# Dust is deadly



## NinjaWulf (Jul 17, 2008)

I recently got my computer back after being grounded for 3 weeks and it wouldnt work. I kept gettin the BSOD, it kept freezing and all this stuff. I called my aunt who knew a lil more about computers than me and she looked inside and it was litterly the equivalent to a wool carpet. We cleaned it and it worked like a charm. I never knew that dust can slowdown or crash your computer. I thought it just will completely crash it not slowly sufficate it. 

Anyone else get this problem so I don't feel like a total idiot? :-?


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## Pi (Jul 17, 2008)

> I recently got my computer back after being grounded for 3 weeks



Stopped reading there. Come back after you've gone through puberty.


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## Armaetus (Jul 17, 2008)

Stony Brook, another long islander furry xD

Well, dust can make fans less efficient, leading to more heat. Heat can kill mechanical objects


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## Runefox (Jul 17, 2008)

More specifically, dust blocks the air from flowing over the metal fins (heat sink) that are drawing the heat away from your computer's vital parts (CPU, video card, etc), and basically form a blanket that keep the heat in rather than letting it blow out the back of the computer like it should. In addition, it can cause more strain on fans by collecting on them, weighing them down and getting inside their mechanism.

Get a can of compressed air (any air duster will do), pop the side of your computer's case off (or in the case of a notebook, lay it on its side) and clean out your computer every 2 weeks to a month. Your PC will love you for it; Just remember to keep the air duster in the upright position; holding it upside-down, the compressed air will be sprayed out in liquid form, which freezes on contact and causes damage to electronics and especially human skin.


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## WarMocK (Jul 18, 2008)

Pi said:


> Come back after you've gone through puberty.



Come back after you've gone through life. -.-



			
				NinjaWulf said:
			
		

> Anyone else get this problem so I don't feel like a total idiot?


Well, just type "Computer" and "Dust" in the searchbar of your choice and press ENTER. It's amazing how much punishment a moder deskttop can take. xD
I agree with Runefox, the main problem is the cpu heat sink. Too much dust will stop the air flow, eventually causing a burnout of the processor. Furthermore, it might even take your mainboard with it.
Cleaning up your PC is pretty easy and only takes a few minutes. Like Runefox said, a can of compressed air or an airbrush compressor do a perfect job, keep your hands away from a vacuum cleaner. You can also (almost) prevent your PC internal from being covered with a grey blanket if you optimize the internal airflow a bit. All it takes is to add a few big fans to che case to mke sure that the air pressure inside your computer is bigger than outside (ie: two big fans to suck the air in, one big fan to blow the air out). Additionally you need to make sure that the cables do not disrupt the airflow, and replace any flat cables (like IDE and Floppy) with round ones. You won't stop the dust completely, but you won't have to clean up your PC that ofter (I clean it up every six months ^^).

Oh, and a few pics from the web:
http://www.sureyoucan.com/Computer_Dust_Bunnies_for_web.jpg
http://www.alternateparadigm.com/blog/uploaded_images/dustyfan-749273.jpg
http://www.jonlee.ca/wp-content/uploads/2007/07/dusty_pc.jpg

Hope yours didn't look as bad as those poor babies do.


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## NinjaWulf (Jul 18, 2008)

WarMocK said:


> Come back after you've gone through life. -.-
> 
> 
> Well, just type "Computer" and "Dust" in the searchbar of your choice and press ENTER. It's amazing how much punishment a moder deskttop can take. xD
> ...



Heh actually my PC looked like the 3rd picture. 

**Thanks for the lil reply to Pi <3. I just have really crazy parents


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## nrr (Jul 19, 2008)

Sorry for the German, guys.



WarMocK said:


> Come back after you've gone through life. -.-


Warum denkst du, dass du dem Pi dieses blÃ¶de Ding sagen kannst?  Der OP ist nochn Kind, und Pi hat nur gesagt, dass der OP erwachsen werden sollte, bevor er so diese Frage uns stellt.  Die Idee is, er sollte nach draussen gehn, um mit den anderen Kindern in der Nachbarschaft zu spielen... oder umn Buch zu lesen... or um seine Hausaufgaben zu machen... oder was Ã„hnliches.

Ehrlich stimme ich Ã¼berein.  Go outside, be a kid, and worry about the computer shit later.


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## Aurali (Jul 19, 2008)

I've always wondered what you people did as a kid... probably sat in front of a pong screen cause not a single one of you has a life!! XD


though.. to the OP: 
seriously. Gotta take care of your PC.. that question was a bit noobish.


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## WarMocK (Jul 19, 2008)

Eli said:


> I've always wondered what you people did as a kid...


Well, I created and launched model rockets, had some fun with my RC plane, built tree houses with my friends, invented some crazy stuff like an electric fishing rod and a skateboard with a motor, drew a lot of pictures .... and time and again I turned on my PC and played some games or made some music.

@nrr: Why the hell should using a computer and going out and play exclude each other? The OP just said that his PC didn't work for three weeks, which is not just annoying but also a financial issue. Imagine what would have happened if he bought a new one - and then someone just takes a look at the "broken" PC and says: clean it up, and it will work again. I don't want to imagine what kind of trouble that kid would have gotten into.
What would you say if your PC wouldn't work anymore and you couldn't determine why? Wouldn't you be pissed off as well?


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## nrr (Jul 19, 2008)

WarMocK said:


> Why the hell should using a computer and going out and play exclude each other?


Because he's a kid, and his exposure to video games should be minimized so that he can socialize with other kids his age.  He doesn't need a computer to do his homework, so don't even give me that excuse.



			
				WarMocK said:
			
		

> The OP just said that his PC didn't work for three weeks, which is not just annoying but also a financial issue.


It's not a financial issue as much as it is an annoyance.  He doesn't rely on the stupid thing, obviously, to earn him a living, so what's the big deal?



			
				WarMocK said:
			
		

> Imagine what would have happened if he bought a new one - and then someone just takes a look at the "broken" PC and says: clean it up, and it will work again.


Hi, what about an advert in the newspaper?  Someone'll most likely snatch it up.

If he and his family are stupid enough to subscribe to the mentality that buying new things when what they have breaks always applies, they seriously deserve what they get.  Sorry, but you start to grow a six-inch layer of apathy for the public when you see really how dumb they really can be.



			
				WarMocK said:
			
		

> What would you say if your PC wouldn't work anymore and you couldn't determine why? Wouldn't you be pissed off as well?


Absolutely not!  I would go outside, knock on my friend's door, and ask him if he wants to hit up the pub for a round of drinks.

I hate computers.  I thought I've already made this apparent.


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## NinjaWulf (Jul 19, 2008)

Ok these trolls are really pissin me off. I just thought it was a funny story. I spent 3 days for two hours trying to fix it. It gave me a good laugh when I found out that was the problem.


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## nrr (Jul 19, 2008)

NinjaWulf said:


> Ok these trolls are really pissin me off.


Sorry to hear that.  Want some cheese with your wine? Â¦3


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## Aurali (Jul 19, 2008)

NinjaWulf said:


> Ok these trolls are really pissin me off. I just thought it was a funny story. I spent 3 days for two hours trying to fix it. It gave me a good laugh when I found out that was the problem.



actually. they aren't trolls.. just people with sticks shoved Waaay too far up their asses. (Reason I troll them,) :3 just avoid the bits forums like everyone else who don't want their face chewed off and you'll be fine.


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## nrr (Jul 19, 2008)

Eli said:


> actually. they aren't trolls..


I'm not, no.  I'm just an applied mathematician.



			
				Eli said:
			
		

> just people with sticks shoved Waaay too far up their asses. (*Reason I troll them,*)


Emphasis mine.  You're funny.


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## Pi (Jul 19, 2008)

Eli said:


> actually. they aren't trolls.. just people with sticks shoved Waaay too far up their asses. (Reason I troll them,) :3 just avoid the bits forums like everyone else who don't want their face chewed off and you'll be fine.




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## Eevee (Jul 19, 2008)

Eli said:


> I've always wondered what you people did as a kid... probably sat in front of a pong screen cause not a single one of you has a life!! XD


LOL XDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD


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## Aden (Jul 19, 2008)

<threadjack>
*nrr*'s avatar is awesome. </threadjack>

/Then again, threadjacking this thread is like hijacking a Geo Metro that has one wheel left and is trying to scrape itself down the highway in the left lane.
//And is on fire.
///And whose only passengers are two twelve-year-olds with ADHD who won't stop bugging you for ice cream.


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## Aurali (Jul 19, 2008)

<removed>


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## KMakato (Jul 19, 2008)

Aden said:


> <threadjack>
> *nrr*'s avatar is awesome. </threadjack>
> 
> /Then again, threadjacking this thread is like hijacking a Geo Metro that has one wheel left and is trying to scrape itself down the highway in the left lane.
> ...



That's funny sh** right there.


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## ArielMT (Jul 20, 2008)

Aden said:


> <threadjack>
> *nrr*'s avatar is awesome. </threadjack>
> 
> /Then again, threadjacking this thread is like hijacking a Geo Metro that has one wheel left and is trying to scrape itself down the highway in the left lane.
> ...


I'm just waiting for someone to lay down another spike strip to take out that last wheel.  Then the fun begins.

Obligatory on-topic remark:

In addition to the cooling problems they cause, dust and dirt also have the ability to short out components, generating all sorts of weird symptoms and behaviors.  I've heard of people formatting and reinstalling everything only to have the weirdness remain, and only to vanish when the innards are dusted out.


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## Pi (Jul 20, 2008)

ArielMT said:


> In addition to the cooling problems they cause, dust and dirt also have the ability to short out components, generating all sorts of weird symptoms and behaviors.  I've heard of people formatting and reinstalling everything only to have the weirdness remain, and only to vanish when the innards are dusted out.



I'm still boggled by how dusty Socorro is compared to Santa Fe. I never had to spray out my laptop for the two years I had it up there.


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## Neybulot (Jul 20, 2008)

Eli said:


> I've always wondered what you people did as a kid... probably sat in front of a pong screen cause not a single one of you has a life!! XD



I think it was a Tandy that I sat in front of...I can't remember. It had those cool huge paper floppy things though. Those were so sweet. (Note: I'm 18. Not 20-something. We just had a lot of old stuff I could mess with.)


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## Adrimor (Jul 20, 2008)

You know the odd thing about this, though?

Dust will completely smother the innards of a PC...but cigarette ash won't.

No, really.

My dad's friend had a machine he'd run 24/7, case open, circuitboards on the bottom, and it doubled as his ashtray. The thing never suffered a hardware failure from the ashes--and it ran for several years. I think he got rid of it 'cuz it became obsolete, but for all I know, this guy could still be doing it to whatever new machine's he's gotten since.

Quite an unexpected result, 'm I right?


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## ArielMT (Jul 20, 2008)

Pi said:


> I'm still boggled by how dusty Socorro is compared to Santa Fe. I never had to spray out my laptop for the two years I had it up there.


That ReAir system of ours is still holding up.  It still doesn't give us a lot of pressure, but with the feather-like dust bunnies everyone's PCs collect here, we don't need a whole lot to blow 'em out.  And taking in-for-repair PCs outside and dusting the innards out is still the first thing we do after assessing the symptoms.

I've been pretty lucky with my Dell book.  I've had to give it only a very light dusting on the heat pipe fins once.  Not even the fan needed anything.

But just a month ago, I fixed up a book that had a trap door for the fan and heat pipe (a Dell whose LCD I replaced), and I pulled out so much dust, dirt, and pet hair that it was like a circus emerging from a clown car.

Edit:
I also forgot to mention that about 15 years ago I scored a free Commodore 64C from an NMCUG member because of dust.  It wasn't working right at all, and he said if I could fix it then I could have it.  I took it home, took it apart, and blew out all the dust bunnies that had collected inside.  When I put it back together, it was beautiful.  Commodore 64s don't have fans of any sort, which made this one's ability to collect dust inside that much more amazing.


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## Hollud (Jul 20, 2008)

I have a HP tower desktop at home. Certain HP models have the fans on the back sucking in air from the outside and blowing onto this giant heat-sink. Right above it is the PSU, which exhausts the hot air out.

It's a great system, but it's a nightmare for keeping the innards dust-free.

A few years ago, I ripped the whole thing apart and gave it a thorough cleaning after problems with the video card began to crop up. I then reversed the flow of the fan so that it would exhaust rather than intake. Every crevice and opening was stuffed with those micro-fibre dust cloths, including along the floppy disk drive that was unused.

Every quarter or half-yearly, I'll service it again and check on the levels of dust in the casing. Now, with a new graphics card and some spruced up internals, this 8 year-old tower is chugging along just fine.


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