Although, today, CDs may seem very obsolete, the truth is that many people still keep these in their home or car. However, these discs were never as indestructible as their inventors claimed, so usually accumulate scratches and scrapes .
Now, given that these compacts can be very useful for listening to music anywhere and, in addition, they keep songs inside that remain of interest to users, the doubt has arisen regarding your recovery .
Will it be possible to repair a scratched CD or disk to make it work again? Well, in this post we will show you the steps you can take to eliminate these scratches , the way you can clean them so that reread data and how true is the effectiveness of toothpaste for it.
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Steps to fix a disc or scratched CD and remove scratches
Luckily, there are several methods you can choose to restore a scratched compact disc and, in addition, completely eliminate scratches that it has.
Beyond resorting to the usual trick of using toothpaste for this, taking into account that later we will indicate how much this can work or not. Next, we detail other ways to recover a damaged CD in minutes and are:
Use a specific product to restore CDs
Without a doubt, this is the most successful procedure to fix a scratched disk and repair its scratches. Which basically consists of buying a product that is specially created to quickly restore the compact . Bearing in mind that, fortunately, you can find these products from famous online stores or even in cleaning or painting stores.
However, before indicating the steps you should take with the help of the product, it is appropriate to highlight that you need to use a cotton cloth and perform the procedure with gloves latex. So, you have to do the following:
- First of all, be sure to clean the CD outdoors , because the smell of the product can be annoying and even harmful in a closed place.
- Proceed to apply a few drops of the product in question on the surface of the compact, of course using your latex gloves .
- Now, with the cotton cloth, spread the product over the entire CD and rub it from the outside inwards (this is very important).
- Subsequently, there will be a small resistance , if the Product is working successfully. Since, this indicates that you are removing the damaged film from the object.
- Then, you must continue rubbing the CD with the product and in case it evaporates, you can apply a few drops more on the surface.
- When you see that the stripes have disappeared, you can wash the compact with tap water and, finally, dry with a soft cloth (microfiber or cotton ).
It is appropriate to note that the time it takes to rub the CD with the product used will depend on how scratched it is.
Applying Vaseline to disk
Because Vaseline is an accessible product for all people, basically; It is also considered a good method to get a scratched disc to work again. Thus, the trick reveals a great advantage and is that is extremely simple to do and takes a short time, the steps to be executed are as follows:
- Take the CD in question and rub a small amount of Vaseline specifically on the scratch (s) that the object has.
- Once done, you must let it rest for a total of one minute .
- After that, start gently rubbing the product on the disc, in order to remove it gradually. It is required to use a straight line movement from the inside outwards .
- Finally, remove as much petroleum jelly as possible and observe that the disc finishes completely clean and dry .
If the method worked correctly, you can verify it by placing the CD in the player to see if it plays properly. In most cases, reveals good results, as long as the CD does not show as many scratches .
Using a banana (or cambur)
Although it seems out of context, a banana can help you fix your scratched CD and repair it quickly. This one, you can use it in two ways:
With the skin or peel of the banana (the simplest way)
- You just have to remove the skin of a banana and with it, start very gently rub the entire surface of the compact disc.
- After rubbing during a Timely, you must dry the object with a soft cotton or microfiber cloth and voila, you can proceed to test if the CD works.
With the peeled banana
- To start, you must peel the banana and then cut it in half .
- Subsequently, use one half of the banana to gently rub the disc , always in a direction from the inside out. It is important that you repeat this procedure several times.
- Now, proceed to clean the CD with warm water , as this will allow you to remove all the residue from the fruit.
- To conclude, dry the disc and test if it plays normally. Otherwise, we recommend repeating the steps again.
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With baking soda
This is a product that can be found in any supermarket or store and thanks to this, we consider that is a completely accessible method for users who want to recover their scratched CDs. In such a way, the trick is to do the following:
- To start, you have to apply baking soda over the surface of the scratched compact disc .
- Then, scrub the object with the help of a cotton cloth previously moistened with tap water . This, so that a dry paste forms.
- Now, use the same cloth to make circular movements on the CD. Which should be done from the center of it to the outside.
- Finally, use another cloth to completely clean the disk and test if it worked.
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It should be noted that, what baking soda does is polish the CD and this helps it work after it has been scratched.
Using a glass or metal cleaner
You can also use the famous metal or glass cleaners to recover your scratched CD quickly and easily. If, for example, you prefer to do it with the glass cleaner because you already have it in your home, you must follow these steps:
- Take the compact disc you want to fix and apply a small amount of the product over its entire surface .
- Subsequently, with the help of a suede , rub from the inside out and you will see that the surface of the disc looks very clean and shiny . For later, check if the trick worked.
On the other hand, if you choose to use the metal cleaner, the procedure to be executed is as follows:
- You should also apply a few drops of this cleaner on the top of the compact disc and rub it with a chamois , with direction from the inside to the outside .
- Once you notice that the object is completely polished, you have to rinse it with tap water .
- Finally, dry the CD with a soft cloth and proceed to try it on the player.
How to clean a CD or DVD to make it work again and read the data?
On many occasions, CDs or DVDs do not work because of the impurities accumulated in this . Since, generally when the data stored in the compact discs cannot be read, it is because it is absolutely dirty. Which may be due to liquids, dust or thimbles.
In this case, you must proceed to clean it as follows :
- Using a soft cloth or a specialized cleaning brush , start removing the dirt contained in the disc.
- While doing such cleaning, it is important that you do in the direction from top to bottom and also from the center towards the edges or the outside of the CD, always in a straight line . It is never recommended to do this cleaning in a circular way.
- Also, if you notice that the dirt is very attached to the object in question, you can help using warm water and a little soap to it. It is best that the soap is neutral or baby and at the time of washing it should be with a soft cloth .
On the other hand, if the damaged disk has some mark , it is not enough to perform such cleaning to recover it. In this case, it is best to try to reduce the damage in the protection layer above the data layer that all CDs or DVDs have and that is what is usually scratched. Since, in that way, the reader will be able to recognize the data .
In this sense, to make it work again, you can use certain homemade tricks that sometimes work . Taking into account that, as the protective layer of the CD is a plastic, it allows the use of some substances that repair such a special layer.
These methods are:
- With magic cleansing sponges : You can find them in the market and they are very simple to use. You just have to wet them with tap water and drain them, to proceed to rub them on the CD very gently.
- Applying heat to the protective layer of the compact : You can light a light bulb during few minutes and when it is hot, bring it closer to the damaged disc for about 15 seconds. This is an effective trick when the rayon is small.
The myth of the toothpaste is used to repair the discs or scratched CDs?
In addition to the methods that we initially recommend, another of the most famous tricks to fix a disc with scratches, is using a toothpaste . As for its operation, it is worth noting that in most cases it reveals good results. However, these will depend on how users perform the procedure .
In this way, it is recommended to take into account certain forecasts before carrying out the process with the toothpaste you want.
These forecasts consist of :
- First of all, check both sides of the CD to specify which one has the damage . Since, if the scratches are observed just below the disc label, this would destroy it completely permanently. Because, the information is stored in that place.
- If, fortunately, these scratches are on the side that reflects, we could guarantee that the CD has repair . That is, you can use the toothpaste trick to fix it. Which, works as an abrasive agent to wear down the affected areas and thus, turn them into a completely smooth and reflective surface.
- Before using toothpaste, we advise you to wash the disc with a soft, damp cloth (prevents it from releasing lint so as not to generate new scratches), rubbing it from the inside to the edge and never using circular motions.
- Yes you see that the disc is fatty, it is better to use alcohol than water. If it contains a lot of dust, it is recommended to spray with compressed air , instead of tap water.
Now, if you focus on specifying all the recommendations detailed above, the toothpaste method will work successfully , which is carried out through the following process :
- Using the toothpaste of your choice (as long as is not granulated , so as not to produce more scratches), take the scratched CD and apply a very thin layer on the surface of that paste.
- After this, spread the paste across the entire disk smoothly .
- After a few seconds, remove the cream from teeth when rinsing the compact thoroughly with tap water. Which, must be at room temperature .
- Subsequently, using a cotton or micro-fiber cloth, subtly dry the entire object . With this, the CD should work properly now, when you try it on any player.