I recently repaired a desktop PC for a client who was having performance problems. The machine was behaving somewhat erratically and performing extremely sluggishly. When I opened the case to take a look at the set up, I expected to get my can of compressed gas duster out as normal and blow away the odd bit of dust and debris with a few quick squirts.
The inside of PC cases are notorious as collection points for dust and other normal household detritus that get sucked in when the case fans are working away all day. Well, I have to say that on this particular occasion, I wasn’t expecting quite the level of dust! As you can see from the photos, (although looking at them again now, I don’t think they really do the abject state of the case justice), it wasn’t so much a light coating, more the PC components were buried under several thick layers of grime! It was a bit like opening up and peeking inside some ancient tomb which hadn’t seen the light of day for many a long year.
How the machine was performing at all surprised me. There was so much dust actually clogging the casing fans themselves that it was a miracle that they were turning at all. As for cooling the motherboard and other components effectively, well you could forget it!
Now I’m not advocating getting the Mr Sheen out every few weeks and polishing everything in sight. The inside of your PC doesn’t need to be spotless, but the occasional spring clean wouldn’t do any harm. Computer components are very susceptible to heat, so you need to keep the cooling fans, at least, clear of dust and debris. Treat your machine with a bit of tender loving care every so often and it may just reward you with not breaking down at the most inconvenient time….
