Cleaning Your Computer Keyboard At Home Easily

Photo by Sofya on Unsplash

Do you know that a keyboard has 400 times more bacteria than a toilet seat? One might argue that he does not eat or drink near his keyboard while working on a computer. Yet eventually keyboards get dirty due to natural hand oil, hair, skin particle, pet fur and regular dust.

A thorough monthly cleaning can extend the lifespan of the keyboard. Here are some quick and easy steps to clean your keyboard at home.

Tools you will need:

• Paper towel or Microfiber cloth.
• Compressed Air can or a straw.
• Key Cap puller.
• Q-tip.
• Any soft brush. Ex: Paintbrush or vacuum cleaner brush.
• Worm water and a colander.
• Dishwashing soap
• Isopropyl Alcohol (warning- direct using can remove UV coating (if present), try mixing with water 50–50%, test on the back of the keyboard first to see any reaction, rinse or wipe off immediately).

Time needed to clean up:

• Quick cleaning will take 5–10 minutes once a week.
• Deep cleaning will take 30–45 minutes once a month.

Quick cleaning:

Keep 10 minutes free every weekend for quick cleaning of your keyboard. First, unplug the keyboard, turn your keyboard upside down, and gently shake it to remove any loose debris from it. Then use your microfiber cloth to wipe all the keycaps to remove natural hand oil from them.

If your keyboard is spilled with liquid, wipe it with a dry towel or paper towel, or a microfiber cloth thoroughly. And then leave it to dry. After it dries, using a compressed air can, you can blow air between the keys to remove dirt.

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You can use a straw to blow air with your mouth between the keycaps if you don’t have a compressed air can available.

Deep cleaning step by step:

1. Unplug: Before you start cleaning, you need to unplug your keyboard.
2. Cleaning loose particles: First, do a quick cleaning as mentioned above. This will help all loose particles to fall off before you go into deep cleaning.
3. Take a photo and pull the keycaps: Do not forget to take a photo of the keyboard before pulling off the keycaps. By doing this, it will be easier to put them back again.

With the help of a keycap remover, remove all the keycaps. If you don’t have a remover, you can use your fingers. Pull off the small keys first. So that you will get enough space to pull the larger keys such as the space bar, enter key and shift key. Also, you must be very careful while pulling larger keys as these keys have stabilizer wire inside. If not careful, these wires can break.

Please remember to pull in one direction very gently while using your fingers. If the keys are hard to pull off, carefully wiggle it first and then pull.

Put all the keys in a neat pile beside the keyboard.

Once you have removed all the keys from the board, you can easily see the dirt, hair, food particle, and grime inside.

4. Wash the keycaps: Place all the removed keycaps in a colander and wash with warm water (Not too hot). You can also put the keys in a small bowl of warm water and soak them for 5 minutes and then wash it with dishwashing liquid. Remember to stair the keys with your finger while washing. This will help to wash away all the grease on the keys. Finally, wash it with cold water.

Then wipe each key with a dry cloth and place it on the top of a dry tissue or towel. Tap each key a few times on the towel or on your hand to remove all the extra water from the keys. Let them dry completely for a couple of hours. Don’t use a hairdryer or direct sunlight to dry because extra heat can cause damage.

5. Wash the tray: Take a small tong and pull out the debris, crumbs, hairs, or pet fur from the board. Then use a soft bristle brush to brush the board. All the dry debris will come out.

Take a paper towel or microfiber cloth and dump it with a 50–50% mixture of water-isopropyl alcohol. Wipe the accessible part of the keyboard.

Do not wipe off or tear off the keyboard label containing the model name and serial number. Or you will have a problem with your warranty of the keyboard.

Then use a cotton bud to clean the narrow places of the keyboard. Dump the Q-tip with a 50–50% mixture of Isopropyl alcohol water and run across the keyboard. Avoid dripping. Also, clean the switches with Q-tip. Be very careful about it.

6. Dry for 2–3 days: Do not put the keys on until they are completely dry. Which are a minimum of 2 days. It is not recommended to dry under the heat of the sun or in any warm place. Let it dry by itself at room temperature.

7. Put the keycaps on and test functionality: Now putting all the keys on the board again is the fun part. At this time you will need the photo you have taken before pulling all the keys out. Make sure all the keycaps are dry and in the correct place.

And that is pretty much it. Your keyboard is brand new. Shinny and pretty sleek.

Thanks for reading, if you have any additional suggestions or quires, feel free to comment in the comment box. I will get back to you regarding your quires soon.