How To Clean Your RGB Mousepad: The Complete Guide

I always experience apprehension when I’m cleaning an electronic device. I never know the proper procedure and cleaning products to use on electronic devices. I’ve sifted through the most effective methods to clean your RGB mousepad that won’t damage your mousepad’s electronic components.

Here’s a brief description of how to clean your RGB mousepad:

1. Prepare your cleaning supplies.
2. Unplug electronic components from your RGB mousepad.
3. Carefully apply warm soapy water to your RGB mousepad.
4. Wipe off any excess soap.
5. Pat your RGB mousepad dry with a paper towel.
6. Allow your RGB mousepad to air dry.

In the remainder of this article, I’ll go into more depth on the above-listed cleaning steps. Additionally, I’ll include some useful tips to keep your RGB mousepad clean.

1. Prepare Your Cleaning Supplies

The first step in any cleaning endeavor is rounding up your supplies. Cleaning your RGB mousepad is no exception. Thankfully, you’ll need only a handful of cleaning supplies to clean your RGB mousepad.

1. Two microfiber cloths.
2. Mild hand or dish soap.
3. Paper towel.

As you can see, the required cleaning supplies for an RGB mousepad are common in most households.

2. Unplug Electronic Components From Your RGB Mousepad

Unplugging your RGB mousepad is the most important step in the RGB mousepad cleaning process.

You probably know electronics and liquid are not a friendly mix. Liquids and electronics cannot mix without causing damage, and this is the main hurdle to cleaning an RGB mousepad.

Unplugging your RGB mousepad will significantly mitigate your risk of damaging the electronic components. In this situation, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

3. Carefully Apply Warm Soapy Water to Your RGB Mousepad

Once you’ve got your supplies in hand and your RGB mousepad is unplugged, it’s time to start scrubbing.

Unlike a standard mousepad, you can’t submerge an RGB mousepad in water and allow the dirt to soak off. Unfortunately, you have to carefully scrub out the buildup of dirt with a cloth.

The first step to wiping down your RGB mousepad is getting your first cloth damp. Ensure that it is not too wet or too dry. If you go too dry, you will struggle to scrub out the mess. On the other hand, if you get your cloth too wet, you risk damaging the RGB components of your mousepad. Ensure that you squeeze out most of the water before starting.

Follow these two easy steps to ensure your cloth is at the right level of dampness:

1. Soak your cloth in mildly soapy water. Fill up your sink or washbasin with mildly soapy water. Next, submerge your cloth in the water.
2. Wring out the cloth as much as possible. The state your cloth is in right now will certainly damage your mousepad, so you’ll need to wring it out. Wring out your cloth to the point where there is minimal water dripping from the cloth.

Now that your cloth is in the ideal state for cleaning, you can get to scrubbing. Here are a couple of tips to avoid damaging your mousepad while scrubbing.

1. Scrub your mousepad gently. Applying excessive force to your mousepad can damage the device. Additionally, pressure can cause water to leak from the cloth, potentially finding its way into the electrical components of your RGB mousepad. Avoid damage by applying light force.
2. Avoid wiping any electrical components. Even after wringing out as much moisture from your cloth as possible, it can still damage your electronic components. Feel free to wipe off the RGB lights on the edge of your mousepad, as long as you avoid the power port.

You should have a clean soapy mousepad at this point in the cleaning process. Next up, we’re going to remove the soapiness.

4. Wipe Off Any Excess Soap

With a normal mousepad, you’d simply rinse off the excess soap with your sink. Unfortunately, you don’t have that luxury with an RGB mousepad.

With an RGB mousepad, you’ll have to wipe off the excess soap using a second cloth. If you’re in a pinch, you can reuse the first cloth, but make sure you’ve rinsed all the soap out beforehand.

Simply wipe any soapy portions of the mousepad you see. Once you’ve removed any excess soap, you’re complete with the cleaning phase. Next, we will look at how to properly dry your RGB mousepad.

5. Pat Your RGB Mousepad Dry With a Paper Towel

The first step to drying your mousepad will be to remove any water leftover. After scrubbing your mousepad, you’ll find there are small pools of water.

These pools of water are the enemy. If you don’t soak up this excess water, it could shift around your mousepad, potentially reaching an electrical component.

Stay on the safe side, and pick up these pools of water before potential damage occurs.

6. Allow Your RGB Mousepad To Air Dry

Before you get back to gaming, the final step is to allow your RGB mousepad to air dry.

Place your RGB mousepad on a flat surface. Make sure your mousepad is laid out completely flat. Leaving any wrinkles or folds could hinder your RGB mousepad’s ability to dry.

Make sure your mousepad is completely dry before connecting any electronics again. I recommend letting your RGB mousepad dry overnight to stay on the safe side.

If you can’t wait overnight, allow at least one to two hours for your RGB mousepad to dry.

If you’ve made it this far, you’re ready to plug in your RGB mousepad again and start gaming. However, you’ll want to take some preventative measures to keep it clean in the future. Below are some tips to keep your mousepad clean.

Tips To Keep Your RGB Mousepad Clean

I understand it’s virtually impossible to keep a mousepad completely clean. However, there are a handful of tips you can implement in your gaming routine to extend the time between deep cleans of your RGB mousepad.

Keep Your Mouse Clean

Dirt and debris from your hands, food and drink, and dust particles are the leading cause of dirty mousepads. If you have a dirty mouse, constantly moving it around your mousepad will spread the dirt from your mouse to your RGB mousepad. Therefore, keeping your mouse clean will also keep your mousepad clean.

Luckily, keeping your mouse clean is fairly easy. Just follow these simple steps:

1. Gather your supplies. To properly clean your mouse, you’ll need alcohol wipes, compressed air, a paper towel, and a toothpick.
2. Unplug your mouse. Like with the RGB mousepad, you want to ensure you don’t damage your mouse. Therefore, you should unplug your mouse, or remove the batteries, to stay on the safe side.
3. Scrape out dirt with your toothpick. Use your toothpick to scratch out any dirt that’s found its way into the cracks of your mouse.
4. Use compressed air to blow out any straggling dirt. You won’t be able to get all the gunk out of your mouse just using a toothpick. Getting the leftover gunk out is where the compressed air comes in. Spray out any excess dirt that’s still lingering with your can of compressed air.
5. Wipe down the exterior of your mouse with alcohol wipes. Now that you’ve got the nooks and crannies of your mouse spick and span, it’s time to wipe down the outside. Grab your alcohol wipe and clean out any dirt and grime on the exterior of your mouse. Avoid any micro USB ports and battery compartments as best you can.
6. Dry off your mouse with a paper towel. The final step is to use your paper towel to dry off any leftover cleaning liquid. Alcohol evaporates fairly quickly, so this shouldn’t be too difficult. Ensure your mouse is completely dry before reconnecting to your PC. If you want to stay on the safe side, you can allow your mouse to air dry for an hour or two.

With a clean mouse in hand, you’ll buy yourself some extra time before your mousepad needs cleaning. Be sure to regularly wipe down your mouse to keep it in a good clean condition.

Wash Your Hands and Wrists Before Gaming

Your hands and wrists are the second major cause of a dirty mousepad. Like your mouse, dirt and debris from your hand can spread to your mousepad.

You can mitigate the risk of transferring dirt to your mouse and mousepad by washing your hands consistently before gaming. Even if you don’t feel it’s necessary to wash your hands, it’s better to stay on the safe side and wash your hands before gaming every time.

Avoid Eating and Drinking Around Your RGB Mousepad

Eating and drinking around your mousepad is a guaranteed way to generate dirt buildup on your RGB mousepad. Crumbs and drops from your drink will accelerate the speed at which your mousepad accrues messiness.

Liquids, in particular, can cause problems when it comes to an RGB mousepad. A spilled glass of water can damage the electronic components of the mousepad, and it may cease to function.

I suggest using a spill-proof water bottle to avoid catastrophic damage from spilled liquids. I use the Contigo Autospout Water Bottle on Amazon.com, and it’s vacuum-insulated, keeps drinks cold, and has a tight seal that prevents spillage..

To avoid an influx of mess, and potential damage on your RGB mousepad, avoid eating and drinking around your RGB mousepad.

Regularly Wipe Down Your RGB Mousepad With Alcohol Wipes

The best method to avoid regularly deep cleaning your RGB mousepad is to wipe it down more frequently. 

Most alcohol wipes are safe to clean RGB mousepads with. However, there are some exceptions. To be sure you don’t damage your RGB mousepad look up if the material used in your mousepad is safe to clean with isopropyl alcohol.

Best RGB Mousepads on the Market

If you’re reading through this article to decide if the cleaning process is worth it for an RGB mousepad, you may be interested in what the best RGB mousepads on the market are. If this sounds like you, check out these three options on Amazon.com.

NPET MP02-SP Gaming Mousepad

The NPET MP02-SP RGB Mousepad is a solid choice if you’re into larger mousepads. This specific RGB mousepad is large enough to house both your keyboard and mouse.

The NPET MP02-SP RGB Mousepad is particularly convenient for cleaning because it’s water-resistant. Therefore, you can be less stressed about damaging the electronic components when cleaning. However, water-resistant is not waterproof, so don’t throw all caution to the wind.

GIM Wireless Charging RGB Gaming Mousepad

If you have a phone with wireless charging capabilities, the GIM Wireless Charging RGB Mousepad fits your needs!

There’s a wireless charger on the left side of the GIM RGB Mousepad, so you can keep your phone battery at 100% while you’re gaming.

GIM RGB Gaming Mousepad

The past two RGB mousepads I’ve recommended are on the large side of mousepads. The GIM RGB Gaming Mousepad is for those who prefer to keep our keyboard off the mousepad.

The GIM RGB Gaming Mousepad is 11.8 inches (30 cm) by 9.8 inches (25 cm). For me, keeping my mousepad on the smaller side is essential. If you agree with my mousepad size preferences, the GIM RGB Gaming Mousepad is for you.

If none of the above-listed mousepads tickle your fancy, there are plenty of other options on the market. The RGB mousepad industry is booming, so you’ll be sure to find another one that fits your mousepad criteria.

Final Thoughts

The electronic components of an RGB mousepad require special consideration when cleaning. These special considerations make cleaning an RGB more difficult and time-consuming than cleaning a normal mousepad.

The difficulty of cleaning an RGB mousepad makes keeping it clean more important compared to a traditional mousepad. Remember to keep your hands washed, mouse clean, and avoid eating around your mousepad.

Following the above-listed steps will greatly increase your time gaming before cleaning your RGB mousepad again. However, it is impossible to avoid deep cleaning your mousepad forever.