Protecting PC from insects (outdoor garage)

[KingFatty]

I want to put a computer in the garage for media consumption during workouts. But it's an old garage where crickets, stinkbugs, ants, and other critters are roaming.

How can I protect the computer against bugs that want to climb inside the computer?

The case is Antec 900:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129021

 

[SViscusi]

You could get a roll of screen door/window mesh and cut filters for all openings.

 

[piasabird]

The bug zapper computer.

Misquito Net?

 

[Puppies04]

Get a mosquito net and make a bag for the PC. It shouldn't block airflow much but will stop any little critters getting into the PC.

 

[Sleepingforest]

Use old dryer sheets and a bit of duct tape (or more subtly, a bit of glue) as air filters on the exposed spaces. For a fancier and more expensive solution, go for acoustic foam, which typically has an adhesive backing. The foam will increase temperatures by a bit, but it'll also decrease the volume level of your computer.

 

[DesiPower]

good old island? take a tray or tub and put some bricks in it, sit the case on the bricks and fill the tub with some water, about an inch or two...

That will take care of the crawling ones, and the bug zapper can take care of flying ones.

 

[Ayah]

Get a mosquito net and make a bag for the PC. It shouldn't block airflow much but will stop any little critters getting into the PC.

This is what I'd recommend as well. Though, I'd probably do double-layers. You really should cover the entire case and not just the obvious openings. You could use some kind of foam tape to create a form-fitting seal around the cables exiting the "bag".

 

[mfenn]

This is what I'd recommend as well. Though, I'd probably do double-layers. You really should cover the entire case and not just the obvious openings. You could use some kind of foam tape to create a form-fitting seal around the cables exiting the "bag".

Or just bundle up the edges and cinch some twine or a zip tie.

 

[Torn Mind]

Boric acid powder "circle" around the box. Kills them eventually. Light dusting so they walk over it rather than around it.

 

[TY-1]

This reminds me about why we actually have the term "bugs" in the computer lexicon.

Back in 1945 a moth got into the Mk. II Aiken Relay Calculator, one of the first computers, at Harvard and short-circuited Relay #70 Panel F.

I would second the dual layer approach of the mosquito netting and also spray a ring of insecticide around the bottom of the case. I'm not sure I would use Boric Acid powder as I would worry about having it get sucked into the computer and causing harm. Use a spray insecticide (a real Raid array 😛) and put a ring around the computer outside the netting and simply reapply it every few weeks.

 

[KingFatty]

Hahah excellent ideas. I think I'll try the simplest (to me) approach of just getting a big bag of mosquito netting to enclose the whole computer and use tape on the cables. I guess I can do the same approach for the monitor, but maybe just take it in and out of the bag as needed if the netting is too distracting to look through.