 100 years
DVD-R (gold metal layer) 50 to 100 years
CD (read-only, such as an audio CD) 50 to 100 years
CD-RW (erasable CD) 20 to 50 years
BD-RE (erasable Blu-ray) 20 to 50 years
DVD+R (silver alloy metal layer) 20 to 50 years
CD-R (cyanine or azo dye, silver alloy metal layer) 20 to 50 years
DVD+RW (erasable DVD) 20 to 50 years
BD-R (non-dye, gold metal layer) 10 to 20 years
DVD-R (silver alloy metal layer) 10 to 20 years
DVD and BD (read-only, such as a DVD or Blu-ray movie) 10 to 20 years
BD-R (dye or non-dye, single layer or dual layer) 5 to 10 years
DVD-RW (erasable DVD) 5 to 10 years
DVD+R DL (dual layer) 5 to 10 years
That's a lot longer than your typical hard drive.
I bought my first CDs in 1986, and I haven't noticed any failing yet.
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