computer cleaning

Are you supposed to clean the tower of your computer with canned air through the air holes in the back. I was told to do 'but I was a little hesitant to do it. Thanks

It is better to remove the cover, and blow from the inside out.

Be sure to blow out the power supply as well.

Unplug before doing so, obviously.

Sweep out as much as you can first with a vacuum. Don't get the vacuum motor close to the computer even if it off. The emf from the vacuum motor can damage the hard drive and cmos chips on the motherboard.

Take cover off and blow out, I use compressed air.

I have to take my tower out to the shop at least once a year to blow all the dust and dander out of it. Sometime it makes quite a cloud. If I forget to do it, the CPU fan will come on more often and at higher speeds for longer times during heavy CPU usage- big files, large graphics, CPU intensive programs (excel) etc. I always ground the the tower and me during these cleanings to avoid the stray spark. I just use plain compressed air at 40-60 psi.

Edward

The best way is to remove the cover and vacuum out all the dust, starting with the CPU.

Most "tower" PCs these days use the ATX standard motherboard layout. Air is primarily circulated by two fans: The CPU fan, which sucks air into the case through holes in the side, and the power supply fan, which exhausts air out through the power supply. There are often auxiliary fans in the front and/or back of the case as well. This particular setup means that almost all the air goes through the CPU heat sink, and dust tends to plug up the heat sink, causing beaucoup problems. Once you get the heat sink vacuumed out, look for any other dusty spots and you should be good to go.

Just blow mine out. Pulled it open and took a ball pump w/o needle and blew most of the dust out started with the fins on mother board (they were really bad) and worked out.

We blow them out with compressed air. (dry) Cover off is way best. Keyboard and all gets it. Do not spin up the fans with the air, it will destroy them!!! We do 250 computers every year that way (no fatalities) Jim

(quoted from post at 19:17:31 12/27/14) The best way is to remove the cover and vacuum out all the dust, starting with the CPU. ...

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That is a danged good say to ruin a computer.

The static charge built up by the air flowing through the tube can easily fry any number of components.

Compressed air is the only safe way.

(quoted from post at 00:39:25 12/28/14)

(quoted from post at 19:17:31 12/27/14) The best way is to remove the cover and vacuum out all the dust, starting with the CPU. ...

Click to expand...

That is a danged good say to ruin a computer.

The static charge built up by the air flowing through the tube can easily fry any number of components.

Compressed air is the only safe way.

Click to expand...

They do make special static-free vacuums for that purpose.
Not allowed where I work. We use LOW pressure compressed air.
Canned air works well, albeit a bit pricey.
A regular garage/shop air compressor can blow things apart pretty
easily, so if you go that route turn it down and don't get close.

>That is a danged good say to ruin a computer.

>The static charge built up by the air flowing through the tube can easily fry any number of components.

>Compressed air is the only safe way.

Perhaps. I'm quite familiar with the dangers of electrostatic discharge, having worked with electronics for years. But as long as the computer is plugged into a properly grounded outlet, the risk of ESD is fairly low. The case and motherboard ground plane will be grounded, as will the devices you're likely to touch. The vacuum hose itself will be grounded through your body as long as you're touching the computer case.

Consider the ESD risks with compressed air: If you're using a can of compressed air, it's going to be at whatever potential your body is at, which could be several thousand volts if you've just walked across the carpet. Of course, once you touch the computer case that potential goes to zero, which is why you should never work on your PC if it's not plugged into the wall, and you should always discharge yourself on the computer case. (Wearing a grounded wrist strap is of course the best solution, but most folks don't have one.)

If you use shop compressed air, are you really certain your air hose doesn't carry a static charge? Did you make sure and ground your PC when you put it on the work bench?

ESD is a very real risk, regardless of whether you use compressed air or a vacuum. I prefer to vacuum because blowing air into a dirty PC makes a big mess.