Cleaning a keyboard for dummies

Yep, it's that time again...to clean my super disgusting dirty keyboard. Eekk! For those who have never tried cleaning your keyboard, well here's a guide I whooped up just for fun. There are many ways you can clean your keyboard. This is how I clean mine.

Step 1

Unplug your keyboard. You don't have to if you don't want to. But it is easier to handle if its unpluged.

Step 2

Use a screw driver to pop the keys out from the keyboard. You can actually use other tools to pop the keys. (Eg a ruler, your long nails, a slim pen, even a needle) Don't be afraid to yank the keys out. It wont hurt. LOL. You keyboard will look like the above with all the keys out. Mine is super dirty. Can you see those crumbs and eye lash? I'm such a dirty pig. (note: the yellow stuff is not dirt. Its some grease they put under the spacebar, shift and enter key...looks like ear wax rite...gross)

Step 3

Dump all the keys into a basin or something. Add some soap and water and let it soak for about 15 minutes (you might want to soak it longer if your keys are super dirty like mine).

Step 4

While the keys are soaking, vacume up all those 'eeaeeuuuu' stuff out of the gaps. I used this (see above pic) vacume head to get the dirt out. Works wonders.

Step 5

For those really hard to reach places, use a wet/damped cottonbud to clean. Use a clean cloth to clean the other areas (the flat surface) of the board too.

Step 6

Ok, when it's time to get the keys out, use an old toothbrush/scrub/sponge to clean the keys individually. I recommeded the toothbrush and sponge for the scrubbing, cos if you were to use the green rough scrub, the scrub might scrub off the printing on the keys. You might end up scracting the surface of the keys too. In my case I use both the toothbrush and scrub, the toothbrush for the surface, and the scrub for the sides of the keys.

Step 7

Rinse the keys. Then let them dry under the sun. If possible, dry them out with a cloth first. Use magazine paper (try not to use newspaper cos the newspaper might dirty your keys because of its black ink) or some unused cardboard as the base to dry your keys. (Actually, you don't have to use anything if you don't what to, its just a suggestion) When you collect your keys to be placed back to the board, make sure there are no drops of water stuck to the keys. Use cottonbuds to dry them up.

Step 8

Snap the keys back to the keyboard and violah! There you have it, a clean keyboard. If you can't remember where the keys goes, make sure you have a snap shot of your keyboard or another keyboard to make sure you have the keys back at the right place. Open your text editor and test all the keys out. Swap whatever keys that you have placed wrongly.

Happy cleaning! LOL!