One or more keys fell off the laptop keyboard and you are not sure how to put them back? Don’t worry, most likely you can fix the keyboard and it’s not necessary to buy a new one. There is no universal repair guide because all keyboards are different. Here’s what I usually do in this case.
Situation 1. The key cap and key retainer fell off the keyboard and you cannot figure out how to assemble them back.
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Carefully remove the cap from any other working key so the key retainer stays connected to the keyboard.
Take a closer look at the key retainer, it’s connected to the keyboard at four different points.
Assemble the disconnected retainer the same way as one on the keyboard and put it back in place.
Put the key cap on the retainer and snap the cap back in place.
Situation 2. The key fell off the keyboard and you lost the cap or the retainer. In this case you can purchase a single key here, just search for it. (Search examples: “Dell keyboard key”, “Toshiba keyboard key”, “HP keyboard key”, etc… )
After you found a new key, put it back in place the same way as I described in the situation 1.
Installing the space bar key.
The space bar key is connected to the keyboard a little bit differently then any other key.
There is a metal retainer connected to the space bar key (on some keyboard models). Separate the retainer from the space bar key with a flathead screwdriver.
Install the retainer back in place as it shown on the picture. You have to engage the retainer with the small hooks on the keyboard.
Put the space bar key back in place and gently press on it with fingers until it snaps back in place.
That’s it. The space bar key is installed back in place and should work as before. If you still cannot fix your keyboard, then you’ll have to find a new one and replace it.
Here’s another technique you can use to fix a broken keyboard key.
As you see on the picture below the keyboard is missing the U key. The key cap, retainer and even silicone membrane were lost. Let’s see if it’s possible to temporarily fix the U key without buying any spare parts.
Personally, I cannot use keyboard without U key but I can live without a key located on the side from the right ALT, I’m not even sure what this key does. In the following guide I will remove the useless key and install it in the place of missing U.
Carefully remove the key cap with your fingers.
Remove the retainer. The retainer has two pieces connected to each other. If one piece got disconnected from the other, connect them back together.
The silicon membrane is glued to the keyboard. Very very slowly separate the membrane from the keyboard with a sharp knife. While creating this disassembly guide I damaged one membrane because I wasn’t careful enough.
Again, you have to be very careful removing the membrane.
If you damage the membrane you’ll end up with two broken keys instead of just one.
The silicon membrane has been removed.
Now apply some superglue on the bottom edge of the membrane, just enough to keep the membrane in the place.
Carefully place the membrane in the center of the U. Make sure the membrane is positioned correctly. Wait until the glue cures.
Install the retainer.
Position the key cap above the retainer. Gently press on the key cap until it clips in and connects to the retainer.
Now you can use the U key again.
Troubleshooting. Why the key will not clip on.
Turn the key upside down and take a closer look at the locking clips. It’s possible that one of the clips is damaged and because of that the key will not clip on the retainer. If that’s the case, you’ll have to purchase a new key.
On the next picture you can see that one of the clips is missing, it’s broken. This key will not stay connected to the retainer either. If that’s the case, you’ll have to purchase a new key.
It’s possible that the key is fine, but the retainer itself is broken. On the next picture you can see that one of the tips is missing on the retainer. The left tip is OK, but the right one is missing. If that’s the case, you’ll have to purchase a new retainer.
Here’s one more picture. In this case two parts of the retainer will not stay connected to each other. It happens because one of the tips is broken. The left tip is OK, but the right one is missing. If that’s the case, you’ll have to purchase a new retainer.
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June 8th, 2008 at 11:29 pm
hi again. Yes i see the black nipple membrane.
And yes i see the 2 small pins on part 1. I also see the 2 slots i am i suppose to fit it into part 2.
Its suppose to be very hard to fit it in right? I am trying it over and over again but it is so hard to fit the pin inside.
June 7th, 2008 at 4:48 pm
Danny,
I think we are talking about different key parts. Take a look at the third picture in the post. Do you see a black nipple (membrane) in the middle? That’s what I’m talking about.
Yes, they have to be attached to each other.
Yes, the part 1 goes inside the part 2. The part 1 has two small pins on both sides, right in the middle. Do you see them? The part two has two small holes on both sides (inside). When you assemble parts 1 and 2 together, pins on the part 1 go inside the holes on the part 2 and both parts work like a small hinge. Maybe the part 1 in your case has broken (missing) pins on both sides?
June 7th, 2008 at 7:05 am
Is the rubber membrane black? Its a very small black thing… looks like a crump. It is fully attached to another button on my dell laptop keyboard.
Yes, i do not get how you attach the 2 parts of the retainer together. Am i suppose to take one of them and connect it to the other? I tried every way possible. I do not understand how you attach the 2 parts of it together.
In your key cap and key retainer diagram, assuming we just look at the key retainer where we see the 2 parts, assumign the one of left is 1 and the one on the right we call 2. Am i suppose to put 1 inside of 2? I do not get how you stick both of them together before you plug it back into the keyboard.
June 6th, 2008 at 6:34 pm
Danny,
Are you asking about the rubber membrane under the key? Try gluing it in place with superglue, you cannot make it worse as it is right now.
I think that’s why you removed the cap from the down button, so you can see how the retainer is assembled and assemble it the same way for the up button. Am I missing something?
June 6th, 2008 at 12:14 pm
Hi. My up button has this problem and fell off. I did what you said and took one key off and did it with the down button. I have the retainer and the cap but the thing is the little black thing in the middle of a key is off. I have that as well with me. I looked at the down button and the middle black thing is fully attached to it.
Does that mean i can’t do anything about it? If yes, how are you suppose to attach the 2 pieces of the retainer together?
thanks.
June 4th, 2008 at 9:45 pm
suhair,
This sounds like a problem with the keyboard. You’ll have to replace the whole keyboard.
June 4th, 2008 at 7:42 am
plesse i have problem on letter H and u and numbers 123 , how can repair.
thank you
June 3rd, 2008 at 7:01 pm
thanks a million times over and over again! Hope you receive well deserved satisfaction from helping so many with this. You are appreciated!!!!! My “A” thanks you, too. He has been causing me all sorts of distress.
June 3rd, 2008 at 6:45 am
You are a wonderful human bean.
I have been missing my “p” key for a couple of weeks. Do you have any idea how many words use the letter “p” ? Thank you so much!
June 2nd, 2008 at 6:24 pm
Unbelievably helpful!!! Thank you SO MUCH (she is able to say, with a fully functioning U key)!