Best/Safest way i should clean the inside of my PC?

i never cleaned the inside of my PC (My friend built it for me 2 years ago) so now its extremely dusty. i think its way overdo for a cleaning lol..So whats the best way to clean it?

My friend who built it said he uses a vacuum to suck out the dust, but is that way really safe? What about using a small paint brush to wipe the dust off the MOBO? or Air in a can?

Safest is canned air or an air compressor, just make sure not to spin your fans too fast or it can jack up the bearings inside.

All of the above really, I usually use a vacuum on it just to get the bulk of the dust out then strip it down and clean all the fans, grills and components with a small paint brush I've set aside for it. If you're going to use a can of compressed air make sure to read the instructions, it'll start to get really cold really fast when you start using it and can cause condensation on you motherboard if you don't use it in short bursts.

DON'T use a vacuum. It can create static and kill your components. Use compressed air cans and hold the fans your pushing air to so you can prevent them from overspinning. But also be careful with those cans, because once they get too cold, they'll start spitting liquid which is obviously a big no-no. And I suggest adding dustfilters too.

Never use a vacuum. I don't care what your anecdote says about it being perfectly fine and safe. No way. Just invest some money in a dust-vac especially designed for cleaning PCs. They're about 50-60$ USD and it's worth it. Canned air are expensive. Think about it. They only last a few minutes and they're expensive. Do the math. Buy a dust-vac and you can use it over and over again. Be smart.

Like Revan said, with canned air, not only are they stupidly expensive and the usage amount is so small, they get cold easily and quickly. On top of that, when you tilt the can when you're trying to spray in small crevices or what not to get the right angle, you're in for some trouble.

I use compressed air and make-up brushes. Works great.

Yeah people say never use a vacuum all the time, I've still never come across anyone that's ever actually damaged their PC cleaning it that way. I've been cleaning mine that way around twice a year for about 20 years and I spent about 5 years working repairs and still never came across it. I get the theory is sound, but you'd need to have a ridiculous volume of just the right kinds of dust to generate that kind of static, I don't buy it. And given they sell Vacuums specifically for cleaning PCs that are no different to your average dirt devil I'm guessing I'm never likely to see it.

You could smack the nozzle into the motherboard, that'll damage it, but you'd kind of deserve it then.

yeah it's safe to use a vacuum, just try not to grind on the video card and motherboard etc... just use the brush attachment and definitely do it outside, use and extension cord or something. that dust is nasty stuff, don't blow that crap all over your room or in your house.

i used a vacuum on my old amd athlon xp 3200+/6800gs rig and it got about 99% of the dust out. i also used a can of air and a dry cloth for the flat parts of the case.

Hands

Vac

Air can

It all works

Real men power wash it. Rent the highest power power washer from Home Depot and go to town.

You can than me later.

(BTW...just in case...don't really do that!)

Canned air is ok. I've spent $20 on it over the past 3 years or so...no biggie. Then again, I have mostly washable filters too...

buy a air compressor, they come in handy for alot of things, its what I use.

Why not a leaf blower? Get a real powerful one, take your rig outside and give it the "blow"job of its life :P

I use a vacuum.

I also have a stiff brush (actually asus branded, picked it up in a 'goody bag' from some event or other) that is good for my CPU heatsink.

All you need is a water hose...

I've used vacuums and never had problems.

Not sure I've heard of anyone killing their computer from a vacuum but I always hear people not recommending it.

I've done it for years and had no issues, used a brushed tip too.

To everyone saying compressed air, I hope you take your cases outside or are vacuuming at the same time at least... I hope nobody seriously is spraying dust into their room.

they don't actually spit liquid. it just gets so cold that it condenses moisture from the air. there might be some amount of aerosols in it too, but it evaporates quickly. it's completely safe when your computer is unplugged, like it always should be when cleaning it.

I remember a thread posted in "old" pc hardware forum of someone killing their PC using a vacuum. And there were a lot of "I told you so" replies on there. My point is, why take the chance? Sure, there are some of you that "never" had problems.. but that's claiming an absolute or 100% definitive which is still purely anecdote at the end of the day. I don't know what is so difficult about investing $50-60 on a great dust-vac, when the other alternatives out there are far more expensive and exposes you to a higher risk of damaging your PC.

@Elann2008: hey, whats up Elann.

can you please link me to this dust-vac you are talking about. i tried looking for it on Amazon but it keeps directing me to Vacuum cleaners (same thing with google search)

Yeah, that's a good idea too. More power the better! lol...go jet engine go!

Here you go.

I take it in the garage and use the air compressor. Never had a single problem. Just dont go breaking things now

Agreed. Use a dust cloth for the easy-to-access portions and hold the vacuum nozzle near your work. Just don't touch the vacuum to anything other than your hand. Use compressed air for the harder-to-access places, and don't forget to clean the van while they're off and using a pencil or similar object to prevent the air from spinning the blades.