HOW TO CLEAN A SMART-WATCH OR FITNESS TRACKER

Give your Apple Watch, Fitbit, or other wearable device a good scrubbing without destroying it.

- JILL DUFFY

Smartwatches get dirty—filthy, even. Like anything else you wear day in and day out, a smartwatch becomes sweaty, clogged by lint, and caked with grime. Pretty gross.

Cleaning a smartwatch or a fitness tracker is a simple project, as long as you know a bit about the device and its materials. For example, if you have an Apple Watch, you need to know what kind of wristband you have, such as silicone, stainless steel, leather, or gold. Once you know your materials, you just have to pick the right cleaning supplies. In many cases, you won’t even have to buy anything special. Many common household items will do.

SUPPLIES

Here’s a list of any supplies you might need, many of them common household items:

• water

• mild liquid soap, either dish soap or hand soap

• distilled white vinegar

• microfiber cloth

• unused coffee filter

• cotton ball

• all-purpose leather cleaner and conditioner

• clean cotton sock

• cotton swabs (aka Q-Tips)

• toothbrush

• straight pin or toothpick

• isopropyl alcohol Now let’s talk about how to tackle cleaning different areas of a smartwatch.

THE SCREEN