[SOLVED] How Often Should I Clean My Computer?

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EsmaFingerpin

EsmaFingerpin

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Mar 20, 2016
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Question: How often should I turn off my computer to clean it ? Computer Spec's below

Custom Built Tower
Microsoft Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 6-Core Processor
Drive: Intel 660p NVMe PCIe M.2 512GB
Memory: Corsair DDR4 3200 2x8GB
Graphics Card: Sapphire Nitro + Radeon RX 580 Series 8 GB
Power Supply: Thermaltake 80 Plus Smart 700W
Filters: Filter on top of case and front panel
Fans: 2 Front Intake Fans, 1 Back Exhaust, 1 Side Intake Fan, 1 Upper Exhaust

House has 2 cats, 1 dog and 1 hamster but they never come into my room

Also I have this Hepa Gem Gurdian in my room - https://www.guardiantechnologies.co...-odor-reduction-22-inch-tower-by-germguardian

Even with the amount of fans in the computer if I open it once a week I always see dust on the Faceplate of like this graphics card -
https://imgur.com/a/PipcFPq
View: https://imgur.com/a/PipcFPq#Hp82T4x
 
Solution
Karadjgne
Cleaning is a personal opinion. A light coat of dust won't hurt anything, most pc's will get that after a week or two. But it's realistically all on how fastideous you are. Some ppl insist on showroom cleanliness, some don't, and many with closed panels are of the opinion 'out of sight, out of mind' and might only clean the pc once a year. If that.

It needs to be done when it starts affecting temps. Any sooner than that is upto the owner.

Any halfway decent paste, left alone, will last 8 years ± a year. It's the cheaper crap that may require it sooner. So done right the first time, will last longer than the owner has use for the pc.
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EsmaFingerpin said:
How often should I turn off my computer to clean it?
Click to expand...
as often as necessary.
there is no standard amount of time because the dust buildup is different for every situation.

i usually wash my dust filters every 3 months or so. but they're never very dirty.
might clean out the interior of the system once a year or when installing any major hardware. this includes cleaning out radiators and wiping down any dust accumulation on case walls, components, fans, etc.
 
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JohnBonhamsGhost said:
as often as necessary.
there is no standard amount of time because the dust buildup is different for every situation.

i usually wash my dust filters every 3 months or so. but they're never very dirty.
might clean out the interior of the system once a year or when installing any major hardware. this includes cleaning out radiators and wiping down any dust accumulation on case walls, components, fans, etc.
Click to expand...

I can't really wash the front filter here's a picture of both of them -
https://imgur.com/a/TyebAOW
View: https://imgur.com/a/TyebAOW#pZ1Pbdt


The top one I clean with this and clean the inside of my tower with an air duster and this as well as much as I possibily can - Note recently washed to be cleaned since this picture
https://imgur.com/a/SPTFy6P
View: https://imgur.com/a/SPTFy6P


I don't know how to clean anything more then the case, faceplate, gpu fans, other fans, where CD tray is and the one above it and that's about it that I know how to do safely and yes I take the air duster to everything that I can see.
 
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how is the filter attached to the front panel?

unless there are electrical components included in\on the front panel,
you can just use a sink faucet sprayer and spray out the plastic sections and through the filtered areas.
then wipe them as much as possible and allow them to dry.

i have a high powered vacuum with some nice attachments i use on most of the system's interior that i can't effectively wipe down.
 
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If you see a thick layer on the heatsinks and fans it's time to dust it. I've added some filters to mine because I was dusting it on a weekly basis, so far I've washed my filters twice and every time they've got a nice amount of dust on them.
 
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JohnBonhamsGhost said:
how is the filter attached to the front panel?

unless there are electrical components included in\on the front panel,
you can just use a sink faucet sprayer and spray out the plastic sections and through the filtered areas.
then wipe them as much as possible and allow them to dry.
Click to expand...

I have no idea honestly I didn't build this computer it was a custom built for me so your guess is as good as mine

There's no electrical components included in\on the front panel it just pulls off and then snaps back on in place so it would have to be totally dry when snapping it back on place if I did it that way

That's why I usually take the microfiber to it as much as I possibly can that one doesn't get to dirty the one on top does.

lvt said:
It's a good practice that if your computer still runs after 5 years, you should tear it down to clean every single parts and put them back.
Click to expand...

The computer was built in December 2019 the oldest thing in it now would be the Motherboard and GPU which was replaced about 9 - 12 months ago can't remember when right now.

CPU, Memory, and PSU where upgraded on April.2nd,2021
 
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carocuore said:
If you see a thick layer on the heatsinks and fans it's time to dust it. I've added some filters to mine because I was dusting it on a weekly basis, so far I've washed my filters twice and every time they've got a nice amount of dust on them.
Click to expand...

Would adding other filters like you've added help with that I see dust on the faceplate every week?

If so that might be something I need to look into cause its a very thin dust but it is always there regardless every week.
 
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EsmaFingerpin said:
The computer was built in December 2019 the oldest thing in it now would be the Motherboard and GPU which was replaced about 9 - 12 months ago can't remember when right now.
Click to expand...

Take a look at the fans, if the fans are blocked by dirt, it's the time to do an overhaul.

The 5-year thing is mainly for the thermal paste that need to be replaced, most of consumer grade thermal paste would have been in a solid state after 5 years.
 
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Cleaning is a personal opinion. A light coat of dust won't hurt anything, most pc's will get that after a week or two. But it's realistically all on how fastideous you are. Some ppl insist on showroom cleanliness, some don't, and many with closed panels are of the opinion 'out of sight, out of mind' and might only clean the pc once a year. If that.

It needs to be done when it starts affecting temps. Any sooner than that is upto the owner.

Any halfway decent paste, left alone, will last 8 years ± a year. It's the cheaper crap that may require it sooner. So done right the first time, will last longer than the owner has use for the pc.
 
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Solution
lvt said:
Take a look at the fans, if the fans are blocked by dirt, it's the time to do an overhaul.

The 5-year thing is mainly for the thermal paste that need to be replaced, most of consumer grade thermal paste would have been in a solid state after 5 years.
Click to expand...

There is nothing blocking the fan's here take a look for yourself I just took these picture's -
https://imgur.com/a/3WZpRkX
View: https://imgur.com/gallery/3WZpRkX?fbclid=IwAR0Hd5DRuAzWxDX1onJI4QsG_12IwFsk_APS5JogzI9yaygxmv2KdvQQI6Y


My place is dusty that I have to replace the Hepa filter every 3 months as it looks like this and they are usually supposed to last 6 months these filters so that should tell you how dusty my place is

I sweep my room and mop it every tuesday and always find dirt when I sweep no matter what -
https://imgur.com/a/Pgv5KmE
View: https://imgur.com/a/Pgv5KmE#62rEUqf
 
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