The day you
unpacked and started working with your new Mac was special; it marked the day
when your Mac's keyboard and mouse were working at their best. From that day
forward, little bits of grime, dust, and dirt have been building up on these
often-used peripherals. The buildup of gunk will slowly cause your mouse to feel
less responsive, and may even cause your keyboard to miss a key click or two
now and then.
Luckily, it's
fairly easy to restore a keyboard and mouse to like-new condition. All that's
needed is a bit of cleaning and attention.
Cleaning Suggestions
Start by turning
off your Mac and unplugging your mouse and keyboard. If your keyboard or mouse
is battery powered, remove the batteries as well.
Have the
following items on hand:
Ÿ Microfiber cloth
Ÿ Can of pressurized air
Ÿ Clean water (It doesn't need to be purified, distilled, or anything
else special; just clean.)
Ÿ Cotton swabs or similar cleaning products
Ÿ Toothpicks or similar items
Cleaning Your Mac's Mouse
Wipe the mouse
body with the microfiber cloth. This should be enough to remove any oils, such
as fingerprints. For stubborn spots, dip the cloth in the clean water and rub
the mouse gently. Don't apply water directly to the mouse because it may drip
into the mouse's inner workings, where sensitive electronics reside.
Don't be afraid
to use a little pressure to scrub off really dirty spots on the mouse.
Just as long as
your not applying pressure near any scroll wheel, cover, or tracking system.
Mighty Mouse
If you have an
Apple Mighty Mouse, the scroll ball also needs to be cleaned. Slightly dampen
the microfiber cloth and roll the scroll ball against the cloth. You can also
try using the cotton swabs to help clean the scroll ball.
Once the scroll
ball is clean, use the can of pressurized air to blow out dust and dirt from
inside the well the scroll ball sits in. This also serves to dry the scroll
ball after you've cleaned it.
Magic Mouse
If you have an
Apple Magic Mouse, cleaning is vastly simplified. You can clean the touch
surface with a wet or dry microfiber cloth, and run the microfiber cloth along
the two guide rails on the bottom of the Magic Mouse.
If your Magic
Mouse seems to have tracking errors, that is, the mouse pointer stalls or jumps
about, use the can of pressurized air to clean around the tracking sensor on
the bottom of the Magic Mouse.
Other Mice
If you have a
third-party mouse, follow the manufacturer's suggested cleaning instructions,
or take a look at How to Clean a Mouse by Tim Fisher, a fellow Lifewire expert
who really knows his way around a PC. In general, use a microfiber cloth to
clean the exterior of the mouse. If the mouse has a scroll wheel, you may find
that it routinely becomes clogged with gunk. Use cotton swabs to clean the
scroll wheel and the can of pressurized air to clean around the scroll wheel.
In the worst
cases, you may need to open up the mouse to access the optical sensor in the
scroll wheel system.
Not all mice are
easily opened up, and some are very difficult to put back together once opened.
I don't recommend performing mouse surgery unless you already have a
replacement mouse available, and don't mind ending up with leftover mouse
parts, or looking for that little spring that sailed across the room.
Cleaning Your Keyboard
Clean your
keyboard surface using a microfiber cloth. For stubborn surfaces, dampen the
cloth with clean water. Wrap a toothpick with a single layer of the microfiber
cloth to clean between the keys.
Use the can of
pressurized air to blow out any additional debris from around the keys.
Cleaning a Keyboard After a Spill
Spilling a
beverage onto a keyboard is probably the most common cause of keyboard death.
However, depending on the liquid, and how fast you react, it is possible to
save a keyboard that has undergone a spillage.
Water and other clear liquids
Clear and semi-clear
beverages, such as water, black coffee, and tea, are the easiest to recover
from, with water offering the best chances, of course. When a spill occurs,
quickly unplug the keyboard from your Mac, or quickly turn it off and remove
its batteries. Don't wait to shut down your Mac; disconnect the keyboard or
remove its batteries as quickly as possible.
If the liquid
was plain water, wait 24 hours to allow the water to dry before reconnecting
the keyboard or replacing its batteries. With any luck, your keyboard will
power back up and you'll be ready to go.
Coffee and Tea
Coffee or tea
spills are slightly more problematic, because of the acid levels in these
beverages. Depending on the keyboard design, these beverages can cause very
small signal wires within the keyboard to be etched over time and stop working.
Many sources suggest flooding the keyboard with clean water, in the hope of
diluting the acid levels, and then letting the keyboard dry out for 24 hours,
to see if it still works. I've tried this method a few times, but it has failed
more often than not. On the other hand, what have you got to lose?
Soda, Beer, and Wine
Carbonated
beverages, beer, wine, and other hot or cold beverages are death sentences to
most keyboards.
Of course, it
depends on how much was spilled. A drop or two can usually be cleaned up
quickly, with little or no lasting damage. If the spill was larger, and the
liquid got inside the keyboard, well, you can always try the water submersion
method, but don't get your hopes up.
No matter what
type of spill occurs, the key to possibly salvaging a keyboard is to disconnect
it from any electrical source (batteries, USB) as quickly as possible and allow
it to completely dry out before you try using it again.
Disasemble the keyboard
You can improve
the chances of the keyboard recovering by removing the individual keys. The
process is different for each keyboard model but in general, a small flat blade
screwdriver can be used to pop the keys off. The larger keys such as shift,
return, space bar, will sometimes have retaining clips or multiple connection
points. Be especially careful when removing those keys.
With the keys
removed, you may notice stains, puddled liquids, or other indications of
specific areas on the keyboard that need attention. Use a slightly damp cloth
to clean any stains and to soak up any standing liquids still present. You can
also try using the can of pressurized air to dry areas where evidence indicates
the liquid has gotten into the key mechanism.
Don't forget to make
a map of where each key goes to allow you to replace all of the keys. You may
think you know where each key belongs, but when it comes time to reassemble the
keyboard, a map may be just the guide you need.
I can't tell you
how many keyboards we have around our office that work just fine, except for
one or two keys, all of which were killed by spillage.
On a brighter
note, I've never heard of a keyboard spillage causing damage beyond the
keyboard itself.
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