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Dusting Out Your Computer

“Dust is an enemy of electronics”. This I found to be true. Dusting out your machine 1 or more times a year is beneficial for its life. Let me tell you why dust is not good and how you can get your computer dusted quickly and easily.

Dust has a couple of bad qualities for electronics:
- It’s a heat insulator so it prevents components to cool down properly
- It’s an electric insulator as well, so if it gets between electrodes it can cause faulty or severed connections
- It can hold moisture picked up during high humidity and that leads to corrosion of electrodes

Computers have fans that suck in air and then blow it out on the other side in order to cool down the components inside. This naturally causes the computer to tend to collect dust at a great rate depending on how dusty the air around it is.

So the first thing you can do to mitigate the problem is to provide cleaner air for the machine. Here are some of the things you can do:
- Vacuum and dust frequently (especially if you have pets)
- Don’t smoke. That’s not only really bad for your health but it generates a very fine, sticky (and smelly) dust that is hard to remove.
- Put your computer at an elevated place. Dust is heavier than air so the most dust will be found closest to the floor.

How to dust the computer

Even in clean environments computers will eventually collect dust inside. So here’s how you can get the dust out.

What you will need is some kind of compressed air. You can use the cans with compressed air, but a compressor does a better job (just don’t use it over 50psi because a very strong air current can bend or break something).

Vacuum cleaners do not work for dusting purposes. Most dust is settled in enclosed tiny spaces where you can’t get to with a hose or attachment. You can use a vacuum, though, to remove big “dust bunnies”.

VERY IMPORTANT:
- If you use a compressed air can, always use it in upright position, if you turn it sideways or upside down it will spew out extremely cold air which condenses the moisture from the air and builds up ice on whatever it reaches, it can also cause frostbites on skin.
- Wear dust mask to prevent inhaling too much dust, especially if you do the dusting inside
- NEVER dust the computer while it’s still on. Unplug it from all power before dusting.

Because dust will get blown out from the computer, do this outside, or in a space where you can clean up easily after the “dust settles”.

Dusting laptops:

Laptops are actually easier. Most laptops have only one fan, some has two. You need to blow in where the air is sucked in by the fan(s) and then into where the hot air normally comes out. Do that alternately until no visible sign of dust flying out.

Dusting desktops:

First remove the side cover. Some cases have simple latches, others require two screws to be unscrewed. If you can’t figure out how to get the side off then go to Youtube and search for a video on your particular make and model’s dis-assembly. Most of the time you’ll find it pretty easily.

Dust collects mainly in the following places in desktops:
- Inside the power supply unit. Blow alternately into both openings of the PSU until no more dust is coming out.
- Around fans, especially under the CPU fan where the heat sink is. Blow this from all different directions that you can reach to dislodge the dust particles.
- Under the front panel. That’s where the air intake holes are usually located. If you can, remove the front panel (make sure to unplug all devices before that) & blow it out that way. If you can’t then just blow into any opening you can reach.

After dusting put the side panel and the front panel back and hook the computer up again.

Dusting done properly and regularly will prolong the life of your machine.

Disclaimer: this article is informational only. While all care is taken to give proper instructions we can’t predict all scenarios and all possible complications. Please use common sense precautions to avoid damage to yourself and to your computer. We are not responsible for any damages that might have been caused when you attempt to dust your computer.

If you don’t feel comfortable undertaking the task of dusting your machine please bring it to us and we can do it for you along with other hardware and software check-ups that help your computer run better with less problems.

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