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castle3 · Nov 9, 2004, 08:28 PM

How can we get all that dust cleaned from under our ibook keyboards. I tried turning it off and then unfastening the keyboard so I could blow the dust out...but nothing really happened. Is there a better way?? maybe a vacuum?

rjenkinson · Nov 9, 2004, 08:47 PM

vacuuming works. slipping a piece of tape under the keys also works.

-r.

Forte · Nov 9, 2004, 09:56 PM

Another solution is to use a can of compressed air.

ghporter · Nov 10, 2004, 09:27 AM

A warning, whether you use compressed air or a vacuum: be very careful and use the lowest pressure/vacuum that does the job. Laptop keytops typically like to pop off if they're pushed too much from below (compressed air) or pulled on too much from above. So don't use the 200psi air from your industrial compressor-treat the poor little iBook gently!

castle3 · Nov 18, 2004, 07:49 PM

i think that the compressed air idea is great...less noise , a little gentler(sp?) and you dont have to worry about luggin a vacuum around...thought the concept is better with a vacuum...you wanna suck all that stuff out..not blow it elsewhere. though i have to say that im probably gonna go with the compressed air...i can use it on my desk top too!!!

thanks!!!

MARINEOSX · Nov 19, 2004, 12:18 AM

The compressed air is the most delicate way to go. I deal with very sensitive circuit cards that you can't even touch with bare hands and the only way we can clean them is with compressed air. Just be carful when you do so if you spray the liquid on plastic it can discolor it.

castle3 · Nov 19, 2004, 03:05 PM

no problem...I'm so paraniod that I HAVE to take great care when I so something like that.

MARINEOSX · Nov 20, 2004, 10:18 PM

I don' know if you have done it yet but, if you turn the air can upside down and spray it for a couple seconds it will get rid of some of the liquid. That way you won't spray it on accident.

ghporter · Nov 21, 2004, 01:05 PM

Originally posted by MARINEOSX:
I don' know if you have done it yet but, if you turn the air can upside down and spray it for a couple seconds it will get rid of some of the liquid. That way you won't spray it on accident.

That is very dangerous! The liquid is compressed gas, and it will come out VERY cold-cold enough to cause burns!

Agitating the can before using it is OK. Just keep the CAN level and upright, and you can bend the applicator tube in any direction you want.

MARINEOSX · Nov 21, 2004, 04:56 PM

Yes you can get frost bite from it but you have to spray the liquid onto your skin so unless you plan on being an idot don't do it this way. I have played with this stuf for a long time and have been sprayed with it more than once. Fellow Marines messing with me. You would have to spray your skin for about 30 seconds to get frostbite and about 10 seconds to feel pain. Also when the liquid is sprayed it evaporates almost instantly. The only other way it is harmful is if you inale it. So if you are addicted to inhaling dangerous products don't use compressed air.

castle3 · Nov 23, 2004, 11:38 AM

No...I dont think I'll have a problem with inhaling it. But I will take precaution. What about the ports? I though about using a Q-tip. would that be ok?

MARINEOSX · Nov 23, 2004, 08:21 PM

when I got back from a training My iBook sat for about 2 months and I got a large amount of dust packed in there. The air blew it right out. no problems at all. the only place that the air could not get to was in the groov around the iBook. If you take a wooden Q-tip and break it at an angle so that you have a point at one end it will clean the grime from it. The wood is so soft that it won't put any gouges in the polycarbonite plastic.

castle3 · Nov 30, 2004, 01:00 AM

awesome.thanks alot, I will def try that. Hopefully that will get my ibook lookin like it did 3 years ago...

rozwado1 · Dec 3, 2004, 10:15 PM

Am I the only one that takes off some of the keys and uses tweezers to take out the hairs/dust chunks/etc?

MARINEOSX · Dec 4, 2004, 11:00 PM

I have done that with my iMac but not my iBook. The air was sufficiant for the iBook so far.

andretan · Dec 5, 2004, 09:19 PM

Originally posted by rozwado1:
Am I the only one that takes off some of the keys and uses tweezers to take out the hairs/dust chunks/etc?

Nope. I once used a small flat-head screwdriver to pry out those keys one by one to clean them as my iBook's keys are the semi-translucent ones, and they get damn dirty easily.