I realized several weeks ago that I had never provided you with a Spring Cleaning plan for your computer. So guess what? Today we start cleaning your system for better performance.
The first thing you want to do is to unplug your computer. This includes the power, speakers, keyboard, printer, thumb drive, wireless mouse connectors and anything else plugged into your system. Get a can of compressed air or three. The following information is for desktop computers. For notebooks you can perform pretty much the same steps but DO NOT take it apart unless you are a pro or daring.
Take your keyboard, turn it upside down and give it a good shake to dislodge stubborn food particles. (Yes, I know you eat and drink over your keyboard.) If you have a long, thin brush, use it between the keys. Whether you have a brush or not use the compressed air to blow everything out as much as possible. Just use compressed air for the notebook keyboards.
Some people remove the keys and wash them. Although I have never done this, you may try if you wish. Pry them up carefully (DO NOT do this on a notebook!). After they are removed you may wash them anyway you deem feasible even using a nonabrasive soap and warm water. Make sure they are thoroughly rinsed and dried before putting them back…in the correct order of course.
For the mouse you may just use a damp cloth and wipe it down, drying thoroughly again before using. If you have an old "ball" mouse, go buy a new laser mouse for $15.
Look around the sides and back of your desktop for thumb screws or regular screws. Usually there are two, which when unscrewed allow you to slide the side off of your computer. Unscrew them and remove the side. If you have questions search online for how to open your computer for cleaning by make and model.
For this step take your computer outside of your house. Make absolutely sure you discharge all static electricity before touching anything on the inside of the computer. A static "pop" inside your computer could be a costly mistake. I still recommend keeping touching to a minimum. Although, barring static electricity, you can touch anything in there lightly without damage.
If you have not done this before you may find a tremendous amount of dust, pet fur, hair, etc. in your computer. (Check the DoubleClicks.info site for photos.) It needs to be cleaned out very well. Dirt causes overheating by blocking vents and sticking to components which makes everything thing run hot and slow and causes repairs. Get out your can(s) of air and blow as much of this dirt out as you can. Get every bit of it out it will help significantly.
For notebooks, just use compressed air anywhere you can reach, even in the vents. In a notebook blow in the intake vents and it will come out the other vents. If you cannot determine which is which search online for your notebook’s make and model. This is not as thorough as taking it apart but it is much safer and is better than nothing.
