Cleaning the dust from the case/cpu fans does wonders!!!!

[RussianSensation]

System Setup:

P4 2.6@3.2 1.65Vcore
4 case fans + Zalman CNPS7000A-ALCu on HIGH (Thermal resistance rated at 0.23C/W on high and 0.29C/W on low)
Abit IS7 Bios 1.8
Arctic Silver 3

I had the computer running for about 2 months after getting the Zalman heatsink. Prior to cleaning the dust today which accumulated over this period of time the following were recorded using Sisoftware Sandra 2004:

*All measurements taken at load CPU usage running 2 instances of SETI@Home on High CPU priority setting

Prior to Cleaning the Dust
CPU Core Power = 91Watts
CPU Cooling System Thermal Resistance = 0.34C/W (way out of spec)
CPU Temperature = 65*C average and in times reaching 70*C!!!!

Hardware Doctor
System = 39*C
PWM = 45.5* in times reaching 50*C!!!

Thermal Diode reading of air case temperature = 32.3*C

Warnings came on many times as 70*C is my system shutdown threshold - This is the primary reason for me deciding to figure out what the problem was --- read EXCESS OF DUST

After Cleaning
CPU Core Power = 91Watts
CPU Cooling System Thermal Resistance = 0.22C/W => Improvement of 54.5%
CPU Temperature = 53.5*C average and in times reaching 56*C => Improvement of 25% or Less by 12-14*C!!!!

Hardware Doctor
Sysem = 36*C or Less by 3*C
PWM = 39*C or Less by at least 6.5*C

Thermal Diode reading of air case temperature = 27.2*C or Less by about 5*C

Good thing I decided to clean it before the summer is here or my CPU would be 'smoking'. Now i know just how important it is to clean the dust at least once every 2 months or once a month for that matter.

Anyone else experienced something similar and if so what were the drops in temperature after DUST CLEANING?

 

[KillaKilla]

My god, how long since last cleaning?
I usually get about 5%

 

[MDE]

My overclocked Athlon 2500+ usually drops 3-5C after cleanings, but my case is relatively dustless.

 

[RussianSensation]

Originally posted by: KillaKilla
My god, how long since last cleaning?
I usually get about 5%

LOL only 2 months. Apparently dust is 90% comprised of dead human skin...now I dont think I am turning into a reptile just yet. Don't ask me how but these are the results I've achieved. The side intake fan helps to bring in more dust into the Zalman Heatsink is my guess for excessive build up around that area.

But I cannot believe the result of a simple 15 min cleaning.

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

My 2.8c drops 5c after cleaning, retail h/s fan.

I use some old artist brushes because they are long & skinny w/canned air.

The fan on my FX 5200 has a different sound after I blast off the blades

 

[Peter D]

LOL, Sick

 

[RussianSensation]

Yeah i wish i had compressed air but I ended up using Q-tips which was easy as well since the Zalman collected dust in its 'bowl' and it was fairly easy to scrape it out. Now all of you guys are getting 3-5*C minimum which is amazing. I do not think even switching from AS3 to AS5 will do that, suggesting that fan cleaning should be done by everyone.

 

[screw3d]

Try to use some filters dude!

 

[SYDC8]

 

[pspada]

I had to do the same. My CPU temp had gone up over time to about 10 degrees C above what it should have been. So I opened her up, removed the blanket from between the cpu heatsink and fan, and now I'm back to normal.

 

[Gurck]

I dropped 10c as well from a recent cleaning, amazing how fast the stuff builds up in a system with a lot of airflow. Anyone have any experience with air ionizers (like that one sharper image advertises on tv all the time)? Do they help with general dust levels? My pc isn't the only one suffering from a very dusty house

 

[Big Lar]

A bit cheaper way to stop all the mess going into your computers, is to ask the wife/girlfriend for an old pair of Pantyhose, put it in front of the intake fans, and make sure it dosn't get sucked into the fan It will keep the computer quite a bit cleaner....

 

[pspada]

Thanks, you 'hoser'.