SolveYourProblem
Article Series: PC Tuneup
Help Me Keep My PC Running Smoothly
Why
Must I Dust My PC?
Okay, so you have your tower on the floor,
instead of on a cart. (Which is not the best place in the world
for it, unless you live in a dust free home). If you
notice that it is acting strangely or doesn’t seem to want
to boot
up as quickly as usual, the problem could very well be that
you need to clean the dust out of the tower and even the keyboard,
mouse and monitor. Don’t worry, this is a relatively easy thing
to do, and even those of you that don’t really know a lot about
computers can tackle this one pretty easily!
First
of all, dusting your computer isn’t like dusting your house!
The parts on a computer, like your television set in
your living room, are very fragile. You will not want to break
out the vacuum cleaner for this job! You also don’t want to
have to completely break every part of your computer down to
take care of the dusting and regular cleaning.
What
is the best way to clean the dust out, you may ask? Well,
Most computer owners, both novice and professionals, recommend
using a moisture free cleaner, like the “Dust Remover” from
CleanSafe. Basically, this is a bottle that resembles a large
can of WD40. You don’t have to use any particular brand, just
make sure it is safe to use on your computer! (Read the indications
and suggested uses on the back of the bottle if you are not
certain.) The spray of this kind is usually no more than about
$5 a bottle and unless the inside of your computer shell looks
like your dog’s coat of fur, you won’t need more than one of
these.
When you are ready to begin, it is best to start with your
tower. Turn off your computer (in safe mode) and disconnect
your keyboard, mouse, monitor, telephone line and anything
else you may have connected to your tower. Next, place your
tower onto a few pieces of newspaper or old grocery bags, so
that the mess won’t get all over your carpet or flooring.
After you have done that, now is a good time to read the directions
and warnings on the back of the bottle. It will tell you the
proper way to handle the spray, as well as show you how to
use the attached nozzle extender. It is very important you
follow the instructions on the bottle, as the contents are
made up of a product that is like an insanely cold liquid.
If you shake the can or hold it the wrong way, you will only
get a liquid and the can will be so cold you can’t hold onto
it!
Once you get a feel for the way the spray operates, go ahead
and remove the shell of your computer case. (It is usually
only a matter of removing a knob of some kind on the sliding
side panel. Remove the knob and slide the panel off.) Place
it in a manner so that you are comfortable and you will then
be able start the dusting process. Use short spray stokes to
get the best amount of pressure out of the air can. You can
quickly get the idea of how this works and you will be able
to finish rather quickly. Once you have finished, replace the
shell of the tower again and then put the knob back. You may
also want to go ahead and spray the front of the tower, like
the disk drive and USB ports, too.
After the tower, it’s time to move on to the monitor. It is
best to make sure it is not plugged into the outlet when cleaning
it. Just use the spray can like you did when you cleaned out
the tower. Spray into the crevices of the back of the monitor
and the front, if it needs it. When the monitor is done, you
can go ahead and plug it and the tower back into your power
source.
Next, you will want to clean off the keyboard. Be sure to
spray into the cracks and in between all of the letters and
numbers. Usually, there is some kind of dust or maybe the keys
are just dirty. Either way, you can use the spray to help get
it into a better shape. You can also go ahead and use the spray
on the mouse, just do it in the same manner you attacked the
keyboard.
When you have cleaned every inch of the computer tower, the
monitor, keyboard and mouse, go ahead and reconnect and restart
your computer. You should notice a change in the way your computer
runs and works by now. If you regularly maintain this cleaning
of the dust, you will find that your computer will last a lot
longer!
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SolveYourProblem.com
: 2008
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