How many of us have had our computers crash on us? How many of us have lost hours worth of work because we were too busy to save it properly before the power went out? It’s not just annoying-it can be devastating. And yet, if you take care of your laptop properly, it will last for years and years. Here are some things that you should do to keep your laptop in good condition:
How to keep your laptop in top condition
Keep Your Laptop Clean!
This may seem like a no brainer but so many people forget about this one simple step. You need to clean off all the dust and dirt that accumulates over time on both the keyboard and screen. Dirt is really bad for electronics-especially keyboards which accumulate more dirt than you might think! Here’s how to clean your laptop:
- a) Turn off your laptop and unplug any usb drives or other peripheral devices.
- b) Use compressed air to remove the larger chunks of dirt in the keyboard, making sure that all dust is gone.
- c) If there is lint or hair, then use tweezers and/or a lint roller to remove it.
- d) Use a cotton ball moistened with rubbing alcohol to wipe down your screen, the keyboard and all vents. Do not put any liquid on your laptop-water included!
Keep an Eye On the Battery Life:
Lithium ion batteries are used in most laptops today. And while they provide better performance than their predecessors, there are some problems that come along with them. One is the battery swelling-which can lead to an increased chance of battery leakage or cause physical damage to your laptop. Another issue is loss of battery capacity over time due to heavy use, which means you’ll need to get a new battery sooner than you would like.
So here’s what you should do:
- a) Keep your laptop plugged in when possible, especially if it is one of the few laptops that has an internal combustion engine (it does not).
- b) Try not to let your battery drain too low, and when it does, make sure to keep your laptop plugged in for about an hour before turning it on again.
- c) If you’re not going to be using your laptop for a while (longer than six months), take the battery out and store if properly.
Keep Your Laptop Cool:
Just like car engines overheat when you drive them too much, your laptop can get pretty hot-especially in the summertime. So make sure that you don’t obstruct the vents on your laptop (which are usually located along the bottom near the floor) and give yourself enough space to use it without affecting what is around you.
Clean Out the Dust:
It’s possible for dust and lint to accumulate inside your laptop over time, but it is even more likely if you use your laptop on your lap. This can be a big problem as most lap tops (and laptops in general) don’t do a good job at keeping the vents clear. Dust will affect the performance of your laptop by causing it to overheat, or at the very least reduce its efficiency.
So here’s what you should do:
- a) Turn off your laptop and unplug any usb drives or other peripheral devices.
- b) Use compressed air to remove the larger chunks of dirt in the vents, making sure that all dust is gone.
- c) If there is lint or hair, then use tweezers and/or a lint roller to remove it.
Clean Out The Keyboard:
You may think that the keyboard on your laptop will never need to be cleaned, but it’s actually pretty difficult to keep your laptop clean without cleaning the keyboard (and that includes taking care of the screen). There are three main problems with dirty keyboards:
- a) Dust can accumulate underneath the keys, which makes it difficult to use.
- b) Dirt and grime also accumulates inside the lettering on each key, which not only looks bad but also makes it difficult to see which key you are pressing.
- c) Dirt can get stuck underneath the space bar, making it more difficult to press.
Here’s what you should do:
- a) Turn off your laptop and unplug any usb drives or other peripheral devices.
- b) Use cotton swabs dipped in rubbing alcohol to clean beneath and between each key, making sure that the entire keyboard is free of dirt and grime.
Clean Out The Vents:
Just like dust and lint accumulate in the vents on your laptop, so do skins, hair and other random things that you don’t want there. In addition this can affect the performance of your laptop by reducing its efficiency.
Here’s what you should do:
- a) Turn off your laptop and unplug any usb drives or other peripheral devices.
- b) Use compressed air to get rid of the bigger chunks of dirt, making sure that all dust is gone.
- c) If there is lint, hair or other debris in the vents, use tweezers and/or a lint roller to remove it.
Clean The Screen:
Just like your keyboard and vents can get dirty over time, so can your screen. This can affect the performance of your laptop by making it difficult to see things on the screen, and it can even make it harder to type sometimes.
Here’s what you should do:
- a) Turn off your laptop and unplug any usb drives or other peripheral devices.
- b) Use anti-static wipes (or damp cotton balls/cotton swabs) to clean the screen, making sure that no smudges or dirt is left behind.
Wipe Down the Outside:
Your laptop will accumulate dust and dirt over time, and lots of people aren’t so careful with where they leave their laptops. So if you want your laptop to look nice on the outside as well, then you’ll need to clean the outside as well.
Here’s what you should do:
- a) Turn off your laptop and unplug any usb drives or other peripheral devices.
- b) Use compressed air to get rid of the larger chunks of dirt, making sure that all dust is gone.
- c) If there is lint or hair, then use tweezers and/or a lint roller to remove it.
- d) You can also use anti-static wipes (or damp cotton balls/cotton swabs) to clean the keyboard, vents and around your laptop.