SUMMARY POINTS
You spend a lot of time at your desk working and getting all the grunt work done. Sometimes when you’re really slammed at work and doing nothing but putting out fires, you’ll be banging on the keyboard for hours on end without a single break.
On these hectic days, you don’t even have time to head out for lunch and instead, you’re working through lunch and eating at your desk just to keep up with the work and not fall behind.
You take a bite then type. Take a sip and type. No time to wipe your fingers from any food residue or condensation from cold drinks. You just keep typing away.
Each time you do this, there’s a good chance that little microscopic pieces of food drop into the crevices of your keyboard. And with a bit of moisture, those micro cruds can cake up.
Let’s not forget the countless times you’ve sneezed or coughed into your hands and just kept typing away. There’s a lot of your DNA on that keyboard.
Your keyboard is a disgusting tray of all sorts of microbits and bacteria.
It’s time to clean up the mess.
On these hectic days, you don’t even have time to head out for lunch and instead, you’re working through lunch and eating at your desk just to keep up with the work and not fall behind.
You take a bite then type. Take a sip and type. No time to wipe your fingers from any food residue or condensation from cold drinks. You just keep typing away.
Each time you do this, there’s a good chance that little microscopic pieces of food drop into the crevices of your keyboard. And with a bit of moisture, those micro cruds can cake up.
Let’s not forget the countless times you’ve sneezed or coughed into your hands and just kept typing away. There’s a lot of your DNA on that keyboard.
Your keyboard is a disgusting tray of all sorts of microbits and bacteria.
It’s time to clean up the mess.
Why It's Important To Keep Your Keyboard Clean
Your keyboard is the most important interface on the computer. It’s the primary way for you to input and manipulate data. When this main interface is not working smoothly or correctly, it’s a pain in the ass and makes it harder to get shit done.
You know just how annoying it is when one of your keys isn’t working. It can make you bang your head against the wall. Just imagine if one of the vowels doesn’t work. You’re up shit’s creek.
Next, we all know how important it is to keep our hands clean by washing and disinfecting them often. But really, we don’t do it as often as we should.
Think about every surface you touch like door handles of main building entrances, restroom stall locks, stairwell railings, elevator buttons, etc. Tons of people have touched those surfaces too and you just know that they’re not clean, at all.
Your keyboard is like the main central spot where everything from the outside world gets transferred onto. And, unless you clean it, it will continue to harbor all of that nastiness.
It may look clean, but really, it’s not. This academic study has shown that all sorts of microbes and bacteria live on your keyboard. And, if you eat and drink while working, the keyboard becomes an excellent breeding ground for these bacteria.
By sanitizing your keyboard every so often, you’re cutting down on the bacteria and minimizing your chances of bacteria transfer. This is why it's so important to keep your keyboard clean.
You know just how annoying it is when one of your keys isn’t working. It can make you bang your head against the wall. Just imagine if one of the vowels doesn’t work. You’re up shit’s creek.
Next, we all know how important it is to keep our hands clean by washing and disinfecting them often. But really, we don’t do it as often as we should.
Think about every surface you touch like door handles of main building entrances, restroom stall locks, stairwell railings, elevator buttons, etc. Tons of people have touched those surfaces too and you just know that they’re not clean, at all.
Your keyboard is like the main central spot where everything from the outside world gets transferred onto. And, unless you clean it, it will continue to harbor all of that nastiness.
It may look clean, but really, it’s not. This academic study has shown that all sorts of microbes and bacteria live on your keyboard. And, if you eat and drink while working, the keyboard becomes an excellent breeding ground for these bacteria.
By sanitizing your keyboard every so often, you’re cutting down on the bacteria and minimizing your chances of bacteria transfer. This is why it's so important to keep your keyboard clean.
5 Simple Steps To Super Cleaning Your Keyboard
Your keyboard works hard for you. However, it doesn’t get the care and attention it deserves. Think about all of those times when you were in the zone with work and just banging on the keys.
Did you ever give it a good wipe down after the digital workout session?
Nope.
Your commuter car probably gets washed more often than your keyboard gets wiped down.
It’s time to give your keyboard some care. And, it’s nothing complex or something that you have to do every day. Just a simple sanitizing session once in a while is all you need.
Did you ever give it a good wipe down after the digital workout session?
Nope.
Your commuter car probably gets washed more often than your keyboard gets wiped down.
It’s time to give your keyboard some care. And, it’s nothing complex or something that you have to do every day. Just a simple sanitizing session once in a while is all you need.
Step 1: Turn Off The Computer
Before you clean your computer, it’s important to totally shut down your computer. If you don’t, you may end up executing some weird command on an open application or document.
Putting it to sleep isn’t enough because any keystroke will just end up waking up the computer. This is because as you’re cleaning the keyboard, you’ll be pressing the keys. So, do a full shut down.
Putting it to sleep isn’t enough because any keystroke will just end up waking up the computer. This is because as you’re cleaning the keyboard, you’ll be pressing the keys. So, do a full shut down.
Step 2: Flip Over Keyboard And Shake Gently
Whether you’ve got a laptop or a desktop computer with a separate keyboard, one of the first things you need to do is a pre-cleaning shakedown. You can do this for both your laptop and the standard keyboard.
Turn over your laptop or keyboard so that the keys are facing downward. Then, gently shake it back and forth. And, if you’ve got some gross curiosity inside of you, you can do this shakedown above your open desk area and see all sorts of junk fall out from your keyboard.
Be prepared mentally, because there’ll be some gross things that will fall out like bits of hair, skin dust, dried granules of food, etc.
Turn over your laptop or keyboard so that the keys are facing downward. Then, gently shake it back and forth. And, if you’ve got some gross curiosity inside of you, you can do this shakedown above your open desk area and see all sorts of junk fall out from your keyboard.
Be prepared mentally, because there’ll be some gross things that will fall out like bits of hair, skin dust, dried granules of food, etc.
Step 3: Hold Upside Down & Brush Out Crud
Next, find a small dustpan brush and repeat the upside down process only this time, use the brush to dislodge any particles that are hidden and jammed inside or in between the keys.
A little hack - if you have an old makeup brush that you’re not using anymore, wash, clean and dry it thoroughly and use that as your dedicated keyboard brush. They are the ideal size and have just the right balance of firmness and softness to brush out fine dust and dirt from in between the keys.
A little hack - if you have an old makeup brush that you’re not using anymore, wash, clean and dry it thoroughly and use that as your dedicated keyboard brush. They are the ideal size and have just the right balance of firmness and softness to brush out fine dust and dirt from in between the keys.
Step 4: Blow Out Fine Particles With Compressed Air
The next level of cleaning involves using compressed air in a can. You can pick these up at any office supply store. Alternatively, you can get a cordless powered air duster that looks like a mini hair dryer.
The compressed air is going to blow out all of the ultrafine particles that the brushing couldn’t get to. The forced air can get deep into the tiny cracks and crevices and even under the keys themselves to dislodge built up dust.
If you can, it’s best to do this while holding the keyboard vertically or upside down so that the compressed air can blow out any dust from the keyboard. If you do this while the keyboard is just laying flat on the desk, you may end up just blowing stuff deeper in the cracks.
The compressed air is going to blow out all of the ultrafine particles that the brushing couldn’t get to. The forced air can get deep into the tiny cracks and crevices and even under the keys themselves to dislodge built up dust.
If you can, it’s best to do this while holding the keyboard vertically or upside down so that the compressed air can blow out any dust from the keyboard. If you do this while the keyboard is just laying flat on the desk, you may end up just blowing stuff deeper in the cracks.
Step 5: Wipe Keys & Touchpad With Alcohol Wipes
In this final step, get some alcohol cleaning wipes. They look like baby wipes but are specifically made for disinfecting surfaces. Keep a stash of these by your desk because they come in handy for general desk decluttering and cleaning too.
A word of caution - some of these wipes can be saturated with alcohol or cleaning solution. The wipes need to be damp, not soaked. So, if you need to, squeeze out the excess cleaning solution before using it. This is because you don’t want to have any fluids drip into the keyboard and cause any electrical damage.
With the damp wipe, wipe across all of the keys. If you can, give each key a good little finger wiggle cleaning to remove any stains. Do this for the touchpad as well. Stay clear from any speakers.
A word of caution - some of these wipes can be saturated with alcohol or cleaning solution. The wipes need to be damp, not soaked. So, if you need to, squeeze out the excess cleaning solution before using it. This is because you don’t want to have any fluids drip into the keyboard and cause any electrical damage.
With the damp wipe, wipe across all of the keys. If you can, give each key a good little finger wiggle cleaning to remove any stains. Do this for the touchpad as well. Stay clear from any speakers.
Take Care Of Your Keyboard & It’ll Take Care Of You
Your fingers are tapping, typing and clicking like a court stenographer on steroids. And your trusty computer, keyboard and mouse are steadfastly doing their best to keep up with your rapid pace.
Your keyboard is getting worked like an out of shape couch potato trying to keep up with a psycho fitness trainer. It takes all sorts of hard use day in and day out.
It’s also a central point for all sorts of bacteria to build up not only from your workspace, but also from the outside world.
You gotta take care of your keyboard and give it a good cleaning every now and then. It doesn’t have to be some long drawn out process. Just a few simple steps that will take less time than making shitty office coffee and you’ll be set.
Take care of your keyboard and it’ll continue to work its best for you.
Feel Better,
[Cubicle|Therapy]
Your keyboard is getting worked like an out of shape couch potato trying to keep up with a psycho fitness trainer. It takes all sorts of hard use day in and day out.
It’s also a central point for all sorts of bacteria to build up not only from your workspace, but also from the outside world.
You gotta take care of your keyboard and give it a good cleaning every now and then. It doesn’t have to be some long drawn out process. Just a few simple steps that will take less time than making shitty office coffee and you’ll be set.
Take care of your keyboard and it’ll continue to work its best for you.
Feel Better,
[Cubicle|Therapy]