Maggie's Farm

I suppose if you asked the question "What are the most destructive things to a computer?" and flipped through a computer mag, you'd come away with viruses, spyware, power surges, even lightening strikes.

But by the time the dust settles, the dust has settled.  And dust covering the electronic parts is, over the long run, one of the most destructive forces of all, simply because it makes everything run hotter, from the electronic components to the drives.  Enough dusty coating, enough external heat from a blistering hot summer's day, maybe clog up the tower's intake vents with some dustballs, and one of the components could exceed its factory specs and blow.  And that means a new motherboard, and that usually means a brand new computer.

This is especially true coupled with the fact that electronic devices such as motherboards generate a field of static electricity around them, attracting small particles in the air.  Throw in an intake fan for the power supply, maybe one for the motherboard, and, truth be told, that computer of yours is doubling as an excellent little room-sized dust filter.

The actual cleaning process is straightforward enough:

1. Unhook everything, figure out how to open the case.

2. Find a neighbor with a compressed air rig (they're always looking for an excuse to use it), some friend who owns a scuba tank and air nozzle, or head to the local gas station.  You can also use those small cans of compressed air but they won't be near as effective.

Stand upwind on the closed side of the tower, reach the hose over and blast the hell out of the thing.  The first gust should really kick up a ruckus.  After that dissipates, face the insides and get real close to everything.  Blast the individual components on the motherboard, the heat sink on the big CPU chip and the fans.  Also blast the inside of the (enclosed) power supply through both vents.

3. Reassemble.

These days, there's not much worry about hooking things back up incorrectly.  Everything's color-coded, a unique size, polarized, if not all three.

Once a year sounds about right.  If you do a 'spring cleaning' routine, put it on the list.  If the tower sits right on the floor, do it twice a year.  If at all possible, the tower really should sit at least 8" off the floor, especially carpet.  Please refer to accompanying photograph for demonstration.