I live close to the street and don't have A/C and i clean my rig every so often like once a week to keep it from accumulating a lot of dust and since i have my rig turned on most of the time it's been like a dust magnet sucking everything it can get its hands on or in this case its fan.
How often do you clean your CPU
You might want to try some sort of air filter. There may even be a commercial solution, but a cheap furnace filter cut into pieces would probably last a lifetime. It could conceivably put a little more stress on the fan, but I think it would balance out with the reduced need to clean it every week.
^Quite so!
Modern PC's are designed to suck air in at the power supply, and blow it out everywhere else. The reason for that is to make it easy to put a dust filter on it, so the only hole you have to filter is the power supply fan's opening.
There are commercial filters available, or you can just make your own, either way, it'll make it so you don't have to clean it nearly as often, you'll only have to replace the filter occasionally.
Modern PC's are designed to suck air in at the power supply, and blow it out everywhere else. The reason for that is to make it easy to put a dust filter on it, so the only hole you have to filter is the power supply fan's opening.
There are commercial filters available, or you can just make your own, either way, it'll make it so you don't have to clean it nearly as often, you'll only have to replace the filter occasionally.
where I live it can get pretty dusty also. I clean my unit every 2-3 months. By then there is already a lot of dust inside the unit. I should probably consider getting a filter.
I clean around every 4 months or so.
I use a vacuum cleaner blower to put out all the dust, leaving it completely clean.
I use a vacuum cleaner blower to put out all the dust, leaving it completely clean.
My home tends to be rather dusty, so I use an air compressor to blast the dust out of the PCs we have about once a month during the warmer part of the year and probably once every two-three months during the cooler months.
I have four vents in my machine (the power supply fan, a secondary fan, a vent directly over the CPU fan and one other), so it wouldn't be easy to filter all of them, as at least two of them are intakes (the CPU vent is definitely an outlet).
I also find that the amount of dust varies depending on whether the PC is on the desk or floor and whether it's a tiled or carpeted floor.
[Edited to correct typos]
Last edited by MeddlingMonk on Sun Mar 29, 2009 7:46 am; edited 1 time in total
I have four vents in my machine (the power supply fan, a secondary fan, a vent directly over the CPU fan and one other), so it wouldn't be easy to filter all of them, as at least two of them are intakes (the CPU vent is definitely an outlet).
I also find that the amount of dust varies depending on whether the PC is on the desk or floor and whether it's a tiled or carpeted floor.
[Edited to correct typos]
Last edited by MeddlingMonk on Sun Mar 29, 2009 7:46 am; edited 1 time in total
I don't make routines to clean my PC. I blow out the dust from inside CPU when CPU fan starts producing noise .
| ocalhoun wrote: |
| ^Quite so!
Modern PC's are designed to suck air in at the power supply, and blow it out everywhere else. The reason for that is to make it easy to put a dust filter on it, so the only hole you have to filter is the power supply fan's opening. There are commercial filters available, or you can just make your own, either way, it'll make it so you don't have to clean it nearly as often, you'll only have to replace the filter occasionally. |
All power supplies blow *out* of the case, it used to be they blew inwards, but this was a mistake since all you're doing is blowing hot air into the case. Also, most computers also have a case fan in addition to the one on the power supply (although Dell etc, sometimes combine the two). Basically all you would need to do is put a filter over any place on the case where air is sucked in (probably the front panel).
I clean ALL the computer (all the fans) in the spring and when winter starts. 
Don't laugh, is just 6 months period - and I find it quite ok.
I'm using a hoover, some wet cloth (then a dry cloth) and... I think this is very important - some engine oil to re-oil the fans (I use a syringe). I also clean the fans with the wet cloth.
I open the PC power case and I use a brush (attached to that hoover) to clean all the dust.
All the operations is less than an hour.
My computer is silent and all the benchmarks are good.
Don't laugh, is just 6 months period - and I find it quite ok.
I'm using a hoover, some wet cloth (then a dry cloth) and... I think this is very important - some engine oil to re-oil the fans (I use a syringe). I also clean the fans with the wet cloth.
I open the PC power case and I use a brush (attached to that hoover) to clean all the dust.
All the operations is less than an hour.
My computer is silent and all the benchmarks are good.
twice a year unless doing some hardware changes then I will clean it before I swap or add something
also I suggest that you don't put the computer on the floor
also I suggest that you don't put the computer on the floor
I don't really have a routine for it. When it gets too hot, or I feel like doing it. That is about 3 times/year. But with my new computer (Antec case, that I never opened) I'm a bit scared of opening it ;P It was expensive ^^
if u need to clean it once a week, you better do something about your room.
you can clean your CPU, but what about your lungs?
you can clean your CPU, but what about your lungs?
badai ++! That's exactly the same thing I was thinking about 
I cleaned the inner side of my desktop once in its lifetime (5years
I know, that's bad!) Well, It would be better if I did frequently, but I never knew what extraordinary amount of dust a computer can suck! (It sucks, yes! I know, that's not funny 
)
Now, I think I'll be cleaning it more often, something like twice a year, or even trice)
I cleaned the inner side of my desktop once in its lifetime (5years
I know, that's bad!) Well, It would be better if I did frequently, but I never knew what extraordinary amount of dust a computer can suck! (It sucks, yes! I know, that's not funny )
Now, I think I'll be cleaning it more often, something like twice a year, or even trice)
| ciureanuc wrote: |
| I clean ALL the computer (all the fans) in the spring and when winter starts.
Don't laugh, is just 6 months period - and I find it quite ok. I'm using a hoover, some wet cloth (then a dry cloth) and... I think this is very important - some engine oil to re-oil the fans (I use a syringe). I also clean the fans with the wet cloth. I open the PC power case and I use a brush (attached to that hoover) to clean all the dust. All the operations is less than an hour. My computer is silent and all the benchmarks are good. |
doesn't the oil make your fans become more like dust magnets?
^ No, you don't cover the whole fan with oil. 
I clean the whole thing every 3-4 months, using a hair dryer (cold mode) to blow the dust out and cotton swabs to remove dust from my CPU heatsink.
Also, wet tissues are very good at cleaning fans.
I clean the whole thing every 3-4 months, using a hair dryer (cold mode) to blow the dust out and cotton swabs to remove dust from my CPU heatsink.
Also, wet tissues are very good at cleaning fans.
I clean my main computers every 1-2 months. It makes way for cooler temperatures and quieter operation. For the, smaller, laptops I use a can of air and a cotton swab. For desktops (with their larger fans), I usually take the fan or part out, use a fan to get the big pieces of dust off, then use a cotton swab and a can of air to take care of the rest. I've also noted how my desktops that are on the table have quite a bit less dust than the ones on the floor.
If you ask me, keeping your comptuer dust free is one of the most important things you should do for it.
If you ask me, keeping your comptuer dust free is one of the most important things you should do for it.
Try to clean things out at least once a month. Once summer rolls around and windows are open it needs cleaned about every 2 weeks. Have a small air compressor that does the trick. But anymore its a matter of time and mood...I can dust my desk off and you can't even tell I did it the next day our house is so dusty.
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