Frantically you throw your arms up in the air and yell at your computer because you forgot to save. You check and find the power is still working, power cords are plugged in correctly, and you know you just ran a virus check last night. So what could possibly have shut the computer down? DUST!

Clumps of dust can nestle around your processor, cuddle up to your power supply and choke ventilation. Computers can become havens for dust and other natural-borne air pollutants when not properly cleaned. In this guide I will teach you how to properly clean your computer system, and restore the natural brilliance to your computer!

Let's start off with a brief explanation of how dust collects in and around your system. Static electricity! Yes, you can blame static electricity for attracting dust to your computer. Why? Well, when a computer is in operation it creates a field of static electricity which attracts dust particles in the surrounding environment. A CRT or LCD monitor also creates static electricity. In fact, if you put your forearm up the monitor screen you may feel the little hairs on your arm rise! This is a perfect example of the static field encompassing your monitor.

Tobacco smoke can seep into the openings of your case and settle on your motherboard and other hardware. Smoke is also responsible for discoloring keyboards, mice, cases, screens and wires. Pet hair can be worse than dirt because of how much larger it is. Hair can easily block the ventilation of a computer system.

Cleaning Supplies

Here is a small list of supplies that you should have handy before cleaning:

�� Anti-Static Wrist Guard
�� Compressed Air
�� Cotton Tip Swabs
�� Glass Cleaner
�� Isopropyl Rubbing Alcohol (80% dilution only!)
�� Lint-Free Cloths
�� Paper Towels
�� Phillips Screwdriver
�� Tweezers

Let's Start Cleaning!

WARNING: The greatest danger inside the tower is of you "electrocuting" the computer through discharge of static electricity that builds up on your body or clothing. Static is especially a problem during dry weather and if you have synthetic carpets or clothing. For example a synthetic pullover (sweater) would be a bad choice of garment for this job, a short sleeved cotton shirt would be a much better choice. The best way to combat static while cleaning your computer is to wear a static strap attached to the chassis and worn on your wrist during the whole process.

Case Cleaning:

This is where the dust goes at night to cuddle up with your processor. Turn off your computer. Remove the side cover of the computer case, exposing the motherboard and other hardware components.

1.�Inspect all cables and connections. Be sure to look for cables that are frayed, loose, pinched, snug or otherwise damaged. If you come across any cables that are damaged in any way or form you should immediately replace them. If a cable is frayed do not attempt to patch it up with electrical tape, this is very dangerous fix. We also advise that you replace snug cables with longer ones before it accidentally snaps.

2.�Now its time to get out the compressed air. Shoot the canned air at everything in your computer. Pay special attention to the heatsink and fan on top of your processor. This area collects a lot of dust. Some other areas to focus on are add-on cards (audio/video/modem), case fans, hard disks, power supply and removable media drives (cd-rom). A vacuum may help suck out the dust while you knock it loose with the compressed air. Caution: Follow the directions on the back of compressed air! Do not spray hardware at close range! If you choose to use a vacuum, do not attempt to vacuum anything in your computer!!! If you dislodge cooling fans from CPU and VDO cards.