When you plug in your headphones, it’s a common problem that the sound is distorted and staticky. Dust or other dirt in the headphone jack may be the source of this issue. There are four simple ways to clean it out, which is fantastic news!
Let’s first discuss the reason why this occurs so frequently. Most people use their phones without a case, which allows skin oils, cosmetics, and hair products like hairsprays and gels that contain alcohol to speed drying to enter the headphone jack. The headphone jack must be open and accessible even when the device is in a case. Together, these factors make it difficult for dirt, dust, or anything else to stay within where it belongs, which affects the sound quality in a variety of ways.
Muffled sound, static-like noise, and crackling noises are a few typical issues that might occur with a dirty headphone connector. Or even worse, there will be no audio output from the headphones. After removing the headphones from the connector, some users have claimed that the device becomes stuck in headphone mode.
After a few years, users of Android and iPhone smartphones frequently experience headphone jack troubles. You can use canned air (more on this below), cotton swabs with alcohol or water combined with soap, the paperclip/toothpick + tape method (see the video for a demonstration), and an interdental brush to clean up the headphone jack. Let’s go over each of them to demonstrate how to thoroughly clean that headphone jack.
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How to clean headphone jack using compressed air?
Cleansing the dust from your headphone jack is both secure and efficient when done using canned air. This could result in some flying debris, so you should do it at a place where there’s no chance of breaking anything close. If the compressed air can you have comes with a thin tube connector, you should attach it to the nozzle and place it in the headphone port.
Holding down the button will let you to regulate how much air is released as you blow in brief bursts. Continue doing this for a minute or two until all of the dust has been gone. Use one of the other techniques listed below if there is still residue.
An alternative would be to use an air compressor at home, but you must be careful not to damage the object you are cleaning because the pressure may occasionally be higher than what is required for a straightforward object like a smartphone.
How to clean headphone jack using cotton swabs?
You can wet one of the cotton swabs/q-tips in alcohol and then use it to wipe out all sections of the interior of the headphone jack to clean it. Alcohol is OK because it quickly evaporates and will destroy anything inside the jack.
Until no more dirt is released onto the cotton swab, repeat this procedure as necessary. Try a different approach if residue is still there after a few rounds. A quick and inexpensive approach to remove dust and debris from your headphone socket is with cotton swabs.
How to clean headphone jack using paperclip and tape?
If you don’t have cotton swabs, cleaning the dirt out of your headphone jack using a paperclip, toothpick, and tape can work wonders. Simply wrap the adhesive side of some masking or duct tape around one end of the paperclip. Use twisting motions to remove any debris inside the headphone jack after inserting one end into each side.
How to clean headphone jack using interdental brush?
If, after utilizing all of these techniques, there is still dust present, try cleaning it out using a sterile interdental brush that has been dipped in alcohol; this should be sufficient to remove everything. Depending on how unclean things are, you could need more than one cycle, but at the very least give it an hour before trying another approach.
Another tool you can use to clean the headphone jack is a pipe cleaner. They are accessible at any pharmacy and simple to use. Simply position the cleaner so that one end is above the headphone jack and then circle. All of the dust will be forced out of your gadget as a result.