PSA: I was cleaning a laptop fan wrong for years until a client's machine died

I used to just blow compressed air into the vents from the outside, but last week a customer brought in a gaming laptop from Tampa that overheated and fried the GPU because the dust was just packed in deeper. What's your go-to method for a full clean, especially on those sealed models?

3 comments

3 Comments

norag554d ago

Grinding in tiny scratches" sounds a bit dramatic for a shirt wipe.

mason_knight4d ago

Have you ever actually looked at a phone screen under a bright light after wiping it with a shirt? It's not dramatic at all. Those tiny scratches are real and they build up. The fabric picks up grit and acts like sandpaper. It's the same reason you don't clean glasses with a paper towel. The right cloth makes a big difference over time.

grace_fox34d ago

Reminds me how we often make things worse by trying quick fixes. I used to just wipe my glasses with my shirt, which ground in tiny scratches over time. Same with using a paper towel on my phone screen before I learned it damages the coating. We skip the right steps to save a minute and cause bigger problems later. For those sealed laptops, I carefully take the back off to get direct access, because just blowing air rarely solves the real issue.