Track Cleaning Is Overrated!

I should add that my train rooms are relatively dust-free and the humidity is low due to HVAC climate control.

No basement, attic or garage locations.

Thats great! That way if you ever have any operating issues in the future, you can go directly to replacing boards in the loco as a solution.

Does that mean that running trains on dirty track can fry boards?

No, but it certainly wouldn't be his track causing any problems

From other threads about the trials and pitfalls of track cleaning, I decided to post this thread.

Sometimes, as in medical matters, the cure can be WORSE than the initial ailment.

Often, LESS is MORE! 

Tin Plate Art,

    Got to admit most times all I ever did is wipe the DCS FasTrack layout down with a soft cloth, and although we have conditioning the 6 dogs made the game room and office dusty.  The P2 engines never had any real problems on any level of the layout, and it got dusty at times.

PCRR/Dave

  Note the dust on the layout.

I do believe these things are more durable than we usually believe! 

I usually don't step into a discussion that has built-in controversy, but why, RickO would you post something so negative when you offer no proof or back-up to your statement?

Its just a bit of sarcasm, implying that since Art never needs to clean his track, if he has a problem it must be a component in the loco.

I think his "fear" of reliable cleaners such as alchohol is unwarranted ( I use it a couple of times a year on my own fastrack) but "to each his own", and Art has been a good sport about my my sparring.

If you buy the 91% isopropyl alcohol from the drug store, its only 9% water. 

Depending on your climate, the alcohol will evaporate quickly before it can absorb any moisture. 

I've used 91% and 99% (can't find that any more) for years cleaning track, never damaged any track with it.

I have actually seen dirty track cause real problems, so I must be less lucky than Art.

I would not discount the randomness of good fortune! 

NOTE: the very driest alcohol would be PGA - 95% ethyl (C2H5OH). An alcohol/water mixture per se is an azeotropic mixture which CANNOT be distilled beyond 95%.

I well remember my distillation diagrams from my physical chemistry course.

The addition of a additional solvent WILL change the azeotropic mixture where it can be further distilled.

I agree with Gun. Clean track (and clean wheels/pick-up rollers) make running the OGR railway a much more enjoyable (and efficient) experience.

You'll hear me beotch and moan about the nasty chores of track cleaning, but it seems to be an essential aspect of our sport. I despise cleaning my Fastback, dusting, lubricating and cleaning rolling stock, changing burnt out light bulbs, and dealing with worn out traction tires. But if I don't handle the "housework" the joy of rail running would be diminished.

I don't live in a vacuum tube environment like Tinplate Art - LOL! Dust gets in no matter what. 

I've followed many of these threads regarding track cleaning, but don't recall any spirited discussion on the causes of dirty track.  I can only speak from my experience - having an air cleaner in the train room to keep down the dust really helps.  Also, not running with tons of smoke also makes a difference.  I've noticed that the dirt on the tracks is always blackish and greasy feeling which I think is due to the smoke condensing with particles in the air back onto the track.  I run a dry 3m pad around the track on occasion and this seems to keep everything tip top.  I think it to be obvious - the less pollutants in the train room, the less cleaning would be needed.

How about 99.85% methanol.

http://www.vpracingfuels.com/page499482.html

Kinda expensive for cleaning track though.

I am glad you brought this up, Swanko. It never occurred to me to invest in one of those "air purifying" devices. Since my planned new layout will be in the garage I will get one of those wire purifiers to suck in particles and dust.

When it comes to smoking engines, as much as I would love to do so, I cannot. The scent from the smoke aggrevates my sinuses (I have bad allergies). I even tried the Nada unscented smoke fluid but I could smell it and it set my sinuses on fire.

When you say "dry 3M pad" are you referring to the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser or just a plain non-metallic pad like Scotch Brite pads?

I use the green scotch brite.  These have been recommended by many folks on the forum and they work for me. 

distillation diagrams....peach moonshine! 

...keep the rails polished...

Before I routinely cleaned track on a scheduled basis, I would occasionally have problems that I traced to dirty track or wheels and rollers.  I fully understand RickO's comment: 90% of the operating troubles I had were due to dirty track or wheels.  

Now I run a track cleaning train (cleaning car, magnet car, vacuum cleaner car) once a month, whether the track needs it or not.  

Heh;

I just realised last night as I ran the train....

I have not cleaned the track in over a year !

And I was watching the caboose go around, only once per lap di it flicker, on a switch no less.

I think I'll leave the track alone.

I will admit I'm not running smoke as the smell bothers my wife.

And the track is in the room with the main air conditioner for the house.

But the cat lives in the room and the dog visits often so there is not a "clean" environment.

I suspect the track is building up a layer of grime but so far it's not causing issues.

That said I normally run a MOW cleaning train periodically.

I use a car made from Dennis' plans, works fine.

I actually use 2, one with a green scotchbrite pad and one with paper towel taped on.

Check the paper towel every 50± feet of track and refold to clean spot or replace.

Run until the towel comes back clean.

I have to add a magnet car, I just found a little tack in the gears of a passing locomotive!

John, I keep meaning to add a magnet to the MOW but haven't found the right one yet.

A magnet car is a really good idea.  Mine (traditional flatcar with two fat neodymium magnets tape on it) picks up the occasional screw or tiny nut that fell off of . . .what?  You get really worried about where the came from - do I have a loco motor about to fall off, etc., but at least you know they are not there to get caught in drivetrains, etc.    So far, while I find something like a tiny screw or something about every other monthly cleaning, I have never determined what they are from: not problems with locos or rolling stock: I guess if you have six screws holding the body to chassis on a passenger car, losing one or two isn't fatal.

I have some 1x2x.5 neodymium magnet that will pick up 80-90 pounds if you can hold on to it.  They were made for wind generators, and they're a perfect fit for a magnet car.  I just have to come up with a car.  I may mount them on my voltage measuring car, it'll check the voltage as it picks up the junk on the track.

I think there are lots of environmental variables that affect the need to clean track. 

In my experience, the best way to keep the track clean is to reduce or eliminate potential sources of dirt before they can get to the track.

The use of smoke is a huge contributor to gunky track.  My layout is in a very dry basement that is heated and air conditioned, with a furnace mounted humidifier adding a little humidity in the colder months.  This seems to avoid static electricity, improving safety for the electronics and I think helping a little to reduce dust, a major contributor to track (and wheel) gunk.  We also have Aprilaire 5000 filters on the furnaces (propane fired forced air) that seem to almost eliminate airborne dust.  These filters combine an electrostatic element with a huge, deeply pleated filter medium that has many times the filter area of conventional furnace filters.  I'm convinced that these tremendously reduce layout maintenance.  Additionally, the doors between the layout space and the workshop and utility area are exterior doors that seal very tightly.

With all this, I find the need to dust the layout about once a year, and to clean the track about as often.  Operation is very reliable as quite a few folks on the forum can attest.  So, I agree with Art, but with the caveat that dirt prevention is paramount.

I have found that flickering lights in passenger cars can be directly related to dirty track. Sometimes engines are affected as well. I use a modified postwar track cleaner with dobie pads.

It just blasts the dirt off the track. Two or three loops around the layout does the trick.

One factor in how dirty the track gets is what kind of locomotives are running and how are they (and rolling stock) lubricated. I operate in a club/museum environment where some members habitually over-oil their equipment and this gets on the track. Diesels can be a big culprit if the owners put too much grease on external gear trains. Also, old-fashioned open-frame (Pullmor) motors generate a lot of gunk from brush wear and sparking. Older locomotives and equipment generate more electrical sparks between the track and wheels or rollers, which chips away at the plating and adds more gunk to the mix. The track on our Standard Gauge layout gets really, really dirty although no smoke is used because the old engines don't have smoke units. 

"

Tinplate Art,

I've heard a lot of hard to believe tales over the years . I must say that yours is in the top ten . Each one of us has our own opinion.

I know from my own experience. When I made the change to, Lucas' Red N Tacky and their Gun Oil made a big difference. My track requires cleaning less often. When I do clean my track I use nothing but, LifeLike Track Cleaner on a lint-free cloth.

I agree many people OBSESS about cleaning track.I clean mine once a year or so with a terry cloth rag and a bottle of isopropyl.Don't over lubricate your trains.Nick

1 - WD-40/rag. (Scotch-Brite, occasionally.)

2 - Use the blasted trains. How often did you "clean your track" in 1955?

(A caveat on #2: in 1955 there were no traction tires, and the cheap rubber ones, as

opposed to the good Neoprene ones, can really become Crud Enablers.) 

The only track cleaners you'll ever need - no water or alcohol involved.

I have every track cleaning car that is presently on the market.  They all work.  Some much better than others (and one in particular).  But they work.

I never let it get to the point of needing to be cleaned, I just do it.  Like vacuuming the house.

I have kids running around upstairs, I am in an unfinished basement, I have 2 dogs, 2 dehumidifiers running in the basement, and good HVAC in/out of the basement (menaing it is heated and cooled).  So, bewteen the builder not picking up the saw dust, the dogs, and general chaos, I feel a regular cleaning is warranted.

In other words, personal preference and environmental impacts dictate why I need to do it and how often.

As a further test, I will be placing the layout in a hermetically sealed jar in Funk and Wagnelsport, Iowa to ensure it remains dust and antic-conductive debris free.  The Great Carnac will tell me whether I have found the answer.

Happy Pappy:

BELIEVE it! I am basically LAZY and avoid manual labor whenever possible.

Both my layouts run just fine without track cleaning.

Make no mistake about it: I have done my share of track cleaning in my lifetime,

usually with a vacuum brush and clean paper towels plus "elbow grease", but

 WITHOUT solvents. 

At least every twenty years if it needs it or not. Oh, the joys of conventional!

wow!

next time one of you visit ask to see the dirty pads.  we empty the trash at night so they will be there.

This I think hits it on the head for me. I still obsess about the appearance of the track because of all the trouble I had early on running conventional with poor track wiring. Now that I run DCS and keep the wheels and rollers clean the track needs cleaning less and less. Mostly I go after switch spots that have been smudged with traction tire debris or other dirt. Occasionally rub with Deoxit and wipe here and there. Used to use denatured alcohol. Gives you a great buzz if the room is not well ventilated.

I think I may have cleaned my track once in the last 7 years.    I run both DCS and TMCC/Legacy.

Never an issue.   I run both classic tubular and Fasttrack.

if i notice any obviously dirtied spot I may take a dry rag and wipe it off, but that's it.

Well, I am satisfied that there are some folks that agree with my position on this subject. 

As always, WHAT works for you is best!