Cleaning the inside of a gaming rig...

[Elvis]

Any tips? Someone mentioned condensed air... D:

I opened mine up for a second to check the cabling to the hard drive (that's what she said) and it seemed kinda dusty.

[Furtwangler]

condensed air is probably the best thing to do short of taking it all apart and cleaning it (with condensed air) just make sure you direct the dust out of the case and not just around it, I know someone that blew a big wad of dust under the mobo and it ended up shorting it and they had to take it apart anyways. (luckily it just wouldn't turn on, you can cause some serious damage)

[Cephius]

Yeah compressed air is just fine, just make sure you don't spray directly on components as the air comes out very cold and can damage things if you're not careful. Make sure you blow out the fans as well. If you're feeling really adventurous, a small vacuum works very well also.

[Spekkio]

take your computer OUTSIDE (obviously on a clear day! no raining inside the case!) and bring a nice, full, 3 dollar can of air from staples or wherever you choose to get it from. hold the can upright (never upside down or bad things happen) and spray from about 1-1.5 inches from the components. don't blast any one area too long, just use it in nice, big sweeping motions. ensure you blast the fans heavily (it's ok to gun the trigger on the fans hard) as well as the PSU (the big thing you plug the power cable into). blast the heat sinks a good bit too from as many angles as you can reach conveniently (heat sinks are the big metal thingies that usually have fans on them) as dust loves to pool in there. now take a nice, soft, dry, and CLEAN cloth and wipe down the bottom of the case, being careful not to touch any of the components. dust likes to settle at the bottom of the case and if you leave it there, you're just gonna re-contaminate. be careful not to spray too much on your optical drive (or inside for heaven's sake, someone ruined a drive that way once). once you're done, close it up and you're good to go.

[Elvis]

Cool thanks guys

[Mojo]

bathtub

[Boyiee]

I use an aircompressor outside in my garage. Works wonders.

[Elvis]

bathtub

im going to eat your face with some fava beans and a nice chianti

[Olo401]

If you're feeling really adventurous, a small vacuum works very well also.

If you're gonna use a vacuum make sure you get an anti-static attachment (usually made of rubber). Vacuums generate a TON of static electricity and can really screw up hardcore if something discharges.

[Pikarya]

99$ air compressor with moisture removal filter and your good 2 go. Never waste money on a can of air again.

[Tekumel]

Condensed air/air compressor, as everybody else has said.

If you get to the point of taking it apart to the card level, cleaning contacts of things like PCI cards & RAM, HD connectors, etc with isopropyl alcohol and Q-Tips isn't a bad idea.

[Ikith]

If you're gonna use a vacuum make sure you get an anti-static attachment (usually made of rubber). Vacuums generate a TON of static electricity and can really screw up hardcore if something discharges.

This this this this this OMG this!

I never ever risk using a vacuum for cleaning out any computer ever. There may be special attachments but personally I would NOT risk it.

[Spekkio]

a vacuum is a good idea to place NEAR the computer while you're using canned air if you're not doing it outside. that will cause the dust to get pulled away and not re-settle inside the case or on your work area, causing recontamination. i wouldn't advise sticking one inside your computer though. sparky sparky=a lot of money down the tubes potentially.