I accidentally spilled some soda on my keyboard right before a Zoom meeting, and although I cleaned it up, now some of my keys are sticky. Specifically, the spacebar, Z, X, C, CTRL, Option, and Command keys are affected. I went to the Apple Store, but they quoted me $1,200 to replace the whole keyboard, which seems absurd! My MacBook is still under limited warranty, but it doesn't cover this kind of damage. What are some effective ways I can clean the keys and resolve this issue without spending a fortune?
2 Answers
Honestly, it’s not fair that you got hit with such a high repair quote. You could always try cleaning with compressed air after you’ve done the alcohol treatment to blow out any sticky residue. It may not fix all the issues, but it can help improve the situation. If all else fails, just keep saving for a new keyboard—it happens!
Thanks for the encouragement! Maybe I can get away with a cleaner keyboard for a bit!
Look, I get it—you didn’t drop a whole soda can on your laptop. However, liquid damage can be tricky, especially with sticky stuff like soda. You could try to take off the affected keys gently, then clean around the area with some isopropyl alcohol on a cotton swab. Make sure to let everything dry thoroughly before putting the keys back. There’s no permanent fix for damage, but this might help reduce the stickiness!
Great tip! I wouldn’t have thought to use cotton swabs. Did you have to replace any keys after cleaning?
Also, if you’re not comfortable removing keys, just dripping a little alcohol around the edges of the sticky keys might work, too!
Man, that’s so frustrating! I’ve dealt with sticky keys before, and it’s always the ones you need the most that get messed up.