Sticky mouse button on my Macbook.
January 22, 2010 9:30 AM   Subscribe

Cleaning (de-gumming) the mouse button on my Macbook?

I don't know what's happened to it, apart from two and a half years of use and travel. But the built-in mouse button on my black, mid-2007 MacBook has gotten kind of "sticky" lately. More and more often, it will start registering phantom clicks for a few minutes, then go back to normal. It also feels physically stuck during these episodes, like it's not popping back up as it should. I've got an external mouse so it's not the end of the world, but I'm planning to sell the machine in a few months and I don't want to stick the next guy with the problem.

I've tried working the edge of a piece of paper around the button's edges, and that removes a little gunk. But it's not all that much, and it hasn't solved the problem. I've also looked around online, but I can't find any good info on disassembling the body to get underneath the button.

The computer is still under its Applecar warranty for a few more months, so if need be I can take it in. I'd just rather not, since at worst they'll make me pay for it (the gunk being my fault), and at best it'll be in the shop for a few days. So if there's a way to fix it myself, I'd much prefer it.
posted by nasty, brutish, and of average height to Computers & Internet (6 answers total)
 
Q-tip + Isopropyl alcohol may help if the gunk is around the edges. Or alcohol wipes, they usually are fairly thin and easy to work.
posted by wongcorgi at 9:56 AM on January 22, 2010


Best answer: Check it out: when my MacBook started doing this, it turned out that the battery was secretly starting to bulge and press against the touchpad/mouse button. Eventually the bulging became severe enough to notice on its own. I replaced the battery (for free, under AppleCare) and the stickiness went away.
posted by tss at 10:13 AM on January 22, 2010 [1 favorite]


Take advantage of AppleCare. They will almost certainly replace it without giving you any hassle - it is not working up to spec. It is not working up to spec. If you have too much fun trying to clean it, you may break it, and then it REALLY won't be covered by AppleCare.
posted by thejoshu at 10:45 AM on January 22, 2010


Response by poster: @tss: I think this is my problem, too — I examined the battery, and sure enough, it rocks visibly on the a flat surface. Come to think of it, this might also explain the random hangs I've been seeing for the past year...

I called my Apple Store, though, and they said the battery warranty only covers me for the first year, and that the batteries that were recalled were only sold before April 2007 (I bought mine in June of '07). Did you get yours replaced gratis after the first year? If so, how'd you convince them?
posted by nasty, brutish, and of average height at 1:14 PM on January 22, 2010


Some people have had luck getting Apple to replace or fix products even when they are out of warranty or they did something to void the warranty. Check out their "above and beyond" section.
posted by radioamy at 5:51 PM on January 23, 2010


(sorry for coming back late): I didn't do anything special---just walked into the store (Apple Store, Cambridge, England) and mentioned my problem at the Genius Bar. By the time I showed up, the problem was pretty severe---I think you could actually see inside the casing of the battery itself, where there was glue or some other kind of filler material surrounding the actual cells. Maybe it just looked dramatic enough that they were startled? I'm not a very imposing guy.
posted by tss at 1:51 PM on January 25, 2010


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