Important considerations for the long life of your Macbook

Important considerations for the long life of your Macbook

MACBOOK

COPYRIGHT 4-2026 KEN L WHEELER

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Cleaning Your MacBook

Use a very lightly damp, soft (if you can squeeze the cloth very tightly and even a drop comes out, its still too damp), lint-free cloth to clean the computer’s exterior. Avoid getting moisture in any openings and be very careful not to get the damp cloth around the trackpad edges or around the inside edge between the monitor and its bezel. Do not spray any type of liquid directly on the computer. Do not use sprays, solvents, or abrasives; do not attempt to use any solvents on the LCD display either directly (especially!) or indirectly. There is never any call to use any type of lens cleaning solvents on the screen of your LCD display. Again, do not spray any liquid directly on the screen.

Cheap soft paintbrush or makeup brush for cleaning

One very useful tool for cleaning dust from the LCD screen, the hinge area of your notebook and around the keyboard, is a very soft inexpensive small paintbrush or a makeup brush. The less you wipe your LCD screen with anything like a cloth, the better. This small brush is very handy, quick, and ideal for removing dust from around and on your notebook.

Storing your Macbook

If you are going to store your MacBook away for an extended period of time, keep it in a cool location (room temperature roughly 22° C or about 72° F). Make certain you have at least a 50% charge on the internal battery of your Macbook if you plan on storing it away for a few months; recharge your battery to 50% or so every six months roughly if being stored away. If you live in a humid environment, keep your Macbook stored in its zippered case to prevent infiltration of humidity on the internals of your Macbook which could lead to corrosion.

Don’t put your notebook for use on the bedspread!

Do not place your MacBook on a pillow or other soft material when it’s powered on, as the material can block the airflow vents (in particular, the rear vents) and cause the computer to overheat. Never place anything over your keyboard when operating in closed-lid (clamshell) mode. This can cause your computer to cycle on and off, which might create excessive heat and drain your battery. Use a lapdesk if you want or plan on using your Macbook on your bed or couch, or in your lap.

General battery condition handling recommendations

General consideration of your MacBook battery Contrary to popular myths about notebook batteries, there is protection circuitry in your Macbook and therefore you cannot ‘overcharge’ your notebook when plugged in and already fully charged.However if you do not plan on using your notebook for several hours, turn it off (plugged in or otherwise), since you do not want your Macbook ‘both always plugged in and in sleep mode’

A lot of battery experts call the use of Lithium-Ion cells the “80% Rule”, meaning use 80% of the full charge or so, then recharge them for longer overall life. The only quantified damage done in the use of Lithium Ion batteries are instances where the internal notebook battery is “often drained very low”, this is bad general use of your notebook battery internal cells.

A person who has, for example, 300 charge cycles on their battery and is recharging at say 70% remaining of a 100% charge has a better battery condition state than, say, another person who has 300 charge cycles on their battery and is recharging at say 15% remaining on a 100% charge. DoD (depth of discharge) is much more important on the wear and tear on your Macbook’s battery than the count of charge cycles. There is no set “mile” or wear from a charge cycle in specific. Frequent high depth of discharge rates (draining the battery very low) on a Lithium battery will hasten the lowering of maximum battery capacity.

From Apple on batteries:

“Apple does not recommend leaving your portable plugged in all the time.”

Your Macbook is a notebook, not a laptop

When you’re using your MacBook or charging the battery, it’s normal for the bottom of the case to get warm. For prolonged use, place your Macbook on a flat, stable surface. Do not place your Macbook on your lap or other body surface for extended periods of time. Prolonged body contact can cause discomfort and potentially a burn. The bottom of the Macbook case functions as a cooling surface that transfers heat from inside the computer to the cooler air outside. The bottom of the case is raised slightly to allow airflow, which keeps the unit within normal operating temperatures. In addition, warm air is vented from the slots in the back of the case. This is why your Macbook is a notebook and not a laptop, additionally the monitors on Macbook notebooks do not lay flat as in the case of many laptops. Again, use a lapdesk if you want or plan on using your Macbook on your lap.

Why your Macbook needs a warm coat too

While you should never store your notebook in a cold car for any significant time (couple hours or more), in cases where a notebook is being carried thru cold weather in a case, having a padded and zippered (not just a sleeve!) case is very important not just to protect your Macbook from a shock from being bumped or accidently dropped, but for thermal protection. In coming in from a cold walk or environment, an unprotected and cold notebook is subject to condensation forming not only on the alloy casing but more importantly on internal parts and the logic board which is to be avoided at all costs. Namely when turned on and the fan kicks on and blows warm air around the cold logic board condensation can form and in worst cases either eventually produce a fault or lead to compounded problems where corrosion forms inside your Macbook.

Don’t press on your LCD screen or spray it!

Do not attempt to use any solvents on the LCD display either directly (especially!) or indirectly. There is never any call to use any type of lens cleaning solvents on the screen of your LCD display. Do not spray liquid directly on the screen.

Keep Spot and Fluffy away from your open notebook!

Small dogs and cats and ferrets as pets love to park themselves on top of warm things, and an open notebook is one of those things, this is an unseen hazard to keep in mind if your small pet parks itself on top or your notebook and inadvertently relieves itself into your notebook.

Throwing open your notebook monitor

I have remotely seen and in the distant past repaired issues related to those who, due to strength, or short term anger will ‘throw open’ their notebook monitors, which stresses the friction hinges, and flexes the LCD display, and can cause a fault in the monitor cable which runs thru the hinge. Carefully open your monitor, and do not flip it open, or snap it open with a ‘throw’ or grab the chassis bottom and tilt your notebook backwards in order to open the monitor.

Your Macbook doesn’t like roommates in your backpack!

Many collects students or people in general are fond of using non-idealized backpacks (without a padded laptop compartment) along with their books. Sandwiching books around your notebook etc. is an extremely bad idea and can leads to your LCD screen being destroyed when heavy textbooks are pressing against same, or when dropping your backpack, these books slam into your Macbook causing great potential for damage.

Careful with your charger and its cable!

Do not make any hard bends or folds in your charging cable, or wind it tightly, always make either circles or loose loops when winding your cord up for storage. Also do not, as many people have seen, unroll your charger block from the magsafe end by letting the charger drop and unroll itself like a yo-yo, this is both hard on the charger and its connection points at both ends.

Beware of thick keyboard covers!

Beware of using thick keyboard covers on your Macbook, some pretty ones sold online are rather thick and upon closing your monitor, touch the screen and transfer more finger/hand oil to the LCD but at worst press excessively on the LCD display, especially in the case of the Air. There is ultimately very little purposeful use of these keyboard covers if you keep your hands clean, additionally they do not protect against spills as many people presume they do; directly yes, but at the edges no.

Liquid spills, why your Macbook chassis is a one-way valve for spills!

After a substantial spill many people will turn their notebook upside down and shake it, not only does this not work, but it spreads liquid havoc throughout your machine and makes things often as bad as possible. The keyboard itself acts like a one way valve in the case of a substantial liquid spill. While liquid pours into the bottom chassis easy, it does not come out easily at all, and in the case of any spill, most of it will not come out by turning it upside down. Disconnect all power and contact Apple for diagnostics and repair.

Do not attempt to, after a spill, ‘dry out your notebook’ and test it

After a spill most people invariably try to “dry out” their notebook by various methods, including hair dryers and otherwise. This both does not work, and after a substantial spill of any magnitude, even if the liquid was water, residue is left behind. There are additionally many very tight places inside your notebook where liquids will linger for a very long time, and cause corrosion or worse. Immediately unplug your notebook and contact Apple for in shop diagnostics and parts replacement. In the case of very minor spills people will “dry out” their notebook and feel success that their notebook is working ok, however invariably in nearly all instances after 4-14 days an error / fault pops up and is usually followed by more.

Careful with tight USB connectors

Never force a connector into a port. If the connector and port don’t join with reasonable ease, they probably don’t match. Make sure that the connector matches the port and that you have positioned the connector correctly in relation to the port. Some USB thumb drives are extremely tight fitting and these should be avoided since they can damage or break one of the internal contact fingers inside the USB port of your Macbook.

Clean hands, clean notebook

While most everyone knows not to use drinks near or around their notebook, also important and often not heeded is the eating of chips, and snacks in general around your notebook, less of concern from these particles falling into the keyboard but more so a concern of them transferring from your fingers very easily onto your notebook and under the keys themselves which could cause an issue or frustration due to an unresponsive key.

Never lift or carry your notebook by its monitor, not even the macbook Air

You should never lift, move, or carry your notebook, even the lightweight Macbook Air from its monitor, at any point, even in the middle near the hinge! This can damage the hinges if done roughly and can also damage the LCD screen from excess flex.

Open your monitor hinge from its center-point

While this is of very minor consideration, the larger the monitor the more adamant you should be about opening and closing the monitor from its center most position. In closing or opening your monitor from the edge, especially quickly, you torque both the LCD screen, the hinges, and unduly flex the monitor bezel, none of which is good for your notebook, even if damage never occurs from same.

Dust bunnies and Fluffy’s fur

Your Macbook’s cooling system, including fan and rear vents pull cool air in from the back and (in the case of the Macbook pro) also from the left ports bringing this air around the processor, GPU, and heat sync and blow it out the back, as such your Macbook acts like a little vacuum cleaner of the air around you. If you use your notebook in a dusty area or around a lot of pet fur, this can quickly, even under seemingly ideal clean rooms, accumulate inside your notebook especially on the fan blades reducing its capacity for cooling and in a worse case scenario seize your fan due to caked on dust on the fan blades. Avoid very dusty areas or places where, over the long term you know fuzz, fur, or even smoke can enter into your Macbook.

Don’t yank out your magsafe connector when done charging

When your are done charging your Macbook, do not, especially at a sharp angle, just yank out the neodymium magnetic connector on your magsafe connection to your notebook, doing so is both tough on the cord, and puts excess stress on its neck where it enters the T-connector block of the connector head. Grab the T-connector head itself and gently tilt it up or down a bit and then out, or directly out.