If so, you should probably clean it! Get the hose attachment of your vacuum cleaner, or use a mini vacuum, and suck the dust out. Make sure the humidity is not too low or wear an anti-static wrist strap 
to prevent electrostatic discharge which can fry your computer. If you allow your computer to get this dusty you run the risk of burning out a card. Trust me…I know this from experience. I toasted my video card many years ago because I hadn’t cleaned my computer in two years. A good rule of thumb is once a year, remove the case and vacuum out the dirt. If you live in a dusty environment or burn wood for heat, do it more frequently. The dust prevents air from being vented and circulated properly inside your computer thus increasing the chances of overheating. A ten minute cleanup can save hundreds of dollars later. And NO, that’s NOT my computer!
If you actually let your PC or mobile computer get this dusty, you’ll have some serious problems. Even other products with internal computers, such as barcode readers and scanners, can be harmed by excess dust. Keep your internal CPU and touch screen monitor clean to keep your computer in working order.
Share This
This entry was posted
on Tuesday, April 29th, 2008 at 8:32 am and is filed under Cleaning, Computer.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
April 29th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
A better idea is to use the reverse end of the vacuum and blow out the dust. Less chance of static causing problems (it does not take much to damage components, long before the static discharge can be noticed).
You will want to take it outside to do this. Especially if your computer looks like the above pictures.
James - DigitalKeyToInfo’s last blog post..Popular Financial Blog Blocked As Spam By BlogSpot
April 29th, 2008 at 7:04 pm
I might throw in some protective eye wear and definitely a dust mask. Lots of micro organisms and dust mites will be air borne! That top pictures looks like it’s covered in clay/mud. Amazing.
BigNerd’s last blog post..The Senior vs. The iMac
April 29th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
Oh wow ! Yes I’d definitely take it out side and blow the dust off.
Any idea how you’d open a laptop to clean the inner workings ?
Jaffer’s last blog post..Of split personality and irresponsibility
April 29th, 2008 at 10:40 pm
Jaffer check out this video: http://www.videojug.com/film/how-to-clean-a-laptop
April 29th, 2008 at 11:13 pm
Thank you ! I am a sucker for British Accent too
Jaffer’s last blog post..Of split personality and irresponsibility
April 30th, 2008 at 2:58 am
My, my, my … is that a 486? I think I spot an ISA slot, too!
Dust is certainly a problem with some of the more recent computers. The amount of heat generated by the processors can reach dangerous levels if they’re blanketed in this much gunk
ジェイソン (Jason)’s last blog post..The Fading Line Between Online and Reality
April 30th, 2008 at 4:33 pm
I don’t see how a computer could ever possibly look like that.
I use a laptop, so I can’t really clean it (well, at least I don’t know how to without risking messing it up). Hopefully dust doesn’t get to it.
May 4th, 2008 at 5:59 am
I hope that doesn’t happen to laptops. I know mine gets really hot sometimes.
Rosemary’s last blog post..Party Supplies To Keep On Hand
May 16th, 2008 at 12:46 pm
@Jacinda: Surely your fans will collect dust. When you see that your CPU temp is quite high then it’s time to open it up and clean them =) If you reach temp of 70-75C on idle then it’s time to do it.
May 24th, 2008 at 9:49 pm
If your computer gets that dirty, I’m wondering what the rest of your room looks like
Hope you are doing frequent back ups.