Changed my mind about using canned air on dusty laptop fans

I used to blast them clean, but after a client's fan bearing seized from the cold spray, I now hold the blades still with a toothpick first. Anyone have a better method for a 3-year-old gaming rig that's basically a furball?

3 comments

3 Comments

tylerj2222d ago

Man, my buddy's old PC fan literally shattered from the cold spray.

barbarah1922d ago

Oh wow, that's brutal for your buddy's PC. I've seen cheap plastic get super brittle in the cold, @tylerj22. It's like when you leave a cheap toy outside in winter and the next time you touch it, a piece just snaps off. Makes you wonder if the fan blades were already worn out or had a tiny crack you couldn't even see. What kind of spray was he using, just a regular air duster?

miles_garcia22d ago

Yeah, the "cheap plastic gets brittle" thing is real. I read a tech article once that said the canned air turns so cold it can actually cause thermal shock on old plastic. It's not just about cracks you can see, the material itself gets weak. They said to hold the can upright and use short bursts to avoid that. Your buddy probably blasted it for too long.