Normally, RAM isn’t something you have to think much about once you have it installed. But if your computer is having stability issues or giving memory errors, that can be an indication not all is well with your computers RAM. In this blog post, I’ll talk about several ways to clean RAM sticks.
How to clean RAM sticks with paper
If your computer is stored in a humid environment, that can cause the contacts on your RAM stokes to corrode. Making matters worse, sometimes the pins on your motherboard and the contacts on your RAM sticks are dissimilar metals, and that can lead to corrosion.
One very safe and inexpensive way to handle this is to rub the contacts on your RAM sticks with a US dollar bill. You heard that right. The paper in US currency happens to be the perfect level of abrasiveness to remove the corrosion from metal but not remove any of the base layer.
Simply rub the contacts back and forth several times with the edge of a dollar bill, then repeat on the other side.
The goal is for the contacts to look clean and relatively shiny. If they look dull, that is a sign of oxidation and possibly other impurities that can affect conductivity.
What about paper currency from other countries? I have never had the occasion to try it, but I would expect the formulation other countries use for their paper money would be similar to what the United States uses.
How to clean RAM modules with a pencil eraser
Another method people have been using to clean contacts on RAM sticks and other circuit boards for decades is by using a pencil eraser. Other countries may call them something different, but I think you can probably infer what I mean by a pencil eraser. It’s the rubber thing you use to erase pencil marks when you make a mistake.
And eraser is more abrasive than currency and will also leave behind more impurities, so if you use this method, follow up by cleaning contacts with some alcohol, mineral spirits, or contact cleaner afterward.
I can vouch that this method works, and it was my preferred method until 1998 or so when I learned the dollar bill trick.
The ultrasonic cleaner
The most effective and most thorough method of cleaning RAM sticks is to use an ultrasonic cleaner. However, it is more expensive. If you have a lot of memory sticks to clean, or if you are also a fan of vintage game consoles, then an inexpensive ultrasonic cleaner can be worth it. You don’t need a very big model. A small ultrasonic cleaner sold for cleaning eyeglasses is large enough to clean RAM sticks, and also a surprising number of game cartridge PCBs.
The key with ultrasonic cleaners is to fill them with enough water. Running them with insufficient water damages them, eventually leading to them no longer working. For best results, used distilled water ionized water. Filling the tank with distilled or ionized water gets expensive, so one trick to minimize the amount of non tap water you need to use is to put the RAM stick in a zip top bag with cleaner and enough distilled or ionized water to fill the bag, then put the bag in the ultrasonic cleaner, then fill the tank with tap water.
Just a few minutes in an ultrasonic cleaner will make even the filthiest RAM sticks look like new. Not only will it clean the contacts, but will also clean all of the solder joints and it will even clean under the components.
Cleaning electronics with water tends to make people nervous. The key is to make sure they dry thoroughly. Usually, letting them dry overnight is enough, but if you want to be really safe, let them dry 24 hours before using them.
One more thing
After you clean your RAM sticks, ideally, you want them to stay clean. And we haven’t done anything for the sockets that the RAM sticks plug into. Applying a small amount of Deoxit to the sockets or to the contacts on the RAM modules, then plugging the modules in will protect the contacts on both sides, and also chemically dissolve any oxidation that may be present. Most retro enthusiasts I know rave about Deoxit. I have heard of it causing problems if you apply too much of it, so the best advice I can give is to apply it sparingly. A little really goes a long way, and deoxit is expensive, so using it sparingly pays in more ways than one.
That’s how I clean RAM sticks, and I’ve been very successful with it. The only time this hasn’t worked for me has been when a trip on the RAM stick went bad, which doesn’t happen very often.
David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.