Keeping Your Computer’s Cooling Fans Clear

Contributed by Jay Schroyer

After a hard afternoon of working outside in the middle of the summer, there’s nothing more refreshing than sitting down in front of a fan to cool off. You might find this surprising, but your computer likes to do the same thing.

As your computer chips process information, they generate heat, and the only way to dissipate this heat is to allow cooling fans to blow outside air across these chips lowering their internal temperature and forcing hotter air out of the computer casing. When a computer is designed, engineers decide what size and speed of fan needs to be installed to keep your machine running at acceptable temperature levels. But what happens if these fans become disabled or hindered? Much like a car with a broken radiator, the engine block quickly overheats and causes engine failure. A very similar process occurs within your computer. Overheating can cause processor errors and irreversible damage to the computer’s internal parts reducing its life span.

Keeping these fans running flawlessly is an easy and simple task that requires perhaps an hour of your time every few months. Taking the time to learn about how the computer works can save you a lot of money and hassle down the road. The best part about this process is that it requires very minimal investment and will only help to expand your knowledge of the digital world.

Symptoms
Symptoms are fairly easy to spot when you have a fan that is not working properly. It may make a really loud noise which will quickly draw your attention to the back of the computer unit. Placing your hand in front of the vents will allow you to feel the temperature and how much air is coming out of the unit. Check the air flow when the computer is idling (it is simply on and not processing information) and when it is processing large amounts of information (multiple programs are running). The fan should work faster when it needs to deliver more cooling to the overworked processor. If the fan is not working at all, you may need to replace the fan unit. This might be something that a professional would be better equipped to do. Always make sure that the unit is not directly up against the wall of desk, blocking the airflow of the fans.

Your computer may also lock up or may even go so far as to flash a warning on the screen that reads something to the effect of “Overheating! Powering Off!” and then promptly shut down losing all of your unsaved information. You may want to purchase an adhesive fish tank thermometer (about $2.00) and place it on the computer unit to measure the average temperature. A glimpse in the owner’s manual should give you the optimum temperature for your specific make and model. If it seems like the fans are being hindered from cooling the computer, you may have an easily repairable blockage.

Preparation
If you’ve decided that the fans are still operational and probably just blocked, you can attempt to clear the fans with a little basic computer education. Go purchase some canned air and perhaps a small brush. Check your owner’s manual for safety guidelines regarding the removal of the computer case. You will need to unplug the machine and ground yourself so that you don’t create any unnecessary electric shocks. The case should come off easily enough. Some have screws that need to be removed, others are slotted for easy on and off. Again, check the owner’s manual for a map of the inside of your computer. Once the case is off, you should see the fan unit towards the back of the machine depending on what type of computer you have. You may be able to see already what is causing the blockage. In most cases, it is a very unhealthy collection of dust.

Operation
Most canned air comes with a small pipe attachment for the nozzle. This pipe is perfect for getting into the hard to reach areas of a computer. Go ahead and spray a good blast of the air in and around the fans. You should see the dust shoot up into the air or out of the back of the machine. If there is some really nasty buildup, carefully use the small brush to loosen the dust particles and blow them out again with air. This should help free up your fans so that they run more efficiently. As long as you’re in there, take a look at your processor and memory chips. Are they dusty as well? If so, carefully blow them off with the canned air being careful not to actually touch the chips with the tip of the pipe attachment. Check out the casing as well. Dust likes to collect everywhere and the nondigital parts of your computer are no exception.

When you’ve got your computer back together again and restarted, you should begin to instantly see a difference in temperature performance. The lock ups, if they were caused by overheating, should disappear, and you should have just extended the life of your machine that much more. As long as you have the canned air out, why not hit the keyboard which is a virtual dumping ground for skin flakes, hair, crumbs, and dust.

So for a very small investment of time and money, you can have a cooler, longer lasting machine and feel secure in the knowledge that you are not only protecting your investment, but preventing further computer troubles from hindering your work.

About the Author:
Jay Schroyer has worked in the client and customer service end of business for over five years in retail, advertising, and printing. He holds a bachelor’s and master’s degree in English writing and communication.

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