How to Clean Your Mouse, Keyboard, & Monitor

September 5th, 2007 | Published in Tech

Are you a neat freak? If so, check out these tips below to keep your computer equipment sparkly & clean without causing damage.

How to Clean Your Keyboard

Turn the keyboard upside down and gently shake it. Most of the crumbs and dust will fall out. Take a can of compressed air and blow into and around the keys. Next, take a cotton swab and dip it in rubbing alcohol. It should be damp, but not wet. Run the cotton swab around the outside of the keys. Rub the tops of the keys. If you have a laptop, follow the same procedure but take extra care.

How to Clean Your Mouse

For optical mice, rub the top and bottom of your mouse with a paper towel dipped in rubbing alcohol. If you have a ball mouse, open the back and remove the ball. Wash the ball with water and let it air dry. To clean inside the mouse, dip a cotton swab in rubbing alcohol and rub all of the components. Scrape hard to remove grime with your fingernail. If you want to go really overboard, try the washable mouse.

How to Clean Your Monitor

Never use a cleaning agent such as Windex on your LCD. Those cleaners often contain ammonia, which can damage your display’s panel. A slightly damp, lint-free cloth, like the ones included with eyeglasses, or a microfiber cloth is better. Never use paper towels! To clean streaks, first use a damp cloth and then use a dry one. Lightly moisten the cloth with either water or a commercial LCD panel cleaner, which you can buy at office supply stores, like Staples. Often, LCD cleaners are just a mix of 50/50 isopropyl alcohol/water, so, if need be, you can mix that yourself. Never to spray any liquid directly at your screen – just moisten the cloth lightly.