Cleaning Your Computer

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Breathing new life into your computer can be as simple as cleaning the years of dust, hair and other particles from the intakes and fans of your computer's case. Over time, your computer will lose the ability to cool itself and could begin to run sluggishly or even fail due to the buildup of heat inside the case. By making sure your computer has free air-flow through the front panel, over the processor and out the rear, you can help make sure any heat caused by the CPU is taken away from the motherboard and other critical components.

Take Apart the computer case
It's usually not good enough to simply remove the side panel, as a lot of the buildup is actually stuck in the front grill of the computer case. This is where air is pull into the case like a vacuum cleaner. Over time, this area will become completely clogged--especially if the computer is on the floor or any other high-traffic area. Since all cases are different, it may not be possible to access the front panel. If the panel seems like it simply will not come off, leave it on or risk damaging the computer case.

You may need to start with a small vacuum. Some computer tool kits will come with a portable vacuum cleaner. You can use this to get the heavy debris off. First, always make sure the computer is off and that you have grounded yourself. By touching an exposed part of the computer's metal frame before unplugging the computer, you ground yourself through the outlet. Once unplugged, you can begin vacuuming the heavy buildup.

Next, used compressed air, like Dust-Off or similar to remove the fine particles. You might want to wear a dust mask for this process. Attach the extension hose to the tip of the can, hold it upright, and do short, concentrated bursts. Be sure to hit the CPU fan and the intake and rear fan of the power supply. You might see liquid coming out of the can. While this will not hurt the computer, you should try to keep it to a minimum.

Clean up your work area
By vacuuming or sweeping the floor of your computer room frequently, you can reduce the amount of debris your computer will suck up. Also, clean around the monitor and keep your desk free of clutter. You should also take a good look at where your computer is, and make sure the PC has enough space to breath. If the computer is inside of a desk, the hot air coming out of the computer has no where to go and can damage the PC.

For more information on other cleaning tips, or to have your computer proffesionally cleaned, contact Drake Hardware and Software at 319.752.1155.