Properly Clean a Laptop Computer Using Ordinary Household Items

Periodically, it’s a good idea to clean a laptop computer in order to keep it in good condition and running smoothly. There are hundreds of computer accessory manufacturers out there that sell specialty computer cleaning agents and other cleaning kits. Most of these kits do work great, but you can just as easily clean a laptop using everyday household items, that will have the same effect. Today’s post will detail how to clean a laptop computer completely, to get that straight out of the box look.

Ingredients

• A can of compressed air
• A dish of water
• Several Q-tips
• Some Windex OR lens cleaning wipes (used for eye glasses)
• Soft cloth or microfiber cloth

The Cleaning Process

Interior

Let’s start by cleaning up the inside of the laptop. Just like a desktop computer, laptop computers will eventually begin to accumulate a fair amount of dust and debris. Cleaning the interior of the laptop computer helps to keeps components (CPU, GPU, Fans, etc…) all running smoothly.

This process will differ slightly depending on which particular laptop you own. For example, with MacBook Pros, the bottom plate must be removed in order to access the interior. With many HP laptops, certain covers must be removed, located on the bottom of the laptop. Each laptop is a bit different.

Once you have access to the internal components of the laptop, remove the battery. Also, make sure that the laptop is not plugged in to the charger/power source. With the battery removed and the charger disconnected, hold down the power button on your laptop for 5 seconds, to assure that any left over power is drained from the laptop.

Spray any dust or debris out of the laptop using a can of compressed air. Remember to hold the can an according distance away and use short bursts of air.

If you don’t have a can of air laying around the house, you can use a turkey baster if you have one of those.

Once any dust or debris has been removed from the interior, simply reassemble the laptop, but leave the battery out and the charger disconnected.

Exterior

Cleaning the exterior is more straightforward. Let’s start by cleaning the screen.

Cleaning the screen of a laptop can be done using a couple of different cleaning agents. Water is always a safe solution, but you can also use Windex, glasses cleaning wipes, or other glass cleaners. If using water, you can use purified (bottled water), as it does not contain as many chemicals and contaminants and tends to dry quicker, without leaving streaks.

Start by spraying a soft cloth or microfiber cloth with water or a cleaning solution. Use sparingly. From there, simply wipe down the screen and remove any dirt or particles. You may have to scrub with a bit more pressure in certain spots, but be cautious and don’t put too much pressure on the screen, as it could damage it.

Once the screen is clean, use the reverse side of the cloth or a new cloth to dry it.

To clean the bezel of the screen, it’s best to use water, but some cleaning solutions will work too. Some cleaning solutions can contain chemicals that will ruin the finish on a laptop, but will work okay for cleaning a screen, as it is protected by a layer of glass or similar. So, be cautious if using any specific cleaning solutions with your laptop.

Cleaning the keyboard and track pad area of a laptop can be done in a similar way. Start by using the can of compressed air to remove any dirt particles or debris that is stuck between the keys of the laptop.

Next, dip a Q-tip in water, but only slightly. Just get it damp enough for dirt to stick to it, but not too damp that water is dripping off of it. Use the Q-tip to clean in between keys and other hard to reach places around the keyboard.

Finally, clean the keyboard, track pad, and palm rest area with a soft cloth or microfiber cloth.

The outside of the laptop (lid and bottom) can be simply wiped down with a damp cloth too, but be sure to be careful when cleaning around ports. To clean ports such as USB or charger ports, you can use dry Q-tips. Be careful and do not put a lot of pressure on the Q-tips. Here, you just want to remove any surface dust or particles by using a soft, brushing/sweeping motion.

Once you have completed cleaning and drying the laptop, you can connect the battery and charger. That’s all there is to it for cleaning a laptop. Any other recommendations or solutions for laptop cleaning? Leave a comment!