Windows 7 - Advice On Cleaning Keyboard.

Hi,first of all the let me say sorry if this is in the wrong area.
basically i dropped a cup of coffee on my new razer lycosa keyboard
Luckily enough it still all works but now i am left with residue all over some keys.
Could anyone recomend any way of cleaning it off for me as i am a little hesitant in ripping all the keys off lol
Regards
Damoh

Hello Damoh,

You shouldn't have to rip the keys off.

On the back of most keyboards, you can remove all of the small screws to separate the upper half with just the keys and plastic frame from the bottom half with the circuit board. If the upper half has no wires or electrical components and is nothing but plastic, then you can simply just wash in under hot water to get it real clean. Just be sure to dry it thoroughly and let it sit to finish drying between the keys before reattaching it back to the bottom half of the keyboard.

Otherwise, you can use rubbing alcohol and a bunch of Q-tips.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

Hi Damoh,

What I've done in the past, for clients, is lay a soft barely damp cloth over the keys and use a soft brush to brush the keys through the cloth, I used soft shoe brushes. The cloth should not have any free moisture of course if you wish you can use a suitable not conductive notn abrasive cleaning fluid, but check the keytops are not affected before you start.

Thanks both for your advice, if it was a cheapo keyboard then i would not be bothered lol, but it cost me a lot lol, ill try tommorow and hopefully get it looking like new lol

You're welcome Damoh. I hope it cleans up easily for you.

Hello Damoh..

Just an extra advice.
First of all, don't attempt to use hairdryer to dry the keys, they might just melt, depending on the heat! Just wipe them until they're dry.
Also , I suggest you do this soon cause If you let your keyboard with the coffee there for a long time, the keys will get sticky after that and some of them you will press them and they will remain pressed.

In my case, what I did was to remove each key carefully, wash them or clean them with glass cleaning fluid, cleaned the board below the keys with a wet cloth until all coffee was gone... including the holes where the keys stick in, some of them contained whole sips of coffee

Most keyboards have tough keys, they don't break if you pluck them out.

Oh, and something more about water. Even if you ever wanted to open the whole keyboard and wash it, it's not a bad idea...even the circuit board.

Believe it or not, I have washed (literally, under the tap ) motherboards, access points, network switch boards etc... most of the times, this solved problems of spilled liquids, rust and salt spots.

They key is to dry them all well and use a spark contact fluid to spray them with afterwards.

Good luck!

That would explain why my PC survived being out in the rain. Good work Limneos!

personally, i'm a big believer in q tips and four to one diluted mr clean, but i usually pop the keys.

i actually dumped (i've worked IT since 1975 so bear with me) spaghetti onto the keyboard. do as i say, not as i do. (i laughed, what do you do?)

for coffee you should have no problem, for tough stuff, i like to follow up with a q tip with just a touch of sensodyne toothpase (the stuff for sensative teeth). works a charm.

for cases of dispair, undo the screws, remove the membrane, everything will align for you just fine later, use a sharp edge to seperate the upper and lower halves and throw it in the shower. (really). dry thoroughly, as in no mistakes thoroughly. good to go.

You CAN Put Your Keyboard in the Dishwasher | Plastic Bugs

I've read elsewhere about someone who takes his keyboard into the shower, gives it a good glean and then leaves it in the airing cupboard to dry for a week or so.
Never tried it myself, but I can't imagine it not working