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G5 Dust Bunnies

J

jobutex

macrumors member
Original poster
Mar 19, 2004
41
0
Arlington, TX
I would like some friendly advice here if possible...

I've had my Dual 2GHz G5 for about 3 months now (very, very satisfied with my new baby) and although I wouldn't call my house a "high dust environment" I have noticed that my components (motherboard, heat sinks, etc.) are starting to gather some dust.

Has anyone used a can of compressed air to keep the inside of their G5 clean? Any caveats that you can think of before I do so? The only fan that I plan to remove is the fan assembly that you remove when adding/removing RAM, however if any other parts can be removed and cleaned accordingly I'd appreciate someone pointing them out to me!
 
jsw

jsw

Moderator emeritus
Mar 16, 2004
22,910
44
Andover, MA
I've taken off the cover and blown out the insides with compressed air. I didn't do anything fancy or remove anything except the fans, and it seemed to work fine.

It would be nice if someone would make an air filter for the front grill. 9 fans = lots of dust sucked inside.
 
crazzyeddie

crazzyeddie

macrumors 68030
Dec 7, 2002
2,792
1
Florida, USA
Just be careful to read the directions on the can very carefully. Especially be careful not to turn the can upside down and get the liquid on the computer, it will destroy components! I would suggest removing as little as possible (although the one fan assembly does sound like a good idea) just so that you don't develop any problems with lose cards, etc...
 
Duff-Man

Duff-Man

Contributor
Dec 26, 2002
2,984
17
Albuquerque, NM
Duff-Man says...and make sure you grab the right can. I guy I work with once went for the compressed air but grabbed the wd40 by mistake! That was one well-oiled pc when he was done....oh yeah!
 
W

win_convert

macrumors member
Mar 12, 2004
98
0
Aus.
In some circles they reccommend you use vacums rather than compressed air as vacums remove the dirt whereas compressed air just moves it from one place to another.
 
Finiksa

Finiksa

macrumors 6502a
Feb 23, 2003
595
13
Australia
virividox said:
do a combo attack of compressed air and vacum attack
Click to expand...
Vacuum cleaners create a lot of static electricity so be very careful. Make sure you don't actually touch the logic board or any other component with end of the hose. Compressed air alone is a much safer solution.
 
G

gopher

macrumors 65816
Mar 31, 2002
1,475
0
Maryland, USA
jobutex said:
I would like some friendly advice here if possible...

I've had my Dual 2GHz G5 for about 3 months now (very, very satisfied with my new baby) and although I wouldn't call my house a "high dust environment" I have noticed that my components (motherboard, heat sinks, etc.) are starting to gather some dust.

Has anyone used a can of compressed air to keep the inside of their G5 clean? Any caveats that you can think of before I do so? The only fan that I plan to remove is the fan assembly that you remove when adding/removing RAM, however if any other parts can be removed and cleaned accordingly I'd appreciate someone pointing them out to me!
Click to expand...

Raise your G5 another 6 inches more above the ground. You'll be surprised how much less dust it gathers. If you have to, put it outside of the desk since it is so tall.
 
belair

belair

macrumors 6502
Jun 10, 2004
342
5
Luxland
tried both

hello there.
cleaning your machine can be very rewarding, espacially if you are such a cleansiness freak as I am. I cleaned my G3 several times in its lifetime and I used as mentioned before the "double pack" dry air to dislodge the dust an a vacum cleaner to suck it up. I touched the ram and some sensible parts but only very lightly.

Its in the gentleness that lies the secret of a happy and clean machine. :rolleyes:
 
C

cc bcc

macrumors 6502
Jul 3, 2001
470
0
nl
I used the vacuum cleaner to suck up the dust. I would not suggest anyone to do that, but if you are careful it shouldn't be a problem. I do suggest you'd shutdown your computer and disconnect all wires, although mine was asleep and connected and is still working fine. It makes less noise now. I had to remove a lot of dust, since it's sitting on a wooden floor..
 
belair

belair

macrumors 6502
Jun 10, 2004
342
5
Luxland
unplugged

Yeah definately
I cleaned mine after removing all the cables an putting it on a desk with plenty of room around to control your mouvements with a clunky plastic vaccum cleaner in hand.

You dont want to slip and jam the thing into your motherboard and die electrocuted because your mac was still plugged. :eek:
 
F

fBaran

macrumors regular
Oct 22, 2003
218
0
To help prevent it, you can stretch some panty hose over the fan openings. It's thin enough to let air through, but thick enough to stop dust and what not.
 
W

win_convert

macrumors member
Mar 12, 2004
98
0
Aus.
fBaran said:
To help prevent it, you can stretch some panty hose over the fan openings. It's thin enough to let air through, but thick enough to stop dust and what not.
Click to expand...

Does your computer get louder as a result? I would be worried about the strain it puts on the fan, even though it is so thin?
Good idea though.
 
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