Today’s laptop screens are quite well built and don’t break nearly as easily as they used to. However, with most of them coming with touchscreen functionality at this point, the screens are bound to get quite dirty. So we present our guide on how to clean your laptop screen for good.
Laptops are very convenient. Being portable computers, they are the more popular option in personal computing today. While they’re pretty low maintenance at this point, there are still a few things one has to do to keep their laptop in a fit condition for a long term, the most important being keeping the laptop screen clean.
Before You Begin
Generally, we tend to be quite careless around our laptops. However, as cleaning might require the use of liquids, or just because it’s good to be on the safer side, it’s best to ensure that you turn your laptop off, and drain your laptop of all static electricity.
To do this…
- Shut down your laptop.
- Unplug all plugs and devices from the laptop’s ports.
- Remove the battery from the laptop, if it’s user removable.
- Press and hold the power button for 20 seconds.
- Release the power button.
In case of laptops with non-user-removable batteries, you can try the power button method, or look for your model’s service manual for tips on draining static. It’s not a requirement, but it doesn’t hurt to be safe.
Moving on, there are a few ways we can clean the screen. Let’s take a look:
Using a Microfiber Cloth
This is the safer method of cleaning your laptop screen. You need a microfiber cloth — a special cloth that is designed specifically for cleaning smooth surfaces.
You might have seen one shipping in one of those mobile screen protectors. Basically any soft and lint-free cloth is fine.
Before you attack your laptop screen with a cloth, make sure to flip your laptop, so that the screen is facing the floor, and tap lightly on the back of the screen lid to get rid of any hard and/or loose particles on the screen.
This is good practice, as hard particles like sand grains can scratch the display surface while cleaning it.
Alternatively, you can use a brush to dust off the screen as well, if you’re too worried about scratching the screen.
Using Sponge with Cleaning Solution/Water
If your laptop screen has more stubborn dirt or other debris on it, then this is the method to go for.
You can use a household sponge with a soft surface and filtered water. Make sure you don’t put a whole lot of pressure, or scrub the display.
Instead of water, you can also use a cleaning solution. However, you need to be very, very careful with your choice of cleaning liquid.
While rubbing alcohol is generally considered to be the golden standard, it is recommended that you don’t use it on a laptop display surface. Same goes for normal glass cleaners.
Find an LCD Cleaning Solution!
Ideally, you should use a cleaning solution designed specifically for LCD screens. If not, a mixture of water and white vinegar is considered to be the next best thing.
If the screen isn’t insanely dirty however, you should try first with just filtered water and work your way up, just to minimize the risk.
Make sure you aren’t soaking the sponge too much to avoid the liquid leaking out while cleaning.
You can also try the liquid method with a microfiber cloth, but a sponge is ideal. Damp, not wet — that’s the thumb rule.
Prevention Is Better Than Cleaning!
If you have stains that the above methods were not able to clean out or just have general concerns — remember that when it comes to laptop screens, prevention of the screen getting dirty is always better.
There are a lot of things that can possibly go wrong while cleaning, especially with newer glass screens, which are very prone to scratching. Additionally, you can use screen protectors on such screens to avoid the issue altogether.
Don’t forget that a dirty laptop will always heat up more. And since most fans are near the screen, the screen will get dirty quicker as well. Prevent that by keeping your laptop from overheating!
If you have any other suggestions regarding cleaning laptop screens, feel free to let us know in the comments section, down below!
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