Looking after your 3XS System

[Neil Porter]

I did manage a passable job of cleaning the top fan's filter by simulataneously applying the hose of the vacuum cleaner to the top of the metal grille, whilst using a soft paintbrush to help dislodge the dust from the filter mesh.

But I did wonder if the fan could be temporarily reversed (so it is blowing air upwards out of the case) to assist in vacuuming the dust out from above? Am I being naive in thinking it is as simple as reversing the plug where the fan's power lead connects to the motherboard (EDIT - having looked at the plug and socket today it seems the plug cannot be reversed, and hence assume the fan's direction of rotation is therefore fixed?).

Thanks,

Neil Porter.

[Rob @ Scan]

Took nearly 20 degrees C off the CPU temps under load..... once it was blown out!



Always worth a quick check if you think your system is running a bit warm!!

[Rob @ Scan]

I'm sure heatsinks aren't supposed to grow fur at 18 months old!! Nice!!

[Jay]

The killer for pcs is people smoking. I have seen some really bad systems over the years, a number of pics In this thread looks like its due to smoking. I do networking for some labs, one of the labs uses acid and the small amounts in the air actually rot the pcs, they look like they have been in the sea for years and just crumble when you move them. Pretty strange thing to see.

[Rob @ Scan]

Hi Jay,

We've seen PC's a few months old that have heatsinks caked in dust due to tobacco smoke!

Smoking near a PC is a big no go! It can infact invalidate your warranty if the manufacturers see this as the cause of the fault!!

Hope the guys in your labs wear masks!! Wouldn't like to know what it does to their lungs if it does that to the PC's!!!!