Do you use fan filters?

[lektrix]

I had one on the front on my case and after a few days it would gather up lots of dust.. i dont vacuum it much, maybe few times a year.. am i better off just taking off the filter? cause it probably restricts air flow with or without dust..

and plus, im moddin my case to have 4 more fan holes (2 side 2 top), which equates to even MORE DUST...

 

[JBDan]

You should use compressed air to clean your case out. A vaccum accumilates static electricity build-up and is known to kill pc hardware. PC filters (atleast most) just cut down on the dust, not eliminate it. A good home HVAC filter and even a air purifier in the room your pc is in will help a great deal. Filters do restrict airflow some so just keep them clean.

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: JBDan
You should use compressed air to clean your case out. A vaccum accumilates static electricity build-up and is known to kill pc hardware. PC filters (atleast most) just cut down on the dust, not eliminate it. A good home HVAC filter and even a air purifier in the room your pc is in will help a great deal. Filters do restrict airflow some so just keep them clean.

What dan said!!!

yep! yep! yep!

 

[Bona Fide]

Where can you pick up compressed air canisters?

 

[MDE]

Originally posted by: Bona Fide
Where can you pick up compressed air canisters?

BB, CC, Fry's, CompUSSR, Target, etc.

 

[WalkingDead]

Costco, Office Max, Staples, Office Max.

and leave the filter on. Just take it out once a week to take the dust off.

 

[Fallengod]

bona, did you seriously ask where to find compressed air?


To answer the thread question. Yes, I use filters on my 80mm case fans. It does help quite a bit. However, it definitely does not eliminate it. The dust is just more "fine" and accumulates slower. I have to just take the fans out and blow the dust off the filter once a month or so. It does help though.

 

[NotquiteanooB]

Yes I use filters.. it's easier to clean filters than the fan blades, HDD cases, and all the electronics that attract dust.

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

No never, it restricts air flow! Every two weeks i strap the PC to a small hand truck,
put it on an extension and push it all over the house, paying particular attention to all
the corners. I had to put a 130cfm 120 in for it to work well. Cleans up real good now :-D

Then to the local greasy gas station and they let me use thier wet/rusty air to blow out
the case internals. !80psi will rip the roots right outa the sucker. Get a MMF every once in
awhile, but what the heck, the house is clean.


Galvanized

 

[JBDan]

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
No never, it restricts air flow! Every two weeks i strap the PC to a small hand truck,
put it on an extension and push it all over the house, paying particular attention to all
the corners. I had to put a 130cfm 120 in for it to work well. Cleans up real good now :-D

Then to the local greasy gas station and they let me use thier wet/rusty air to blow out
the case internals. !80psi will rip the roots right outa the sucker. Get a MMF every once in
awhile, but what the heck, the house is clean.


Galvanized

:laugh: :thumbsup:

 

[lektrix]

How many cans of compressed air do you use each month? 3-4?

And I have a dehumidifier 8 meters away from my computer, is that good nuff?

 

[JEDIYoda]

Originally posted by: GalvanizedYankee
No never, it restricts air flow! Every two weeks i strap the PC to a small hand truck,
put it on an extension and push it all over the house, paying particular attention to all
the corners. I had to put a 130cfm 120 in for it to work well. Cleans up real good now :-D

Then to the local greasy gas station and they let me use thier wet/rusty air to blow out
the case internals. !80psi will rip the roots right outa the sucker. Get a MMF every once in
awhile, but what the heck, the house is clean.


Galvanized

Damn I still have to pay 75 cents at the car wash to use the vacuum to get all the gunk out of my case....

I always knew galvanized and myself were of like mind,,,lol

 

[JBDan]

Originally posted by: lektrix
How many cans of compressed air do you use each month? 3-4?

And I have a dehumidifier 8 meters away from my computer, is that good nuff?

A dehumidifier just takes moisture out of the air. It has some filtering properties, but nothing like an air purifier or installing a high rated MERV HVAC filter in your home/apt/condo. I use about 1 can of comp air every 3-4 months. You have pets? Is your tower on carpet? Both can increase dust quite a bit.

 

[lektrix]

My basement is extremely dusty, my family rarely uses it, so thats why they pay less attention to it in terms of cleaning.. Only I use it cause my computer + tv's downstairs.. and laundry room's down there.. there's dust everywhere, probably on the walls and ceilings .. and my computer's the primary source gobbling up all that dust.. no pets, towers on table (thinking of moving it onto carpet cos of sound issues)..

i dot know the exact #, but i can imagine an air purifier/filter will cost a couple hundred? :\

 

[JBDan]

Hamilton Beach has some HEPA air purifiers from $59 (200 sq ft room) up to $200's. WalMart/Lowes/HDepot/Ace/Target will all carry affordable models. Can you not get a good pc filter setup for your rig?

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I'm not surprised at Galvanized Yankee's aversion to filters.

I use them.

I hate seeing the inside of a PC all caked with dust, hair, furrballs, and microscopic lobster-like creatures getting high off the RMI, RFI, static electricity -- and all of it.

Fans restrict airflow. Another reason I pick beefy fans that are quiet at speeds with decent CFMs.

Fans may help with noise reduction, but not with cooling. As for the dust, it's a much finer variety you find on the hard-disks, the CPU fan-blades. But it's not the filthy mess I have occasionally seen -- even in my own machines.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Uh -- I meant the filters -- not the fans . . . . . restricting air-flow.

It's getting late . . .

 

[GalvanizedYankee]

lektrix, in my first post the sarcasim meter was set on max.

As you, I am in an untenable situation re.clean air. By choice, my PC is set-up in a semi-enclosed office in the back of a deep four car garage. I bought a <$40 vacuum and
run it around at least once every two weeks.

The front dual 80mm fans on the PC*are*filtered. Because the filtering material puts a
noticable load on the fans, they were up-graded to a higher cfm. I can't remember what
part#or brand as it was awhile back. For filtering medium K&N #25-3900 was used.
To fix the foam in place narrow hook&loop ribbon was glued to the case under the front
panel and to the foam itself. This filter has a sound deadening effect and the current fans
are no louder that the stockers. I run a positive case pressure,ie.greater intake than exhaust.
This keeps crud out of the opticals. The foam is rinsed out in mild soapy water once a month.
The PC is due for a dusting. With the PSU unplugged or turned off at the switch, canned air
and a small*ALL plastic*paint brush will be used to get into the heatsinks as best i can.
Dawned on me, i think ADDA fans were used as i over paid for some at Mouser two
years ago.
I'm just about done with my sisiter's build(fund$ slowed it's build down). It was a cheap
case. The two stamped fan grills front and rear were removed,replaced by wire jobs.
The front fan was reversed for exhaust. Two filtered 92mm intakes were mounted on the
left side cover. The K&N foam is held inplace by a polished 3/4" aluminum channel that
is boxed to form a rectangle. She has three cats and is alergic to vacuum cleaners :-D

Galvanized

 

[BonzaiDuck]

I use these. They may require more cleaning than the usual wire-screen filters with the anodized frames. But the fan screen itself pops off the main frame, supposedly making the cleaning chore easier.

 

[lektrix]

see, problem is.. i just downgraded all my fans to <30 dBA.. and im undervolting them.. both front and back are slow fans..

and the antec filter i used before was from the SLK3700AMB case.. it does its job, but id have to clean it everyday :\

 

[HardWarrior]

Originally posted by: lektrix
I had one on the front on my case and after a few days it would gather up lots of dust.. i dont vacuum it much, maybe few times a year.. am i better off just taking off the filter? cause it probably restricts air flow with or without dust..

and plus, im moddin my case to have 4 more fan holes (2 side 2 top), which equates to even MORE DUST...

Compressed air works better for me. Of all the filters I've tried, with the exception of the low-density pad that came with my case, they all clog WAY too fast. As long as you don't let the dust cake up and harden, it's fairly easy to remove with just air. Also, you might find that vaccuming your computer room like a woman really helps.

 

[lektrix]

like a woman?

i have to lug my huge vaccum, thats meant for floors, to clean my comp... dont even have a hand one..

 

[marvw]

BUMP

 

[HardWarrior]

Originally posted by: lektrix
like a woman?

i have to lug my huge vaccum, thats meant for floors, to clean my comp... dont even have a hand one..

I don't know many men who take the same relish in cleaning that women generaly do. I've been married twice, the current one lasting just over 20-years and counting, and I was raised by four women. I know what I'm talking about. The clean-freak approach is just what's required to constantly attack all the substances that would otherwise accumulate in a computer.

My vac is fairly large too, but it has several attachments and extentions that make even cleaning the ceiling not all that bad. It's worth it though. I can go quite a while without dusting the inside of my case. Using water-cooling helps quite a bit too in that most of the dust settles in my rads.

 

[lektrix]

i havent cleaned my NB heatsink and im scared to touch it, took me 5 hours to install it.. kept popping up after i put the push pins in

im scared if i take it off and clean the dustballs underneath, it wont mount back on