A Gardeners Forum Forums General Discussion The Banter Hall Ask Mr. Gremelin Is My Computer....

... a dust magnet, or what?!

I do not live in a dusty area and it takes a long time for dust to accumulate anywhere in the house... except for on my computer and monitor!

It seems to me that every speck of dust in the area gets sucked right onto the computer and no matter how much I wipe it off; it stubbornly clings.





Merme

Merme

Your probably right ......They Tower acts just like a sweeper sucking up dust .
The fan in the back is a trouble maker........
Mine probably has as much dirt in it as my garden..LOL

It is past 4 years old, the longest I ever had the same one. Gateway..
I am afraid to switch..LOl

I live in a very dusty place in the summer but my computers fans don't suck up much dust...... because the vents are usually plugged up by layers of long grey cat hair.
The monitor and other puter parts can create a lot of static electricity which attracts any and all dust like a magnet. Even if there isn't much dust in your neighborhood, the dust that is there will head to your computer and monitor first... then to the TV, then stove etc....

I handle the monitor dust problem by leaving my 67 miles of cob webs in place to grab the dust as it comes in. It doesn't work at all, but at least I can use it for an excuse to not clean.

I heard canned air can do miracles to hidden dust mites

Yeh, computers can be really bad dust magnets... Sometimes the fans can get so clogged with dust (or fur) that they don't work to their full potential (or at all).

What I recommend is that when you notice that dust is getting built up to disconnect your computer from the power, bring it outside, and use some compressed air and blow all of the dust out of your fans and then out of your case (through the removable side panel).

You'll want to make sure you're spraying the canned air properly as you don't want to be spraying liquid into your computer. You'll also want to leave it disconnected for a couple of minutes after spraying the computer out to ensure that if you did spray the canned air in wrong (thus causing liquid to spray out) that it's completely dry before connecting it to the power.

You'll notice that your computer will run better with the dust cleared out of the fans as the dust won't be stopping the fan's from blowing properly.

In my sisters computer it took me about 20 minutes to pick the mutated dust bunnies out of the fans :x

James

Another question.

They used to tell us not to open the backs of the computer an only work on the mother boards with the proper tools .. is that still so?

The reason I ask, my computer 5 years old says in the manual how to take off the back????????????

My brother said he opens them an rips out the mother board?????????

Thanks , dodge

Well, you'd only take the removable panels off of the case to service the device; this can mean upgrading or cleaning.

I'd highly advise using the proper tools when doing anything more than cleaning the insides of your computer with compressed air; magnetic screwdrivers are a big no-no; you want to use precision, non-magnetic screwdrivers, and generally wear an anti static band as to not cause a short/shock.

Thanks James,

That is what I was thinking.........I dont mess with the insides.
I sweep around it with my hose , sweeper has a brush end.

dodge

I told my neighbor's girlfriend that and she laughed at me and told me I didn't know what I was talking about...
Her computer died...
He who laughs last, laughs best!

Your both correct on that issue..........

I was attending some computer classes , and we were taken over to another class which did computer repairs.
The man did show us all the insides of the computer an instructed us to use the correct tools........It was a while ago and I thought maybe things changed>

My silly brother said he just ripped the insides out with his hands??????

I dont plant on doing my repairs , and was wondering why the manual that came with Gateway, 5 years ago , gave instructions of how to open it >>

Wild Willy ...that girl was lucky the computer only died.

Theres more to those machine than folks think.

Generally the manual doesn't cover upgrades or maintenance of hardware; generally basic "how to use" devices...

jAMES

THAT did suprise me.

Thanks

dodge

Well, generally they want you to send your computer to them so they can charge you their labor cost, shipping (both ways), and their inflated hardware charges...

They don't want you to go to a normal retailer and buy better equipment for a lower price and do it yourself :P

mog

they can hide an watch.........When mine breakes .......i go buy a new job.
Never had one repaired.. Of course I buy the bottom of the line for that purpose.

My nephew sent his laptop back , but he did have a warranty.. Dont know what he had to pay.. Maybe postage.......$700.........laptop??????I can buy 2 of the desktops for that price.
Not sure I am impressed with laptops.

Writing is smaller, batterys to keep up......Can you read the screens in the sun?
b

Lol, mail your old desktops to me; I'll repair and give to myself ;) lol...

You can read some laptop screens in direct light; it can be really difficult though

EEk $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ to mail it out .

I have one older one eone machine..Blue .. i refuse to give to son, I play my camcorder on it .. The tv is all full.