5 ms·

The Miracle of WD-40

35 points by secoif 15y ago

secoif 15y ago
I don't actually understand why this worked, but it did.
- illicium 15y ago
  Probably because the solvent(s) in WD-40 are dissolving the gunk/oxidation that is causing the button to fail.
Anechoic 15y ago
It may work, but I wonder what else the WD-40 may be eating away. I'd probably try contact cleaner first.
georgieporgie 15y ago
Deoxit, which is carried by Radio Shack under their own label, will probably do a better job of dissolving grime and oxidation, and with less chance of unintentional destruction of innards.
- nodata 15y ago
  Why? If it's a rebranded WD-40, why will that work? "unintentional destruction of innards" - can you give some examples? I've never had it destroy anything.
  - Jimmie 15y ago
    Deoxit is different to WD40. Deoxit is a contact cleaner while WD40 is a lubricant. They work in nearly the same way but WD40 leaves residue which will build up over time while deoxit completely evaporates. WD40 will work but I wouldn't use it on anything I want to pass on to my children. I've also heard some second hand horror stories of WD40 penetrating old IC casings and destroying them but I can't confirm them myself.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
sneak 15y ago
You know what else fixes busted home buttons? AppleCare.
- viraptor 15y ago
  From the comments: > I went into the Apple store, they at first thought it was a software problem (just bs the were told to say apparently) and then wanted $150 for an out-of-warranty replacment. That's why it might not be worth it.
okhan 15y ago
I think it's most likely working as a lubricant. WD40 leaves a lubricating residue that in my experience works well on creaky door hinges. I never thought to use it on sticky buttons though!
- moylan 15y ago
  i use the graphite of pencils on door hinges. also the soft eraser on the end is quite good at cleaning contacts on motherboards from grease and the like. that and a non conducting pencil is handy for raising the guard on uk and irish power outlets to plug in 2 pin cables. just that i find it easier to carry a pencil in my toolkit than risk a possibly leaking container of wd40 near the rest of my electronics.
jrabone 15y ago
Cringe. Please use contact cleaner for electronics (Servisol is a good brand). WD40 may well eat plastic & rubber seals (although nitrile rubber, eg. o-rings, should be safe). It's a light oil spray and water displacer. It's not a substitute for proper lubrication - it will wash grease & oil OUT of bearings for example. For brass hinges, locks etc. use graphite dust (soft pencil lead if you have nothing else, but graphite is cheap). Oil will attract dust and other crap and make the problem worse over time.
- bwarp 15y ago
  This individual speaks sense. If you've ever had to degunk an edge connector which some muppet has sprayed WD40 on you will understand. When you wipe the PCB, the traces come off as well...
jondot 15y ago
During my army service, I spent 3-4 years being an AN/TPQ-37 tech. Its a high-voltage, high power, immensely complex Radar. Even though it is such a beast, and could take a lot of mistreatment, we had one "do not use WD-40" rule tattooed into our brain. On the long run it always caused much more damage than help! DO NOT USE WD-40 WITH ELECTRONICS. We used to use Freon and silicon based lubricants - but I'm not sure these substances are legal anymore.
- iamandrus 15y ago
  Freon is heavily regulated these days. Very hard to get unless you know someone who works with it regularly (like a car mechanic).
Too 15y ago
> the home button — the sole physical button on the device’s face Isn't this a bit silly. The most expensive phone on the planet has one big button you barely use and they can't build it to last a year even after 4 iterations of (almost) the same design. Older cheap phones have plenty of tiny little keys, they last for years and years and those keys you use all the time because you don't have the touchscreen. Maybe that's the solution, press your home button more often.
PaulHoule 15y ago
WD-40 is crap. It's marketed as a combination cleaner and lubricant, and it's bad at both of those. If you need a cleaner, get a cleaner, if you need a lubricant get a lubricant. WD-40 will wreck anything you use it on unless it's something that's impossible to wreck.
jdietrich 15y ago
Don't do this. If you've ever seen the mixing desk in a big recording studio or concert venue, you'll understand that maintaining buttons and knobs is something of a preoccupation for sound engineers. The solvents in WD40 will clean switches quite effectively, but WD40 leaves behind a lubricating residue which isn't very conductive and will attract dirt. Using WD40 as a contact cleaner tends to be a vicious cycle - you end up using WD40 to remove the old WD40 gunk. The best thing for the job is Caig Deoxit. It's not especially cheap, but neither is an iPhone 4. WD40 claims to do a million jobs, but Deoxit does only one - safely clean electrical contacts.

35 points by secoif 15y ago

secoif 15y ago

I don't actually understand why this worked, but it did.

illicium 15y ago
Probably because the solvent(s) in WD-40 are dissolving the gunk/oxidation that is causing the button to fail.

Anechoic 15y ago

It may work, but I wonder what else the WD-40 may be eating away. I'd probably try contact cleaner first.

georgieporgie 15y ago

Deoxit, which is carried by Radio Shack under their own label, will probably do a better job of dissolving grime and oxidation, and with less chance of unintentional destruction of innards.

nodata 15y ago
Why? If it's a rebranded WD-40, why will that work? "unintentional destruction of innards" - can you give some examples? I've never had it destroy anything.
- Jimmie 15y ago
  Deoxit is different to WD40. Deoxit is a contact cleaner while WD40 is a lubricant. They work in nearly the same way but WD40 leaves residue which will build up over time while deoxit completely evaporates. WD40 will work but I wouldn't use it on anything I want to pass on to my children. I've also heard some second hand horror stories of WD40 penetrating old IC casings and destroying them but I can't confirm them myself.
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]

sneak 15y ago

You know what else fixes busted home buttons? AppleCare.

viraptor 15y ago
From the comments: > I went into the Apple store, they at first thought it was a software problem (just bs the were told to say apparently) and then wanted $150 for an out-of-warranty replacment. That's why it might not be worth it.

okhan 15y ago

I think it's most likely working as a lubricant. WD40 leaves a lubricating residue that in my experience works well on creaky door hinges. I never thought to use it on sticky buttons though!

moylan 15y ago
i use the graphite of pencils on door hinges. also the soft eraser on the end is quite good at cleaning contacts on motherboards from grease and the like. that and a non conducting pencil is handy for raising the guard on uk and irish power outlets to plug in 2 pin cables. just that i find it easier to carry a pencil in my toolkit than risk a possibly leaking container of wd40 near the rest of my electronics.

jrabone 15y ago

Cringe. Please use contact cleaner for electronics (Servisol is a good brand). WD40 may well eat plastic & rubber seals (although nitrile rubber, eg. o-rings, should be safe). It's a light oil spray and water displacer. It's not a substitute for proper lubrication - it will wash grease & oil OUT of bearings for example. For brass hinges, locks etc. use graphite dust (soft pencil lead if you have nothing else, but graphite is cheap). Oil will attract dust and other crap and make the problem worse over time.

bwarp 15y ago
This individual speaks sense. If you've ever had to degunk an edge connector which some muppet has sprayed WD40 on you will understand. When you wipe the PCB, the traces come off as well...

jondot 15y ago

During my army service, I spent 3-4 years being an AN/TPQ-37 tech. Its a high-voltage, high power, immensely complex Radar. Even though it is such a beast, and could take a lot of mistreatment, we had one "do not use WD-40" rule tattooed into our brain. On the long run it always caused much more damage than help! DO NOT USE WD-40 WITH ELECTRONICS. We used to use Freon and silicon based lubricants - but I'm not sure these substances are legal anymore.

iamandrus 15y ago
Freon is heavily regulated these days. Very hard to get unless you know someone who works with it regularly (like a car mechanic).

Too 15y ago

> the home button — the sole physical button on the device’s face Isn't this a bit silly. The most expensive phone on the planet has one big button you barely use and they can't build it to last a year even after 4 iterations of (almost) the same design. Older cheap phones have plenty of tiny little keys, they last for years and years and those keys you use all the time because you don't have the touchscreen. Maybe that's the solution, press your home button more often.

PaulHoule 15y ago

WD-40 is crap. It's marketed as a combination cleaner and lubricant, and it's bad at both of those. If you need a cleaner, get a cleaner, if you need a lubricant get a lubricant. WD-40 will wreck anything you use it on unless it's something that's impossible to wreck.

jdietrich 15y ago

Don't do this. If you've ever seen the mixing desk in a big recording studio or concert venue, you'll understand that maintaining buttons and knobs is something of a preoccupation for sound engineers. The solvents in WD40 will clean switches quite effectively, but WD40 leaves behind a lubricating residue which isn't very conductive and will attract dirt. Using WD40 as a contact cleaner tends to be a vicious cycle - you end up using WD40 to remove the old WD40 gunk. The best thing for the job is Caig Deoxit. It's not especially cheap, but neither is an iPhone 4. WD40 claims to do a million jobs, but Deoxit does only one - safely clean electrical contacts.