Can a Banana Get Rid of CD Scratches?

Posted by Alex in Video Clips on August 10, 2007 at 1:20 am


I’ve heard of removing minor scratches on CDs using toothpaste, but apparently, banana will work just as well: Hit play or go to Link [metacafe] – via Videoenlaces, thanks Anna Veltfort!


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26 comments to "Can a Banana Get Rid of CD Scratches?"

  1. Firu
    August 10th, 2007 at 2:34 am

    can anyone confirm this? The person that made this video posted quite a lot of other amazing videos with camera tricks or hoax. There is even one video on candle power that is a big hoax (look an his hand when the light turns on.
    If this works, it may be useful.

  2. fluff
    August 10th, 2007 at 6:58 am

    That is so not true. Just think about it for a second. Why on earth would you be filling up missing plastic with this kind of lose organic material? If this was true we had to reinvent science totally. The only thing that really works for dirty CD's is soap, water and being nice to them. Everything else is voodoo and urban legend. But if you want to believe in it go on and feel better.

  3. Blayne
    August 10th, 2007 at 12:46 pm

    He went and got a new CD when he was "polishing" the disc with the banana peel "for a few minutes".

  4. Chris
    August 10th, 2007 at 12:51 pm

    try to melt your CD in the microwave just enough for the plastic to fill up the gaps.
    Yes, yes, it's true, try it!

    ;p

  5. Solo
    August 10th, 2007 at 3:32 pm

    Anyone tried to melt the banana in the microwave? Works best if you wrap it in aluminium foil.

  6. Hubbard
    August 10th, 2007 at 6:31 pm

    Just put the glass cleaner on it first.......doh.

  7. Willo the Wisp
    August 10th, 2007 at 7:37 pm

    It works - but only because of thr glass cleaner! The banana stuff is just bollocks.

  8. Alex
    August 10th, 2007 at 11:16 pm

    Awww! It was bullsh*t? And what am I supposed to do with all these bananas I'd bought to clean my CDs?

  9. Elion
    August 11th, 2007 at 4:55 am

    Every piece of information in this video is wrong... it appears to have been created maliciously to dupe viewers into destroying their discs and equipment.

    Rubbing banana, toothpaste, soap, etc., on a scratched disc doesn't remove the scratches, it just fills them in with whatever material you are rubbing onto the disc. When you insert that disc into your electronic device you are then exposing the insides of the device to that material, potentially damaging the device and voiding its warranty.

    Glass cleaner is not safe to use on optical discs because it contains solvents that dissolve plastic.

    The proper way to clean a disc is to rub in a straight line from the center to the outer edge. Rubbing in a circle, as shown in the video, can create a curved scratch and increase the likelihood of disc failure.

  10. Faker
    August 11th, 2007 at 12:06 pm

    Bullsh*t. After apply with banana peel, he swap with new disc. Fcuk....

  11. Timmus
    August 13th, 2007 at 9:34 pm

    Part 2: Buffing the CD with Krylon Gloss Black for better performance.

  12. Michael Markman
    August 18th, 2007 at 4:50 am

    OK scientists, did any of you try this? Did you een attempt verify empiraccly? Or are you all spewing negativity out of your faith-based prejudices.

    I have email from a trusted friend, a member of the reality-based community, who referred me to this post after he tried it and it worked. Writes he:

    "One CD in particular (disc 2 of Los Lobos' "Just Another Band From East LA") was so scratched, I've never been able to import it into iTunes. I tried the previous miracle cure, rubbing out the scratches with toothpaste... the result was fewer cavities, but also a network of new, smaller scratches that still kept the disc from playing.

    "Yes! It works! And better yet, it's silly!

    "The process is simple: (1) Rub disc (in a circular motion) with fresh cut banana, (2) Rub some more with the inside of the banana peel, (3) Rub even more with a cloth, (4) Removes banana schmutz with Windex"

  13. Michael Markman
    August 18th, 2007 at 4:50 am

    boy I wish I could spell.

  14. Rachel
    August 24th, 2007 at 6:46 pm

    Now I don't know who to believe! I'm willing to try this, cuz one of my CDs already doesn't work because of its extra-blargh surface... What do I have to lose since it doesn't work anyway?

    I'll tell you if it works.

    Oh, and putting a CD in the microwave is horrible!! Has ANYONE seen the episode of Mythbusters when they did that?? It caused HUNDREDS of cracks all over the disk, because all the molecules were vibrating. Besides, CDs work because of the distinct grooves; if the plastic melted then that means the ridges of the grooves were made misshapen.

  15. Mark
    August 31st, 2007 at 5:05 am

    I tried it with over-ripe banana on a cheap DVD (easy to scratch) which I used to test the theory. I can see very little if any difference, and it can still cannot be read by the operating system.

    Why would someone purposely waste other's time, and spoil a great resource of tutorial videos?

  16. gem
    September 1st, 2007 at 10:27 am

    ok i came on here lookin for an answer becuase i seriously need to get my cd working an all i get is oh rub a banan on it....... my dog could have come up with a better one than that. does anyone actually have a clue how to get rid of the scratches???

  17. Fraser
    September 13th, 2007 at 4:00 am

    Gem, try an electric sander. Just hold the CD on the sander for a few minutes and it will be as good as new!

    For best results, put the CD over a match for about 5 minutes after sanding it.

  18. What a crock
    October 5th, 2007 at 10:05 am

    Just tried this - don't waste your time. I thought the banana would be slightly abrasive and remove some of the scratches. Turns out it only covers the disc with wax, which is extremely difficult to remove, and the disc had even more errors when done. This is a hoax, and the guy that published it an a$$h0le.

  19. IT WORKS
    August 25th, 2008 at 12:40 am

    IT WORKS (BUT)

    There Is Steps

    1.Toothpaste method (to remove scratches)
    2.Soft cloth, Rub it for bout 3 mins(I just watch tv)
    3.Then the banana method ( The Banana polishes it Nicely)

  20. Alexander (FSXC182RG)
    January 20th, 2009 at 8:51 pm

    Well, I don't know who to believe.

    If the banana.
    If the tooth paste.
    If the toilet.

  21. Alexander
    January 20th, 2009 at 8:52 pm

    Well, I don't know who to believe.

    If the banana.
    If the tooth paste.
    If the toilet.
    If the sh*t.

    Who???

  22. David Burrell
    January 21st, 2009 at 2:56 pm

    I had to check out the banana theory after I saw it on an Amazon discussion board.

    I won't be trying it. But, I did, and do use something that does work. I ordered a complete DVD set of Mash, and since the DVD disks had been inserted into stiff cardboard sleeves, they were scratched upon first being inserted, and when I tried to gently pull them out.

    Some disks in the middle of the set were scratched badly, and skipped and stopped. Some wouldn't play at all. Of course I only found this out after I had had the set for a couple of months and couldn't return the $300+ (retail) set. So I bought two different commercial "scratch" removal systems and tried them. They helped on some disks, but didn't work at all on a few disks.

    Since I already had a bottle of "Blue-Magic Plastic and Plexiglass Cleaner" and a bottle of "Eagle One Plastic Polish" that I use to clean up and polish the visor on my motorcycle helmet, I figured I'd try that.

    I took one of the disks that had terrible scratches and wouldn't even read, and lightly hand rubbed the Blue-Magic on the disk first, to remove the worse scratches, using a plastic eye glass lens cleaning cloth. I then applied a "finish" coat of the Eagle One polish and polished it completely clean and shiny with the same lens cloth. I allowed the disk to dry completely for about an hour.

    The cleaned and polished "bad" disk played almost perfectly, with only a couple of slight pauses. I didn't try to completely remove all of the deepest scratches, but the polish smoothed them out enough to actually play and watch the "bad" DVD.

    I now use that same method on all of my new, or older, DVD and CD disks that give me problems. It had worked every time in around 40+ uses.

  23. Alec
    June 19th, 2009 at 11:52 pm

    Just curios: does this work on Xbox 360 disks? I rented Sonic the Hedgehhog 2006 and someone must have turn the 360 upright while it was spinning, causing the scratch.

    Wait, rental places do it for you right? RIGHT! Try it!!

  24. Liam
    August 30th, 2009 at 12:37 pm

    i hope the toothpaste works on gta vice city it doesent work anyway me and my brother will post the results later

  25. zaphraud
    August 30th, 2009 at 1:51 pm

    ANYTHING that can act abrasively on the surface of the CD will work. The reason is that the data is on the top side of the disc, directly underneath the label. Beneath that, is a lot of plastic, and it is possible to polish that plastic "smooth enough".

    Before attempting any physical data recovery, copy whatever you can. There's a chance you'll screw up something else and wind up with errors elsewhere on the disc.

    If you have a copy protected game and are attempting to restore the entire disc in one go, well, it sucks to be you and this is why you should write your government and DEMAND that the DMCA - and its European equivalent, be repealed - citizens should have the legal right to a deprotected backup copy of media they have legally purchased.

    WIPE OUT WIPO

  26. lawry phillips
    September 23rd, 2009 at 7:25 am

    the best and easiest way to cure anybad scratches from when you move your xbox is by using tcut or brasso and a soft cloth :)


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