Cleaning copper pins on a Macbook charger.

ShimSham

So out of the blue, my Macbook pro's charger isn't working quite right. It'll charge if it's sort of at the right angle.

It looks like something got spilled on the end that connects to the computer. I have no idea what (or how), but two of the pins in the connector look black while the others are clean looking.

What can I do to clean this without harming any of the components? Toothbrush? Wet toothbrush or Q-tip? I have no idea.

Echo

Best thing to use would be rubbing alcohol and a q-tip.

SeñorAmor

I've heard that using a normal pencil eraser is one of the best ways to clean electronic contacts like that.

Echo

Oh yeah, that works nice too. But if it's a MagSafe connector I don't think you can reach inside it.

vonPoonBurGer

What Echo said. I've used rubbing alcohol and Q-tips to clean thermal grease off pins and contacts when building computers. Since it's safe for the more delicate internal parts, it certainly won't harm external contacts. Definitely pop out your battery and unplug the power adapter before doing any cleaning though. Isopropyl alcohol is a very weak conductor, but it's rare to find really pure isopropyl alcohol unless you're buying cleaning fluid specifically made for computers. Most isopropyl alcohol you get from a drug store will be ~70%, the other 30% of which will be mostly water, and that 30% is a good electrical conductor. You'll be able to see the alcohol (and trace water) rapidly evaporating from the metal contacts, so it's easy to know when it's safe to plug things back in. Unless you're using way too much alcohol, everything should be dry in seconds.