Vaccuming panels. How much power is too much?

[Webinattor]

Given three types of vacuums...are any of these too much to use in cleaning panels? I would rather not wash them, way scarey for me.

1. Regular rug vac with the nozzle attachment.

2. Higher powered Shop Vac.

3. Pretty strong vac at the car wash type places.

I keep hearing it is hard to damage the panels, so that's why am asking. I've not used anything stronger than #1.

 

[TomDac]

I've used my shop vac on mine and see the mylar getting sucked up to the nozzle as I run it across the panel. According to Jim Power at ML, you can't hurt them in this fashion.

Tom.

 

[DTB300]

I have used a regular vacuum cleaner with the drapery brush attachment on. The brush seems to help a bit with getting the dust that accumulates in the little holes on the stators.

Dan

 

[Webinattor]

Getting ready to leave on vacation so I'll leave them unplugged for a week and then try the shopvac approach. I've used the regular vac over time, but I am thinking I need something stronger to clean the panels as the Polk center channel I use is "faster" than the panels and that's just not right.

Over time, the change is subtle, till one day you are thinking, the panels sound slow....not as much sparkle.

Aerius I.

 

[DTB300]

Overnight is really all you need...but since you are going on vacation..why not.

I too was scared of the washing, but it did wonders for my Sequel II panels and was quite easy. See my post in Tweaks.

Dan

 

[kach22i]

3. Pretty strong vac at the car wash type places.

Oh, I am having evil thoughts now.

Has anyone tried this?

I would at least have to bring my own clean nozzle brush for one thing.

 

[DavidG]

I've used my shop vac on mine and see the mylar getting sucked up to the nozzle as I run it across the panel. According to Jim Power at ML, you can't hurt them in this fashion.

Tom.

You may not be able to hurt them, but that sounds a bit too much for me. I normally wait until my vacuum cleaner is getting full and starting to suck much less than normal before cleaning the panels!

Cheers,

David

 

[Reverb2009]

I have used a regular vacuum cleaner with the drapery brush attachment on. The brush seems to help a bit with getting the dust that accumulates in the little holes on the stators.

Dan

Same here.

 

[JonFo]

Dyson rules

A Dyson Vac does wonders. Great suction.
I use the rush attachment and go ever every square inch twice every three months. Keeps the panels sounding great.

You really can't hurt them while vacuming.

 

[htsource]

Dump question If I vacuum the panels without un-plugging them, I guess it's not doing much help since the panels are still charged?

Simon

 

[Webinattor]

Dump question If I vacuum the panels without un-plugging them, I guess it's not doing much help since the panels are still charged?

Simon

I believe you are supposed to unplug them and leave them for a while. I just now finished doing mine after leaving them unplugged for about 5 hours.

 

[pat17]

I believe you are supposed to unplug them and leave them for a while. I just now finished doing mine after leaving them unplugged for about 5 hours.

By the way, there is a mention on that on ML's offical website's Q&A section:

Q. I think my MartinLogan speakers have developed a problem. The right speaker is hissing even when the amplifier is disconnected.
A. Your speakers are dusty. The electrostatic charge on the diaphragm has attracted some airborne dust or pollen. This is easy to fix.

First unplug the speakers for about 6 hours. This will allow the charge to dissipate. Then vacuum the front of the panel with a very strong vacuum. Don't worry about damaging the membrane… you won't. Plug your speakers in again and ENJOY!

By the way, since 1993 all of our speakers have been built with a charging circuit board that only charges the electrostatic element when music plays. At other times, they are not charged (and therefore cannot collect dust). You can get the same benefit by simply unplugging them whenever they are not in use. An easy way to do that is with a power strip that has a switch.

 

[HK-Steve]

I found that my Quest and Aerius i's still played music after being unpluged for 24hrs.
So the HV charge was still present, I waited another 6 hrs and the Stators had finally discharged, so there was no sound from the Stators.

So I think that 5hrs really isn't enough time for the HV charge to reduce enough.


I recently went through the Shower clean, I will put together a PDF with pictures so everyone can see how I did it, good for future reference for others.


Cheers
Steve

 

[Webinattor]

I would like to see your photos. I ALMOST tried the wash....not certain how to take the Aerius apart.

 

[HK-Steve]

I just finished the PDF,
Now all I need to do is work out how to post it here.

The Aerius is the same as the Quest, which I used in the guide.

I have Quest and Aerius i's, plus a Cinema


Cheers
Steve

 

[Webinattor]

It may have to exist on another server, or your website or something. If you don't have a place to put it I can host it on my server if you email the file to me.

(click on the photo icon on the left to get the email area.)

 

[HK-Steve]

You have Mail,

I appreciate the offer

Cheers
Steve

 

[Webinattor]

The link below is HK Steve's instructions/with photos on washing your panels.

This is a pdf file and the size is 673k.

HK Steve's instructions and photos for washing panels.

You can right click the link and do a "save target as" to save the file to your PC if you are using Windows.

 

[HK-Steve]

Thanks Mike, Have a great holiday

I hope that it helps those who are looking to wash their panels.


Cheers
Steve