General Cleaning
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First, check your manual for any specific instructions pertaining to your keyboard.
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Disconnect your keyboard from the computer.
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Hold your keyboard upside down and gently shake any loose debris out of the keys.
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Put the keyboard down and use a can of compressed air to clean between the keys. You can purchase compressed air at your local home-improvement or office supply store.
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Use a cotton swab with either a special electronics cleaner, such as Endust for Electronics, or use isopropyl alcohol. Apply the cleaner to the swab and swipe it along the outside edges of the keys and between the keys.
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You can also use a soft cloth to wipe down the surface of the keyboard and wipe any grime or fingerprints off the tops of the keys and surrounding areas. Be careful not to rub off the lettering.
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Wait a few minutes to be sure the keyboard is completely dry before plugging it back into the computer.
Spills on Keyboards
Spilling liquid on your keyboard can hurt it in two ways. First, if you spill something other than water, your keys can become sticky and will not function properly. Second, it can cause an electrical short-out in the circuit board. If you spill something on your keyboard you may need to do a more thorough cleaning:
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Immediately turn the keyboard upside down and let it drain for several hours.
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Gently pry off the small keys with a flat end/standard screwdriver. You may want to avoid taking off the larger keycaps, such as the spacebar, Shift, and Enter, as these can be difficult to re-attach. Take a photo or draw a diagram of the keyboard before you remove the keys to make sure you get them back into the same places.
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Clean the keys individually. You may want to soak them in isopropyl alcohol for a short time. Again, be careful not to clean away the letter markings.
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To clean the inside of the keyboard you’ll need a small screwdriver to remove the screws in the back of the keyboard.
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To wipe the circuit board down, use a soft cloth and isopropyl alcohol. A pasty substance on the metal indicates damage. Use a small brush dipped in alcohol to scrub the paste away. Never use water on a circuit board.
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Let all components dry thoroughly for a least a day before re-assembling and plugging back into the computer.
If you follow these steps and your keyboard will still not function properly it may have been too damaged. You will need to take it to a computer repair service for further analysis or purchase a new keyboard.
Ideas can vary on how long to let the keyboard dry, various techniques, etc., so here are a few links I’ve found with their own instructions for cleaning a keyboard. The last link will take you to numerous instructional videos on YouTube that may help as well.
How to Clean Your Keyboard – pcworld.com
How to Dry Out a Keyboard After a Spill – voices.yahoo.com
How to Thoroughly Clean Your Keyboard Without Breaking Anything – howtogeek.com
How to Clean Your Computer Keyboard – YouTube Videos
K. Carter
QualityOne Commercial Cleaning, Inc.
319 Sondrol Ave
Ames, IA 50010
(515) 232-7272
Photo taken from Microsoft Office Free Clipart:
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/images/