Anti-static handling and vacuum cleaning

[Andy Burns]

By blowing you'll tend to disperse the dust particles randomly, whereas sucking conentrates them in the nozzle, where they'll rub against each other (and the nozzle) and generate static.

[Chronos]

No, goddammit! Compressor air contains contaminants, tiny bits of filings from the piston/cylinder, water and oil. Unless you have an inline separator and filter, *DO NOT* blow out anything electronic with a compressor. Even if you have such a device, the standard 8 Bar receiver pressure of a compressor creates airflow enough to take some small SMDs off of boards and spin fans to destruction.

[NT]

Firstly 'antistatic' vacuum cleaners are a waste of money. Simply earth the air inlet point with a wire, and thats as much as any antistatic vac can do. It wontn prevent static, but will reduce it.

If your employer is too tight to buy antistatic bags, rub the interior of a box with charcoal and use that. Or a pencil, but thats slower. When handling it, put your thumb etc on the box interior before picking things out.

NT

[Steve Firth]

That has to be the most stupid advice that I have ever seen on the subject. You do not want conductive carbon powder anywhere near RAM, Hard Disks or Expansion cards.

[PeterC]

Also, blowing can overspin a fan and it loads 1 side - bearings don't like it up 'em, Mr. Mainwaring!

[NT]

Rub it into the cardboard and its not loose powder.

[polygonum]

However, HP expressly show putting the tube from a compressed air can straight into the fan grille - at least on my lappie. This is supposed to clean it out and so reduce fan noise.

[Steve Firth]

Bullshit. It's always loose and will rub off on any component.

[T i m]

Agreed but with one of those little (but noisy) diaphragm type instant compressors instead. ;-)

It is indeed. My compressor isn't powerful enough to do any real damage and is oil free etc. I 'moderate' fans I can touch with my finger and those I can't (through grilles etc) with a cocktail stick.

And my compressor was about 49 quid(on a special) from Makro about 5 years ago and is still used probably a couple of times a week. My mate in the PC shop bought one about the same time (on my recommendation) and he probably uses his a couple of times a day Mon - Sat. I also fitted his with a rubber hose.

Ah, they may be a bit more now: ;-(

looks exactly the same as that but is branded Mecafer)

It came with one of those coily orange hoses that I hate so replaced it with some ~6mm i/d fuel injector hose that is rated above that of the compressor.

The gun is metal with a longish metal 'nose' and I hold that in one hand and keep contact with the metal chassis of the item being cleaned in the other (minimising the PD between nozzle and chassis).

The compressor is also very light and has been maintenance free so far.

Cheers, T i m

[Andy Burns]

I've never used one, but would an airbrush compressor have enough oomph?

[Chris Bartram]

>I tried that at work. No good. Might be OK with a reservoir.

[T i m]

think mine is nearer 130 (l/m) and you do need quite a bit of puff to shift the deeper or more 'stuck' stuff. Because the overpressure in the output (inc hose) is simply dumped off via a pressure relief valve, closing the trigger off and releasing it in bursts is a good way of getting a bit extra oooomph for the tricky bits (as the hose acts a bit like a reservoir).

I noticed the difference when I blew out the PC in my mates garage (his business) the other day and it did in one 'puff' what it would take mine about 10 seconds to do (but it would do it).

The most rewarding is laptops that are playing up / shutting down (over temp proven with the use of Speedfan etc), to blow them out (as mentioned elsewhere, both ways alternately) and then actually feel the flow of warm air coming out of them again and the temp sitting low and stable. ;-)

In strict contrast I've got a Bambi 'Silent' compressor sitting on a Wolf 25l reservoir and whilst it's much better on the ears it's too slow for any sort of prolonged blowing job. ;-)

Cheers, T i m

[NT]

Even if rubbed it dont come off. If its loose its no good.

NT

[Mark]

Yes. Makes a big mess.

I use a brush to loosen the dust and hold the vacuum nozzle near but am careful not to touch in on any PC part. I always keep the unit plugged in so that it is earthed.

IMHO The risk of non cleaning a dirty PC is far greater.

[Chris Whelan]

[...]

Yep, that's what I do; I keep a power cable with the fuse removed just for that purpose. That way, there's no potential for disaster ;-)

Certainly makes it less pleasant to work on.

Chris

[Rob Morley]

Unless the socket is mis-wired - do you check? But yes, it was quite funny. :-)

[Jaimie Vandenbergh]

Seriously, in most UK plugs you can physically remove the live and neutral pins. Doesn't help if the socket is miswired on the earth, of course, but in that case Bad Things would usually have already happened!

I haven't bothered with anything more than touching a piece of earthed metal for years. Usually it's the case of the machine I'm poking at, which I leave plugged in and switched off at the plug.

Cheers - Jaimie

[<me9]

Doesn't matter if it's plugged in. If you are at teh same potential as the machine then there is no voltage between you and it. I just connect myself to the (not plugged in) equipment chassis before getting near any internal static sensitive bits.

The only time I've knowingly had problems with static was whwn removing an IC from its "anti static package", holding the package when a static discharge was seen and felt. So much for that type of "anti static packaging", very common at th time for DIL ICs.

[Rob Morley]

But the packaging is /supposed/ to conduct - how else would it dissipate charge?

[Chris Whelan]

And the reason why you mustn't put a MB on the packaging whilst bench- testing it...

The type that has the graph paper lines on it is conductive enough that you can measure it with a multi-meter.

Chris