how often should i clean

how often should i use air dusters to clean my PC and laptop? indoor use

 

Probably every year or twice a year. If I were you, I'd monitor the temperatures and clean when the average running temp rises a few degrees.

 

well dust usually end up clogging the air vents of your laptop and can cause heating or excessive heating for that matter i would recommend blowing compressed air through the vents atleast every 6 month at the least

 

i had my notebook for about a year now...i havent cleaned it once...but my temps and performance is top-notch (for my notebook),,,,,,though i will cleaninstall Win Xp soon to improve performance...
MY temps--------CPU--->50~57C (fan kicks on at 54C)
---------GPU--->40~45C (idle)....(55~62 under heavy load)

so i think it depends on the notebook on how often you should clean it... but moniter the temperatures, if they are unusually high, clean it...infact open the notebook up every 3 months or so to check for dust and stuff......better safe than sorry

 

do i need to take apart my notebook everytime i airdust it?

 

taking aart your notebook everytime you air dust is not essential in my opinion just blowing air through the vents is enough to lower temepratures and clean the vent most of the time but taking it apart just once a year to check for dust on the inside wont hurt

 

I think 2x / year if you have clean air conditioned room

 

Taking a main panel of the underside of the notebook, and then cleaning it is normally the best way to clean the notebook, because it gives you access to most components. A fan does also generate some internal airflow, albeit little, but it does affect the cooling of some smaller components. But as shaheenarshan said, cleaning through the vent(s) should be fine, as it removes more than enough dust to restore correct operation and cooler temperatures.

 

is there anything i should avoid airing? or just mainly focus on the fan?

 

If you remove any panels of covers, then try not hitting some of the smaller components with a pulse of air. Instead, just concentrate on the fan an the heatsink, as that is where the majority of the dust will collect.

 

We have a cooling guide here if you are interested.

I'd suggest cleaning the vents when you can see a noticeable amount of dust inside them. I usually quickly blow out my notebook once a month or so. And then every once in a while, I'll take the whole notebook apart and clean it carefully.

 

Wow... that often, Chaz? I only clean mine about twice a year.

 

ive had my computer for about 4 yrs and probably about after 2yrs when turning it on the fan will make a loud sound for about 2mins. is that becuase it is dirty? my intercooler on my xbox360 also does that after about 3 weeks of using it.

 

If you haven't cleaned your PC in four years, I can almost guarantee it's going to be caked with dust.

 

Once per two weeks if you are a clean junkie like me. My room's dusty and my laptop catches dust like magnet.

 

Ever since I installed Vista, my notebook's fans run at high-speed more often than not, so they tend to collect a lot of dust and other particles. Therefore I have to blow them out more often.