How to Clean Surface of The Rubber.

besides normal rubber cleaner, can we use normal water to dust on surface of the rubber? one of my friend told me that clorin in the water will give damage the surface, anyone has more info?

Edited by pnachtwey - 01/14/2011 at 8:40pm

I use RO (reverse osmosis) filtered water and a microfiber cloth (a 3M cloth, not the kind you use for your glasses).  I spray the water on with a little sprayer I got from a beauty supply shop. The microfiber cloth seems to be all that is necessary to pick up oils.

I doubt that there's enought chlorine in tap water to cause any problems.  But you could always buy a bottle of distilled water and set it aside exclusively for cleaning your rubbers.  A gallon of water should last a few years.

BTW, I did this back when I used tacky rubbers and the rubbers stayed tacky.  I use it now on my hardbat rubbers and it seems to be effective at keeping the playing surface consistent. 

I see no need to buy cleaners.  Spend the money saved on lessons or entering tournaments.

sweat and breathe is the best.. a old time chinese nat coach told me :D

For a good sponge... I use those industrial grade sponge (for washing car), cut into smaller pieces... and each small piece can last a good 6 month with every alternate day use..

RJTT- That's interesting. Lemon juice? I am currently drinking lemon juice and water as I sift through the forums. I am going to give this a try. I suppose if its good enough to cleanse my colon, it's good enough to clean my Acudas.

zheyi- I have read that sweat and breath are the best cleaners during a match also. However, that only works on certain rubbers. The newer tensors seem to become more slick when sweat it applied to the surface. But the Chinese rubbers seem to fair well from this method of cleaning.

Lemon juice mixture is actually a good idea. My wife uses lemon juice to clean her hands after eating crab legs and it leaves no residue, just the fresh scent of lemon. Plus, I have been drinking a ton of lemon water as of late, so its always handy while I'm playing.

I stoped using cleaners (except a fellow clubmates every 2/3 weeks or so) a good while back.

I think that tap water is fine, I would suggest that you find a sponge to dry the rubber surface rather than paper towels, towels, or cloth materials simply because the fibers from these materials may sometimes stick to the rubber surface when drying. At least with a sponge the water gets absorbed and it does not leave fibers behind. Also, getting some plastic covers is good too.

I've been using just tap water for the longest time because I figured that the soap cleaners/foam cleaners, etc was just a waste of money, but ever since I used my friend's kenetix rubber revitalizer and cleaner.... WOW!

It not only cleaned the rubber surface, it made the rubber feel like it was almost new again.

You gotta get kenetix rubber rivitalizer and cleaner.... it's probably THE BEST stuff out there if you do choose to go with a rubber cleaner!

wturber wrote: Pure lemon juice has some sugar in it. About two grams of carbs per ounce. It also contains acids.  I'd have to think that lemon juice would leave a residue as well as expose the rubber to a moderate degree of acid.  Lemon oil, OTOH, might leave little or no residue.  But lemon oil has a fair amount of d-limonene in it.  If so, it would likely cause your racket to fail a racket sniffing test. d-Limonene is a VOC.  It is used as a safer alternative to turpentine.  It is a major ingredient in GooGone.  It is a significant ingredient in many or most cleaning products that claim to be "citrus".  Oh and that citrus scent from these products is from the d-limonene.