Do you guys touch your MacBook with dirty hands?

[Pakaku]

No. Once you've cleaned out the gunk from a few keyboards, you too will start to drop the habit.

 

[darknetone]

Never, I lick my hands clean first. LOL.

Actually no, never, same goes for my iPad.

 

[trevpimp]

Okay thank you all for the replies. Now I’m about to clean off all the sugar particles and dirt/grease on my MacBook .. I’m about to use these wipes, are these alright to remove the mess? Apple suggests 70% isopropyl alcohol but I’m struggling to find it in stores

Dont get baby wipes or anything with alcohol, chemicals etc on the screen cause this could lead to staingate on displays

Use baby wipes for the keyboard and outer frame. Then use a lint cloth for the display

 

[Euroamerican]

The dirtier your keyboard, the less people want to borrow your computer!

 

[DeltaMac]

But sugar crystals could jam up a keyboard mechanism. Sugar cubes aren't known for being very conductive, and sugar water isn't conductive either, unless there is something else in the water.

Pure water is not conductive, tap water is mildly conductive, salt water is very conductive. If it's just sugar in pure water, it's not likely that it will conduct electricity. Surprising. But it will make a heck of a sticky mess.

The problem with sugars, particularly those dissolved in various liquids - is NOT conductivity of those sugars, but the damage that is caused by the sugars, and various other acids, leading to corrosion of multiple connection leads on the electronic components and chip packages, and leading to those "cute" piles of green or brown powder, often eating right through electronic leads. And, conductivity is gone. So are those chips.
But, typical greasy or slimy fingers, typing on your precious "baby"?? Gross, yes, but not likely to get inside your laptop. Worst would be either sticking keys, or maybe quick deterioration of the keycap surface.

 

[cdcastillo]

I don't usually wash my hands before touching my MacBook. However, I'm washing my hands about 10 times a day, so they're never that dirty to begin with.

 

[wys]

We all know water is the biggest enemy of electronics, but I seem to have heard similar things about sugar. Up until this point I never cared about touching/typing on my MacBook with dirty sticky hands, now I’m kind of rethinking it. No, I don’t bring liquids near my MacBook but I do eat sweet food like a bar of chocolate with my bare hands; yesterday for example I was typing in an important email and I was eating a cone of ice cream at the same time, the ice cream melted all over my hands, I quickly wiped my hands with a tissue (the hands remained sticky anyway) and I continued typing without thinking much of it. Is this going to damage my Mac on long term?

sorry but I just puked a little reading this one

touching any computer while you have "food-hands" is gross as hell, and yes its going to screw up your computer when crumbs eventually make their way under the keyboard; remember that the last couple years' of MacBook keyboards were especially intolerant of even *dust* getting underneath the key caps. At the very least, its going to be absolutely disgusting when a colleague or friend needs to borrow your computer for a second.

personally, I never even touch my work MacBooks in the first place, I use an external mouse, keyboard, and Magic Trackpad for my work devices. For my personal devices at home, I am not OC or a clean-freak but I would never eat and use the computer at the same time, I do not even like eating at the same table as where I use the computer. A friend of mine ruined an expensive MacBook Pro when a soup-dumpling he was eating burst and sprayed salty broth all over his MacBook which was sitting on the other side of the table.

 

[Spacegray]

Yes, but I always wash them afterwards for hygienic reasons.

 

[arian71]

I wash my touchbar everytime with some dishwasher soap and and rinse under the tap water.

 

[synicalx1]

What are y'all doing that makes your hands so dirty while still being in close proximity to your Macs?

 

[hagjohn]

Having been a technician in the past, I can tell you that most people have completely filthy keyboards and computer equipment, even knowing people are going to look at their equipment. I always carried Lysol wipes.