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How to Keep Your Smartphone Clean and Sanitized

April 22, 2020

The recent COVID-19 (AKA Corona Virus) outbreak of the pandemic startled us all, especially due to the fact that the virus is highly infectious and even potentially lethal. More and more people are coming to an understanding that they need to clean and sanitize every single item they touch whenever they go outside, especially smartphones and wallets.

Now, it’s important not to panic – people usually grab whatever disinfectant item they can find and rush to wipe the screen, but in most cases, this does more harm than good. In this article, we will guide you through all the little details you need to know regarding how to keep your smartphone clean and sanitized, so let’s get straight to it:

Why is it important to keep your smartphone clean?

It’s a confirmed, well-known fact that nearly all if not all smartphones made by reputable companies such as Huawei, Samsung, Apple, and such come supplied with so-called ‘screen protectors’.

Now, dozens of people blindly believe that these ‘protectors’ are capable of repelling any sort of harmful bacteria, which is not necessarily false, but this little piece of technology isn’t well-armed against the virus we are facing. However, WHO has recently announced that the new Coronavirus can survive on certain surfaces up to nine days.

Most people spend the majority of the day on their phone, which means that you’ll probably instinctively use it while driving, in the store, and in other places where the virus is potentially present. Needless to say, if a droplet of the virus gets onto your phone, you can’t simply ‘rub it off’, so what should you be doing?

Using disinfectant wipes

The best course of action is to use plain disinfectant wipes; they typically feature isopropyl alcohol that is just as effective as undiluted alcohol, but it’s not as strong hence it will not damage your screen protector.

It’s important to note that disinfectant wipes aren’t synonymous with ‘wet wipes’. Basically, there are so many brands and products that are similar to disinfectant wipes, so keep a lookout for models that come supplied with isopropyl alcohol.

Household items that you can use to disinfect and clean your smartphone

The shortage of cleaning items and accessories is making everyone’s life a bit more difficult, so you will probably need to search your home for suitable items to clean your smartphone.

The best and most adequate cleaning item you can use is a lint-free cloth; microfiber cloth seems to do the job just fine. People who are wearing glasses and guitar players typically are stocked on microfiber and lint-free cloth pieces as these items are normally used to clean glass and delicate wood – exactly what you need in this particular scenario.

If you don’t have lint-free cloth, you could turn to the use of cotton swabs. Although cotton swabs are slightly more difficult to use, they are perfect for sanitization in general.

Fixing up a diluted alcohol solution

The best way to disinfect your phone is to use alcohol; alcohol kills and eradicates all sorts of bacteria with ease, but it’s also too strong to be used as-is. Namely, screen protectors that shield your smartphone will be damaged if you directly apply undiluted alcohol on them, or even if you pour some on paper wipes and then rub the phone.

Since the vast majority of people are stuck in their homes while there’s a shortage of pretty much every disinfectant-based product on the shelves of pharmacies and drugstores, you may end up needing to concoct your own ‘solution’.

There are hundreds of ‘recipes’, most of which do not actually contain alcohol and the simplest one seems to be a mixture of distilled water and white vinegar. Basically, the mix is comprised of ½ pounds of water and ½ pounds of vinegar.

Of course, this will result in a one-pound cleaning solution that you’ll be able to use for longer periods of time; if you need a quick fix solution, you can chop down the ingredients, but make sure that the proportion is still the same. Use any household cleaning tools at your disposal with this cleaning solution to keep your smartphone clean and sanitized.

What not to do

First and foremost, you shouldn’t ‘panic scrub’ your phone every couple of minutes. It’s important to keep your wits about you, especially in these trying times.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, the only thing that you really should sustain from doing is splashing your phone with water. Believe it or not, there are people who tend to believe that ‘since the virus can’t survive a certain temperature, drenching the phone in lukewarm water while the battery is out will do the trick’. You will just end up with a ruined smartphone this way.

The less-obvious thing you should avoid is using a damp or alcohol-drenched cloth to rub your phone. If you intend to use a damp cloth, wait a bit until it’s mostly dry. If you intend to use alcohol to clean your phone, make sure it’s ‘distilled’ and not at 100% potency, lest it damage and ruin your phone completely.

Detecting bacteria and viruses – is it smart to invest in UV-light products?

The worst part about keeping your phone clean and sanitized is that you usually don’t know how effective the cleaning process was. Some people repeat the process over and over, just to be safe. Even though cleaning it once with a mix of water and vinegar or distilled alcohol is enough, some people won’t buy it, so they keep scrubbing and scrubbing every couple of minutes.

If you are afraid that you are not cleaning your phone correctly, buying a smallish UV lamp will help you detect any trace of virus or bacteria. However, most medical experts and professionals do not advise for or against it, but they do state that this particular item is quite expensive and in most cases a bit ‘over the top’. That being said, you don’t actually need it, but it could come in handy.

In the meantime checkout Smart Screen Protectors from i-Blades.