cleaning motherboard

[vanthus]

Could anyone advise me the best way to clean a dusty motherboard,I mean someone who has done It,not a google tech,we can all do that & it is all conflicting advice,I bought a canister of compressed gas from maplins today, which the salesman assured me would do the job, but Im not so sure,all it says on the tin is do not use on a camera lens.Most advice on the net is to use compressed air,but any particular brand?any advice from someone experienced in this would be very much appreciated.

 

[Gorman]

For large dust bunnies i use a vacuum with a long plastic extension, for dust layers i use a paintbrush with bristles made of natural fibres. Never had a problem with those methods but there is always the chance of damage if not done carefully.

Compressed air is nice if you have it, some cans tend to spray some sort of liquid though.

 

[Stappa]

I use a electric compressor(power-fan not air tank) which I brought for inflatables boats/beds etc it creates a powerful jet of air which is more than enough for cleaning all of your PC components,compressed air cans/air-tank compressors (diy/industrial) which are used for paint spraying etc are ok but they are expensive and they do pass moister/condensation with the air(not good for expensive PC's)

 

[vanthus]

For large dust bunnies i use a vacuum with a long plastic extension, for dust layers i use a paintbrush with bristles made of natural fibres. Never had a problem with those methods but there is always the chance of damage if not done carefully.

Compressed air is nice if you have it, some cans tend to spray some sort of liquid though.

Would that be a normal house vacuum or some other sort?

 

[Tez77]

Compressed air is great or a usb hover no joke

 

[Gorman]

Normal dyson jobbie.

 

[pengipete]

My perferred method is to use compressed air (the canned sort) to dislodge the dust and have the vacuum cleaner aleady running to collect it - otherwise, the dust just moves around and re-settles. I tried a USB vacuum and it was next to useless though that could just be the one that I bought.

If you use a regular vacuum cleaner - aside from avoiding actually touching the motherboard and risking knocking into raised components - stretch a piece of fine material (old tights are perfect) over the nozzle. It will still pick up dust but there's no chance of it accidently swallowing anything that happens to be loose.


A couple of points with compressed air - you shouldn't use it to clean fans as spinning them manually can damage. Either take them out and dust them by hand or at least wedge them to prevent them spinning. Also, don't be tempted to point the air directly at the motherboard -the pressure may be high enough to dislodge components.

Probably the best thing you can do is fall back on the old adage - prevention is better than cure. Use filters on intake fans (but allow for a slight reduction in airflow - especially if you overclock), don't place the PC directly onto a carpet and clean the area around the PC case regularly - which may mean dusting with a moistened cloth every couple of day because PC's really attract dust. If there's no dust near the PC, there'll be no dust in it.

If the PC is very old and the insides look more like a birdcage than a piece of IT equipment, I'd remove the motherboard completely before cleaning - it's easier to get at and it gives you a chance to clean the entire case, fans, underside of drives etc.

Final points - and they're biggies...

If you use anything with nylon bristles - hoover attachments or the sort of brush you get with an electric razor - think about static electricty. It may sound odd but you should ground the bristles before using them near the motherboard - they don't even have to touch a component as any charge will jump a sizable gap. As most such brushes and nozzles have plastic handles, they may be insulated so grounding yourself with an earthing strap will not remove any charge from the bristles themsleves.

Some components - capicitors being the obvious ones - store electricty for a long time after the power supply is removed. Even if the charge is too low to cause you any damage, it could be enough to blow a near-by component if you bridge the gap between them. As much as possible, avoid actually touching the motherboards or any components when cleaning - e.g. hold the vacuum nozzle half an inch from the board. That's one of the reasons I use compressed air to disturb the dust and only use the vacuum to collect it as it floats around. Compressed air is also good for cleaning the gaps inside those heatsinks with coper covers - the sort that have a logo on.

 

[vanthus]

Yes, some very useful tips pengipete,I will give that a bash tomorrow,compressed air & vacuum with tights over the nozzle,but with a plastic extension as gorman said,& no static from tights I hope.

 

[Al.Neri]

when cleaning the inside, should you remove all the major components and clean them externally, or clean the whole lot whilst still plugged into the MB?

my old computer, I used to just take the side off once in a while and give it a blast of compressed air until the dust stopped billowing out.

how thorough do you need to be?