Dismantling a Epson V33 scanner

Sometimes the underside of the glass of a flat-bed scanner gets dirty. Here follow instructions for how to clean it on a Epson V33 scanner.

Steps to dismantle the scanner

1. Open the lid and remove the two case screws
2. Close the lid and, keeping the device right-side-up (with the hinge side is away from you), click open the hinge side first. Note that there is a small clip just under the power button that needs to be freed at this point (it doesn't take very much force). The whole hinge side will now be free.
3. Open the case about 40 mm. It is now attached by five plastic tabs along the side opposite the hinge; three of these are clips and need to be freed. To do this, slide the top of the case towards you, disengaging these three clips.
4. The top half of the case will now lift free from the bottom.

Clean the glass with a non-abrasive cloth. Methylated alcohol is a good solvent to clean off any smudges as it will evaporate completely.

The light and mirror assembly can also get dirty, and can be cleaned with a small microfiber cloth.

A test scan can help highlight dirty areas. Skew colour levels far up to see the differences, for example:

Putting the scanner back together is the reverse of the above steps.