How to Clean Your Devices

It’s that time of year again, and no I am not referring to the return of the Pumpkin Spiced Latte at Starbucks, but if you want my DIY PSL recipe, click here! I am referring to the return of cold and flu season! I know, so much less delicious than a pumpkin spiced latte, but it’s here and we all have to deal with it! I know we have it drilled into our heads to make sure we carry around little bottles of antibacterial hand gel and to wash our hands frequently and sneeze into our elbows (gross, but it does help fight the spread of germs), but how often do we stop to clean our devices like our iPhones and laptops that we are constantly touching? Your iPhone can actually carry more germs than the lever on a toilet and you are putting that up to your face on holding it in your hands countless times a day! So, I thought I would review the steps to help properly clean an electronic device like a computer or smart phone so that you can start keeping your gadgets clean without fear of shorting a circuit!

Step 1: Turn off your device. Whenever you are going to clean your device, make sure its off. This helps prevent you from getting some sort of electric shock in case you do make a mistake and get moisture into a crevice in your device.

Step 2: Use an antibacterial wipe to gently whip down the surface of your device. I like to use Wet Ones wipes because they are antibacterial and easy to take along with me. The problem with some “tech wipes” is that many aren’t antibacterial so you may be cleaning dirt off your device but not preventing cold and flu germs from spreading! Make sure the wipe is moist but not to wet before you begin. If it is let it sit out for a minute or two to dry or try ringing out any excess moisture.

Step 3: Avoid any openings in your device like headphone jacks or charging ports. You can get close, but don’t try to clean inside because those openings go directly to the innards of your device and can cause damage! If you are cleaning a computer keyboard, you can wipe over keys and in the spaced between, but just make sure you don’t get moisture into the openings under the keys!

Step 4: Dry your device with a microfiber cloth. Although your device shouldn’t be wet, you will have some moist spots on the casing or screen from the wipe down. So, use a microfiber to quickly wipe off any moisture left on your device before you turn it on. Once your device is dry and clean, turn it back on!

Step 5: Repeat this activity 2-3 times a week! Technically, I think this should be done everyday, but I understand that not everyone has the time to do that so if you can do it 2-3 times a week you will probably do a lot to cut down on the amount of germs your devices are carrying around. If you think you will forget to do it, set a reminder on your phone!

Do you frequently clean your devices? What products do you use? Do you think that cleaning your gadgets helps to cut down on instances of illness for you? Let us know in the comments!

xoxo,

This article was first published on Strange & Charmed on October 8th, 2013 and is being reposted as part of my Holiday Prep Hiatus! For the months of November & December I will be recycling some vintage S&C content that you may have missed in order to give myself some extra time to finalize projects and spend time with my family during the holiday season. All reposted content will be marked as such. I hope you enjoy this blast from the past blog post!