你知道你的筆記本電腦很臟。你可以看到鍵盤上的灰塵和污垢,以及觸控板中間的皮膚油印。那你上次清潔它是什么時候呢?
Using a freshly cleaned laptop is almost as satisfying as getting a brand new one. The keys are clean, the screen is free of smudges and you fall in love with that three-year-old MacBook all over again. It’s also a useful skill if you buy or sell used laptops, since the previous owner doesn’t always leave them in pristine condition.
使用剛清潔過的筆記本電腦幾乎和買了一臺嶄新的電腦一樣令人舒心。按鍵干凈,屏幕上沒有污跡,你會再次愛上你用了三年的MacBook。如果你購買或出售二手筆記本電腦,這也是一項有用的技能,因為前主人并不總是能把它們保持在嶄新的狀態(tài)。
Gather Your Supplies
備齊工具
“You don’t need much to clean a computer,” said Jolie Kerr, New York Times contributor, cleaning expert and host of the podcast “Ask a Clean Person.” “I use exactly four things to keep my laptop clean: Rubbing alcohol, microfiber cloths, cotton swabs and canned air.” Ninety percent or higher isopropyl alcohol is ideal, since it won’t damage the internal components. And if you have some particularly tough grime or oil, a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser (or other melamine sponge) can also work wonders, though it should be a last resort since it’s abrasive.
“清潔電腦不需要太多東西,”《紐約時報》的撰稿人、清潔專家、播客“請教干凈人”(Ask a Clean Person)的主持人喬莉·克爾(Jolie Kerr)說,“我用四樣東西來保持我的筆記本電腦干凈:擦拭酒精、超細纖維抹布、棉簽和罐裝空氣。”90%或更高濃度的異丙醇是最理想的,因為它不會損壞內(nèi)部配件。如果遇到一些特別硬的污垢或油,Mr. Clean魔法橡皮(或其他魔術擦海綿)也能產(chǎn)生奇妙的效果,盡管它應該作為最后的手段,因為它具有刮擦效果。
Don’t bother with specialty cleaners you see at big box electronics stores — they’ll work fine, but they’re probably overpriced compared with what you have at home. “Some people like having them, or they feel better about using an Officially Sanctioned Product,” Ms. Kerr said. “That is fine! They also make nice add-on gifts for people who are getting a new computer/tablet/phone for a special occasion.” But don’t feel like you need them.
不用去買你在倉儲式電子商店里看到的專業(yè)清潔劑——它們很有效,但與你家里已有的東西相比,它們的定價可能過高了。“有些人喜歡買這些東西,或者覺得使用官方認可的產(chǎn)品感覺更安心,”克爾說。“那沒問題!它們還可以作為附贈禮物送給那些為特殊場合購買了一臺新電腦/平板/手機的人。”但我覺得你不需要它們。
Start With the Inside
從內(nèi)部開始
Once you’ve gathered your tools, it’s time to start cleaning the inside of the computer. Tackling that grime on the keyboard may be tempting, but Ms. Kerr said you should start with the less glamorous internals: “Canned air will blow crumbs and cat hair and what-have-you everywhere, so if you’ve already cleaned the screen and bezel, you’ll just end up having to clean them again after you’ve used canned air.” Start by blowing out the dust, then move on to the outside.
工具備齊了之后,就可以開始清理電腦的內(nèi)部了。清理鍵盤上的污垢可能很誘人,但克爾表示,你應該從不那么誘人的內(nèi)部開始:“罐裝空氣會把面包屑和貓毛等吹得哪兒都是,所以,如果你先清潔屏幕和邊框,在你使用罐裝空氣后,還得再清潔一遍。”先吹掉灰塵,然后再清潔外部。
Provided you’ve maintained your laptop well, you shouldn’t have to open it up for this step. Just turn off the laptop, unplug the power cable and remove the battery (if it’s easily removable). Grab your compressed air, give it a quick burst away from the laptop to get rid of any condensation, then start blowing air into any cracks and crevices: the keyboard, the vents and even the USB ports. Blow in short bursts, since longer sprays can cause moisture to accumulate inside your computer and can damage the fans by making them spin too fast.
如果你的筆記本電腦保養(yǎng)得挺好的,你就不需要為了這個步驟把它拆開。你只需要關掉筆記本電腦,拔掉電源,取出電池(如果電池容易取出的話)。拿起壓縮空氣,避開電腦快速噴一下,清除冷凝水珠,然后開始向所有的裂縫和縫隙吹氣:鍵盤、通風口,甚至USB接口。要快速短暫地猛吹,因為長時間噴射會讓濕氣積聚在你的電腦里,導致風扇過快旋轉(zhuǎn),從而損壞風扇。
If you’re lucky, you probably won’t see a big change after doing this. The goal is to prevent dust buildup over time, which can cause your laptop to overheat. If there are visible dust bunnies in the vents, you’ve let it go far too long without a cleaning. In that case, you may want to open it up (if you’re comfortable doing so) or take it to a repair shop for an in-depth cleaning. Smokers and pet owners should take special care to clean the inside often, since you’re likely to experience much quicker buildup of dust, smoke, hair and other particulates.
幸運的話,你做了這些之后,可能不會看到很大變化。這樣做的目的是為了防止灰塵長時間堆積,那會導致你的筆記本電腦過熱。如果通風口有明顯的積塵,就表明,你已經(jīng)太長時間沒有清潔了。在這種情況下,你可能需要把它拆開(如果你愿意這樣做的話),或者把它帶到維修店,進行深度清潔。吸煙者和養(yǎng)寵物者應該特別注意經(jīng)常清潔內(nèi)部,因為你的電腦可能會更快地積聚灰塵、煙塵、頭發(fā)以及其他微粒。
Wipe Down the Outside
擦拭外部
Next comes the fun part: making that laptop shine again. “The most critical thing when cleaning a laptop or desktop computer is to apply the cleaning product to the tool you’re using to clean, never ever directly onto the computer,” Ms. Kerr said. So grab your microfiber cloth, pour a few drops of alcohol onto it, wring it out so it isn’t dripping wet, and go to town on the surface. You may want to use cotton swabs and alcohol for the keyboard keys and the small spaces between them. (If there are marks that won’t come off, you can try rubbing them with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser very lightly, but again, they’re mildly abrasive and this can alter the finish of the surface.)
接下來是有趣的部分:讓筆記本電腦再次閃亮起來。“清潔筆記本電腦或臺式電腦時,最重要的是把清潔產(chǎn)品涂到清潔工具上,永遠不要直接涂到電腦上,”克爾說。所以,拿起超細纖維抹布,往上面滴幾滴酒精,把它擰干,不要濕漉漉的,然后快速地擦拭表面。你可能需要用棉簽和酒精擦拭鍵盤按鍵以及按鍵之間的小空間(如果有擦不掉的痕跡,你可以試著用Mr. Clean魔法橡皮輕輕擦一下,但還是那句話,它具有輕微的研磨作用,會影響表面的光滑度)。
It may take a few passes to get all that grime off, but once you do, you should notice a dramatic difference. If your laptop is particularly old, you may not be able to get rid of the shine on the keys; some of us may type like the Incredible Hulk and have worn down the top layer of plastic. There’s not much you can do about that.
你可能需要多擦幾次才能把所有的污垢清除掉,不過一旦擦掉了,你就會看到明顯的不同。如果你的筆記本電腦特別舊,你可能無法去除鍵盤上的油光;我們中的一些人可能會像綠巨人那樣用力打字,磨掉了塑料按鍵的外層。這個可能沒什么辦法改善。
The screen is a slightly different matter. You should be able to wipe fingerprints off with a dry microfiber cloth, but if you need a bit more cleaning power, a little bit of water — again, poured onto the cloth and wrung out first — can go a long way. Some manufacturers, including Dell and Lenovo, even say you can use a 50:50 mixture of isopropyl alcohol and water, if need be. Just avoid household cleaners with harsh chemicals like ammonia or alkaline on the screen. (That means no Windex, as tempting as it might be!)
屏幕需要稍加區(qū)別對待。用一塊干的超細纖維布就可以擦去指紋,但如果還需更強的清潔力,一點水就有很大幫助——同樣的,首先要把水倒在布上并擰干。甚至,包括戴爾和聯(lián)想在內(nèi)的一些制造商表示,如有需要,你可以使用50:50的異丙醇和水的混合物。只要不使含有氨水或堿液等刺激性化學品的家用清潔劑即可(也就是說,盡管聽起來十分誘人,也不能用Windex)。
Get Rid of Nasty Smells
清除異味
Let’s say you have a particularly terrible case of gross laptop, and even after the above steps, your laptop still carries the stench of … whatever you’ve subjected it to. I’ve seen more than my share of laptops that smelled like smoke (cigarettes and otherwise), and getting rid of that is a challenge. Cleaning the surface can help, but a lot of those smells may also be inside the computer. For that, you can turn to the world’s best natural deodorizer: charcoal.
假設你的筆記本電腦非常臟,即使經(jīng)過了上述步驟也仍舊帶有臭味……不論你讓它經(jīng)歷過什么。我見過太多太多聞起來帶煙味(香煙或其他什么)的筆記本電腦,要消除這個味道有點挑戰(zhàn)。清潔表面會有些效果,但這些味道很可能存在于電腦的內(nèi)部。因此,你可以借助世界上最好的天然除臭劑:炭。
You don’t have to go digging through your grill for briquettes, though. Ms. Kerr recommends kitty litter: “Because most kitty litter formulas have active charcoal in them to neutralize litter box smells, it’s a great odor eliminator. Seal the laptop up in a bag or closable bin with a cup or so of the litter and leave it for 24 to 48 hours.” If you don’t have a cat, I’ve also had good luck with diaper pail deodorizers, which are neat little packets of charcoal you can throw away when you’re done. The longer you leave the computer in the bin, the better.
不過,你不需要搜尋你的烤爐尋找煤球??藸柵拷ㄗh使用貓砂:“因為大多數(shù)的貓砂配方都有活性炭來吸收貓砂盒的氣味,因此它是一種極佳的除臭劑。將筆記本電腦密封在一個袋內(nèi)或可封閉容器內(nèi),加入一杯左右的貓砂,放置24至48小時。”如果你不養(yǎng)貓,我嘗試使用的尿布桶除臭劑也有些效果,這是小包的木炭,用完就可以丟掉。電腦在容器內(nèi)放置的時間越久越好。
If you’re comfortable taking your computer apart, you can also open it up and clean off the board with isopropyl alcohol. But in my experience, this isn’t usually necessary — it just speeds up the process a little bit.
如果可以接受把電腦拆開,你也可以拆開電腦,用異丙醇清潔面板。但按照我的經(jīng)驗,這往往沒有必要——只是讓過程更快了一點點。