"Ken Blake" wrote


When I start to hear my CPU fan speed up and then down, it has always
been that the fins on the CPU are clogged with dust. A quick vacuuming
and all is quiet again.

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As I understand it, vacuuming inside a computer case is a dangerous
thing to do. You run the risk of a static electricity discharge frying
the CPU or other components.

Much safer is blowing out the dust with a can of compressed air.
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Compressed air cans is not compressed air. It's a spray
can of some kind of solvent. That'd always seemed iffy
to me. I've always vacuumed and never had any trouble.
I make sure the case is grounded and I don't touch the
vacuum tip to anything. Though it's made of something
like vinyl. I doubt it could conduct a static charge.

Another method to avoid that problem in the first place:
I buy the green furnace filter pads at Home Depot that
come with plastic grids. The filter is very low resistance.
20"x25". I just cut up sections to fit the intake holes,
put a grid behind it, then use plastic ties to hold the
grid on. That way you prevent the dust getting in in
the first place.