With sweaty palms, crumbs, and a plague of mud, holding your PlayStation 4 controller clear generally is a chore. From sanitizing to cleansing out the gunk lodged in between the creases, we’re right here to indicate you learn how to clear your PS4 controller.
We’re going to cowl cleansing the inside and outside of your controller. Although most jobs merely require an exterior wipe down, you might have to take aside your controller to totally clear it out. As a warning, you would break your controller if that you must open it up, so proceed at your personal threat.
Further studying
Cleaning the surface of your PS4 controller
Getting crumbs and dirt
Before attending to the element work of cleansing your PS4 controller, you’ll wish to get any free crumbs and floor mud eliminated. It’s a good suggestion to present your controller a fast once-over with a can of compressed air earlier than and after cleansing the surface. Because of all the crevices on the PS4 controller, although, you’ll wish to watch out the place you level your can.
The purpose is to have the stream of air pointing away out of your controller, not towards it. Crumbs that may in any other case break away can get lodged deeper within the controller for those who’re not cautious together with your can of compressed air. Although it’s straightforward to skip previous this step, it’s crucial within the course of. The purpose is to scrub smaller and smaller particles off the controller as the method goes on, so getting something large cleaned out at the start helps.
The wipe down
Now that you just’ve gotten crumbs and dirt out of your controller, it’s time to sanitize. Baby wipes are the very best device for the job, however for those who don’t have them, a microfiber fabric will work, too. In that case, combine collectively equal elements water and isopropyl alcohol, then gently moist the material. Be certain you’re utilizing a microfiber fabric or one thing related, too. Paper towels and the like will go away your controller wanting dirtier than whenever you began.
With your child wipe or microfiber fabric in hand, work your means across the controller, paying shut consideration to the beneath part of the triggers. This step is especially centered on cleansing the floor of the controller, not getting between all of the nooks and crannies. For comparatively clear controllers, a can of compressed air and a wipe down is all that’s mandatory. Larger jobs require a bit of extra consideration to element, nonetheless.
Dealing with the small print
After a normal sweep of the controller, it’s time to cope with the soiled particulars. For this course of, you’ll wish to ditch the water and you should definitely have isopropyl alcohol, cotton swabs, and toothpicks helpful. Unlike water, isopropyl alcohol isn’t electrically conductive, so if a bit of slips into the heart of your controller, you’re high-quality.
Starting with the cotton swab, soak it in isopropyl alcohol to totally saturate the tip. Then, work your means across the controller, you should definitely wipe off the face buttons and beneath part of the thumbsticks. Once completed, go away the controller to dry naturally. Alcohol evaporates rapidly, and also you don’t wish to go away lint on a controller you simply cleaned.
Before ditching your cotton swabs, soak a brand new one in alcohol and use it to scrub the micro USB, headphone, and EXT ports on the controller. You’ll wish to be very mild right here, as urgent down too laborious will go away some cotton lodged within the port.
After all the things is dry, use dry toothpicks to shallowly dig across the creases of the controller. That consists of getting across the touchpad, cleansing between the triggers, and choosing round the place the controller physique meets. You can even choose across the speaker grille on the entrance, however watch out to not bury any crumbs caught inside additional.
With all of the junk out — you’ll be shocked simply how a lot oil out of your palms works its means into the controller — it’s a good suggestion to go over the physique of your controller with a can of compressed air and a child wipe once more. For most individuals, this can be a appropriate stopping level. If, nonetheless, you’ve some grime contained in the controller, you’ll want to interrupt it open.
Cleaning the within of your PS4 controller
Undo the screws
It ought to go with out mentioning that opening your controller will void any guarantee you’ve and that you must try the method at your personal threat. Still, the method isn’t too tough. Using a small Phillips head screwdriver take away the 4 screws on the again of the controller. Like most electronics, the screws are very mushy, so that you’ll wish to be additional cautious to not strip them. They’re additionally very small, so that you would possibly wish to preserve them in a magnetic elements tray.
In addition to the screws, the physique of the controller is held along with plastic tabs. Once you’ve the screws eliminated, insert a plastic pry device within the aspect groove of the controller and gently peel it away from the remainder of the physique. Don’t transfer too rapidly right here, nonetheless. There’s a white ribbon cable connecting the again of the controller to the remainder of the physique, so gently take away that utilizing your plastic pry device.
Remove the battery
Now contained in the controller, take away the battery by disconnecting the ability cable and gently peeling it away from the adhesive strip. Although straightforward to take away, it’s crucial to make use of a plastic pry device to take away the battery connector, not a screwdriver. It’s seemingly your battery nonetheless has juice in it, so the final you wish to do is full the circuit with a metallic tip.
Gently wiggle the battery till it comes free, being cautious to not pull too laborious. Once it releases, there’s a single screw holding the battery holder on the again of the board. Remove this screw and set it in your tray together with the battery holder. With it gone, you may carry up the board, analog sticks, triggers, rumble motors, and touchpad as a single unit. This center part is, primarily, the controller, so be very cautious when setting it apart. Also take note of the ribbon cable attaching the touchpad. You’ll must take away it to permit the center part to return free.
You needs to be left with the back and front of the controller, together with all of the buttons (watch out with these, as they’ll fall out for those who flip the entrance part the wrong way up). Again, run by the within of the controller utilizing the cotton swab and isopropyl alcohol course of above, permitting all the things to dry absolutely earlier than reassembling. You can use water to scrub the plastic shell, however it’s a good suggestion to stay with isopropyl alcohol. Water and electronics don’t play effectively, and the final you need is a few rogue moisture locked in your controller.
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