Cleaning the Glass on a Visioneer 8100 Scanner

[Bill Helbron]

Can someone tell me how to clean the underside of the glass on my Visioneer 8100
scanner? I made a mistake initially by cleaning the topside with Windex, which
several people have said was NOT a good idea and to use a clean, damp cloth. My
problem is that the underside of the glass appears to have a film of some sort
and I don't know how to remove it. Suggestions, please!

Bill

 

[J. Teske]

Can someone tell me how to clean the underside of the glass on my Visioneer 8100
scanner? I made a mistake initially by cleaning the topside with Windex, which
several people have said was NOT a good idea and to use a clean, damp cloth. My
problem is that the underside of the glass appears to have a film of some sort
and I don't know how to remove it. Suggestions, please!

I don't have that particular Visioneer, but I just cleaned my
Visioneer 8920. On the top are two little rubber plugs. They are on
the left side of my scanner. I popped them with a very small
screwdriver blade or an Xacto knife. Under those are two Phillips
screws. Loosen them and you can lift up the top part. Remove the top
cover first. My top has two plastic tips which serve as hinges on the
side opposite the screws. Clean glass and reassemble.

Jon Teske

 

[Don]

Can someone tell me how to clean the underside of the glass on my Visioneer 8100
scanner? I made a mistake initially by cleaning the topside with Windex, which
several people have said was NOT a good idea and to use a clean, damp cloth. My
problem is that the underside of the glass appears to have a film of some sort
and I don't know how to remove it. Suggestions, please!

I've tried everything from Windex to alcohol to lens cleaners to...
anything else I could think of (even using lens paper instead of
cloth). In the end, any "wet" cleaners just made matters worse.

In my experience, the best is to use a good, dry (!) microfiber cloth.
It leaves no residue and removes all debris and film (that's the
evaporation from electronic components in the scanner).

Some people suggest using a damp cloth. I don't do that, but if you do
I'd say use distilled water, not tap water!

However, the catch is finding a good microfiber cloth. They are not
all made equal and most cloths advertised as "microfiber" are anything
but. One sign of a good cloth is that when used on glass it almost has
a rubbery feel to it. It almost seems to "grip" the glass.

Don.

 

[Bill Helbron]

Hi Jon,

Thanks for your reply and your instructions! I removed the two little rubber
plugs on the left side of the scanner and removed the two screws OK, but lifting
the cover off was a little tricky, but managed to get it off, cleaned the glass,
and reassembled the cover. There was a thin film of something on the underside
of the glass. How it got there is a mystery, but is clean now. Thanks again!

Bill

 

[J. Teske]

Hi Jon,

Thanks for your reply and your instructions! I removed the two little rubber
plugs on the left side of the scanner and removed the two screws OK, but lifting
the cover off was a little tricky, but managed to get it off, cleaned the glass,
and reassembled the cover. There was a thin film of something on the underside
of the glass. How it got there is a mystery, but is clean now. Thanks again!

I think the thin film is a plasticizer given off from the plastic
housing. This is the same sort of crud a person gets on the inside of
a car windshield if they don't clean it often. As I understand it,
molded plastic gives off some sort of emission. In a car it comes off
all the plastic interior parts. You are right, it is a bit tricky.

Jon

 

[Don]

There was a thin film of something on the underside
of the glass. How it got there is a mystery

It's evaporation from electronic components. Also, flatbeds are not
hermetically sealed so other things like dust particles are bound to
sneak in sooner or later. That's why I keep my flatbed covered when
not in use.

In any case, be prepared to clean the underside at regular intervals.
However, now that you've done it once it's going to be easier next
time.

A neat hint/trick. After cleaning, do a scan of "nothing" i.e. lift
the lid and perform a scan in a darkened room. Import this scan into
an image editor and brighten it up until it becomes light gray.

Inspecting this at 100% will reveal every scratch and dust particle on
the glass. It's quite an eye-opener and a good way to see if the glass
needs cleaning or, if the cleaning was successful.

Don.

 

[Bill Helbron]

Hi Don,

Many thanks for the tip! I tried it and apparently, I must have cleaned it
pretty well since I didn't find anything, but will repeat the procedure as
needed!

Bill