Resources
Cleaning Shared Keyboards, Phones and Touchscreens Without Damaging Them
Conference panels, desk phones and shared keyboards pass through many hands, and the wrong cloth or spray can ruin them. Here is what to use, what to avoid, and who in the office should handle which device.
The devices everyone shares
Walk through an office and count the electronics that more than one person touches in a day. The list is usually longer than expected:
- Conference-room touch panels, room-booking screens and remotes
- Speakerphones and video-bar controls on meeting tables
- Keyboards and mice at shared or hot desks
- Desk phones at reception and in shared offices
- Copier and printer control panels
- Visitor sign-in tablets and badge readers
- Keypads on the microwave, coffee machine and water dispenser
Each of these collects skin oil, fingerprints and the odd smear of lunch. Unlike a countertop, though, none of them tolerates a soaking. Getting them clean means using less liquid, a softer cloth and a little more care than the surfaces around them.
Read the maker’s care instructions first
Every device comes with cleaning guidance from its manufacturer, usually in the manual or on the support site. It is worth five minutes to look up the instructions for the conference panels, phones and tablets in your office, because screen coatings differ. Many touchscreens carry a thin oil-repellent or anti-glare layer that harsh chemicals strip away, leaving the glass cloudy or prone to smudging.
For hard, nonporous surfaces such as keyboards, mice and the casing of a phone, many device makers list a 70 percent isopropyl alcohol wipe as acceptable. Even then the instructions usually add the same conditions: wipe gently, keep moisture out of openings, and don’t use the wipe on fabric or leather.
Keep a short list of the approved product for each device type on file. It saves the crew and your staff from guessing, and gives you something to check against if a screen starts to look worn.
Watch for the soft parts too. Shared headsets have foam or leatherette ear cushions, speakerphones and video bars have fabric or mesh grilles, and some conference chairs hide a charging pad in the arm. Wet wipes and fabric don’t mix: moisture soaks into foam and stains mesh. Brush or dry-wipe grilles, wipe leatherette with a barely damp cloth, and treat foam cushions as a personal item. Many offices hand out personal ear covers or give heavy headset users their own set rather than sharing one across the team.
What to keep away from electronics
Most damage to office electronics comes from a handful of habits. Each one is easy to avoid once it is on the task list:
- Spraying any liquid straight onto a screen, keypad or keyboard, where it runs into seams and under keys
- Bleach, ammonia-based glass cleaner, acetone and other strong solvents on screens or coated plastics
- Abrasive powders, scouring pads and rough paper towels that scratch coatings and leave lint
- A dripping cloth, which leaves liquid pooling around buttons and ports
- Pressing hard on a touchscreen, which can register as input or strain the display
Cleaning a device while it is switched on causes its own trouble. A wipe across a live touch panel can launch a meeting, change a room setting or dial a number, and smudges are harder to see on a lit screen. Lock it, put it to sleep or switch the display off before starting.
A safe wipe, step by step
The routine is the same for almost every shared device, and it takes under a minute per item:
- Lock, sleep or turn off the device
- Lightly dampen a clean microfiber cloth with the approved product, never the device itself
- Wipe in one direction, starting with the screen or the top surface and working down
- Run the cloth between keys, around buttons and along the handset and its cord
- Buff dry with a second, dry microfiber cloth
- Let any remaining moisture evaporate before waking the device
Fold the cloth so a fresh face goes onto each device, and swap it out when it looks dirty. A cloth carried from the copier panel to the conference room spreads smudges rather than removing them, and a dusty cloth scratches glass.
A small kit kept on each floor makes the routine stick: a stack of clean microfiber cloths, the approved wipe or bottle, a bag for used cloths and a printed card showing which product goes on which device. Used cloths should be laundered without fabric softener, which coats the fibers and leaves streaks on the next screen they touch.
Who should clean which device
Sorting out who handles what avoids both gaps and accidents. A practical split for most offices looks like this. The cleaning crew covers the outside surfaces of shared devices in common areas: conference panels, speakerphones, room screens, copier panels, kitchen appliance keypads and the keyboards at shared desks. Each employee looks after their own laptop, phone and personal peripherals. IT handles anything that has to be opened, unplugged, moved or powered down at the wall.
Write that split into your cleaning task list so the crew knows what to leave alone. Personal laptops left on a desk, the equipment in a server closet and anything inside a cabinet usually stay off the crew’s list unless you add them on purpose. Loop’s crews use a lightly dampened cloth instead of a spray on screens and keypads, and they work from the device list you agree on.
Reception teams often keep a small supply of cloths at the front desk so the sign-in tablet can get a quick wipe between visitors during busy hours.
How often each device needs attention
Frequency follows use. Conference panels, speakerphones and meeting-room remotes on a busy floor belong on every cleaning visit, since several groups handle them each day. Shared keyboards and mice at hot desks get the same treatment on the days those desks are booked. Copier panels and kitchen keypads are touched constantly and fit the every-visit list as well.
Lower-use devices, such as a phone in an empty office or the remote in a rarely booked training room, can move to a weekly pass. Visitor tablets and reception phones are the exception that needs daytime attention, because they change hands every few minutes when the office is open. A front-desk routine or a day porter round covers them while people are in the building, and touchpoint work can be added to recurring visits through disinfection and sanitizing.
Electronics belong on the same written list as the restroom fixtures and door handles. Loop builds that list from a walkthrough of your rooms. Request a walkthrough and we’ll include every shared device in the plan.
A few useful answers
Common questions.
Can an alcohol wipe go on a touchscreen?
Check the device’s care guide first. Many makers accept a 70 percent isopropyl alcohol wipe on hard surfaces and some on the glass, while others ask for a dry or water-dampened microfiber cloth only. Bleach and ammonia cleaners strip screen coatings, so keep them away.
Is compressed air a good way to clean a keyboard?
Short bursts can lift crumbs from between keys, but they blow debris across the desk and into nearby equipment. In a shared office, a damp wipe on the keycaps handles the surface, and deeper keyboard cleaning goes to IT or the person who uses it.
Should the cleaning crew touch employees' laptops?
Most offices keep personal laptops and phones off the crew’s list. The crew cleans the desk around them, and employees wipe their own devices. If you want laptops included, name them in the task list so there’s no doubt.
Why do screens look streaky after cleaning?
Usually because of too much liquid or a dirty cloth. Use a lightly dampened microfiber cloth, then buff dry with a second clean one. Streaks that won’t buff out can mean the screen’s coating is already worn.
Will Loop's crew wipe our conference-room equipment at night?
Yes. Touch panels, speakerphones and remotes go on the task list for each meeting room, wiped with a dampened cloth rather than sprayed, so the rooms are ready for the next morning’s first meeting.