On Tue, 17 Apr 2012 08:46:17 -0700, Ken Blake
wrote:

On Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:15:55 -0300, pjp
wrote:

Sorry the top post but want to insure you

1st - vacuum it out insuring the heat sinks are cleared


You should *never* use a vacuum cleaner inside a computer. If you do
so, you run the risk of a static electricity discharge frying the
motherboard.

I agree in theory, but in practice I'm not nearly so strict. I've used
a vacuum cleaner well over a thousand times over the years and never
had a problem. Like registry cleaners, though, there is always a risk.
I minimize or eliminate that risk by leaving the PC plugged into the
AC outlet and periodically touching the wand to the PC's case during
the cleaning operation. That's how they taught it in my Air Force tech
school some 40 years ago and it works well.

Much more effective, however, is using compressed air instead of a
vacuum. It's a lot messier, blowing dust bunnies everywhere and best
done outdoors, but it's much more effective.

Instead, blow out the dust with a can of compressed air.

Cans of compressed air have less than a tenth of the pressure and
volume that I need, so I use an air compressor. I limit the output to
about 30-40 PSI and I'm done in no time.

I have some cans of compressed air here that I've probably had since
the mid 1990's. I would never attempt to clean the inside of a
computer case with them, but they seem to work fairly well to spot
cool a hard drive or a heat sink for testing purposes.

--

Char Jackson