How to Clean a Keyboard!

[@JarrodsTech]

Me with peanut butter and 1cm thick layer of hair between keys: *interesting* 🤔

[@jdub9782]

Very relatable

[@HardwareCanucks]

That should be fun to clean 🧼 lol -D.

[@yariiijan8225]

I think u must also make video about cleaning laptop screen

[@Redeemd]

@@HardwareCanucks Where do I get one of these tools, please? 🤔

[@mini-_]

We all know that one person who uses their keyboard as a dinnerplate, who should watch this video.

[@Gurumeierhans]

And if you dont know that person, then it is you.

[@TheSolheim]

@@Gurumeierhans why do i feel personally attacked reading this :(

[@Starscream_EditZ]

thats me

[@tams805]

Wait, it's NOT?!

[@veduci22]

Step 1: Turn the keyboard upside down. Step 2: Shake violently over the bowl. Step 3: You have a nice pile of delicious Dorito dust ready for your gaming session...

[@kylecroatoan6341]

One of the things for the caps i like doing, still do the soak in soapy water and aggressively swirl them. Then instead of swapping water, ill dump them into a strainer and just run water over and swirl them for the rinse

[@8lec_R]

Note to everyone with a Razer Blackwidow: you don't necessarily need to remove the top plate. The keycaps come out fairly easily even tho it looks like they won't. Also be careful with the stabs, they aren't very strong. Also the plastic bits that stay on the stabs come off very easily. Don't worry as you can put them back in fairly easily. Just do it slowly and you'll be fine ☺️

[@psychic_plays]

Thanks. I have a Black widow and was really struggling to clean it.

[@DenzCasuela]

I think this is the sign that I should finally clean my keyboard

[@supiika]

This video came at a perfect time. Video came out 13 hours ago and a used Everest Max I purchased online arrived just 8 hours before that. Great timing!

[@ChaitanyaShukla2503]

Couple of days back my mouse started to act up(it would automatically start scrolling) so I opened it up to see what was happening and found entire scroll wheel covered with sticky dust(similar to pick up on old ball mice). So cleaned it up and now it's back to working perfectly.

[@WrathInteractive]

I need to do this, it's a job and a half though really, just remember to take a photo of your keyboard before taking the keys off lol

[@hiduck8247]

Its like 2 hours of work, yea

[@WrathInteractive]

@@hiduck8247 I remember doing it once before yeah, might actually do it tonight as this video reminded me. :p

[@WrathInteractive]

@The Dog With A Plan I'll take a picture for you, all those keys in the sink give you nightmares. ;-)

[@pbales8951]

"Clean your keyboards responsibly my friends." -- Love it!

[@teksaucee]

also whenever you clean your keyboard(s) put on a podcast or movie, whatever to keep you entertained because there's no way around it it's gonna take time and it's painfully boring but the end result is always ho so satisfying

[@censedpeak8275]

I like how he had the tool for safely removing larger keys and didn't use it, and then warned us to be careful of stabilizers.

[@HardwareCanucks]

Eh I was careful. I know my pulling power ha -D.

[@ducttaperulestheworl]

@@HardwareCanucks use the wire puller ma boi

[@joe_ferreira]

Denture tabs also with great for cleaning keycaps. Just soak them over night, rinse them off in a colander/strainer and wipe them down.

[@JavierPortillo1]

I recommend using a can of compressed air to blow the water out of the stem hole on the keycaps, there's a possiblility that water can get inside the switch and corrode the contacts.

[@sutton3199]

I vacuum the house on Saturday mornings every week. Once I'm done vacuuming, I then move to my gaming area. I clean my Zowie mouse with alcohol on the top and wipe it off. Then use a damp cloth for my keyboard, wipe that off, then use canned air to blow it out. Apparently that works cuz I recently sold my old Logitech G Pro (old version) keyboard to a dude and he asked if I even used the thing cuz it was so clean when he got it. I literally used that keyboard for over a year. Lol

[@brumby92]

Mint. I do the same. Cleaning the gaming room takes longer than most rooms.

[@sutton3199]

@@brumby92 True. I'm sure most people don't feel the same. But I find it disgusting trying to click heads in CS when my mouse feels like there's finger funk on it. Lmao

[@tasneemkhandaker]

I LITERALLY ORDERED A KEYCAP PULLER YESTERDAY TO CLEAN MY K4 RETRO TKL I LOVE YOU DMITRI!!

[@_gokceada]

I put mine in the dishwasher and it worked really good. Just used a alternate one for a week

[@lejos8]

Same here xD

[@chrisladouceur4093]

Dishwasher works surprisingly well

[@izanagi8094]

the whole keyboard?!

[@chrisladouceur4093]

@@izanagi8094 take the key caps off first. Wash them in a bowl. Keyboard won’t get as clean if they’re all on. Wrap the end of the cable in something to cover the connector. Other than that, yeah whole keyboard. Just make sure it’s fully dry before plugging in

[@Fran_Away]

Hardware Canucks: screwdriver, cuetips, toothpicks, tweezers, brushes and immense care. Linus Media Group: "Hey Riley!? Are all the keyboards sill in the dishwasher?"

[@OriginalMergatroid]

You can get cleaning gel on Amazon. It's cheap and will easily remove dust, hair and crumbs. It will not remove spills or stains. I use it professionally on a lot of stuff other than just keyboards, and I use it on all my personal equipment as well. Also works great on vents and car interiors. It literally can make your keyboard look like new in under five minutes. I use it on my mouse as well. I clean my keyboard with it once a month.

[@adekxii]

I do clean my switches by spraying wd40 to any container then soak qtips into it then use it to clean your switch, it is recommended to reapply lube on those switch after the wd40 evaporated from the switches.

[@joechapman1320]

This inspired me to clean my keyboard! What I found under the key caps seriously shook me, no idea how it got that bad!

[@HardwareCanucks]

Nice! Always good to do a clean and have a brand new smelling good keyb 🤟 -D.

[@MrMcGreed]

This is a once-in-three months for me... It's such a satisfying feeling, using the keyboard the first time, after a full clean (using a G850)

[@NoNick1337]

After soaking keycaps in a soapy water you can drain them through a kitchen colander and rinse with tap water. Carefull not to "mix" them around to much or you might scratch them. Next place them upside down on a towel and let them dry. You can use a hairdryer to speed up the process. For the plate with switches I just place it in a just big enough container and fill it with IPA till the keyboard is completely submerged. Seal the container and shake it a little from time to time and flip the keyboard around. I usually let it sit for few hours and then let it dry overnight. It's a little extreme way of cleaning, but I have done it several times and it has never failed me once. I do it maybe 1-2 times a year when there's a lot of gunk that compressed air cannot get rid off.

[@the.english_boi2601]

This video is bomb. We waited it. 👍👍👍

[@definitelydaniel69420]

My buddy needs this vid

[@frizzletits8511]

I got this nice but a little off brand keyboard. The reason I like it because I can pull all the key caps then I can pull all the key switches and take off the top half of the frame and remove the whole pcb, chuck the two half’s of plastic and metal in the dish wash and soak keycaps.

[@frizzletits8511]

Also by removing all the key switches and putting them pack in random locations I even out the were and tear of the wasd keys to the rest of the board and if one ever dies it came with 5 replacements. It’s called the 1stplayer mechanical keyboard, steampunk lite (discontinued)

[@flaminggorilla909]

Wow. I feel called out. Just. WOW!!!

[@user-Cata7sti7ma7]

my cleaning its pretty much the same. but i dont use Q-tips just a big paint brush. 1: removing keycaps and put them in bowl of hot water with Dawn soap 2: use my air dust clearner outdoor for removing dusk/air that are not stuck. 3: use a big nylon brush with a little bit of windex and i hard brush everything. 4: For the keycaps clearning. i just air dry them in a net bag with my anti-dust. the soap bath is enough normaly for remove the oil/grease residual.

[@B1G_WH1T3]

This is nice if you want to take the time and relax, there is also a quicker and way more effective method and that is putting it into a dishwasher

[@sushimshah2896]

Put it in a dishwasher ofc, Linus showed it years ago😂

[@8lec_R]

Big No No. Linus and Jake briefly talked about it in March in one of their videos, one of the keyboards is acting weird after like a year or so. They say it's probably due to the dishwasher. And anyways, removing the keycaps, cleaning them and putting them back is the most difficult part. Not cleaning the actual board.

[@sushimshah2896]

@@8lec_R I was being sarcastic ofc, I too watched that WAN show

[@N0N0111]

The world needs a national keyboard cleaning day, first day of summer is PERFECT.

[@Zach-vn4pz]

I just bought one of these keyboards and it's coming in about a week and I can't wait, I have a really bad $30 one now and I hate it

[@RIAG-g6z]

Yeah... I need this. 4 years of a K95 RGB

[@tlfbshti364]

Came for the tutorial, stayed to be called "good people" lol great video Dimitri!

[@HardwareCanucks]

Haha nice nice 👍 -D.

[@Friedbrain11]

I took my whole kb apart and washed everything except the membrane. Nice to have kb work as it should again.

[@GeFlixes]

Also a quick tip: Make a photo of your keyboard so that you don't need to hunt for your specific keyboard layout on the internet to re-attach all the keycaps. Especially if you have a non-standard layout or extra keys.

[@RastjackA]

So basically… you didn’t watch the video.

[@slusheewolf2143]

I clean my mechanical about once every 3 months. I do all this, but all I use are q-tips and a rag. I don't unscrew anything either, since I don't want something inside the base to get loose and the board then gets damaged. Oh, I sometimes use Canned Air, when I take all the caps off, too. Cleaning the caps one by one is the most annoying part of the mechanical cleaning process.

[@AliAli-ky3jh]

BUT.... you forgot to pull out all of the switches and clean the switches too! I like to pull off every switch, carefully disassemble each switch, and put all the switch parts into the warm soapy water , along with the keycaps, so the springs inside each switch are totally clean and compress/rebound faster. The inside of each switch can also have residual oil and debris from the factory. After I reassemble the thoroughly dried switches and install them back on the keyboard, I put all of the dried keycaps inside an empty shoebox, and then starting from the top function key row, I just reach blindly into the shoebox and put random keys onto each switch. The combination of the random keys and mixed curvatures across the keyboard has really improved my typing! For 20+ years since childhood, my touch typing speed maxed out around 80 or 90 words per minute. Now for the past 15 years, and in my 40s in age, my typing speed peaks around 130 to 155 WPM, with far fewer errors, because my fingers only rely on three things when typing - location, location, location! This also turns the most boring aspect of keyboard cleaning - reinstalling all the keycaps - into the most fun aspect because your keyboard always looks like a totally new keyboard with randomized keycaps after every cleaning!

[@nemtudom5074]

If anyone's testing keyboard key presses, because they cleaned their keyboard or something, use switch hitter! Its an app that lets you see which keys you're pressing and stuff, use it! I really like switch hitter

[@supreme84x]

My K95 w stopped working last week. So I opened it up, cleaned it and it worked again. The hair getting pushed down into keys is what was the problem for me.

[@Raterex]

'Before you remove the keycaps, you can take a photo of it' Me: Why would I wanna remember how my gunk looks like?!?! 'So that you can reassemble the keycaps back in place' Me: *Light bulb exploded* ohhhhhhhhhhh~

[@stanb1604]

3:16 don't use that, it's gonna scratch your keycap specially if you have dye-sublimated caps. use the wire keycap puller if you have it

[@seishun9611]

that case is pretty sick

[@brumby92]

This is pretty close to what I do. With white keycaps and a love for KitKats, I do this every 3 months. I use a big ziplock bag for the keycaps.

[@owjianbang01]

Thanks Dimitri

[@rayman9727]

just did this. very nice tutorial thank you

[@craigsutton4903]

I had a cheap red dragon keyboard that developed a dodgy "A" key some 2 months after purchase. The solution was taking the key off and a good squirt of the switch with a product called CRC Precision CO Contact Cleaner it made it made its way into the key switch and after a few mins of drying solved the issue. So that is worth a try on dodgy key switches.

[@Charlie8913]

Oh my god so much work. That's another reason why i only use flat keyboards like i.e. the Apple Aluminium Keyboard. Just wipe over it, takes less than a minute. And yeah i have a Corsair K95, it's nasty, i don't use it anymore (it's too high for me so my wrist hurts and i made too many typing errors) and i'll probably trash it before i'll ever clean it. But i miss it's RGB ;)

[@JayIsCozy]

i would love to see a custom keyboard build from one of these guys. the hobby is getting fairly popular so i would like to see their take on it!

[@DaxtonAnderson]

I own an aincent 2006 Logitech G15 1st gen, the one with the 18 G-keys and the flip out LCD screen. I only clean it every 2 years because the key caps are getting so brittle that I don't trust them not to break. I only do it on really hot days, I bring it outside so the plastic softens a bit to reduce the chance of my keycaps breaking when I pull, it has lasted this long and it's going to last even longer!

[@Ninja_Sloth]

I would change the steps. Once the keys are removed, I would use a brush and vacuum to remove all the crap before using any liquid to scrub. Using a liquid too early in the process will cause all the crap to stick to the keyboard.

[@Punkertoon]

Thanks for the video. I am actually getting ready to sell my K70 LP. This will help with the appeal.

[@Baxtexx]

I like using compressed air as well

[@engels1978]

I have G915, and using vacum cleaner with special brush end, and microfiber duster with window cleaner, and it is real enough... Only once a 6-12 months, put all keycaps down, and vacuum under them.

[@SatomiForward]

Definitely need to clean my ancient Razer Blackwidow with blue switches. Been a meditative ritual to clean my Cooler master TKL

[@Theemilioyap]

What kind of soap do you recommend to clean the keycaps?

[@fohhee]

3:48 Where is it come from?

[@geokilla007]

I've seen people throw their keyboard into the dishwasher. Gonna give that a try since my keyboard is malfunctioning anyways lol

[@HoloScope]

As long as it's fully dry and no electricity is flowing through while it's wet then it will be perfectly fine!

[@ZubiForce]

I just use a hoover weekly, without removing the keys and it is quite clean.

[@frankbevi2230]

What kind of alcohol you used? thanks for the video

[@tnykuuh]

Me and the kid in my head giggling every time Dmitry says lub, hehehe

[@HoloScope]

Teehee

[@Quetzalcoatl0]

I have the K95, super easy to clean. I just remove the keycap directly, i place them in a ordered way so i don't need to look at images of the keyboard. I use water, paper towels and a tooth pick to push the towel in between the switches. Then give everything i good wipe. Before putting the keycap back, i individually wash each one on all sides. Doing this every 6 months. Every time i vacume, i use a brush tip and carefully pass over the keyboard so suck most of the big not sticky stuff and dust. I wanna see a video about cleaning a mouse. I have the g502, again paper towels and tooth picks to push in between the small opening where gunk accumulates. The scroll wheel is the worst.

[@Vedthrfolnir]

How would you recommend cleaning a wrist rest like the one included with the Corsair K100? After about only 3 months mine has started to show caked on salt and gunk from dried sweat. I'm not sure what is safe to use on that rubber/plastic material.

[@zeffmalchazeen3429]

so even Dmitry takes a pic of the keyboard layout while cleaning a keyboard. I have been using the keyboard my whole life yet I still don't memorize the keycap sequence.

[@electrobuzz.]

I was scared when I tried to pull of a keycap with my fingies (esc) and it didn't come off. So I thought they might have been glued on. But I also have the k4 tkl and you pulled them off so thx for reassuring me! Lol

[@Roads_india]

Well, my is nastier than yours. I spilled Coconut chutney. Im the best

[@weeAhoy]

Why did I watch this while eating lunch lol. Really good info though!

[@SHINYAFRONINJA]

you should get taeha types to build you a custom keyboard

[@InvetorXD]

should I clean the lube in the switches and relube them?

[@shinigamisecret]

Apparently plastic keycap pullers can damage your keycap so i'd recommend spending like 2 dollars on a wire keycap puller. I bought a $2 canadian wire keycap puller. Super cheap and worth it in my opinion

[@ThePandaKingFTW]

I normally just scrub the hell out of it with soap and water in the sink like a dish and let it dry overnight. Works just fine as long as you let it completely dry.

[@kevinpaterson6052]

Dishwasher top rack works

[@strongjoke5944]

Hello. Where can I buy XTRFY K4 TKL with long left shift?

[@NoahSONG]

then you have the cherry KB uses wired screws that require a whole new set of screw driver bits.

[@fallbright]

I personally use a pressure washer at point blank, but this works too.

[@rodrocdl]

I have cleaned my switches before. I thought that they were not working anymore but after rubbing alcohol on the stem with a qtip and pressing down the switch turned out to be just dirty

[@md.rejaulkarim9010]

Please make review of Zotac Magnus One ECM73070C Mini Desktop.

[@cale262]

How can I get my fingers on one of those beautiful, "HARDWARE CANUCK edition" keyboards? Even dirty it looks great!

[@bourne_]

What about the mechanical keyboard with laser "switches"? :> My keys are getting stuck during movement in FPS games and I guess it's because there's something in the path between switch and laser.

[@seanms35]

I wouldn’t really recommend this type of keycap puller. It does a great job at really scratching and sometimes chipping the keycaps. Use the metal wired pullers.

[@TheKing-fo4xo]

Can you please review the Redragon H510 headset please

[@pixelkat1819]

Ive gone through several mechanical keyboards that end up repeating keystrokes. Do you think this type of cleaning could fix that? It gets expensive getting a new keyboard every time.

[@PurpleAlzir]

It is at least worth a shot, I know that my G600 mouse had double clicking issues from gunk but that is not the same as a keyboard switch.

[@pixelkat1819]

@@PurpleAlzir I have two expensive corsair RGB boards that ended up double-striking and couldnt use anymore. Usually it would happen while under warranty and I could get a replacement. These were past warranty but I still have them boxed up. Will give this a try.

[@perhapsjames_]

I use some water and soap under the tap, then leave it to dry

[@Bularistan4o]

No, товарищ Dmitry.. that is not normal 2 year looking keyboard. Mine gets vacuum cleaned every week and wet wipes a few times per year.

[@blazemonkey]

I've been doing this for years. One suggestion to help dry the key caps a bit faster is to toss them around in a salad spinner.

[@csabavass9479]

This should be a new drinking game: take a shot everytime you hear gunk.

[@thegamingvangaurd]

Can you suggest the best gaming laptop? I watched a lot of your videos but iam still confused so can you suggest any??

[@hex802]

I literally searched this a few hours on yt, are u spying on me?

[@HardwareCanucks]

We know what you’ll watch next …

[@crypton1988]

Hey bro, would you please advise which keycaps are fittable for this keyboard. I got the same layout with the small enter button. Have found verry little info and would like to ask you personally. Thank ya in advance :)

[@Anonymous_Pi]

If only I could watch this on my phone without KZbin downgrading to 720p.

[@corwinwhitehorn7759]

I usually put all the keycaps in a bag and wash them in the washing machine (with clothes), and use a vacuum cleaner on the rest (a small one 😁), then the swabs

[@BhashanaLiyanage]

Can vaccum?

[@munther_17]

dude that intro gave me some Johny Depp vibes ngl 😂😂🦦

[@ales-rocks]

fyi this plastic keycap removal can actually scratches your keycaps. The one with wires is more gentle to your keycaps.

[@versaceking2000]

Bruh. I just finished cleaning it and then saw that you posted

[@dshnig]

I washed my keyboard in the sink yesterday!

[@murphycop864]

Ah ja ja ja! You never seen mine. Was miles away worst, and just cleaned yesterday.

[@AD34534]

I'm scared of cleaning my keyboard because it usually causes some amount of dust to end up in the switches, causing them to not register clicks sometimes.

[@pepelota4351]

They're not that fragile, MX style switches are pretty tight and the interior is very protected from outside environment

[@DudexNOR]

Why not vacuum it abit when keycaps are off?

[@HardwareCanucks]

Usually the bits are gunky and sticky so the vacuum doesn’t really work well. Plus I read it might introduce some static so I better stay safe. -D.

[@DudexNOR]

@@HardwareCanucks Thanks for the reply :)

[@FluffyReview]

This should have been made into an ASMR Dmitry

[@Noukz37]

I'm appalled that you didn't show us the before and after shots in the end!

[@yeomansr]

I put my keycaps through the dishwasher while cleaning the rest of the keyboard. By the time the deck is nice and clean, the keycaps are normally dry and waiting to be put back on