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.
Missing a key? Find a new one at LaptopKey.com
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.
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July 2nd, 2007 at 5:03 am
I hve a ASUS A3E laptop some of the keys do not work ,I hve ordered a new keyboard can u advice me on how to remove the keyboard
thks
June 27th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
I love you! I was so upset when I left my computer open and my daughter “plucked” the “enter” key off (along with the 2 white retaining pieces underneath. I could NOT figure out how to repair this until I found your site and information…. it took me less than 5 minutes! (I did need to take off the “shift” key beneath the “enter” key to see how to reassemble the 2 white retaining pieces)… so thank you for sharing how to do this and giving me the courage to “pluck” off another key, lol! SUCCESS!
June 26th, 2007 at 8:32 pm
I did the process and i have the key on its place again… but is not working well, it feels stuck. Is anything i can do? Do i have to buy a new key?
June 21st, 2007 at 1:50 am
thank u perfect and simple i thought id have to send the hole thing back
June 20th, 2007 at 6:22 am
Geeze man, i just broke off my c and god knows i need that, haha.
I was getting a bit nervous at first when i popped off another like you said and everything came out with that one too, but then I looked at it and this tutorial and it really helped. Thanks!
June 20th, 2007 at 2:37 am
The other day when I was cleaning my Vaio laptop, I used a soft cloth across the keyboard and inadvertently snagged two of the keys. Both popped off, and I was able to just snap in one of the keys, but the other “O” key kept coming up on one side. After close examination, it looked like the inside molded little plastic clip had broken off. I’ve been searching for a replacement key, but no luck until I found your site. I’ve now ordered the key on Ebay and hopefully that will do the trick. Thank you for your very helpful website. JB
June 18th, 2007 at 8:56 pm
I lost sleep over my spacebar breaking for two nights now thinking I had ruined a very expensive laptop of my husbands… then I found your site. THANK YOU for bringing hope to my situation. My problem is while trying to put the spacebar back on (before I found you) the two of the plastic retainers broke. I cannot find any replacement parts for the MPC Transport T2400 and when contacting the company was told that they do not offer replacement parts. Any idea of how I can get the little plastic thingies that I so desperately need?
June 15th, 2007 at 3:48 pm
Thanks for the valuable information. I was sure that this was going to be a big problem but your information has saved me a lot of time and trouble.
June 9th, 2007 at 8:04 am
My kids wanted me to thank your website for saving them. I woke up this morning to find a key torn off. Needless to say I wasn’t happy and after a rather difficult period of trying to fix it I did a search and found this page. Fixed it within two minutes.
May 29th, 2007 at 2:13 pm
Wow, I spent 2 hours trying to fix this, I read this, and it worked! Thanks alot!!!