You’re all set to watch that new dvd that you saved as a reward for a difficult week. You’ve got your popcorn with extra butter at the ready for you to dig into. Your favorite soda is so cold that it has glittering ice crystals on the can you just opened. You sit down and immerse yourself in the story. It’s as good as all those movie reviewers promised. Then as you get to a prime moment, it hits. You have a scratched dvd and it’s making it difficult to see the conclusion of the movie.
What do you do? You can return the scratched dvd to the place you bought it; but some stores are reluctant to let you return scratched dvds due to the popularity of dubbing movies from home computers. You could buy an expensive kit to fix the scratched dvd but I’ve found that these products can be unreliable. You could just go out and buy a new dvd, but since you already paid for the movie one time why not try fixing a scratched dvd with items you may already have in your home?
The first thing you need to know about your scratched dvd is that it may be salvageable. If the scratch goes anywhere from the center on to the outside of dvd you may be able to fix it. This is because a dvd plays in a circular pattern from the inside ring to the outside rim. The bad news is, if you have a scratched dvd that follows the circular pattern of the disk it may be too damaged to be fixed. Give these home remedies a try anyway because you have nothing to loose except purchasing a new dvd.
The first home remedy to fix a scratched dvd requires only one thing and it’s reusable. It’s a jewelry polishing cloth, the type that has two cloths: one for cleaning and one for polishing. I employ the type used for gold jewelry and I haven’t tried out any other cloths so you may want to stick with what is known to work from my experience. Read the instructions on the box first. Hold your scratched dvd from the sides so that the shiney silver side is facing up. Then, under a bright light clean your scratched dvd with the cleaning cloth from the inside ring to the outside rim in a straight inside to outside motion. Do not go in a circular motion it will result in a ruined, further scratched, dvd. Keep going until you have cleaned the entire surface of the scratched dvd. Repeat these same instructions with the polishing cloth. Try playing your newly cleaned and polished dvd now. This trick is so simple that I keep a cloth especially for this purpose near our dvd collection.
If it’s still not working try this next home remedy. All you’ll need is a jewelry polishing cloth that cleans and shines and a can of wax furniture polish. Hold your scratched dvd from the sides and place it so that the shiney silver side is facing up. Lightly spray the polish on the scratched dvd. Under a bright light, clean your scratched dvd with the cleaning cloth from the inside ring to the outside rim in a straight inside to outside motion. Rinse the scratched dvd with a gentle stream of good quality cold water. Dry with the polishing cloth from the inside ring to the outside rim. This time you need to let the formerly scratched dvd rest overnight before you try to play it again. This trick works because the wax from the polish fills in the scratches on your dvd.
You’ve tried both of these suggestions and you still have a scratched dvd that won’t play? Try gathering together a jewelry polishing cloth and brass cleaner. Carefully squeeze some cleaner on the scratched dvd. Spread the cleaner from the center to the outside rim. Rinse off with a stream of cold good quality water. Dry with the polishing cloth and let it sit over night.
If none of these remdies work to fix your scratched dvd there’s still one more option before you throw in the towl. Go a video rental store when they’re not busy and politely ask them if they would be willing to buff your scratched dvd for you. Many rental places have machines especialy for buffing scratched dvds. Usually this is done for a nominal fee.
If you are still having problems then you either have an irreparably scratched dvd or you may have an overly sensitive dvd player. Not all dvd players are created equal. Some dvd players will be more sensitive to the scratches and dirt on your dvds. When you decide to pick out your next dvd player ask people you know for recommendations on a good quality dvd player. Chances are, if someone close to you was happy with their purchase, you might be too.
Hopefully at least one of these suggestions worked to fix your scratched dvd. There are times when no matter what you do, a scratched dvd just won’t play. If this is the case, at least you know you tried your best before going out to buy a new dvd.
