Moldy VHS tapes cleaning tutorial (in 5 easy steps)
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 11 ม.ค. 2019
- The best and easiest way to clean you precious and rare VHS tapes and preserve them for years to come. This video tells you absolutely everything you need to know to remove mold once and for all, even from the nastiest tapes!
- STEP 1: 7:43
- STEP 2: 12:44
- STEP 3: 20:49
- STEP 4: 34:34
- STEP 5: 39:38
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#vhs #videotape #vintagetapes #vintagevhs #thrifting #vhscassette #vcr #비디오테이프 #VHSmovies #Seoul #Korea #VHScollection #vhsmold #tapemold
I digitize VHS tapes for customers of a photo store where I live, so I am continually encountering moldy tapes. I have converted an old VHS machine to be a tape cleaner, by fitting spindles in the tape path with removable cleaning pads (just swapping the damp & dry pads left to right between FFWD and REW. Instead of blowing the mold dust out of the VCR and tape case with my mouth, I use an aerosol "air-duster". They are inexpensive and available from most electronics stores.
Just a tip for everyone doing this: If you wear latex gloves while handling magnetic tape, it can save some quality!
i had a condom on when i did mine for extra protection
You are amazing. I ordered a bunch of tapes recently and to my surprise many of them had mold on the reels. And lots of it. I was sure I wouldn't be able to watch them and my heart broke. I was already aware of the open vcr way of cleaning tapes, which I had used with my obsolete vcr on some of my twitchy and slightly moldy tapes. Well, after watching your tapes I gained the confidence to save those extremely moldy tapes, and it worked so wonderfully well. I was able to restore the first UK release of Alien from 1980, as well as the 1979 release of Dracula.
I was always hesitant when it came to handling tape, especially opening the tape to fiddle with the inside mechanism. But your description is so fool proof that even someone with two left hands can join the club of vhs restoration.
Lots and lots of thanks from Germany to Korea. Keep VHS alive. :)
Wow thanks! Happy that despite my video being a bit long it turns out to be quite easy for people the get their hands dirty and open up their VCR and cassettes to do some major cleaning :)
Thank you for such a detailed and practical tutorial. I've got a 60 x tape challenge on my hands and they're all just like this one.
Good tutorial! I was completely unfamiliar with the phenomenon of moldy VHS tapes until about an hour ago, when I ejected a tape from my VCR after watching it, and notice a bunch of white flakes falling out. I looked at the tape and noticed that it had quite a few white spots all over it, so I went back through more of my tapes and found that several of them were actually moldy.
Also, it's refreshing to see someone with a more grounded view of mold. So many people fly into hysterics as soon as mold gets mentioned. It's not that dangerous! Unless your have a bad immune system or severe allergies, most mold is pretty harmless. The air is naturally carrying mold spores all the time. Even the worst kinds of toxic black mold rarely cause serious health problems for healthy people.
Playing a moldy tape in your vcr is a bad time.
Fantastic guide!! Came here after wanting to digitise my old family video tapes and sadly discovering most are affected to some degree by mold. It was scary at first, but watching your video, and especially seeing you use one of your worst tapes as an example, really assured me that I can save these irreplaceable memories, even the ones is the worst shape. Now I just need to hunt down a second VCR!!
Very happy it was helpful! Good luck with your tapes :)
This might be the best tutorial on how to clean tapes. Thank you!
Thank you! I'm glad it is helpful★
@@Art_kore Yeah, I'm going to clean a lot of my moldy videos, 50-75 or so. Although I might do it in the spring where the weather is nice since I'm an American. Most of my tapes aren't really moldy though.
I usually do a quick round of my tapes like once a year to see if any of them developped mould again. It doesn't need to be that frequent.
Your a great teacher. We tried doing this and goofed it up when trying to put wipes on those points. I think we didn’t flip tape over after taking screw out so parts fell out. I will try and do it again using your video technique.
Thanks so much for your time and knowledge. I know your expertise took alot of trial and error to acheive. It is very generous of you to share your help with this concise easy to understand video.I was able to save several irreplaceable tapes in my collection. Thank you so very much!
Excellent, thanks very much for this!
Thanks for taking the time to make this thoroughly detailed video. You’re a life saver!
wow thanks for the video, I just got some rare tapes with lots of mold and after watching this I think I will try to clean some
Thanks for making the video! I am going to try and clean some family home videotapes as soon as I find a couple of VCRs Great video. Subbed
Thanks! Amazing! Following this for all our old Home Video VHS tapes... In the Year 2020.. Covid-19 Pandemic.
You're welcome! Hope you can now save your precious tapes! :)
Plandemic.
Nice tutorial!
Great video! I just watched it at 2x speed so it saves time. Thanks!
Excellent tutorial! Thank you!
Thanks!
Great video, fantastic clear information. I appreciate your time. You didn't waste my time. I'm saving this video in a watch list. Great job! Thanks for sharing this valuable experience!
I have a nearly 40-year old VHS tape of my son's birth. Needless to say, it is precious and irreplaceable. I sent it to a company to have it converted to digital (DVD) and they returned it to me saying that they could not (would not) attempt to do this because of the condition of the tape. It has significant mold. I did the dumb thing: i.e. stored my tapes in a box in my basement. It has a substantial amount of visible, white mold. Thanks to you I am feeling brave enough to attempt cleaning it. I wish I could have it done by a professional like you; but I guess I'll just have to do my best and hope for a good outcome. Thanks so much for sharing this information and making it a, hopefully, simple process.
I’m far from a professional. Just did some trial and error with my tapes until I figured it out 😁
Thanks for made this tutorial! :D
Intro is giving me ahs;1984 vibes 🙌
Amazing video! I love seeing people cleaning VHS tapes, so satisfying haha! I've done this a few times and it's turned out pretty good so far!
I have cleanermate vhs for sale
I'm cleaning a family tape from the 2000's that's a little dirty and slightly moldy, the thing is after cleaning it, I play it, and the heads on the vcr get clogged, so I clean the heads and it plays fine it for a couple of minutes, and then the heads get clogged again lol, I'm on the second time full ff and rw cleaning, I hope the third is the last hh
if you have mold on the READING surface of the tape that's another story.
Hi, I have a tape that had some dust looking suspicious residue on it, I forwarded the tape to the end on a player I don't care about, and on the other side the tape looked completely fine so I am assuming that the residue or dust was inside on the plastic spool. Does a tape like this need cleaning? It plays without any problem I should say. Thanks!
Love this video - very practical and straightforward. Funny - hazmat suit comment! Love it!
Thanks Slick! :)
Awesome subscribed!
Very informative, excellent video thanks
Glad you enjoyed it
thank you
Thank you
gamsa haeyo
You have the best mould tutorial on youtube by far , you got a subscriber for life
Wow! thank you so much!!!
Thanx man! Love this video, very useful. Cheers from Ushuaia, the southest city in the world.
Glad it was helpful 😊
Thanks a million 😁
Thats a great tutorial , thank you for the lesson K- tapes . keep at it
Thanks for watching!
Great video 👍
I'm in Brazil ... thanks for the video!!!!
thank you very much
Thanks it really worked. I was able to restore the 1995’s Vietnamese VHS release of Những Giọng Hát Văn Hay Nhất, which translated to Van’s Best Singers in English. Before I cleaned it, the tape has some mold, I was already know that moldy tape can be cleaned. After I follow your exact directions, the tape is watchable now.
Excellent! :)
Hi from New Zealand. Nice thorough video about the process, thanks for the details. As other people have said in the comments, I'm mostly interested in this for family cassettes, not commercial ones. My grandfather passed away 12 years ago, I finally managed to get his old family video cassettes off of other family members that horded all the items they could after his death. As the cassettes were never touched, they've unfortunately got quite a bit of mold on some of them. These cassettes are very precious as my grandfather filmed quite a bit over the years, on video8, but even old film cameras prior to that. He seemed to have gotten family videos on film of my mum as a child in the 50s, and in the 80s had those transferred onto vhs so... Yeah, I want to do what I can to get them restored and digitised.
Thanks for checking out my video!
I'd say that if it's for super important family videos on other format than VHS, I would go to a place that specializes in that (if any). It also depends on the level of mould you have on your tapes. My tutorial is for a quick clean up to get rid of the most common type of mouldy tapes.
@@Art_kore yeah thanks. Unfortunately I haven't found any business that offers a cleaning service. Every company I've seen here that offers a digitisation services say they won't accept moldy tapes, so it's up to me to clean them up first :-/
GIDDAY! i'm from nz too :)
@@TheDarkFalcon How'd it work out for you? If you haven't done it yet as long as your careful, and take your time this tutorial and others on TH-cam can and will save your precious home movies! It worked for me.
Thanks 👍
Great video mate.
Thanks! 🔥
와!!! 보고 따라하고 있습니다!!!
I have seen some video showing backing of the tapes how far it's useful and some tapes leaves black powder from tape and while cleaning with rubbing alcohol the magnetic layer peeled from tape any solution
If I came across a tape like the one you cleaned, I would most likely consider it a lost cause and put it straight in the garbage. For mild mold contamination, I just use an old VCR (doesn't play properly anymore) to fast forward and rewind the tape a couple of times while pressing on the tape with a cloth. I personally wouldn't risk liquids on the tape; they could cause layers to stick together on the reel if it goes back in before it's dry.
All I'm interested in is getting the tape in a good enough condition to get a decent capture of it, then the tape can go to the garbage. But cleaning the inside of the cassette shell as you did is important if you don't want mold to come back!
" I personally wouldn't risk liquids on the tape; they could cause layers to stick together on the reel if it goes back in before it's dry. "
yeah that is what I explain, that's why I put the cutton pad right after the clothe with ethanol touches the tape to dry the surface before it winds back inside the spool. :)
Thanks man, just got a rare tape at goodwill and it was filled with mold
which tape was it, i got a massive hoarde of horror movies today and majority at with mold
This is quite an in depth process. Bravo! But if you’re like me, and just capturing random tidbits from the TV. Each tape is a lucky dip and could be anything, is there a quicker process you could recommend? Or would you say this is the best way?
always depends how bad your tape is affected with mold. In my case I live in South Korea and the situation here with the weather/temperature is very harsh on tapes, therefore I need to open the cassettes and make sure it's properly cleaned inside so that no mold grow back (or at least not grow back for years!)
@@Art_kore these would have been stored somewhere in the U.K. I bought them on Vinted as a job lot. Nowhere near as bad as yours though. Mostly just bits and pieces of mould in there.
Most likely not bad enough to have any issues with playback after cleaning.
@@Art_kore thank you. Currently sourcing a second VHS player
Probably a good idea to wear gloves when touching tape, the oil from your skin can make the tape sticky and won’t move through the transport as smoothly. This stuff is almost like cling wrap, it’s that thin. Not an issue I guess if you’re going to clean it after wards, but probably just good practice to wear gloves when handling tape anyway.
Great info thanks. One question: what about the bottom-facing edge of the tape, the side that goes against the white half of the spool? Doesn't that too get dirty?
Up to you. Depends how dirty it was.
Thanksji
just a note, some VCRs wont function with the lid off if theres too much light, so for all the experts saying do this outside, i couldnt get any of my players to work outside with the lid off too much light, disables the sensor and the VCR from functioning wont even take a tape
Everything is proven people like myself are cleaning mold off vhs tapes it still continues to play with out no problem's
Step 1: Look inside Cassette Player
Step 2: Get peanut butter from cabinet
Step 3:Peanut butter Sammich
Step 4: Peanut butter on outside of sandwich
Step 5: Peanut butter sandwich inside of Cassette Player.
Step 5 but profitable.
I wish this was profitable. lol!
Hi , Thank you for this video , can we do this steps with Betamax tapes
I don't have a betamax, but I believe so as the mechanism inside the machine is very similar.
잘 했어요 선생님 Fan From Sri Lanka...
I would have both sides of the tape being wiped (cleaned) at the same time as it passes, other wise you are not getting all of the mold, putting dirty side against clean side as it winds onto the reel. This slows down the cleaning and effectiveness of the effort.
What if the tape is stuck solid with mould? If you can't rewind/move the tape at all - can you put the reel in neat isopropyl alcohol to try to loosen stuff off first?
Also, I'm afraid of stretching the tape.
Might be a good idea to go unscrew the cassette and open it up, then manually pull the tape between the 2 reels.
Hey, my vcr has an issue where it doesn’t read tapes it shows a time of 0:00:- and doesn’t count until I fast forward it, would you have any idea what could be wrong with it?
I'm no VCR expert, I just give tips on how to clean tapes. But this looks more like an electronic problem than something mechanical in your VCR, but that's just a guess?! Maybe some people here can help you out in the comments?
The VCR will only start the counter when there is a video signal. Are you sure that it wont count in play mode when there is a signal? I'm assuming you have a digital counter. If you have an older vcr with a mechanical one, then I say your counter belt is slipping and needs replacing.
When you clean a, vhs moldy tape, do you use the same, piece of microfibre cloth or a fresh piece every time?
I fold it the other way around. Ususally I can use it up to 4 times (with a different fold), but don't use the same folded suface twice for different tapes. So basically yeah, don't reuse it if it is dirty.
@@Art_kore Thank you for your kind reply. Just one more question those other items are cotton wipes are they?
Yes, for makeup removal I believe.
ive noticed most people only clean the reading surface of the ribbon. if there is mold left on the reverse side of the ribbon, wont it spread again?
Good question! Mold is usually on the reading surface of the tape, if there's any on the back, trust me, that tape is nasty and probably just good for trash at this point.
Btw, I will make a new video this week on how to clean the ribbon proprely. 😛
필름으 도넛츠로 비유하면 초콜릿도넛츠처럼 곰팡이가 한쪽 테이프롤 측면 전체에 핀 경우는 어떻게 제거하나요??
Please watch all the video, I show how. 😀 But if you mean the brown dust that I shown at the beginning with the tapes examples, that is usually nearly.impossible to clean because the tape readimg suface will be damaged. Best case, you can clean it manually but your tape.playback won't be good.
@@Art_kore 시간 내어 답변해주셔서 감사합니다. 많은 도움 되었습니다 :)
How effective is to use VCR to clean tapes? I tried to clean mould manually. However I was unable to remove it. Because it looked mould is embedded into the tape.🤦🏻♂
Just follow my method, you'll see it is easy to clean even the dirtiest tapes :)
What about hi 8 tapes, what is the best way to clean up them?
Thanks
Someone asked about it previously. I have no idea, never tried it, but I guess if you had some kind of Hi-8 Tape VCR you could try the same technique.
Couldn't alcohol destroy the tape itself?
Also worth using a clean microfibre cloth for that.
Could you do this with 8mm tapes?
Perhaps just apply some rubbing alcohol to the mouldy edge of the tape not the play surface?
It's probably doable, althoigh I have no experience with 8mm. If the tape tension is good enough you can probably do it.
8mm tapes are very thin and they often stick together and snap when mouldy. There's a TH-cam video about it on video99.co.uk channel to clean them
Dang it! I've only got Beta mold!
i have a question does these tips work on mini dv tapes?
I've never tried.
welp i tried game over pack your bags bois were going home
I also looking for mini dv tapes solution
정말 감사합니다, 이소프로필알콜 99%에 물 조금 섞어서 시도해볼게요. Thanks!
what alcohol solution did you use 60% or 90%?
Ethanol is usually high, I'd say 90%.
I cleaned the tape with 90% alcohol, and it literally dried really fast so the whole cleaning process is only like 30 minutes or less.
Thanks man
I got green mould on my tape is it dangerous
Sorry, never heard of green mould.
What could you use as a substitute to rubbing or isooroful acholol
Any type of alcohol you find in a drugstore is fine. I never tried anything else...
@@Art_kore Many thanks what about Hand sanitizer or nail varnish remover.
When you say drug store presumably you mean chemist.
@@rail324nqch-par-8 Hand sanitizer or nail varnish remover I wouldn't try that. Just go with rubbing alcohol.
I meant drug store as in a pharmacy, where you buy medicine.
@@Art_kore Can you perfume ??
@@Art_kore chemist is another term for drugstore
Has anybody using the vcr method had mold build back up in the tapes? I don't want to do this if it will eventually grow back I want to completely get rid of it and protect my other tapes we have had our tapes for years since I was little and I have a movie I like a lot I noticed some white spots and I'm afraid it might be mold it's not that much mold though it's hardly noticeable you need a light to even see it.
Sometimes mould can grow back yes. Had a couple tapes that had it, but remember that white mould is very easy to remove, especially if it hasn't been there for too long. The reason for it to grow back is bad storage and humidity. Try to keep the tapes in a cool and dry place.
@@Art_kore thanks for reply quickly I just moved my collection I watch them all the time
Even after cleaning tape sticks to video head and stops what is the solution
That shouldn’t happen. That’s why it is recommended to use rubbing alcohol.
why does the mold grow on the tapes in the first place? I haven't seen mold on the outside of the case or on other plastic things?
Usually it's bad storage conditions such as temperature, humidity etc. I've seen numerous times mold on the inside of the cassette (plastic) and nothing on the tape reel.
K-Tapes I got a few tapes that i believe had mold inside but not on the tape, It is safe play the tape on a vcr?
@@carlosestebanvr as long as they don't look as bad as the ones in my video you'll be fine. But nonetheless, mold is never a good thing for a VCR. Depends how much you care about your player... If you have more than one and there's a machine you don't care too much about I'd say try your tape in that one first.
I accidentally put a moldy tape in my vcr, is my machine ruined? How can I save it? Its a nice unit and I recently got it
EDIT: I heavily cleaned it, too forever to get the heads clean but it's working fine.
You can clean the reading head with a piece of paper. But it would definitely be better if you watch a video on how to clean a VCR head.
I have a vhs tape of Super Mario Bros super show and it is so bad I don’t know if I’ll even be able to fix it
if there is no mold on the reading surface of the tape, it will be fine.
The fact that you're going to clean the tape doesn't make it OK to put your fingers all over it or handle magnetic tape with metal screwdrivers. The craft demands a lot more respect for the media.
My hands are clean before doing this. Also, it will have little to no effect on the playback or tape itself. Done this a thousand times. But you got a point, I could use gloves etc.
@@Art_kore Glad you washed your hands, but immediately after, you're touching 30 year old tapes, and handling the tape with metal objects. Yours may not be, but a lot of screwdrivers out there are magnetic, or at least partially magnetic, which could erase that part of the tape. I'm just looking around TH-cam to see people's techniques for cleaning tapes. I have over 1000 VHS and Beta tapes, but I don't think they have mold. I just want to clean them to protect the VCRs that will have to do a lot of work digitising these.
Yeah my tapes were extreme lol! Most tapes people are dealing with aren’t as bad as the ones I showed in the video. Again, it was only for the turorial purpose.
To be fair, this video is now a bit old and I should do a new one with better audio and visuals.
Isopropyl alcohol. The pads are just called makeup/facial pads.
Thanks for the precision.
Can you use toilet paper for the cotton cloth?
Maybe not a good idea as the toilet paper might break and go into your cassette.
rubbing Alcohol or cleaning fluid isopropyl is quite strong on a Acetate tape, used lens or Glass cleaner is better like calotherm caloclear and it's antistatic to www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=lens+cleaning+fluid&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
Interesting video, it' very problematic remove mold, I've lost a lot of family clips
Sorry to hear that
This way looks like it would take a lot longer then making a tape cleaner VCR would easily do.
Just wondering if ultraviolet, or any other kind of light could zap the mold!
No idea. It may neutralize it but not remove it physically.
Just be kind of gentle? Bro you are going hard haha
😂
You no vcrs vhs movies cleaning tapes are online now days
where is the best place to store vhs tapes?
Usually, any dry and cool places are the best.
thanks, Ive two problems with two VCR's I own, you might have the answers. My roller guides stop halfway up the tracks and spit the tape out and one of the problems on the other VCR is that the tape doesnt rewind all the way back to the beginning. Any ideas what is wrong? Also have you tried doing any repair videos on some of the most common problems with VCR's? @@Art_kore
Have you tried with a different tape? Does it do that with every tape? If not, perhaps there is too much tension in the tape. I'd suggest you open the cassette again and see that all pieces are at the right place inside.
Wow, can you really pull tape out of a cassette like that and wipe it down, without damaging it? I grew up thinking doing that would FUBAR it.
Yes you can if you are careful pulling it out and putting it back in.
I have close to about £1k of UK precerts and have just started noticing mould spots 😨😨
Hope this guide will help you with your contaminated tapes.
@K-Tapes Yes mate fantastic video, allready successfully saved one. 😄
@@loftgroover9271 It is time consuming but well rewarding at the end!
@K-Tapes I've come across a couple of tapes with one centre screw that doesn't fit a x driver? it doesn't actually have any grip at all it's like a small circle? lol Any idea how to get it out?
@@loftgroover9271 sounds like a Torx, get a set of security bits
🇰🇵
you could say it has a film on it but that would be confusing lol
And thats a phillips head screwdriver ;) X not I
Thanks! Sometimes I just can't figure those words in English as I only know the French name for it. :(
@@Art_kore No problem! Glad to help
3-4 meters equals about 8 feet? Close, but more like between 9-12 feet
🙏
i cleaned the tape ,it doesnt work. the tape is still dirty why?
Which part is dirty?
@@Art_kore almost all of it, should i do it again? i'm afraid my cassette will be damaged
@@wormsfort You mean it is still on the tape itself, like on the top? If so, you can run it again with the same process until it's gone. Also, don't forget to clean with rubbing alcohol the inside of your spools. :)
@@Art_kore i did the process manually only with 70% alcohol, it took me 7 hours and the tape got curved little bit
@@wormsfort curved? like it's kindda wavy inside the spool? If that's the case is because the tape was wet at one point and sticked to itself and created an iregular winding. Make sure you have your cutton pad right after the alcohol touches the tape to dry it as it winds back inside the cassette.
You cleaned the visible mould on the top edge and face of the tape , but you never cleaned the mould on the bottom edge of the tape, which you cannot see .
You mean inside the cassette? If I didn't, maybe I forgot because I was in a hurry to explain. If you mean on the tape itself, the mold always builds up on the reading surface, not underneat but if you see the white residue just wipe them with a cloth + rubbing alcohol.
The tape has four main surfaces, the broad surfaces , the reading surface, and back , then you have the minute two thin edges of the tape top and bottom. You cleaned the top thin surface edge but never cleaned the bottom.
We saw clearly the top edge of the tape was pretty bad with mould when the tape was closed, if that top edge is contaminated then the bottom edge must be also.
The problem with the bottom edge is you cannot see the contamination as the spool is not see throught like the top of tape.
Hope this explains more clearly what I mean.
I totally see what you mean. Usually mold tends to be on top but if you have it also at the bottom it means the tape has been hit pretty badly (not usually the case with tapes in the U.S.). But if that happens, I put the cloth with ethanol in a way that it touches the entire reading surface of the tape when REWINDING (don't do that while FFWD because the tape is wet and hits the VCR head before touching the cotton wipe). So yeah, that's how I clean the dirtier tapes.
Thanks , will be using your cleaning process, and advice when I start to clean several family tapes, of weddings, and other family events, that were stored for years , as each tape is showing various degrees of mould .
I will practise on several tapes of no real value, which I have, see the results , before attempting the more important and irreplaceable tapes.
Then I will have them transferred to DVD , but still retain the VHS tapes, but in much better storage conditions , than they were.
It important that people fully understand that VHS tape in the majority of situations can be salvaged.
Many people when they see mould , just discard the tapes , thinking wrongly, they are damaged beyond repair.
Precious recording of events, like weddings, holidays, birthdays, and other social gatherings , thinking they were no longer playable.
I prefer the VHS tapes , so will keep, as their is something unique, about the quality of the film quality.
Thanks again, for taking time to respond to my concerns.
Is that ethonal acholol
yeah, just rubbing alcohol
Alcohol Wipes?
I guess it's fine, as long as you have your dried wipe just after.
but isnt touching the tape with your fingers cause dropouts on the actual tape?
Depends how you manipulate the tape. As long as your fingers are clean and you try to avoid touching the top of the tape (reading surface) it's ok.
Do not follow the instruction on being so cavalier about the white mold...be cautious
Cool!
Those are really bad. WOW.
Throw them in the bin! VHS in modern times is laughable!! 🗑️😆
True, but some people have things they recordered with a camcorder on VHS back in the days and are looking to transfer it to digital but turns out the tape has mold 🤷♂️