Re: [OT] how to clean grime off old computer MB?

"Douglas A. Tutty" <dtutty@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> writes:

I have a couple of new-to-me old computers. They've been well used in
what looks like a normal office environment and they're a bit grimey
inside; not just dust that blows away. I figure that I should clean
that off so the dust doesn't act like a thermal insulator but I'm unsure
what to use, since air alone isn't doing it. I don't want to remove
e.g. the CPU from its socket. (P-133, socket 7).

As another take on the issue, there's also such a thing as leaving
well enough alone.

Provided the computers are working now, the most likely outcome of a
good, thorough cleaning, is that they will work exactly as well as
before. The second most likely outcome is that one or more will stop
working, and you'll need to fiddle around for hours getting them
working again.

From a thermal perspective, others may have better advice, but here's
my take on it. Most components don't generate much heat and can
dissipate most of it through leads soldered to the motherboard, so
grime on their surface doesn't matter much here. As long as the
motherboard isn't entirely caked with a layer of filth and as long as
loose dust has been blown or dusted away so air can flow over the
motherboard surface, it'll probably be fine.

The components to worry about are any that have either a fan or a
passive heatsink: these components are generating the most heat, and
dust and grime are most likely to affect the operation of active or
passive cooling systems. Note that the issue is less a coating of
grime acting as a thermal insulator and more one of dust (dry or
greasy) clogging the cooling fins so that air cannot flow through
them.

If the CPU, main chipset chips, and graphics chips have heatsinks and
fans that are relatively free of dust and the metal components of the
heatsink aren't entirely coated with grime, they'll probably cool just
fine. (This assumes that the case fans and grills are clean, too.)
Taking a dry toothbrush to the problem and tackling the biggest clumps
without worrying too much about getting everything sparkling will
probably be the safest and most useful approach.

On the other hand, this is hardly valuable equipment, is it? If you
want a cool war story to impress friend and relatives, then I believe
Marty's suggestion is sound: I recall people on
"sci.electronics.repair" claiming to have had good success putting
circuit boards (stripped of socketed components) in the dishwasher.
I'm not sure whether the dishwasher's heated dry cycle would be
recommended, and I hadn't previously heard about the leakage problems
with electrolytic capacitors that Russell mentioned.

--
Kevin Buhr <buhr+debian@xxxxxxxxxxx>


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