Before I go out and buy a new keyboard I was wondering if I could’ve hit something to lock it up
Yesterday I noticed my Arrow Up Key wasn’t working. No big deal I thought, I probably need to clean the keyboard. Till then I figured I’d just take the num lock key off and use the “8 key” which will function like the arrow up key with the num lock key off.
Well my num lock key is also stuck in the on position. So I checked an every other key on the board works great.
I thought it was odd that the ONLY two keys that don’t work on the board are those two. Are they connected by the same circut, or could I have accidently pressed something that is causing the board to turn arrow up key off??
If the keys appear to be able to be depressed properly, and return to the normal position immediately after you stop pressing it then I’d say it was probably a dirty contact. Most inexpensive keyboards use a “film” type contact system, with the contacts and traces printed on sheets of plastic. If dirt or spillage gets in between these sheets, it can keep the contacts from touching when the key is pressed. I’ve had some success in the past with disassembling the keyboard and cleaning the sheets with isopropyl alcohol, but unless you’re completely comfortable with disassembling and reassembling things, I wouldn’t recommend you try. New keyboards are cheap enough it’s not usually worth it to bother.
As a last resort, you might be able to fix this by actually taking the keyboard into the shower with you (unplug it first) and washing it. Then set it on paper towels and leave it to dry completely (24-48 hours). That has sometimes fixed keyboards.
And if it doesn’t, then you have to buy a new keyboard, just as you were planning to do.
I’ve disassembled a couple of keyboards too. It’s enough of a pain to do that I don’t bother any more. If I’ve got a wonky keyboard, I’ll put it in the dishwasher (upside down, make sure the cord can’t get caught on any moving parts, don’t use soap, and turn off the heat cycle at the end). If that doesn’t fix it, then I dump the keyboard in the trash and get another one.
Never tried a keyboard shower, but I imagine that it would work. The nice thing about the dishwasher is that the water gets very hot, which is good for dissolving things like coke and coffee spilled into the keyboard. A shower isn’t going to get quite as hot.