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The old timer who swore by compressed air to clean fans was onto something
Back when I started fixing computers in 2010, a retired IBM guy named Frank told me to always blow out PC fans with compressed air in short bursts, not long sprays. I figured he was just being fussy (you know, old habits). But after I ruined a fan bearing by holding the nozzle down for 10 seconds straight (it started grinding a week later), I realized he was right. Short bursts keep the motor from spinning too fast and burning out. Has anyone else learned a trick the hard way from ignoring an experienced tech?
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wrenh656d ago
Blew up a power supply once doing the exact same thing. Was cleaning out an old Dell optiplex and held the can too long, fan started screaming like a jet engine, then just stopped. The bearing seized up solid and the PSU started smelling like burnt toast. Frank sounds like he knew his stuff, that short burst thing really does save the motor from overspinning. I've also learned to unplug the fan header or hold the blades still with a toothpick if I'm really going to town with the can. Lost a good GPU fan that way too, thought I was being thorough but just wrecked the bearing instead.
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Oh man, Frank knew what he was talking about for sure. I learned that lesson the hard way too, killed a case fan on an old HP business machine by forgetting to stop the blades. Now I just stick a wooden skewer through the fan grille to hold it still before I spray. It takes two seconds and saves so much headache.
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