With recent events forcing many people to stay cooped up in their homes, whether working or quarantined, it’s becoming more important to ensure your home is as free of germs as possible. While you may be deep cleaning everything in sight, there are items you might be forgetting: your technology. Keyboards, laptops, mice, and cellphones are all great examples of devices that carry more germs, dirt, and debris than you could ever imagine. Follow our tips below to effectively clean your technology and kill whatever germs might be lingering!

1. Power off and unplug devices

Make sure your devices aren’t powered on your plugged in while you’re cleaning them. Since you’ll be blowing condensed air into the internal components, it’s safest practice for everything to be off so no part is damaged in the process.

2. Use condensed or canned air to blow out any debris 

Condensed or canned air will help you dislodge any stuck dirt, debris, or particles that may be stuck in your devices. You’d be surrpised what will come out of your keyboard!

3. Avoid spraying liquid directly onto devices

Disinfectant wipes are be the safest route to take when cleaning your device keyboards, but not everyone has them on hand. If you have a liquid cleaner, spray it onto a clean microfiber cloth, then wipe down your keyboard. Whatever you do, don’t spray your technology with any kind of liquid! This could result in liquid damage and corrosion to internal components over time.

** Remember, if you’re using a liquid cleaner, ensure it contains no bleach or ammonia. The products listed above cannot be used on laptop screens or LCDs, as they pose risk to damaging your display. If you want to clean your laptop screen, use only ammonia free glass cleaner or eyeglasses lens cleaner.

4. Allow to completely dry before powering back on 

Give your devices a few minutes to completely dry before you plug them back in or power them back on. If you do power on before completely dry and any liquid got through to the internal components, you run the risk of shorting out your computer.