Is the press of your PC’s power button followed by a cacophony of sounds; a huff, a choked cough of ashes and the repetitive grind of fans as they go round-and-round-and-round?
Does this noise awaken a small population of dust bunnies who jive in the grilles and vents as a small whisper of air passes them by?
If that is familiar you should probably vacuum your PC. Those happy dust bunnies prevent your PC from breathing. A PC needs to breathe.
Often located on the floor and around your feet with fans sucking in the dirty, dusty air it isn’t surprising that the inside is not the shining marvel it was when new.
Fans are there to create a flow of air over the sensitive components housed within, cooling them as it passes. If the grilles or internal fans are clogged you’ll see a detrimental effect on the PC’s performance – in serious cases, with the fans unable to rotate, those components will overheat and you can be left with lasting effects.
It is easy enough to clean a PC and a quick five minute job with the right tools – A can of compressed air and a suitable screwdriver to take off the side-panel. It’s that easy.
Before doing anything make sure your work and documents are all saved and backed up, then shut the PC down and remove any cables or components paying close attention to where they came from so you can put everything back later. Remove the side panel with the screw driver, take the PC to a well ventilated area and use the air to blast away the grime. You may need to lift the PC or stand it at an angle to get between all the nooks and crannies but short, sharp bursts of air will do most of the work for you. Once finished make sure nothing has become dislodged and then put back the PC’s side-panel, cables and components.
Understandably some might not feel confident removing the side-panel but you can still get involved with a vacuum cleaner. Again, make sure to back-up and save your work before removing the power and any other cables and components. Take the vacuum cleaner and use a soft extension pipe to gently run over any external grills and exposed vents. Not as good as diving right in but will help allow more air to enter the chassis and a greater movement of air is what we’re trying to achieve here.
If you were horrified/amazed (delete as appropriate) at how grimy a PC can get and want to reduce the number of times you need to do this messy job then consider relocating your PC up and off the ground. It won’t stop the intake of dust but being off the ground and away from the dirt will greatly reduce the amount of dust that enters the PC.
VCI can help get the PC off the floor, we have sold a number of under the desk mounts to raise the PC – It is an inexpensive way to help prolong the life of a unit. They work with most desk types and any shaped PC; thick, thin, square or long – they can all be hoisted up and away from your feet. As another option we’ve also sold smaller PCs that can be fixed to the back of monitors removing them from the desk and floor entirely, creating valuable space and keeping them out of the way.
If you want to chat about desk mounts or don’t feel comfortable taking the PC apart and want us to pop round with a trusty can of compressed air then give us a call on 0118 976 7111.
We’re not professional pest control but we can make sure the only bunnies you see this Easter are of the chocolate variety.