Chosen Solution
I recently removed my spacebar to clean it. I put it back on and now it only works if I press really hard on the middle of it. Each time I put it back on, it’ll work on the right/left sides for about 10 seconds before stopping again. Is something loose? The key itself doesn’t feel loose Also I know it’s still dirty, I’m afraid of touching it any more though
Sounds like the silicone rubber dome switch element is damaged. You’ll need to replace it and you might want to also get a new space bar as the clips look a bit worn. Reference this great breakdown on the keyboard parts: Retina MacBook Pro 2012-2015 Keycap‘s The last page has the silicone rubber domes.
