Cleaning a plate without removing switches

[swampangel]

This feels like a dumb question, but I didn't manage to find the right search terms -- lots of advice for cleaning switches, not so much for plates.

What tools/techniques do you use to clean the plate of a used keyboard without taking apart the entire assembly of pcb/plate/switches?

I used to just scrub with toothbrush, cotton pads, and qtips soaked in isopropyl alcohol. This works, but the rubbing alcohol tends to take paint with it and leave discoloured streaks.

I bought a dirty Apple M0116 to which I will probably apply the same technique, only with Simple Green or something instead of alcohol. But I'm wondering if I'm missing an easier/better alternative.

[Hypersphere]

Not a dumb question at all.

What I do is as follows:

+ Remove keycaps and stabilizers.
+ Depending on their condition, you might want to remove the stabilizer clips and stabilzer barrels as well.
+ Remove plate-pcb-switches assembly from case.
+ Clean case components separately by soaking in mild detergent, using a sponge if needed to dislodge dirt, rinsing thoroughly, and allowing to dry overnight. Take care not to damage the logo or badge.
+ Clean the keycaps, stabilzer wires, and possibly the stabilizer clips and barrels by soaking in mild detergent followed by cleaning in an ultrasonic cleaner. Rinse thoroughly with water. Follow with distilled water and/or 70% isopropyl alcohol. Spread out on a lint-free cloth and allow to dry overnight.
+ Clean the plate in stages. Start by carefully "sweeping" with a small paintbrush between the switches to get rid of large debris, taking care not to sweep any debris into the tops of the switches. Do horizontal sweeps and then vertical sweeps.
+ Continue cleaning the plate using dry Q-tips, first horizontally between rows, then vertically between columns. Change Q-tips frequently.
+ If needed to remove stubborn grit, continue cleaning the plate with Q-tips moistened with 70% isopropyl alcohol and blotted on a towel to remove excess alcohol. Use the same horizonal and vertical passes as done with the dry Q-tips. Take care not to scrub hard with alcohol, as this will remove the paint from some plates. If you left the stabilizer clips or barrels in place, use the alcohol-moistened Q-tips to clean any grease off the clips or barrels.
+ Optionally use dry Q-tips to carefully clean the switch housings, but do not sweep dirt into the switch.
+ Replace any stabilizer clips or barrels that were removed.
+ Sparingly apply lubricant, such as Super Lube 21010 synthetic grease, to stabilizer clips. For barrels, use a Q-tip moistened with oil, such as Super Lube 51010 synthetic oil, to the inside of stabilzer barrels.
+ Reattach stabilizer wires to the clips.
+ Sparingly apply grease to stabilizer inserts on stabilzed keycaps. Use oil on stabilizer posts.
+ Replace stabilized keycaps.
+ Replace other keycaps.
+ Reassemble keyboard.

I would not recommend using Simple Green, as it contains a number of chemicals that could leave a residue and/or promote corrosion.

If the plate is corroded rather than just dirty, I recommend using the same technique as above. If the plate is heavily corroded, the best solution would be to desolder the switches and sand, primer, and paint the plate.

Others may have better approaches for cleaning and/or dealing with corrosion.

[swampangel]

Thank you for your detailed reply

My process is (to me) surprisingly similar, just on the cheap, using denture tabs instead of an ultrasonic cleaner.

It sounds like perhaps I need a new, slightly stiffer paintbrush and should spend more time on the dry cleaning before bringing out the isopropyl alcohol.

I would not recommend using Simple Green, as it contains a number of chemicals that could leave a residue and/or promote corrosion.

I already subjected the M0116 to it but I did wipe it down with a damp cloth after so, time will tell.

[Engicoder]

Hypersphere's instructions are excellent. I will add that I find having some foam swabs in addition to cotton ones is useful as they come in several sizes and don't leave fibers on sharp edges. I find these small ones are useful to get in the narrow areas and crevices.

https://www.amazon.com/Semi-Flexible-Cl ... B07C6GY2WJ
https://www.amazon.com/Zetek-Printhead- ... B01FVSFT4M

[Hypersphere]

@Engicoder: Thanks for the tip about foam swabs. I didn't know these existed. They look like an excellent alternative to cotton swabs. With cotton, you do need to be careful not to leave cotton fibers behind. I will add the foam swabs to my arsenal of weapons for attacking dirt on used keyboards. In fact, I've already placed my order on Amazon!

[andrewjoy]

I know people may be a bit worried about blowing dust into the switches but a good tool is a datavac https://www.amazon.co.uk/Metro-220-240- ... B003BZCOKK it is very powerfull and will get all the dust form the plate very quickly ( even without removing the caps !) So its good for periodic cleaning of dust and crumbs form in use boards and a good way to get the dust etc to a manageable level so you dont have to waste 300 cotton buds.

Its also good for dusting out alps housings when you disasemble them in the plate for cleaning/lubing the sliders.

And you can also use it to dry your rude bits after you get out of the shower!

Another good tool is a stiff brush https://www.amazon.co.uk/CCINEE-Nylon-P ... BZ7HXP63H7 good for dry and wet cleaning of plates PCBs you name it , and you can just give them a soak to get the dirt / flux off them.

And i can also recomend a paint brush too!

The foam swabs are cool! Ordering them badboys!

[snacksthecat]

I know people may be a bit worried about blowing dust into the switches but a good tool is a datavac https://www.amazon.co.uk/Metro-220-240- ... B003BZCOKK it is very powerfull and will get all the dust form the plate very quickly ( even without removing the caps !) So its good for periodic cleaning of dust and crumbs form in use boards and a good way to get the dust etc to a manageable level so you dont have to waste 300 cotton buds.

Its also good for dusting out alps housings when you disasemble them in the plate for cleaning/lubing the sliders.

And you can also use it to dry your rude bits after you get out of the shower!

I absolutely second this. It works so much better than canned air and you recoup your money pretty quickly (those little cans are expensive!).

I ought to post a video of it tackling a really dusty keyboard but this is what I already have recorded/uploaded.

There are different manufacturers but I would definitely recommend getting a corded unit like @andrewjoy posted. I've never used a cordless one, like the hurricane, but I can't imagine they're nearly as powerful.

Edit: also wanted to add that it's important to get it as dirt/dust free as possible while it's dry. Then, if you still need, you can use wet methods like alcohol and the like.

[Hypersphere]

Thanks for the Datavac tip. I've sometimes used canned air, and I've considered a strong blower such as a Datavac, but I've been concerned about strong blasts of air possibly disrupting inner switch parts or blowing dust into them. Now that I see that others have gotten good results, I will give it a try on future clean-up jobs.

Looks like something best done outdoors, however, so I might wait for warmer weather to arrive in my part of the world.

Love the look of those space invaders!

[andrewjoy]

MX are pretty dust proof , alps less so but if there is a high level of dust on the plate chances are your stripping the alps switches anyway to clean them inside. Space invaders for the first attack i would honestly leave the caps on and use the super thin attachment on the datavac.

[twasa]

As a relative novice, I really find Hypersphere's post useful. Although the forum probably has all the answers one may be looking for, finding the right post depends on selection of keywords to get there. I wish we had a sort of "recipe" topic, with a parts list, e.g. what parts and which tools are needed, with a step by step "recipe" for achieving a particular goal. Maybe this should ideally be on the wiki, rather than the forum.

Some members have posted excellent posts about bolt modding IBM M keyboards for instance. Yet I don't recall anyone mentioning the tools required to fasten those tiny screws and nuts. It might just be my own lack of searching fu. (I was really surprised at how tiny they are and am now hunting for suitable tools.)

[fohat]

I have never needed anything but a small Phillips screwdriver and socket. An electric screwdriver or drill with small bit would speed up the process.

Yes, the entire set of screws will easily fit in a spoon.

[twasa]

Thanks fohat, I have a small enough phillips screw driver, but don't even know what size socket would fit the nuts. It looks like something like 2mm, but it would not be generally available over here at least.

[Hypersphere]

I have never needed anything but a small Phillips screwdriver and socket. An electric screwdriver or drill with small bit would speed up the process.

Yes, the entire set of screws will easily fit in a spoon.

Is that a metric spoon?

[fohat]

but don't even know what size socket would fit the nuts

I use M2 machine screws which have a shaft diameter of 2mm.

The corresponding hexagonal nuts that I have always used fit a 4mm socket.

[twasa]

I use M2 machine screws which have a shaft diameter of 2mm.

Thanks fohat. I have the M2 screws and nuts. Mine have a hexagonal depression in the head, so I'll have to get an allan key that fits. I'm looking for a 4mm nut driver or socket here.

Does one use a 2mm drill bit for the holes in the barrel plate with a shaft diameter of 2mm?

[fohat]

Does one use a 2mm drill bit for the holes in the barrel plate with a shaft diameter of 2mm?

You can. I use an Imperial 1/16" drill bit which is just a tiny bit undersized for a 2mm screw, but it cuts it way into the plastic very nicely.

It is even possible/easy to do a "screw mod" with a 1/16" drill bit and 2mm screw and no nut at all, for example in that first row below the space bar where there is a fin in the way, but I prefer using nuts and washers everywhere else.

[twasa]

You can. I use an Imperial 1/16" drill bit which is just a tiny bit undersized for a 2mm screw, but it cuts it way into the plastic very nicely.

It is even possible/easy to do a "screw mod" with a 1/16" drill bit and 2mm screw and no nut at all, for example in that first row below the space bar where there is a fin in the way, but I prefer using nuts and washers everywhere else.

This has been valuable advice, thanks fohat. I have both the M2 machine screws and the A2 self-tapping screws by now. At least I know what to look for in terms of tools as well. One step forward...

[snacksthecat]

I finally got a good candidate to demonstrate how well the air blower thing works.

To clean this plate up I did the following:

1. Blew with air blower
2. Scrubbed with a toothbrush (dry) -- this knocks the more stubborn dust around
3. Blew with air blower
4. Scrubbed with a toothbrush (wet with a tiny bit of water)
5. Blew with air blower

It only took like 15 minutes and made a world of difference, IMO. I could have desoldered the whole board and given everything a better scrubbing, but I figure that would only yield a marginal improvement over these results. Now, obviously this doesn't do much for the switches but that's a whole 'nother jar of pickles.

Before

Spoiler:

After

Spoiler:

[fohat]

It certainly looks great, but my fear would be blowing dust into the switch mechanisms.

Vacuums baby - always suck, never blow.

[swampangel]

I finally got a good candidate to demonstrate how well the air blower thing works.

beautiful!

[andrewjoy]

Vacuums baby - always suck, never blow.

I would recommend against this, i mean if its all you have go for it, but digging through a whole vacuum bag looking for keycaps and stabilisers is nowhere neat as fun as it sounds... trust me.

EDIT Just remembered this .

https://www.ebay.com/itm/100PCS-Disposa ... 0&LH_BIN=1

Its a cotton swap with alcohol already in it , break off one and and POOF you have a cotton swap with just the right ammount of alcohol on for cleaning. Could be good for cleaning switches etc, or floppy disk heads , you name it.