How to clean computer keyboard effectively ⌨️?

Today we bring you a practical guide on how to clean the computer keyboard to remove the embedded dirt, whether it is mechanical, membrane or mecha-membrane. There always comes a time when you need to remove the fuzz that lives between the keys and leave it as the jets of gold, so let's go there!

Index of contents

Materials you can use

In general, to wax your keyboards you will not need much. Not all the resources that we are going to present below will be necessary if you are going to do a superficial cleaning, but you already know how we like to get involved with the details.

• It is convenient to have a soft brush or small brush with which to remove lint or solid remains. A homemade trick is makeup brushes. You can also use a slightly damp cloth. Eyeglass chamois are great for cleaning buttons individually or small areas, but any soft, fine fabric would do it for you.If it's just for a quick swipe or more extreme cases a blow dryer could come in handy as long as it's from a distance (remember that excessive heat can deform the plastic keys). You can also buy a small bottle of compressed air cleaner, but it is not essential. To moisten your keyboard you can use a little water, clean crystals or alcohol for the wounds (isopropyl) for resistant stains (note for the girls: it will take the remains of makeup with a pen). Regarding alcohol, keep in mind that if you apply it to the keys, it is possible that the characters will be stamped if they are not engraved or are of low quality. If you are not sure, use only water (it can be soapy) or glass cleaner. In the case of mechanical keyboards or mecha-membrane, you will need a key extractor. You can do it with your fingers or tweezers, but it is not recommended.

These are some ideas to walk around the house, each teacher has his booklet

Before starting

• This may be office automation first, but there are always clueless : to properly clean our keyboard we must disconnect it first. We also like to live dangerously, but there is no reason to risk it here. There are solid residues that can be loose between the keys, such as small breadcrumbs, hairs, scraps of paper, plastic… a previous step to open the keyboard and clean it in depth would be turning it over and gently shaking or tapping it. Most of the bigger debris will fall down right away.We also need to consider our keyboard type. There are those that have the buttons exposed and we see their base while others are inside a frame (the first ones do not stand out with respect to their base and the second ones do). This second type is the one with the most crap, especially since it slips through the slits and is often not visible to the naked eye due to the casing. You will need a more thorough cleaning.

Having said all this, let's go to the topic: How to clean the computer keyboard?

Clean a membrane keyboard

This is a membrane keyboard in which the keys are open, so before unscrewing it on the back we can do a first surface cleaning

Membrane keyboards have the peculiarity that dirt and dust can not only creep between the keys, but can also reach the silicone surface on the keyboard's contact circuit.

For those cases in which a deep cleaning is required, it is advisable to disassemble it and start by unscrewing the back of the keyboard and opening it gently. Once done, you will usually find four different pieces:

1. On the one hand, you will have the back plate of the keyboard with the pins. Immediately attached to it you will find the electronic circuit with a small base plate. Covering it, a flexible latex membrane. The upper part of the keyboard with the integrated buttons

   

   View of the open membrane keyboard. Items that should NOT be wetted are circuit board and vinyl

* These indications may vary according to the manufacturer.

Detail shot of the dirt and dust accumulated on the membrane and inside the keys

Cleaning process: First remove large particles with brushes or brushes and then moisten

Now you can clean everything separately. Both the latex membrane and the housing with the buttons can be cleaned with a damp cloth if necessary or only with the brush or brush that you have on hand. You can use both water and glass cleaner, but in any case do not forget that the parts must be very dry before reassembling the keyboard or the circuit could be damaged.

Components already clean and dry before reassembling

Clean a mechanical keyboard

When removing the switches we can give a brush stroke to the entire surface surrounding the contact of the switches. If there are stains, make sure that the water or product you use does not leak into the mechanisms and be scrupulous when drying.

It is much easier than cleaning a membrane keyboard since all the switches need to be removed. It allows to clean the switches individually and also give a pass to the lower area of the buttons once they are removed. For this type of keyboard it is not very convenient to use damp chamois and unless they have a lot of dust (or in case of spills) you have to pass a piece of absorbent paper immediately afterwards. Never wet or moisten the area where the button and mechanism fit, as we can damage the contact.

If we do not want to clean the buttons individually (either because laziness can or because they are not very dirty) you can always bathe them in a basin with water at room temperature and then let them dry.

Cleaning a mecha-membrane keyboard

Okay, but: how to clean the keyboard of the computer if it is hybrid? We know they are not common, but since they also exist, we will include them in the tutorial. Mecca-membrane keyboards are a mixture of both, so they can be misleading. You can generally remove the switches and clean them as if it were a mechanical keyboard since the “membrane” is individual to each key (generally using silicone or rubber domes) unlike conventional membrane keyboards. Depending on the manufacturer, this may be the case or you may be forced to disassemble the casing in order to remove them. In any of the two cases, you can follow the indications of the previously mentioned models.

In conclusion

Apart from knowing how to clean the computer keyboard effectively, it is advisable to remember that we do not only have to clean our keyboard when cookie crumbs are strained or (in the worst case) we spill half a coffee. As far as peripherals are concerned, keyboards are generally very durable, but they will always appreciate a little pampering on a daily basis to guarantee a long and prosperous life.

Since keyboards are the thing, you can take a look at our articles on the best keyboards on the market and the best gaming keyboards in 2019.

With this we end our quick guide to cleaning keyboards. Be sure to comment on any additional advice you want to share with other users. Until next time!