Your computer monitor is an investment whether it cost $119.99 or $12,321.02 and treating it like a 20 year old two hundred pound console television will ruin your monitor in short order. Cleaning a computer monitor should be done weekly and with products specifically formulated for this personal computer chore.

Personally I use the same cleaner that is used on my progressive lens in my eyeglasses. It cleans very well and has no harmful chemicals like ammonia and similar products. Completely forget about using common household window cleaning products on your PC or MAC display. Windex, Glass Plus and similar brand-names can chemically scratch or slightly melt the delicate membrane that makes up your LCD or LED flat screen monitor.

Back in the day when we were still using CRT monitors - Remember those fifty pound chunks of technology that could heat up the entire room? I didn't care and used whatever was available to wipe off the screen - and actually damaged a high-end NEC display that had a protective layer on the glass - so I had to scrub off the layer to make everything look more clear and not out of focus.

When cleaning your flat-screen monitor, laptop, or notebook computer use dust-free towels - and please do not spray the cleaner directly on the monitor - You can chemically etch the monitor from the combination of the heat the screen generates and how the chemical reacts to the heat. So, always spray the optical cleaner on one of the dust free towels and clean in a circular motion adding more cleaner to towel if needed. I like the micro-fiber towels for this job. You may want to check before you use your Shamwow cloth! :)

Then use another clean cloth that is dry, to buff off any residual cleaning solutions. Be sure and clean the outer shell of the monitor with the same method. By removing dust and dirt from the top, sides and back of your LCD monitor - it will help keep it cooler and thus making it last a lot longer.

If you do not have any of the products handy then just a water dampened and very very soft tissue paper or cloth to clean your personal display. When it doubt water is the best way instead of using whatever is underneath the kitchen sink. Then quickly dry it off - leaving moisture on the membrane will only attract dust and dirt more quickly.