How to Fix a Keyboard (Circuit Board Trace Repair, Multimeter Tutorial, Conductive Paint)
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- Опубликовано: 30 июн 2024
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Turns out my keyboard isn't waterproof, but I wasn't ready to contribute another piece of plastic into our planet's ever growing landfills! With a few minutes of work, I was able to repair my keyboard and save myself some money! Is your keyboard broken, too, or are you looking to repair another one of your circuit boards? Check out this episode of Super Make Something Basics to learn how!
Comments or questions? Connect with me on Twitter @SuperMakeSmthng
Also check out the newly-launched home of Super Make Something on the web! www.SuperMakeSomething.com
I used to following items in this video:
amzn.to/2Lg9bgb - Logitech K400 Keyboard
amzn.to/2O77tM3 - Bare Conductive Electric Paint Pen
amzn.to/2ghCE90 - Jackly 45 in 1 Screwdriver Kit
amzn.to/2O8l1qI - Digital Multimeter
(Note: All Amazon links are affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.) 
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That's a great video and way to use the paint :) Good one!
Thank you!
@@SuperMakeSomething is there anyway i can buy the whole plastic sheets both top and bottom. If it's cheaper than the keyboard :-)
Good
Yeah, where can we buy your product?
my logitech 120 keyboard . all keys are working except B button. please guide me to fix it
To anyone trying to fix a section of worn circuit that would easily be fixed with conductive paint, but find it too expensive or difficult to acquire, take an old usb device and take a short section of wire (since the wires are thin), and take only a few strands, maybe about 4-5. Run the wire and shape it to the affected section of the circuit (not really necessary) and make sure it is in contact with the working parts circumventing the affected part of the circuit. Tape it down with a thin piece of tape (cellotape, scotch tape, electrical tape, any of these should do, as long as it isn't conductive). You could use conductive tape, but it is as easy to find as conductive paint :P . Run a fingernail on the tape by each side of wire so that the wire is secured in place and also traces the defective part of the circuit.
Hope this helped you.
For lack of conductive tape or conductive ink/paint, I first tried a spudge of aluminium foil. That kept shifting because the affected section for me was between spacebar and right Alt and the comma key. I then tried a thin section of aluminium foil fixed with tape, which would also lose contact because it would shift. I tried pencil lead, which worked momentarily, but the affected section was too long and it would die again in under an hour. I guess pencil lead would work for small sections, maybe for under a couple of mm of missing circuit. I then tried wire, which would also shift. Finally, I realized all of these were shifting because they were bulky and even a large cross section of tape could not secure them in place. So, my solution of using a few strands of wire has worked well - the wire is in place, and it has been several months with no problems whatsoever. I used thin, long sections of cellotape to follow the shape of the wire with a different section of tape after each bend of the circuit.
You are a life saver dude i cant believe that nobody commented on this in 7 months. This is quarantine now and my keyboard is malfunctioning and i cant buy a new one thats why i came here btw thanks for your help as i cant purchase conductive paint also but that lead thing worked for me and once again thanks:)
Thank you!!
Thank you mate, i repaired my keyboard!!!!!!!!!!
Awesome workaround and a great way to fix a trace!
I've used aluminum foil, the damaged track was not in contact with keys, it was the outer track and I was able to fix it with a small peace of foil and tape.
Thank you so much for this amazing tutorial! I was having the same issue with my Microsoft keyboard, and your step-by-step guide really helped me get it back in working order. Your clear explanations made the process a breeze, and I'm incredibly appreciative of your expertise. Keep up the fantastic work, and please continue sharing your knowledge with us!
Thank you so much! I'm glad that the video helped you to save your keyboard!
Tight, info packed, professional presentation with a hint of personality. A must save primer on the topic- Thank you!
Thank you so much! Glad that you enjoyed the video!
@@SuperMakeSomething John took the words out of my mouth. compared to most DIY videos I've seen this gets 10 out of 10. picture quality, to the point and brief. keep the good work Alex!
@@a.j7740 Thank you so much AJ! I appreciate it!
Well thank you ! That is one of the best instructional videos I've seen and an example to you all as to how to go on. Some of this type of production are utterly useless.
Philip Cooper Thank you so much! Happy to hear that you liked the tutorial!
I used thin copper wire and sticky tape to fix my C1 connection and it worked well, it was a bit difficult to trace the disconnection without multimeter but finally made it, thank you
Thank you so much for this video. I managed to fix a gaming keyboard for only $13, I was about to throw it out until I stumble upon this video. I got the Circuit Scrible pen and it worked like a charm. It's also easier to apply. thank you so much once again. Keep up the good work
Awesome! Glad to hear that the video was helpful and that it helped you fix your keyboard! Also happy to know that the video helped keep a keyboard out of the landfill! Thanks for watching! 😃
wow, thank you for this vid, teaching basic uses of multimeter and all those info, just fixed my keyboard, saved my penny, and a new knowledge, thanks again.
As for me, conductive paint is a bit hard to acquire so what i did is to cut thin pieces of aluminum foil and a transparent tape, line them up in the tape just like the circuit, and done.
Awesome -- I'm happy that the video helped you save your keyboard and some money/landfill waste! The aluminum foil is a great idea! Thanks for checking out the video!
Excellent! Clear, concise, intelligent tech info without ego or irritating techno music. Thanks.
Thank you!
Thanks a lot, I've been trying to find out how to do this type of diagnosis for a while now. Bought myself a multimeter but have been afraid to use it much because I don't yet know all the functions well lol so this helped tons.
Awesome! Glad the video helped! Good luck with your repair!
I can't believe this kind of content is free, thank you for the work!
Thank you so much!
That's incredible!!! it's a massively useful content for us electronics engineers. thanks mate!!
You're welcome! Glad that you enjoyed the video!
Thank you , nice videos , keep your level like this and one day you will be top 10 on RUclips .
Thank you!
I've done this on a few keyboards and for those of you who don't have conductive paint, or can't find any, you can make some conductive ink.
The easiest way for me was with some shellac ink and graphite pencil ( the woodles ones are better ). Use a pencil sharpener to gently scrape some fine graphite dust. You can grind it to a finer dust if you want ( could increase conductivity ) and then mix it with the shellac ink. It's a pretty useful trick.
You can experiment with other binding agents. Maybe nail varnish? Acrylic pain? Have fun.
That’s a really cool tip! Thanks for sharing!
Amazing! I doubt at first so i tried graphite powder with acrylic black paint (2 graphite:1acrylic ratio and loosen up with water). Mine was a short conductive paint patch however, the resistance after painted and dried is around 600ohm, seems like very high but it worked perfectly! Thank you for the suggestion!
@@lydian2012 Happy it helped! It's a useful trick.
Wow, want to try this one
Great job. Thank you for the time and effort you took to make this video and share it with us. Greetings from Croatia.
Thank you so much!
Dude your work is gonna be timeless. Thank you man. ❤
Thanks for watching! 🙌
Interresting how I came on this tuto as my "O" stopped working as well on my k400.
I'll try that method, thanks for sharing !
You bet! Good luck with your repair!
Great video Alex! Thank you so much! I watched my Razer keyboard matrix circuit. Many place is burned and i watched what i have it home, becouse 2g electrical paint is not enough. The graphite pencil is still optional. It verry basic but it worked for me. Now it function like a new.
What did you use? My Razer Ornata broke after 1 months of use and I need to fix it. I can't seem to find a way to bridge the burnt circuit
i salute you for your innovative energy.
i have a vintage amiga 4000 keyboard and 2 tracks gone, i was debating wire strand or conductive pen, thanks to your video i have no need to guess now.... wire here we come :)
Glad I could help!
Thanks for the great video! Very instructive. I wish I watched this before taking out the wrong end of the ribbon cable and damaging it :(
I thought this might work, so I searched to see if there was a product to do the fix, and found your video, so thank you for confirming my idea was sound.
Thanks
I was about to order a new keyboard ,your video saved my wallet. Thanks buddy ❤
Awesome! Glad that this video helped you save your keyboard!
Alex? Thank you so much!
I bought a multimeter from harbor freight for $5usd and the same paint from amazon for $8usd
Your idea worked! the only thing I did different was masking around the trace I wanted to fix with electric tape.
Please keep making videos! I am Subscribed!!!
I'm going to buy you a coffee
edgar l That’s awesome! I’m happy to hear that it worked and that you saved your keyboard. Thanks for the update and coffee!
Short and informative video. Thanks boy.
Smart idea using the paint 👍🏻
Thanks for sharing the diagnosis procedure!
Finally, I fixed my water damaged keyboard by using pencil marked on the circuit track which short-circuited burnt out.
Now the keyboard is back to live!
Awesome! I’m glad that the video helped you fix your keyboard!
Thanks, I bought a Razer Tartarus which had some key oxidated, cleaned it up and it is working fine
Awesome! Glad the video helped!
Wow, never seen that style of circuit board before. Pretty cool.
Yea it’s super neat and a large part of why these can made so cost effective.
Im having a keyboard repair test today and this is so helpfull, thanks alot, i have an question! What is the keyboard trace for Nkey keyboard
Amazing video.... I found my old 6 years old keyboard had similiar problem and the problem is spreading from one keys to another.... So the last sheet plastic is the things need to be fix.
Anyway Great Video and Great music background you have :)
Thank you! Glad that the video helped!
Very helpful video. Thank you!
Thank you! I’m glad that you found it useful!
Thanks! Very helpful, especially to fix expensive keyboards like mine. Have my thumb up!! Regards
Thank you!
Tnx a lot bro very useful video! Keep it up👍
v for velly ronquillo Thank you!
Battery leaked in my bluetooth Keyboard... My method is weird but it literally helped me. My keys E,D,C were not working. Same thinking after a while i thought leave it I'll get a new one, and started experimenting using a microfibre cloth and my bikes chain cleaner (i guess WD-40 can also work), and carefully cleaned and dried the keyboard circuit board. It's working just fine now. Happy Typing ... Happy Riding!
Nice! Cool fix - glad that you were able to save it! Cheers!
Thanks that worked a treat 👍
Awesome! Glad the video helped!
Flawless video my friend. You earned 1 more sub.
Thank you so much!
great video even though i didn't need it. very informative
Thanks!
thanks I was searching for the materials used in the keyboard matrix traces to repair them after some corroded and broke on my 2005 ms keyboard, i already knew the continuitt tests but i couldnt find anywhere the traces' materal name
Thank you so much for the video! no waste of time anywhere in it, great! I am starting to repair my space key on my wireless logitech keyboard. I wanted to ask you something apart from this video, Since long time I am looking for a sofa like the one you are sitting on in this video , if you remember and have any info about it, can you plz let me know its model name, type, maker etc. if bought online, its link
And this is why I subscribed
Thanks, same KB model, same problem, the "O" key. left direcctional and "Ctrl" key.
I had the exact same keyboard which I'd had in storage for a long while. I'd actually already successfully repaired the battery contacts which had gotten somewhat corroded, and then realised the space bar didn't work. I couldn't believe my luck when I found your video, but when I opened my keyboard, the three sheets were partially stuck together, and when I attempted to separate them, the top one ripped right through a load of traces. Even then I tried looking around the problem area for broken traces with a multi-meter and couldn't find anything obvious. I don't think it's worth bothering to save it now.
verry good bro ❤
Thanks!
Great video
Thank you!
How does water cut a trace? Were you able to see the break? edit: Immediately after looking I saw the break clearly. Seems to be generally on the most outside traces
wovvv man I was looking for a video to fix my broken keyboard circuits and found out that you had the same exact keyboard with the same exact malfunctioning letter. What are the odds :D
Uraz Kıvaner Awesome! Funny that they seem to fail in the same way. That must be where the water pools in the case 😂. Hope this video helps you to revive your keyboard!
@@SuperMakeSomething I have ordered a multimeter and a conductive paint immidiately. I have also tried with a graphite pencil which didn't help. I will let you know where my fix points would be ;)
As I don't have conductive paint at hand and have to fix my keyboard immediately, I merely used a strand of copper wire and tape. Just scrath the trace a little to make it conductive and interconnect the 2 sides of the interrupted trace, and that was it. Just make sure you don't cross other traces (in case of contact, multiple keys were 'hit' simutaneously).
Nice! That’s a cool quick solution! Have you had any issues with the contact between the wire and trace coming loose with the tape?
@@SuperMakeSomething : nope, still alive and ticking !
Perfect 👌
Maria Dalee Thanks!
conductive paint ... great ideia! +1
This was a very interesting video, but i'm curious about the lifespan of this conductive paint, in other words how long will this solution last before it breaks down again.
So far, it is still going strong!
I think I accidentally cut a trace when putting on a MacBook Air keyboard to a topcase. I was using adhesive to help the center section not flex so much, because Apple used rivets there, O could not tighten up with screws. I put too much adhesive and the key caps were getting stuck. I cut the extra adhesive, which was a huge mistake. I lost the delete key. Now I know I can fix my mistake using your method. I'm pretty sure I saw this at Microcenter or Altex. I will give this a try!
Good luck with your repair! Fingers crossed it works out and you can get your delete key back!
@@SuperMakeSomething Thanks! sorry for late reply. I ended up buying another one from Beetstech. They were cheap and fast. I still made profit from the repair!!! However, I did take the old one and the new defective one (with bad delete key) apart and look at it. I could not find a bad trace on it, so maybe it was defective from the factory. I have a remove control that can use your trick though. I will try this!
Most of the broken trace is damage by the edge of those small hole from the middle sheet... I custom-made the middle sheet with smaller hole that enough for contact but not cut off the trace anymore . It has been 8 years , I'm still using it with no issue.
Hi do you a separate video on how to check on dead keyboard thats no power.
Mark Kevin Hi sorry I do not have a video specifically on this topic, but the procedure for checking it is the same as the buttons. Start at the 5V and GND input lines from the keyboard and essentially trace that wire until you find the short. Good luck!
Hi! The three sheets of plasct on my keyboard, with the key matrix are glued together all around the borders. It's sort of a blue substance. Any ideas on how to separate them? I tried a screw driver on a part where there was nothing printed but I'm afraid it will erase good printed parts. I thought about applying heat but I'm not sure how to go about it... hair dryer? Thanks!
If the glue is isolated to a few dots that aren’t around any traces, I would carefully try to separate the sheets with an X-acto knife. You can always “re-attach” the sheets together with some double sided tape or hot glue to keep the sheets from sliding relative to each other.
Nice video! If I were to lose the USB for this keyboard, is there someway to replace it without buying a whole new keyboard? Thanks
Good question! I am not sure about a DIY solution, but that would be an interesting thing to look at. However, you can buy official Logitech replacement dongles here: amzn.to/2A0gJ1C
Super Make Something Thanks! It's something I've been working on for a long time to find
You could use another Logitech product if you have it lying around and use it as a unifying dongle method ;)
This just might be what I need. I have a MS Natural keyboard in which 2 clusters of keys on the right (0, o, ') and left (5, f, c) have stopped working.. Will update how I fix it.
Ajay Chebbi Awesome! Good luck!
i was so amazed by the speed typing
Haha thanks 😝
Y did u not try the top and middle sheets? Do problems due to water only occur on bottom sheets
Good question! The middle sheet is just insulation to keep the contacts on the top and bottom sheets separated, so I just made sure that it was dry. I also checked the top sheet, but because this was the same process as for the bottom sheet, I did not show it. (There was actually no liquid damage on the top sheet, so no repairs were necessary.)
I'm not sure if this has been asked before, but why is it that we should test on the bottom sheet and not the top sheet (which visually has some circuits on it as well)? Do we have to diagnose both sheets?
Yes both sides should be tested. In the interest of time I only showed my work on the bottom sheet since this is where keyboard had a broken trace, but all traces corresponding to a broken key should be inspected/patched.
@@SuperMakeSomething Thank you! I found the problem. Turns out there was a scratch on the trace where the discontinuity is, possibly a manufacturing defect.
This has been very helpful and informative.
@@sixseven4912 Awesome! Glad that you were able to find the problem and that you found the video useful! Thank you for watching!
I was wiped the 3 layer while cleaning the keyboard and when i tried to test all buttons not functioning properly but the Num Lock led still lighting... Is this keyboard broken after i wipe the 3 layers? And when i opened again i saw some liquid under the motherboard that touch with the 3 layers
Which compound is used to made matrix (printed on transparent plastic)
That's a surprisingly simple way to repair water damage.
It's still holding up well!
Why did you only check the bottom trace sheet and not the top? And why would the traces "burn out" with a liquid spill?
I actually ended up checking the other sheet as well, but found no damage. For these types of keyboards, it’s less about burning out and more about corroding the traces that are exposed to the liquid.
I have an issue where a single key press types 2 letters. It is due to moisture. any fix for that please?
where can i get the key matrix circuit??
I have twp of these one just doesnt flat out work and the one that did, recently does click when I tap the track pad. Now I have to use the but to click on stuff. Thats annoying. Wish the video talked about the trackpad.
Step one: remove batteries 😃
you shouldn't remove them because the multimeter will not detect anything
@@witzprinz4766 not from the multimeter. from the keyboard!
Hello bro,, can I connect usb cable with my Microsoft comfort Bluetooth keyboard? B coz I lost my dongle
Could you use electrolysis to apply metal to pencil marks?
Artturi Salmela Because the trace layers of this keyboard are plastic, the conductive paint will probably work better for this repair.
I'm going to try this on a x370 series motherboard, Il let you know if it works because if so it saves a good £100+ motherboard from becoming ewaste
Nice! Please let me know how it works! One word of caution - the increased trace resistance may cause a slight thermal “hotspot” where you use the paint. This was not a big deal for my keyboard but there is a lot of stuff going on on a motherboard so be careful! The resulting voltage drop across the trace may also be to much for a component on the board to work correctly without browning out, but it’s definitely worth a shot!
Very good! I will do something like this if Lenovo won't help me
Artturi Salmela Awesome! Good luck - hopefully this fix will work for you!
How do you fix if the keys i pressed includes another letter or character? Would need help on this please. I press 1 and get '13' and on Q i get 'QE' same when shifted. Thanks in advance.
The contacts on the circuit board may be bridging together when a button is pressed, causing the double key stroke. I would open the keyboard up as shown in the video and see if any dirty or other material is on the circuit traces. After carefully removing this, I would then blow everything out with some compressed air before putting it back together. Good luck with the repair!
How difficult would it be to extract the bluetooth module and put this into a mechanical keyboard base? Then possibly hardwire 2 Li-On batteries in there soldered to a female usb micro used for charging?
we can use micro alumminum wire its cheap and less resistance
Soldering aluminum is a bit tricky because of its chemical composition. Thin copper wire may work if you have it though! That being said, soldering onto a plastic PCB sheet like in this keyboard would probably still not work because of the heat unfortunately.
|I got a free keyboard that I just fried with static electricity, as the bottom plate is entirely made of steel which was a horrible choice as the plastic circuit trace just sits there and touches the metal bottom plate. I touched the bottom shocked the crap out of myself and the keyboard lights went dim and blank lol. I'm pretty sure there is a lot of traces fried because the F1 key now registers as 5 number keys and the W key registers as so many keys that it registers as 5 number+letter combinations and shuts down windows. It's just the f1 and W keys that are borked so I'm not sure if its worth fixing or just buying another 20 dollar keyboard. I would have to coat that metal plate in rubber or something.
And what if the sheet was torn? Does the paint work in this case?
soooo... hypothetically, if a soldering iron contacted the underside of a keyboard and melted a tiny hole in the key matrix (about the size of the diameter of a laptop screw), how would one go about bridging the traces without continuous plastic between the two points? i tried rubber cementing a clipped corner of the conductive sheet under it, and then painting along that, but no luck so far. Any suggestions?
One thing you could try is to draw a new trace around the hole with the paint. I’ve found that trying to stick two conductors together (without solder) and having them reliably remain in contact is very difficult unfortunately.
@@SuperMakeSomethingcool ill try it. so are the traces conductive on both sides of the sheet?
Alex? Why did you not work on the top sheet?
edgar l Good question! I tested the top sheet off camera and it did not have any interrupted traces, so I only showed the relevant parts on camera. However if the top sheet would have had broken traces, they would be repaired in the same way.
@@SuperMakeSomething I had the same question. It would be useful if your video could be edited to display the words "Do the same for the top sheet" at an appropriate spot.
Alex? i spilled water on my keyboard now the f2 key keeps being pressed. will this method also fix my keyboard?
logitech G15
edgar l It might! It sounds like one of your traces corroded when the water spilled on it. Definitely worth a shot!
How to fix my hp km300 membrane keyboard's some switches got complainted problem?
Im here trying to repair my keyboard, gonna try and come back
He never come back
@@Amber_Valentine didnt had the time to repair it in the end. Saved it in "repair later section"
Hey, can anyone please tell if it's possible that lines broke on 2 sheets? Because it seems so by the character of damage. I have some vertical and horizontal rows of keys not working. I don't have a multimeter (yet) so I just want to make sure such problem is possible or it may be something else. Thanks
a bit of backstory to what happened:
so i was cleaning my keyboard and for some reason disassemble it to remove the remaining dusts and seeing whats inside it. after i assemble it back all the keys didn't work(no water damage) and after a couple of hours disassembling and assembling it back while thinking what the heck did i do wrong it still doesn't work. i might need a bit help
My friend gave me a Razer Ornata because he spilled milk on it, he bought the same, new.
My dad has the same multimeter.
Found dis video, bought dis paint.
Tried monthes later because I was lazy.
WORKS! IT FUCKING WORKS! THANK YOOOOOOOOOUUUUU! FREE KEYBOARD!
대박 함 해봐야겠다
My cheapest China multimeter won't beep on more than 15mm length, even on known working trace sectors. Is this a multimeter functionality issue? On spaced sectors copper tape with the adhesive side up and plastic tape works.
It doesn’t beep if the receiving voltage is too low, which could either be because the trace resistance is too high or bc the multimeter isn’t sending enough current, which could be a battery issue. I would double check that the battery is still charged, but then upgrade the multimeter if that doesn’t solve the problem and you know the trace is still good. Good luck!
Copper tape is the most conductive tape avaible but it will less inferior integration with the pcb, dunno if nowdays e company make cheaper the traces become mainly lead instead of copper.
Whats the name of this plastic circuit type.
Nice video bte
Thanks! Unfortunately I do not know if it has an official name, but I have seen online vendors who manufacture similar boards that they call “polyester film flexible printing boards” that have a “conductive silver paste.” Hope this helps!
One question. The circuit board is under a protective layer of plastic... So how did you put the volt probes or the conductive Paint without striping the plastic protecting the circuit??? That's sus... I've opened two keyboards and both of them are like that and you need to strip the plastic with an exacto knife....
In this keyboard, the protective layer was only attached to the “circuit board” below with a dab of hot glue, so they pulled apart easily. Not sure if this is the same for others, but you will definitely want to be careful with any separation because the plastic film in these types or keyboards is so thin.
im using a double sided conductive tape. knowing the trace wire was cut straight on my case
Can it be any paint like acrylic paint?
Unfortunately not. It needs to be conductive paint.
can you do the same for a laptop keyboard?
Can you tell me any other method??
Will soldering work too? or it will burn the thing?
Soldering would melt the plastic unfortunately.
@@SuperMakeSomething 🤣🤣🤣
how do you get conductive paint
Does it same procedure fix Laptop keyboard too ???
i have the logi k380 but the membrane is behind a metal plate which is fixed. :( can somebody help with this?
Good video! I have aK400+, My cat vomited it up and it didn't work anymore. I don't know how to repair it...
What is the exact name of the paint , conductive paint or electonic paint
The paint is linked in the video description.