Washing my pc

[MarTorb]

I just got a new case yesterday (p400 glass) and I am planning to move all my old pc parts over to the case. However the psu and graphics card are very dusty. I have been cleaning it using a compressor but I didn't do it in the beginning and the dust is stuck. How can i wash it off? Does regular cloth or microfibercloth work and if not what does?

[Haeking]

Microfiber cloth is good to clean off dust, but there should be some better options as others will post to this 

[bgibbz]

I would not use microfiber clothes, very static-y. I use anti esd brushes   I bought a set of like 5 for 10$ on Amazon. 

[Mira Yurizaki]

3 minutes ago, bgibbz said:

I would not use microfiber clothes, very static-y. I use anti esd brushes   I bought a set of like 5 for 10$ on Amazon. 

Not to mention solder points create sharp areas that catch the fabric and rip it, leaving nice little bits of that stuff that you'd have to pluck off manually.

 

(the word is also staticky )

[Tiberiusisgame]

As said by @bgibbz, ESD brushes are a must. Also, spend the Kroner and buy some compressed air cans. Grab a few because you're going to burn through the first can pretty fast. Compressors generate static electricity and, due to the way their compressor engine works, will aerosolize lubricant into the air stream, which adhere to your components and collect more dust, or become electrically conductive and will short your parts. 

 

Technically speaking, you can wash your components with distilled water, as it is very non-conductive (but not perfectly), however you would then need to wait for several days or weeks and let the parts dry out to make sure the water doesn't get trapped, become conductive as it accumulates electrolytes and ions, and cause a short. That's a big risk, but it can be done. Obviously, cleaning your power supply with water is insane as there are far too many nooks and crannies where the water would become trapped. For that, unplug it, take off the top cover, do NOT touch any of the components or leads with your bare hands (the largest black cylinders are high-voltage capacitors and could kill you), put on gloves, and waste your compressed air cans and ESD brushes getting the garbage out. 

 

After you've cleaned your components, clean your fans, then buy some high-end micro-filters. If you can't find those, fashion some out of black women's pantyhose or leggings and clean them regularly. The dust is accumulating because of oils in the air. Those oils are typically from cigarette smoke, candles, pet skin and hair, dirt, and generally large particulates which a filter would stop in the first place. 

 

When I run my rig with every intake filtered after a few months I get a very light accumulation of dust. It's always uniform and light, like moon dust. It can be easily blown away with canned air. 

[Nicnac]

thoroughly rinse all components under running water, let dry before re-assembly

[Tiberiusisgame]

3 minutes ago, Nicnac said:

thoroughly rinse all components under running water, let dry before re-assembly

@Nicnac Spinnsta oda was?

 

Do NOT do this. The water coming from the tap always contains trace minerals and metals picked up from the pipes and added by the water companies as part of the cleaning process, all of which are left when the the water dries. Not only will it leave an unsightly film on your components, but that film could literally bridge components and short them. This is literally the last thing you would want to do.  

[Nicnac]

8 minutes ago, Tiberiusisgame said:

@Nicnac Spinnsta oda was?

 

Do NOT do this. The water coming from the tap always contains trace minerals and metals picked up from the pipes and added by the water companies as part of the cleaning process, all of which are left when the the water dries. Not only will it leave an unsightly film on your components, but that film could literally bridge components and short them. This is literally the last thing you would want to do.  

I was joking bruh! forgot the /s I guess...  

[Tiberiusisgame]

5 minutes ago, Nicnac said:

I was joking bruh! forgot the /s I guess..

Gott sei dank.

 

I've never used the /s tag. I lost my humor after my 2nd power supply failure. ;-)

[TVwazhere]

21 hours ago, Tiberiusisgame said:

@Nicnac Spinnsta oda was?

 

Do NOT do this. The water coming from the tap always contains trace minerals and metals picked up from the pipes and added by the water companies as part of the cleaning process, all of which are left when the the water dries. Not only will it leave an unsightly film on your components, but that film could literally bridge components and short them. This is literally the last thing you would want to do.  

*for science only, DO NOT TRY THIS*

 

Based on this logic, would distilled water be good for cleaning your components? (obviously not dunking an entire GPU in it, but using it as your wipe down agent)

 

Also I personally bought the DataVac 500 (it was only $60 when I bought it) and its way better than compressed air. 

[VIVO-US]

On ‎5‎/‎10‎/‎2017 at 11:12 AM, Nicnac said:

thoroughly rinse all components under running water, let dry before re-assembly

You forgot to mention the coat of Turtle Wax!  The glass panels on the new case should also be given a Rain-X treatment in case the roof breaks and it rains inside the house.

 

Dust inside the PSU and other parts should be carefully cleaned out with compressed air.  And although it's best to use electronics safe cleaners, dust and dirt on the outside of the parts can actually be wiped down with a lightly damp, lint-free cloth if you avoid the electronics.

[lewdicrous]

Just keep all the components in a sink or a bathtub and wash them, make sure to wash every component individually to prevent possible damage caused by static electricity.

 

P.S. pay extra attention to the PSU, always double check that it is 100% dry before plugging it in; it doesn't like to be wet that much.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course I'm joking, the last thing i want is for someone to ruin a perfectly good bathtub with dust from their PC.

[pyrojoe34]

I use a Metrovac (like the one @TVwazhere linked above) and some detail brushes to get the persistent stuff off the little nooks an crannies. Smooth surfaces can be clean using a microfiber cloth (I like to use Kimwipes) moistened with a bit of isopropyl alcohol. The Metrovac is great, way higher pressure than any canned air, doesn't lose pressure as it gets cold from being used, and you never have to buy crazy expensive cans ever again, plus environmentally it's way better.

[pyrojoe34]

5 hours ago, TVwazhere said:

*for science only, DO NOT TRY THIS*

 

Based on this logic, would distilled water be good for cleaning your components? (obviously not dunking an entire GPU in it, but using it as your wipe down agent)

 

Also I personally bought the DataVac 500 (it was only $60 when I bought it) and its way better than compressed air. 

Don't use water. Your best bet is 90+% isopropyl alcohol or absolute ethanol. It will clean better than just water (water alone won't dissolve oils, alcohol will) and evaporate quickly leaving a much lower risk of a short and less wait time.

[TVwazhere]

Just now, pyrojoe34 said:

Don't use water. Your best bet is 90+% isopropyl alcohol it will clean better than just water (water alone won't dissolve oils, alcohol will) and evaporate quickly leaving a much lower risk of a short and less wait time.

Interesting. Obviously I wasnt about to start dumping distilled water onto everything, just wondering if not having minerals would allow it to be cleaned in a safer maner than, for example 98% alcohol. 

 

Erimean damn I was hoping to do a distilled water build like a mineral oil build

[pyrojoe34]

12 minutes ago, TVwazhere said:

Interesting. Obviously I wasnt about to start dumping distilled water onto everything, just wondering if not having minerals would allow it to be cleaned in a safer maner than, for example 98% alcohol. 

 

Erimean damn I was hoping to do a distilled water build like a mineral oil build

Still won't work. Even the purest of water (like nanopure/MilliQ water which is orders of magnitude more pure than distilled water) is only theoretically non-conductive. Realistically though, it is still conductive and cannot be used safely. Not only will CO₂ from the air instantly start dissolving into the water forming carbonic acid (which will ionize), but some H₂O molecules will spontaneously dissociate into OH^- and H₃O⁺ which are charged ions and will conduct electricity. There's just no way to use water without isolating all electrical pathways/conductors from the water.

[TVwazhere]

22 minutes ago, pyrojoe34 said:

Still won't work. Even the purest of water (like nanopure/MilliQ water which is orders of magnitude more pure than distilled water) is only theoretically non-conductive. Realistically though, it is still conductive and cannot be used safely. Not only will CO₂ from the air instantly start dissolving into the water forming carbonic acid (which will ionize), but some H₂O molecules will spontaneously dissociate into OH^- and H₃O⁺ which are charged ions and will conduct electricity. There's just no way to use water without isolating all electrical pathways/conductors from the water.