It's Just A Lot Of Canned Air - Computer Maintenance

Taking care of your computer includes the keyboard and it's very easy and simple to provide simple maintenance with a little can of air.

If you have electronics in your home, you need to have some canned air. It might seem like a simple enough thing, but you do have more worries when it comes to dusting things with delicate parts and air vents.

Do not wipe!

Wipe down your computer and you could be making a big mistake. You may be pushing dust inside rather than taking it away, and dust can be a huge problem. There are also places on electronics that needed to be cleared of dust, but it’s not easy to reach them.

How to clean a computer keyboard

One of the biggest uses for canned air is to clean out the keyboard. Unless you have the patience to take up each of the keys to get inside to clean, which is not recommended, you should get some canned air to help you do the job quickly and completely.

How often should you complete computer maintenance ?

You should try to do this at least once a week so things don’t build up to the point when even the compressed air will not take care of the problems. Allowing that stuff to sit there is never a good idea if you’d like to keep your computer for any length of time.

Cloth vs. canned air

Other pieces of electronic equipment may specifically say that you have to use canned air to clean them in certain areas. You can use a cloth to clean your screen if you really want to so do, but you never want to run a cloth along the vents.

Professional Computer Maintenance

If you have any doubt, and you aren’t sure about the canned air, you should take your machine in to have someone clean it out for you. This won’t be necessary often, but if you have neglected the cleaning angle for a while, it might not be a bad move.

Read the directions

When you do use canned air, be careful about reading the instructions. You should always use the can in an upright position, though that is sometimes hard to do. You should use the canned air in short bursts.

Canned air warning !!!

If you feel the can getting cold under your hand, you have been spraying for too long. Let the can sit until it has warmed back up before you continue. You should never use it on camera mirrors, and it might alter the look of some plastics.

Remember that it can be toxic in high doses, so use in a well ventilated area, and don’t use around your children or your pets for their safety.

Follow the safety tips, use canned air to clean your electronic equipment, and you'll have a shiny and happy computer. If not, remember HAL on "2001, A Space Odyssey" ?