Cleaning a laptop
Let’s start with the harder part – keyboard. Cleaning a keyboard in your laptop can be a tricky task to do, but it will have a lot of benefits for your device and yourself!
- Turn off the laptop, disconnect the battery (if possible) and open it.
- Turn the laptop upside down and gently tap it to get rid of any loose crumbs out of the keyboard. Make sure to be very gentle to not damage any important parts inside the device.
- If you’ve got some or can buy it, use canned air on the keyboard. This will loosen some of the dirt stuck under and between the keys. If you happen to have a helping hand, get the other person to hold the laptop upside down and spray the air into the keyboard at the same time. This will increase the amount of dirt coming out!
- Put the laptop on a flat surface and vacuum the keyboard with a small brush attachment and lower power mode.
- Dampen some cotton swabs with rubbing alcohol and wipe them over and in between the keys (if possible). Make sure the swabs are damp, and not wet.
- Remember to clean the touchpad as well as any external keyboards or mice.
How to clean your LCD screen (both PC’s and laptops):
- If you have some canned air, spray your screen with it to remove any surface dust.
- Use a specialist screen cleaner or make a mixture of equal parts white vinegar and distilled water. Some screens are porous and using the wrong cleaner can leave permanent marks so read the label on the cleaner before using on a screen.
- Spray the cleaner or vinegar solution on a soft cloth (ideally microfibre cloths, which are very gentle to the screen), and gently clean the screen.
Cleaning a PC
This can prove to be a trickier task than a laptop itself and can be more time consuming but will improve long term performance of your device!
- Shutdown your PC and disconnect the mains power cable.
- Remove the left side panel by unscrewing the screws on the back. All PC’s might be build a bit differently, so might be worth checking your manual or instructions before starting to unscrew bit and pieces.
- The dirtiest parts of a case are usually the top and the bottom. Best way to remove this dust is with a cloth. If the bottom of the case has gathered up a significant amount of dust, you may want to use a vacuum cleaner to make the process easier.
- Getting dust out of the hard to reach places is best to do with the help of a can of compressed air. You can use it to blow dust out of the drive racks and fan grilles on either the front or the back.
- If your case is equipped with dust filters, they will need some cleaning too. This can easily be done with either a can of compressed air or a brush.
If you need convincing why your device needs cleaning here’s some reasons:
- Dust building up in your computer can block the fans, which can lead it to overheat and will shorten its lifespan.
- A PC or laptops performance can be compromised by heat issues, making it run slowly. It could also be noisier with the fans running faster than they need to, trying to keep things cool.
- Germs build up on food bits and dust, so keeping your keyboard and mouse clean and a regular wipe with alcohol based cleaner is important.
