Keeping It Clean

You may not have thought that computers have much to do with housework—those boring chores that need to be done to keep your household running smoothly, but computers have their own set of household chores that are essential if your machine is to work properly. They have to be cleaned: keyboards, screens, monitors and mice may lose their functionality if they are not cleaned from time to time.

If your laptop, monitor etc. came with any cleaning instructions then it is advisable to use these, but the following general techniques should be applicable to most set-ups.

Keyboards: Do you sit with a cup of coffee at your computer? Ever eat the occasional biscuit? Then chances are your keyboard will be full of crumbs and other unmentionable debris. Ideally of course, you should never eat or drink while operating a computer, but we all do it. Keys may lose their sensitivity or become “sticky” because of  particles of food, hair and beard that are trapped beneath them. The surface and sides of keys will accumulate grease and grime from continual contact with working fingers.

• First of all make sure your keyboard is disconnected or if it is part of a laptop, that the computer is off
• Pick it up and turn it upside down and give it a gentle shake to knock out loose crumbs.
• Use a can of compressed air to blow out more firmly trapped debris or suck it out with a vacuum cleaner.
• Use a cotton bud dampened with a cleaning fluid such as isopropyl alcohol  to clean the sides of the keys.
• Use a micro fibre cloth dampened with cleaning fluid to clean the tops of the keys. Take care not to damage the lettering.
• Use a dry cloth to wipe over the surface.

N.B. It is possible to remove the keys from some keyboards (not usually laptops) so that you can clean more thoroughly but this is a much more involved procedure.

Screens and monitors:

• Make sure the computer is off or the monitor is disconnected from the power.
• Use a micro fibre cloth to remove dust.
• Dampen the cloth with LCD screen cleaning fluid to remove stubborn marks. 

Mouse: If your mouse pointer jumps around the screen or sticks in one place it could be a sign that your mouse needs cleaning. The procedure will depend on whether it is a ball mouse or an optical mouse.

Ball mouse:

• Disconnect the mouse from the computer.
• Unscrew the ring on the bottom of the mouse. The ball will come out.
• Clean the ball with a tissue and some cleaning fluid.
• Inside the mouse there are three contact points for the ball. These can be cleaned gently with a cotton bud or a finger nail.
• Reassemble the mouse.

Optical mouse -

• Switch off or disconnect the mouse.
• Find the LED and lens on the underside.
• Clean with a cotton bud dampened with suitable cleaning fluid.
• Dry with a dry cotton bud.
• Allow the mouse to dry thoroughly before reactivating it.