Atlas track cleaning tips.

I use a green scouring pad on a flat block of wood. I also make sure the pick up rollers and contact wheels on the locomotive are clean. 

Don

These track cleaning questions are always interesting.  I use Atlas O track.  I almost never clean it.  When I do...I use one of those modified Lionel 3927 track cleaning cars...no liquids involved...and send it around the track one time to clear the dust that may have gathered on the track.  This seems to work for me.

I will note that I don't use the smoke feature on any locomotive very much...hardly at all.  I very seldom run a "steam" engine.

What exactly are the symptoms of your dirty track that cause the track to need so much cleaning? 

My track work is located in a 3-car garage that has no special environmental controls...in rather dusty Northern California.

For some reason i seldom have t0o clean the track, but often have to clean wheels and rollers on my locos.  sometimes, even when they look like they might be fine, cleaning them fixes them up.

As Lee suggests try cleaning the engines, use de natured alcohol on a q-tip to clean the wheels and rollers.

Thanks for all the answers. Seems there's no definitive answer to this question though. Has anyone ever tried applying NO-OX-ID to the track and if so were there results positive or negative?

I use Atlas track and have to clean track often.  I have a very clean, finished basement and do not run any smoke.  I'm jealous.

Art

I didn't mean to make anyone jealous I just wanted to put a good picture on what I'm dealing with, Chugman you're more than welcome to come by and help clean track any time like. I'll even let you hold the remote after you're done cleaning.....-))

My strong recommendation is: stick with the devil you know.  Iso alcohol or "approved" cleaners and known to both clean and not have any bad effects, now or later . . .

You've only recently joined the forum, so you were probably not following posts here during the whole "Simple Green" debacle.  Upon recommendation from several, I used a cleaner only a few had heard about - Simple Green, to clean my 330 feet of Fasttrack.  It was stunningly good as a track cleaner - cleaning it well and fast.  Unfortunatley over time it eats stainless steel.  In a few months, my track was gone, literally corroded away.  I replaced it with Atlas, and I will never find out what simple Green or any cleaner other than iso alch does to Atlas track. Unless you know all the chemistry, I wouldn't go beyond what others know works well. 

I use "GooGone" , and have for YEARS. I use it on the Pads on the Track cleaner Car, where I cant reach. Otherwise I use a Soft Rag, where I can reach. It does a great job, with no Ill Effects. Been using it on the same ATLAS Track for 13 Years.

FREDSTRAINS

Ditto on Goo Gone for the heavy cleaning especially that crud that builds up on the wheels. Denatured alcohol is what MTH recommends and as I recall they're specific on that for track and wheels and rollers. I have lots of switches on my layout and had problems similar to the OP. Cure was better wiring but still have a couple steamers that are fussy about one or two switches. When needed I use Deoxit D5 per Gunrunner John's recommendation. I spray a little on ShamWow on a wood block and run along each rail. Then flip the ShamWow over and wipe dry. Track shines and stays shiny for a while. Deoxit D5 is expensive but a little goes a long way. And according to the can it is safe for plastics, etc.

I use WD40 ,spray on a rag wipe it . cleans  my Atlas O track fast

I rarely clean any of my track though my Lionel O27 tubular does need cleaning more often than any other, Fastrack is the second most troublesome. The solid rail RealTrax  and Atlas hardly ever need cleaning. When I do clean it all I use is a dry ScotchBrite sponge. I run all Steam mostly MPC and every engine smokes. I find wheels are more an issue than the rails.

When I was having periodic connection problems with Atlas sectional track I discovered the issue was the dimples on the bottom of the Atlas track connectors. I've never had a connection problem since I corrected that by making a deeper impression of those dimples.

Yes it seems the problems are mostly at the switches and also right after both of the S's within the first foot soon as it starts to go straight again. I was thinking about putting the power pickup before and after each switch so at least I know there is power on both sides of the switch without a doubt.

Personal experience has taught me to not use WD-40 for cleaning.  It's great for unsticking things, but not cleaning, because it'll make things rust.  Not really a problem for the nickel-silver track, but due to other metals used on trains, I won't use it near my layout.

I've never had a track cleaning issue that Isopropyl Alcohol on a rag and/or my Trackman 2000 cleaning car with purple ScotchBrite on the pad wouldn't handle.