Repairing a remote with non/poor-functioning buttons

[PeteHarland]

Here is my method for repairing remotes. After the remote is disassembled check if there are any contaminants in the remote. I have seen many keypads that were covered in a sticky residue. This is usually from a spilt drink. Clean the circuit board with isopropyl alcohol. The keypad and case can be washed using a toothbrush and dishwashing liquid in water. Do not use hand cleaner as it has additives for softening your hands. Also use the dishwashing water to clean any oil from your hands. Dry the case and keypad with a hair dryer. Use isopropyl alcohol to clean all the contacts on the keypad. Cotton buds (Q tips) work well for cleaning the keypad and circuit board. If any of the keys are not working cut a small piece of Aluminium foil to cover the contacts on the keypad. Make sure there are no wrinkles in the aluminium foil. Clean the side of the foil in contact with the keypad with isopropyl alcohol. Any oil from your fingers can stop the foil from sticking properly. You can use surgical gloves if needed. Once this has dried use silastic silicon sealant to stick the foil to the keypad contacts. Use it sparingly. This works well as it remains flexible. Use a pair of tweezers and a cotton bud to push the foil onto the keypad. Allow it to dry for the recommended amount of time. Once it has dried reassemble the remote.

[rodenti]

I repair my remotes using HVAC foil tape; which is basically sticky backed aluminum foil.

Clean the contacts and buttons using a q-tip with isopropyl alcohol, then cut a tiny square of tape and using tweezers stick it to the bottom of the button.

[znark]

Various AliExpress sellers offer conductive rubber pads for remote control repair. They are available in various sizes and shapes, even as boxed sets of different varieties:

https://www.aliexpress.com/w/wholesale- ... epair.html

The idea is you use a very sharp scalpel or an "X-Acto" type knife to cut off the worn-out pad from the backside of the button. When you glue in the replacement pad, the nub will be back at its original height. Here's one video which shows how it is done:

https://youtu.be/PPaI6rX9ZHo?t=89

Since the keymats are silicone, some kind of RTV silicone adhesive would likely be the best option for the glue (maybe Loctite RTV, or similar). Some tips and recommendations about gluing silicone can be found here.

I have now attempted a repair with a collection of conductive pads ordered from AliExpress. The repaired remote works fine (for now) but I did not have silicone-based glue at hand so used what I had (Loctite Precision cyanoacrylate in a small long-neck bottle, which is not really meant for silicone surfaces if you carefully read the "Limitations" section in the technical details, instead of trusting that "glues rubber" means "glues silicone" - it doesn't, since silicone "rubber" is a completely different material than natural (latex) rubber). Should the pads come off, I will try it again with a silicone-based adhesive.