Why you should never blow dust out of your PC with an air compressor

Over time your computer’s fans will almost certainly draw enough dust inside the case to partially or completely cover the components and block air from flowing around the various parts.

This is not good as it allows heat to build up inside the components, and heat leads to both intermittent program errors and eventual hardware failure.

It’s important to remove any built-up dust from the inside of your computer on a regular basis, and the best way to do it is to blow it out with forced air.

Simply remove the side panel, carry the PC outdoors and have at it. Some folks use an air compressor to blow out the dust, but I think that is very bad idea for two very important reasons: 

1  – All air compressors end up with water in their tanks through condensation, and that water is expelled along with the air whenever you blow something off with it. Water inside your computer isn’t a good thing because it can cause both short-term and long-term hardware problems.

2 – The force exerted by the expelled air from even the smallest of compressors is often strong enough to damage fans and loosen or unplug cables, both of which are obviously quite bad.

Luckily, there are a couple of much safer alternatives to using an air compressor for blowing dust out of your computer.

The first (and in my opinion best) alternative is to use a Data Vac (#ad).

These awesome portable blowers are specifically designed to safely remove dust from the innards of a computer. They are very affordable, and they work extremely well.

The biggest advantage of using a Data Vac over other dust removal devices is you can use them over and over. These things typically last for years! Just plug it in when you need to clean out your PC and it’ll get the job done in no time.

Another good alternative is to use a can of compressed air (#ad) to blow the dust out of your PC. They work quite well, but since they are only good for a couple of dustings they can get pretty expensive if you use them as often as you should.

Whichever dusting device you decide to use, just keep in mind that removing the dust from your computer on a regular basis is essential if you want to keep it running as long as possible!

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