How to clean the phone to prevent Covid-19

As Covid-19 continues to spread, keeping hands and smartphones clean can help protect you against viruses.

Our hands come in contact with a lot of things, bacteria from them will lie on the hands and fingers, then inserted into the smartphone and then to your nose, eyes or mouth. That is why many studies confirm that the phone is a reservoir for dangerous germs and germs.

This article introduces effective methods to clean the phone and the items and detergents should not be used because it may affect the screen of the product. Besides washing your phone, wash your hands often according to the instructions of the Ministry of Health.

Make sure you are cleaning the phone properly.(Photo: CNET).

Clean fingerprints on the screen

It is difficult to avoid fingerprints on the phone screen because your skin is always sweaty. When you need to clean fingerprints, the easiest way is to use a microfiber towel and wipe gently on the screen. If the screen has dust or stubborn stains, use distilled water to dampen the towel and wipe, avoid direct water spray.

This method can also be applied to the back and side of the phone. In addition, you can use a vacuum cleaner (use to clean the screen before attaching protective stickers) to quickly clean the front, back of the phone.

Remove dust in the charging port

After a long time of use, dust and even sand will close in the charging port, headphone port causing many difficulties in connecting the device. The juxtaposition of the screen and the body is also the preferred residence for dirt.

You can use some kind of vacuum tape like Scotch, cut a small piece, curl it and gently put it into the socket. Move the tape along the length of the port to get rid of dust, small sand particles inside. Particularly for speaker holes, use a small toothpick or blower head to clean the dirt.

Disinfect phones

If you hold your phone after handling raw meat, or doorknobs in public, you'll want to clean it with alcohol. However, in practice, using alcohol (even diluted with water) is wrong because it can destroy oleophobic screen protector (not sweaty on hands) or hydrophobic (waterproof).

Also, do not use alcohol or cleaning solutions because they contain corrosive substances. Instead, use a water-proof microfiber towel or a UV lamp to disinfect the phone.

A connector, speaker hole, and dust covers are one of the hard-to-clean parts of the phone. Photo: Digital Trends.

Do not use makeup remover

For those who often wear makeup, it is easy to stick on their lips when they are on the phone. However, you should not use makeup remover to wipe makeup off the screen as some chemicals can cause damage.

The recommended tool for cleaning makeup powder on your phone is a safe, odorless cleaning solution from Whoosh.

Of course, you can use a damp microfiber towel to clean, note that you should use a spray bottle instead of pouring water directly onto the towel.

Phone waterproof, should immerse water to wash?

If you use water-resistant phones (water / dust-proof standard IP67 or above), you can clean them by placing them under running water. If not, use a wet cloth to clean, then wipe again with a dry towel, making sure the connectors, speaker holes are completely dry.

If immersed or rinsed under running water, pay attention to the charging port as you need to completely dry them, which can be time consuming. Remember that the waterproof feature on a waterproof phone just reassures you, not it can be abused.

Never clean your phone with these

• Glass cleaner: Some phones come with anti-glare and fingerprint protection, which can corrode if exposed to glass cleaner. The use of strong detergent also makes the screen easier to scratch.
• Kitchen cleaners: Companies like Apple do not recommend using household cleaning products to clean iPhones because they can damage the protective screen coating.
• Toilet paper : The pieces of paper can break when cleaning so it is easy to create marks, even scratching the phone screen.
• Rubbing alcohol (isopropyl) : Again, these solutions can corrode the screen protective coating. Check the alcohol content in the solution, preferably not to use it.
• Makeup remover: Makeup remover can cause damage to the surface of the product. Instead, use a soft, absorbent soft cloth.
• Compressed air tank: Phone components are very sensitive, so strong air blower products such as airless sprays can damage some parts, especially microphones.
• Soap, dishwashing liquid : Like glass or kitchen sprays, dishwashing liquid, soap can also corrode screen protective coating.
• Vinegar: Clean your phone only with very diluted vinegar, or diluted with distilled water in a ratio of 50/50 to clean the sides and back, not the screen.
• Disinfectant wipes : The warning on the packaging states that you should wash your hands after each wipe with a towel, so it's not a good idea to wipe them with your phone (then contact your hands). These alcohol-based towels will erode the anti-sweat coating.