MOM asks:

Hey! Renee, How do you clean a keyboard? lol

A quick reminder for everyone who follows this guide: I can’t be held liable for any damage that you cause to your keyboard. If you follow the directions and do it correctly and carefully, your keyboard will work fine.

Basic cleaning
Shut down the computer and unplug the keyboard.
Hold it upside down and shake to remove loose dirt and crumbs.
Use compressed air to loosen and remove more dirt and crumbs
Turn it over and shake more to remove what you loosened with the air.
To clean the surface of the keys, use a damp (not wet) lint-free cloth to gently clean off the keys. If they’re not particularly dirty, plain warm water will do. You can also use diluted solution of standard liquid dishwashing detergent if needed. (Don’t ever use harsh cleaning solutions.)

WARNING: The next cleaning method should only be undertaken if you are extremely patient and your keyboard is extremely filthy! Don’t use these steps with laptops, or with mechanical keyboards (the kind with springs under each key).
Before you begin, use a copy machine or a digital camera to record the layout of the assembled keyboard so you can return each key to its correct location. Keep track of the keys. Remove all of the keycaps by using a small screwdriver and carefully prying up each key. It should pop off easily. Do not remove the spacebar or large keys such as , , or . Putting those back on can be difficult.Loosen and remove leftover particles using compressed air. Use a cloth dampened with warm water or the doluted solutiuon I mentioned before. For stubborn stains, use cotton swabs dampened with 90 percent isopropyl alcohol. Then use the compressed air again. Replace the keycaps. Carefully snap each keycap back on. Plug in the keyboard, and test all the keys when finished.

If you’ve spilled liquid on the keyboard, turn it upside down after you disconnect it to let the liquid drain out. If there’s a lot of liquid, or if the liquid is sticky, wash out the spill with running water. (Do not immerse the keyboard.) Let the keyboard drain for 72 hours.

Wait until the keyboard is dry before reconnecting it to the computer.