AbigailAlfano

Ugh! When my teenage son uses my computer, the keyboard and the mouse always end up sticky. (He usually uses his own laptop, but sometimes, mom's computer is just more convenient)
I clean it with various household cleansers, but it still feels sticky for days. What do you guys use to clean your keyboard and mouse?
Abigail

Glory's Sun

I don't have this problem (I never eat or drink around the keyboard) but, you may just want to tell your son to stop looking at porn.

mixedmedia

Well, I have girls and they're not much better. I don't have a sticky keyboard problem. Mine is that they leave their stuff piled up around my computer. CDs, mp3 players, usb cables running everywhere and books and paper, their shoes under the desk...and ALL of my good pens and pencils gone. Grrrrrr.....

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AbigailAlfano

You are gross

shakran

He is probably right. Unless your kids are eating sweet and sour chicken with their hands, looking at porn is probably exactly why the equipment is sticky.

hit control-h in the browser - - -I bet either the history's been cleared or you'll find porn sites there.

Destrox

As once being a normal teenage boy, I can properly vouch the previous comments.

Cant say I ever made a sticky mess of things, but maybe he missed a few steps.

That or its food/drink.



Or a gremlin.

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biznatch

Tilted Computers might get you better answers. I'd just tell my kids not to do whatever they're doing, or make them clean it up.

Glory's Sun

It's not gross.. it's a fact of life. If it's not porn then tell them to stop eating and drinking by the computer. I was a teenage boy once so I know what they do at the computer. Make them clean it when they leave it sticky.

shesus

They have wipes that you can use to clean your keyboard and monitor. You can find them at computer stores or sometimes in the computer section of office supply or super stores.

I also wouldn't let him eat or drink around the computer. Although I've been drunk and eaten many a greasy, sweet, sticky foods and I've never had a sticky keyboard...it just wasn't as white as it should be.

The guys in here may sound gross to you...but remember they are the sticky boys. Wouldn't want them any other way.

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The_Jazz

Sometimes the natural oils and sweat from my hands gets on my keyboard and slows things down. I typically wash my hands 4 or 5 times a day (maybe more - I really don't keep track), and the oil just builds up after a while. However, the time frame is over a year between cleanings, so I'm going to vote for masturbation being the culprit as well, especially knowing that I'd jack it 5 or 6 times a day when I was 15.

By the way, it's a natural act and there's nothing "gross" about it, unless he's using food or otherwise making a big mess.

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Sharon

Hell, I'm neither teenage nor a boy, and my keyboard gets sticky...

ngdawg

Google 'keyboard protectors" and invest the $15 or so...
Wish I had...eating icecream over the keyboard might not have been the smartest thing I've done.
In the meantime, see if you can gently pry a key or two off. If so, clean them individually and put back on.

Hm...I hit Ctrl H and a window came up asking if I wanted to delete all sites visited...didn't show what they were.

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shakran

What browser are you using?

ngdawg

IE6.0 on both. More curious that Ctrl H does nothing on my pc at all(the delete prompt came up on our EMachine). No window, no prompt, nada.
Oh well, at least I know my son doesn't use my pc.....much

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AbigailAlfano

I didn't say "it" was gross.
Well, my computer is in the den...the 'hub' of our house...Grand Central Station. He has more sense than to try to look at sites like that in such a high traffic area in our home. Anyone, from almost any room can see what site you are on at any time.
His laptop is his own. I don't care how sticky it is. I don't use it.
My original post was not to discuss WHY the mouse and keyboard are sticky, but to find out the name of a good cleanser.
Also, I wasn't discussing whether or not veiwing porn is normal or a fact of life..I would have posted in another room if that was my question.
Yes, boys are sticky! and don't we love em!

BadNick

This sort of reminded me of "Sticky Fingers" by the Rolling Stones

I have two extreme stickies at home too, boys 10 & 11yo, and even if they don't eat at the keyboard, it's not so easy to make sure they always wash their hands before keyboarding.

My keyboard in work is one that I really like the tactile feel of so after many years I keep cleaning it ...and my hands are relatively clean but it still gets cruddy after a couple years. Recently, I used "circuit board spray cleaner" from Radio Shack, I disconnected the keyboard, held it with keys facing downward, sprayed the heck out of it, then wiped it clean with a lint free cloth and let it dry, which it did quickly since the spray is quite volatile. It worked great.

AbigailAlfano

Thanks BadNick! I'll try that!
Abigail

shakran

that's bizarre, because control - H brings up the browsing history in both IE and Firefox. I wonder why it's not working with you.

Willravel

Try holding down apple, then shift, then "h". Maybe we have a Mac user?

shesus

apple, shift, 'h' took me to the home page...fyi
apple, 'h' makes my browser disappear. Fun tricks.

I just click the history button though if I have too, but I'm the only one that uses my computer. I know where I've been.

That was for Safari though, haven't tried firefox yet.

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abaya

CTRL-H, fascinating... thanks for sharing.

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ironpham

You could also try getting one of those portable/washable keyboards that rolls up. They're very easy to wash because it's waterproof. It looks like this:
http://img.alibaba.com/photo/1126103...e_Keyboard.jpg

Leto

Control-H just gets me the History pane.

girls like porn too, so there's equal sticky opportunity.

But I find that bagels with poppy seeds leave a lot of detritus between the keys, and cause the keys to sometimes stick.