Is Fellowes Screen Cleaning Wipes any good?

[Continuum]

For starters, here's my thought process that led me to land on this particular product:

• I know distilled water is good for cleaning monitors, I have access to de-ionized water; not the same but probably will do, but what to wipe with?
• I have microfiber cleaning rags, but they are the size of rags, with the bristle thing, not smooth fabric. I have eyeglasses cleaning microfiber, but don't know if it's clean, or how to even clean it so it does not leave streaks.
• Heard about anti-static disposable wipes; search on Amazon but come up with scree cleaning wipes instead (apparently anti-static as well) boasting to be streak-free. Of the available items in the category, only the Fellowes brand looked liked it's somewhat reputable.

 

So due to the above concerns, I end up thinking of this product. Is this any good? It lists the chemicals it uses, but I don't know anything about them to make a judgement: 5-chloro-2-methyl-2h-isothiazol-3-one [ec no 247-500-7] and 2-methyl-2h-
Isothiazol-3-one [ec no 220-239-6].

 

It's a gaming laptop with 300 Hz display, and the only decent machine I own and have access to—really don't want to mess anything up. Please advise.

[mariushm]

Don't use them.

Use microfiber cloth with plain water if you don't have distilled water.

Wet a fragment of a soft clean tshirt with water if you don't have microfiber. 

FFS sometimes I use plain soft (2-3 layer) paper handkerchiefs  dabbed in water to clean my monitors.

[Continuum]

On 3/25/2023 at 10:17 PM, mariushm said:

Don't use them.

Why not? Is there any detriment to using them?

 

I'm not against using microfiber, but the ones I do have are too large—I worry that I'll just be pushing wet dust into gap between the screen and bezels. Same with any other fabric you're suggesting. I have experience of exactly this happening on large monitors, but the screen is recessed, so besides corners I could generally clean the dirt pushed up against the bezel. I only wish I could have some sort of disposable microfiber, or at least getting glasses cleaning microfibers that I can be sure are actually clean to use my DI water with.

 

I have purchased coffee filters for cleaning, but they do sometimes leave some fragments on the surface, and at least the filters I found are too rough on my hands, I worry it'll scratch the screen. Little pieces of things stuck on screen bothers me a lot; that's why I refuse to use any paper tissue type of disposables.

[mariushm]

On 3/25/2023 at 12:31 AM, Continuum said:

 

So due to the above concerns, I end up thinking of this product. Is this any good? It lists the chemicals it uses, but I don't know anything about them to make a judgement: 5-chloro-2-methyl-2h-isothiazol-3-one [ec no 247-500-7] and 2-methyl-2h-Isothiazol-3-one [ec no 220-239-6].

 

 

5-chloro-2-methyl-2h-isothiazol-3-one [ec no 247-500-7]  is a disinfectant, it does very little for cleaning the screen.  The chloro part in the formula MAY be harmful to plastics, like for example if the lcd panel has a anti-reflective layer or coating (a thin plastic filter over the glass)

 

2-methyl-2h-Isothiazol-3-one  is basically there as a preservative / biocide, it's there to preserve the liquid, to kill mold and bacterias that could form in the liquid due to storing those wipes for too long time or from opening and closing the box a lot of times letting air with bacterias and mold spores in.

No idea if it affects plastics, probably not and probably in super low concentration... but again, it does nothing for cleaning 

 

Both could cause residue to be left on the surface cleaned, it depends on the quantity.

 

If you're in US, those Screen Mom sprays look ok to me. 

For example https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08NFBG3KL/  or https://www.amazon.com/Screen-Cleaner-Kit-Computer-Microfiber/dp/B01054S5FM/

Both come with some microfiber cloth. 

They have the MSDS (list of chemicals) on their website, basically it's water with two mild surfactants (detergents) derived from plants and a bit of safe water softener plus some of that preservative in very low concentration (<0.05%)

here's the MSDS document : https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0281/1818/8091/files/Screen_Mom_Screen_Cleaner_SDS.pdf?v=1592250634

 

These should also be fine, though I can't find the MSDS list for it : https://www.amazon.com/Premoistened-Anti-Static-Quick-Dry-Scratch-Free-Eyeglasses/dp/B07QSRNSRS/

The box description claims they're wipes with isopropyl alcohol and don't harm anti-reflective coating on screens.

 

 

 

[Continuum]

9 minutes ago, mariushm said:

The box description claims they're wipes with isopropyl alcohol and don't harm anti-reflective coating on screens.

Wait, what? I thought any alcohol is supposed to ruin the coating, so is that limited to ethyl alcohols? I have a bunch of, and easily accessible, isopropyl alcohol, though only 70% concentration in—presumably—distilled water.

 

12 minutes ago, mariushm said:

If you're in US, those Screen Mom sprays look ok to me. 

Not in the US; I'll try to see if I can find similar products on local Amazon. But as I mentioned in the OP, looking for cleaners I ended up with that screen cleaning wipe.

[Continuum]

38 minutes ago, mariushm said:

For example https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08NFBG3KL/  or https://www.amazon.com/Screen-Cleaner-Kit-Computer-Microfiber/dp/B01054S5FM/

I found Screen Mom on local Amazon, but good Lord, it's three times as expensive as the US listed price for some reason.

 

Also, the microfiber in featured in your second link: I can get something like that, but does it actually pick up the wet dust well? It's precisely the type of microfiber I'm afraid will push everything into the bezel's crevices in a way that can't be removed and will bother me forever peaking out of the bezel. I don't know if I have OCD, but the tiniest obstructions on my glasses and screen annoys me to no end.

 

And the last thing I wanted to ask: whether it's the small microfiber in the first link or the large wrinkly one in the second, how do you clean them both so as to not have it leave streaks on my screen instead?

[mariushm]

49 minutes ago, Continuum said:

Wait, what? I thought any alcohol is supposed to ruin the coating, so is that limited to ethyl alcohols? I have a bunch of, and easily accessible, isopropyl alcohol, though only 70% concentration in—presumably—distilled water.

 

Not in the US; I'll try to see if I can find similar products on local Amazon. But as I mentioned in the OP, looking for cleaners I ended up with that screen cleaning wipe.

Isopropyl alcohol is fairly mild solvent, and usually doesn't attack plastics. The 70% concentration is great for killing bacterias and germs - at this concentration the alcohol can get inside cells much more easily than higher concentrations. 95-97% or better is recommended for electronics, but as long as the composition doesn't contain other bad stuff, it should be quite safe. A lot of those anti covid sprays and wipes have 70% isopropyl alcohol , water, maybe some limonene (helps dissolve oils and gives a citrus peels aroma) and other perfumes in very low amount.

 

There's stronger solvents like acetone for example which can make some plastics blurry or become a bit milky (don't know the exact term) and is strong enough to clean inks off plastics . 

[Continuum]

On 3/28/2023 at 2:16 PM, Continuum said:

And the last thing I wanted to ask: whether it's the small microfiber in the first link or the large wrinkly one in the second, how do you clean them both so as to not have it leave streaks on my screen instead?

Bumping to ask: how does someone clean a microfiber clothe so it doesn't dirty the screen instead of cleaning it?