Your gaming hardware. Do you clean it?

[linkvegeta]

How often or at all do you clean your console/pc and controllers/keyboard?
I wondered today when I was cleaning my 360 controller that if anyone else cleaned their gaming hardware? I immediately thought some people must, but how often?

I clean my controllers at least once a month or more because I have sweaty hands and my controller get all dirty and gross, to i take a toothpick and clean out all the gunk from the creases and other areas that i cant reach with a cloth?

Edit: Also anyone got tips they could share?

 

[similar.squirrel]

I clean my controller every now and then, and make sure the Xbox hasn't ingested any dust-bunnies.

 

[Radeonx]

When I notice the controllers/keyboard and mouse are dirty, I clean them.
I don't eat dirty foods when I play though, so it isn't too often.

 

[ActionDan]

I dust computer throughly at least once a year, I haven't done it recently, but I need to find some compressed air cans to spray out some of the dust.

 

[Eiv]

my PC internals get checked once a week and cleaned when needed. My xbox is growing itself a hive mind on the side in dust particles.

 

[Nova5]

Keyboards, whenever they start acting up. I disassemble them and blow 'em out with some canned air, maybe a rubbing alcohol scrubdown if they need it.

I open my XBOX 360 once a year to scrub down the heatsinks, get the dust off the fans, clean out the airduct, and re-apply some thermal grease.

My computer tower is more or less the same way, though it gets cleaned more frequently (whenever I upgrade something internally).

Tips:
Heatsinks: If you want to remove stuck-on thermal grease (especially that cheap OEM crap), Goo-Be-Gone is actually pretty awesome. It's alcohol soluble, so just make sure to scrub it all off. Much faster than relying on elbow grease alone.

Keyboards: Don't be afraid to open them up; it's pretty damn easy. Four screws, at most, and maybe one or two friction locks depending on the make.

Controllers: Use Q-tips (cotton swabs) to get into hard-to-reach spots around the thumbsticks. If you want to really get in there, don't be afraid to disassemble it. They're super simple, though you need a $5 screwdriver or security bit to open it up. A fantastic disassembly tutorial. This lets you clean behind the D-Pad and buttons, which can start to feel 'weird' after a while.

 

[HontooNoNeko]

I disassemble inspect and clean every part of my PC every month just in case. "In case of what?" you say? I don't know but it isn't happening here anytime soon.

 

[Deathfyre]

Once a week for my laptop and desktop.. but very rarely for my consoles

 

[crazythunder83]

I clean my PC out with an air matress air pump. Gets all the dust and build up blown right out it with no potential for corrosive element build up from over the counter "cleaning" agents. I also cleaned off the main motherboard and the internal board of my graphics card (had to disassemble it) with isopropyl alcohol. For those that do not know, when these hardware pieces are manufactured (anything that involves soldering) they spray everything down with flux. Not just the solder runs but the entire board, usually the componets themselves are exposed to the flux. The flux is a chemical that helps the solder to be run smoothly in a straigth direction across the green board. Well flux is EXTREMELY corrosive and if not cleaned off properly, it will eat away at metal and semi-conductive components. Capacitors and transistors are particularly vulnerable. Add in heat from operation and before you know it your graphcis card shits the bed after about a year or so. Usually a CAP that goes caputt. If you're curious and you've isolated the graphics card as faulty, next time it happens, take a screw driver and open it up (if it has a cover as most do nowadays), you'll probably see some greenish build up over a part of the board. That's dielectric fluid from inside a common capacitor. Long story short, everyone should clean their hardware. Routine mainteance = saved money and longevity of your product. Cheers!

 

[Continuity]

How often or at all do you clean your console/pc and controllers/keyboard?
I wondered today when I was cleaning my 360 controller that if anyone else cleaned their gaming hardware? I immediately thought some people must, but how often?

For my PC:

Once a Month: Clean Intake Filters

Once a year: clean inside case, clean exposed fans, gets as much dust out of heatsinks as I can without removing them.

Once every two years: Complete clean, all fans come out, CPU heatsink comes off and goes in the sink, new thermal paste. Any fans with rickety bearings get replaced.

I dust and wipe down Controllers, keyboard and mouse as and when, maybe once week, maybe more or less.

 

[emeraldrafael]

Um... whenever I really notice it gets really dirty. My PS3 is just striaght up almost all metal, so its really easy and doesnt really collect alot of dust.

 

[CCountZero]

If you want to remove stuck-on thermal grease (especially that cheap OEM crap), Goo-Be-Gone is actually pretty awesome. It's alcohol soluble, so just make sure to scrub it all off. Much faster than relying on elbow grease alone.

While all your points are valid, and most certainly very helpful to newbie cleaners, I do feel the need to stress one point.

Relying on elbow grease alone when cleaning and reapplying thermal paste/grease between a heatsink and a hot object such as a CPU, is not smart.

The point of the grease is to reach down into every imperfection in the metal of the object and Sink, to ensure maximum heat transfer, and you simply won't get that out without a product such as you suggested.

For the record, I personally use pure isopropyl alcohol, which works wonders.

Bottom line: Do not rely on elbow grease alone when cleaning and reapplying thermal paste. Use a grease remover.

As for the OP, I take my Tower down to my dad's place of work once every six months or so, as they have a air compressor. That shit works

Whenever I feel my keyboard (1st edition Logitech G15 - kept it 'cus I like the feel of it) is filthy I just pull out all the buttons, put them in the dishwasher on low heat setting, and without the cleaning agent. While it does its thing I clean out whatever might have made it into the tray below the keys.

My consoles have never experienced love like that though. For one, I don't really use them enough for them to get dirty / internally dusty, and secondly, even if I did, I couldn't be arsed. They're consoles, to me they'd never deserve my love.

 

[mikecoulter]

My controllers tend to stay pretty clean. I break out a clean sock now and then to dust the PS3.

 

[Nemesis729]

I clean out the dust filters in my pc and clean the screen

 

[lacktheknack]

I vacuum my computer out every time I upgrade it. Which is every year or so.

 

[linkvegeta]

My controllers tend to stay pretty clean. I break out a clean sock now and then to dust the PS3.

socks are great for dusting!

If you want to remove stuck-on thermal grease (especially that cheap OEM crap), Goo-Be-Gone is actually pretty awesome. It's alcohol soluble, so just make sure to scrub it all off. Much faster than relying on elbow grease alone.

While all your points are valid, and most certainly very helpful to newbie cleaners, I do feel the need to stress one point.

Relying on elbow grease alone when cleaning and reapplying thermal paste/grease between a heatsink and a hot object such as a CPU, is not smart.

The point of the grease is to reach down into every imperfection in the metal of the object and Sink, to ensure maximum heat transfer, and you simply won't get that out without a product such as you suggested.

For the record, I personally use pure isopropyl alcohol, which works wonders.

Bottom line: Do not rely on elbow grease alone when cleaning and reapplying thermal paste. Use a grease remover.

I will keep that in mind

 

[Nova5]

Bottom line: Do not rely on elbow grease alone when cleaning and reapplying thermal paste. Use a grease remover.

For the record, I didn't mean to imply "go at it entirely dry with nothing whatsoever". Should've thought that wording through a bit more. To me, going at it with nothing but 'elbow grease' is using just alcohol and a toothbrush. On a 360, that OEM shit just refuses to come off.

 

[Continuity]

I vacuum my computer out every time I upgrade it. Which is every year or so.

You ought to be careful, vacuum cleaner generate a lot of static, you could easily fry something.