How to Clean a Laptop Keyboard with Q-tips

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Heather says:

A couple months ago I was approached by Q-tips and asked if I would like to be a brand ambassador. As you may assume, Q-tips wants me to let you know that their cotton swabs are good for so much more than health and beauty, after all they are handy little things, aren’t they? Head over to Facebook and fan the Q-tips brand for more tips on how to use Q-tips and while you’re there check out their Q-Tip-a-Thon. Share your tips, and you could win a $100 weekly gift card or the grand prize, a $1,000 gift card and a year’s supply of Q-tips.

Here’s a quick video on how to use Q-tips to clean a computer keyboard. After you are through watching the video I’d love to read your favorite household uses for Q-tips cotton swabs. Details are below the video. I’ll be sharing a few more of these videos in the coming year and hopefully I’ll get a little more comfortable on camera.

 

To encourage you to share your favorite tips here on Home-Ec101, I’m giving away 3 $50 dollar gift cards to Amazon. Christmas is coming and since you know Amazon can ship the gifts for you, that’s like winning twice. Who wants to go to the post office this time of year? Not me.

This is open to US residents only, no purchase necessary. Just leave a comment with a tip as your entry. The comments will be closed Sunday December 4th at 9pm Eastern. The winner will be chosen at random and announced on Monday December 5th.

This is a sponsored post.  Q-tips® product was  provided by Unilever, the makers of Q-tips®; my tips and usage suggestions are my own. Always consult your owners manual and manufacturer’s recommendations to avoid voiding any warranties. 

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154 thoughts on “How to Clean a Laptop Keyboard with Q-tips”

  2. Funny you should ask, I was just singing the praises of my favorite Q-Tip tip to my husband last night. We use them to apply ointment during diaper changes. No mess – I love it!

  3. I used them as little scrubby brushes to clean inside the spout of my daughter’s sippy-cups. (I assume that would still work with the sippy-cups of today! 🙂

  9. When my kids were little, I had them use Q-tips as the “paint brushes” with those “Paint With Water” coloring books – do they still make those?

    They’re also great as disposable eye shadow brushes.

  11. They’re great for cleaning the little places in silver holloware. We have some MARVELOUS and BEAUTIFUL Georg Jensen bowls – the Q-tips can get into the otherwise-inaccessible places!

  17. Vents on the hair dryer. Calamine lotion to bug bites. Neosporin to booboos. Dipped in alcohol to remove price tag sticky goop from glass.

  20. I use them to clean the straw part of my son’s thermos and get inside the spout of his sippy cups! Nothing gets into those small spots better.

  21. I use Q-tips to clean bathroom faucets–that spot between the handle and the faucet that you can never get… unless you take the whole knob off, and there’s not always time for that.

  22. I love Q-tips! I use them to apply acne medicine to the inside of my teens ears, as well as taking off toe nail polish.

  23. I use q-tips to apply Neosporin, athletes foot cream, or other medical creams. It keeps the tube from getting contaminated.Also, you can make dots with them when dying Easter eggs!

  24. Q tips are seriously one of the most handy tools we keep around. I use them to help remove make up AS WELL as to apply moisturizer around my eyes in a cleaner and more gentle way than my fingers can.

  25. I use them to clean out my son’s belly button. He is not a fan 🙂 I also use them at work (I’m a special ed teacher) as glue brushes.

  29. I use them to polish silver jewelry boxes that have intricate designs with crevices. Works great! taznjade at gmail dot com

  31. I’ve noticed Q-tips are added to my shopping list more now that I’m a parent. We use them to paint. We use them to apply creams to our toddler. We use them to clean toys. . . .and now I’ll be using them to clean my keyboard! Thanks!

  34. I use them to remove the mascara I accidentally get on my skin … I use them to let the kids paint with (they don’t smoosh like paint brushes) … they are SOOOO easy to use!

    Thanks for the chance!!

    residentmayor at satx.rr.com

  37. I use Q-tips for all sorts of things. I think my favorite is to use them when I clean the small crevices in my hand carved wood items. They work great with a little Old English or Pledge oil.

  39. We have a glass shower door in our bath and the metal runner gets really messy. I use Q-tips to clean the runner and it works wonderful.

    Thanks so much.

    rickpeggysmith(at)aol(dot)com

  42. Removing makeup smudges underband on corner of eyes. Intentionally smudging eye liner. Sanitary eye shadow applicators you get a new one each time! Cleaning around faucets and in grout lines in kitchen and bathroom. Cleaning the detail work on my rings, bracelets and earrings. So many uses and so many great tips here. My favorite though? Bird toys! My parrotlets and Quaker loves them!!! Cheap and safe!

  43. If you spill something really sticky in a hard to reach place, use some Q-tips and your favorite cleaning agent. I find this especially helpful when I spill drinks in the car. Cleans out the console quite well.

  46. I use them to clean around the edges of my not-so-professional home pedicures–to get the polish off my skin.

  47. I use Q-Tips to clean out the dirt that gets into the crevices of my iPhone: the doc connection port, speakers, mics & the volume toggle. Also I clean around the rim of the iPhone with QTips – where the glass meets the antenna band. They are great for other small electronics as well.

  49. I have two uses –

    1.) I do the same thing you do with the alcohol, but use it between the keys.

    2.) I use it when I paint things on my windows (tempra paint) and I get it on the window pane. Keeps me from trying to do it with a rag and ruining the design.

  50. If you have ornate silver or brass items, a small bit of polish or jeweler’s rouge on the tip of a Q-tip makes a great way to get into those hard-to-reach areas. They can also be used for cleaning inside voids and such in decorative items that would otherwise be impossible to reach. They are very good for cleaning intricate mechanisms or items with very tight tolerances in the same way. Finally, if you need to lubricate mechanical items that have very tight tolerances but must not have any greasy/waxy build-up, a very small amount of Pro-Gold lubricant (or similar) can be applied with one end of the Q-tip, and then use the other to wipe so that only a film remains.

  56. we use Q-tips at work to clean out the small vents on the oxygen concentrators. it holds the cleaner and is small enough to get in crevices!

    got tiny crevices? put cleaner on tip and get busy!

    zippy573 AT netscape DOT net

  57. I use Q-tips to clean small knick knacks, by first dipping them in warm soapy water.

    KellywcuATyahooDOTcom

  59. I opened up my tower and blew it out with compressed air. There was a ton of dust and cat hair in there. My computer is running lightning fast now.

  61. I use q-tips for cleaning around the faucet in the bathrooms and in the kitchen. Mainly behind them where sometimes the space is too tight for a sponge. I also clean the camera lens on my phone with q-tips

  62. I use q-tips for cleaning the little rim around my glasstop stove. It’s too small to wedge my finger into. Also, I use them for applying eye makeup.

  68. I use Q-tips to clean jewelry. It helps to get into those tiny crevices without scratching.

    chrisdeglen(at)gmail(dot)com

  71. They are great for cleaning remote controls – all the food and grime that gets all over these! I use rubbing alcohol on the tip to avoid water and it works very nicely.

  73. I use Q-Tips for cleaning my earrings. With some rubbing alcohol. It helps to get the gunk off and makes them nice and clean beofre you put them in your ears.

    katsrus(at)gmail(dot)com

  76. I use q-tips to clean off nail polish from my fingers when I make mistakes. With polish remover too, of course

  78. I keep a stash of q-tips in my kitchen cupboard to clean out the valves on sippy cups, straws on strawed sippy cups and the straw on my resusable water bottle. They work great and can get into all the cracks and crevices that you can’t reach with a wash cloth.

    JLJMommy

    ktiegen at yahoo dot com

  80. For cleaning, I use Q-Tips for everything an old toothbrush won’t work on. They work great for cleaning that impossible-to-get-to spot between the edge of a pot or pan and where the handle hooks on. Not to mention, I use them in place of my ever-disappearing eye shadow applicators.

  83. I use Q Tips for those hard to get at spots on my coffee basket.

    Thank you.

    barbara dot montyj at gmail dot com

  84. I use Q Tips for cleaning up an little paint drips on the base board when painting!

    lisalmg25 at gmail dot com

  87. I’ve learned that a fairly moist q-tip can be used to get things out of your eye, even when everything else has failed! Be gentle, but it works!

  90. Q-tips are a amazing. I keep a little box of them in my purse at all times. I use them for cleaning between the keys on the keyboard.

    ericacarnes(at)gmail(dot)com

  92. I like using Qtips for getting the little corners of my furniture clean. It’s perfect for the spots that you can’t hit with a cleaning rag!

    pauline15_01(at)hotmail(dot)com

  93. i use q-tips to clean and remove heatsink compound on computer processors. the heatsink compound can be removed using a soft circular motion while soaked in a chemical that breaks down the thermal paste and heatsink compounds. once the paste turns milky, i simply use more q-tips to soak up the mess and lightly polish the surface from impurities with rubbing alchol in an open air enviroment to keep from becomming over fumed.

    it works like a charm, and if it wasnt for q-tips, i would have a lot of messy processors to remove and clean using other methods that simply don’t work as well.

    stevejberry @ gm ail . c o m

  94. I use Q-tips for tons of things, including in crafts to apply glue to small corners or delicate projects, to clean tight spaces like the peephole in our front door or the space between tiles in the kitchen and bathroom, and even as a to-go cologne applier (by spraying one end to take with you in case you need a little more by the end of the work day). Thanks!

    gkaufmanss(at)yahoo(dot)com

  96. I use Q Tips to clean the harder spots in my jewlery, when taking off nail polish. and my ears.

    melisa0072 at gmail dot com

  98. I make earrings from recycled pieces of broken jewelry. The old pieces typically need some cleaning up but that’s tough with such small pieces. Q-tips work great for getting into those small places. I just dab it in some rubbing alcohol and clean away.

  101. We use Q-Tips to detail our car. They get into the spots we just can’t reach by hand (spilled coffee around the cup rim, inside the a/c and heater vents, etc.

  106. I use Q-tips to touch up my nail polish when I do my nails at home. With a little nail polish remover soaked into the Q-tip, it easily corrects any little mistakes I might have made. Thanks!

  113. I use q-tips to clean those hard to clean corners when cleaning the windows! sweetheart4171(at)yahoo(dot)com

  115. Q-tips are perfect for cleaning the nooks and crannies of the console and dash in my car. I just spray a few with some window cleaner and use them to get into the spots I can’t reach with a rag.

  119. Well, currently I’ve been using qtips a lot, to pack a spider bite wound I received. They are very helpful, so that I get good coverage in it. However, we should own stock or something, because my husband is a Qtip freak. He wouldn’t even consider a different brand. Thanks for the opportunity.

  120. I use Q-Tips to clean the crevices of my cook top. It works wonderfully to get out the greasy dirt. I also use Q-Tips for cleaning the window frames of the dirt that accumulates around the handles and locks.

  121. I use Q-Tips when I paint my nails to create designs, french tip them, or just to make them look almost perfect. They do an amazing job and people always say my nails look professionally done:)

  122. I use Q-tips to get excess polish off my nails and also use them when making crafts with my kids. Thanks for the awesome giveaway!

  123. I use Q tips for so much! They work very well to get the edges around the sinks, were gunk builds up and all the other little spots that I can’t reach well. Thanks for this super awesome giveaway!

  124. I like using Q-tips to clean the dust from the carved designs on furniture. Spray with Pledge or dip in a little furniture oil and those grooves are clean in no time!

  126. I use Q-tips to clean the tracks in the bottom of my windows. They seem to be the only thing that can get right in there. Thanks.

  130. I usually use them with nail polish to get those hard to reach places on my toe nails when removing polish.

  132. I keep a few q tips wrapped in plastic wrap in my purse—for days I work late–my mascara only lasts 8 hrs–I grab a Q-tip to remove my mascara resedue from under my eyes.

  137. Q-Tips are great for doing detail cleaning in the car. You can dip them in various cleaners and clean the small cracks and spaces between trip parts and other small areas.

  138. I use Q-tips to put a little vegetable oil around the edges of my nails. To put a little peroxide or alcohol on a small paper cut. To clean around the outside of little nostrils or the back of those tine ears.

  141. I use them for fixing nail polish.. and for cleaning around the sink.. and many more things! Love Q tips!

  143. e use them with a bit of peroxide to clean ears. I know, not very original. However, that is what we use them for.

    Christine

    dazed1821 at aol dot com

  144. Applying medicine in my basset hound’s ears (as well as cleaning various stuffs around the house, especially kitchen appliances with hard to reach spots or grovves in them!)

  145. I use Q-tips for smudging eyeliner, dipped in a little makeup remover to remove eyeshadow that has wondered, also I dip them in bleach and used the to clean around the drains and the pieces of the retractable faucet as well as those pesky hinges on the toliet and the screws at the base of the toilet.

  147. My two favorite uses for Q-Tips are getting in between the slots on the vent (which love to collect cat hair). Also along the edges of the tile and molding when I am scrubbing the floor. Do I have way too much time on my hands?

  149. I use Q-tips to spot bleach (pre-washing) white shirts that have appliques or printing and shouldn’t be bleached entirely.

  151. I use Q-tips for cleaning up nail polish errors and oddly enough, it is the only thing I have found that gets bread crumbs out of the corner of the toaster oven {G}

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