Bill Myers - January 6, 2012

Don't wait until your computer dies a sudden death. Do this simple check today to improve the performance and extend the life of your computer system

Recently my main computer developed a nasty habit. Every 30 minutes or so, it'd shut down by itself.

No blue screen of death. No error messages of any kind. The computer just shut down. Almost as if the power had been turned off.

My first instinct was the computer had acquired a virus. So I ran the free Microsoft malware removal tool - and no virus was found.

My second guess was a component inside the computer case was failing.

To check this out, I unplugged the power from the computer, opened the computer case and immediately saw the problem.

All the vent openings on the computer case were blocked by a thick layer of dust - so thick that the fans inside the case were unable to bring in any cooling air.

This caused component overheating which resulted in the computer shutting down.

To solve the problem, I used a shop vac with a plastic nozzle and vacuumed out the dust covering the vents and computer internals.

Then, before closing the computer case, I powered it up and checked to make sure all the fans were operating properly.

With the task completed, I closed the case and began using the computer again. And now, no more problems.

As you probably know, the components inside your computer generate a lot of heat. So the computer relies on several fans to keep the internals cool.

The fans suck in air, but also suck in dust, pet hair, people hair, little bits of paper, spiders, whatever happens to be in room.

Eventually the cooling vents will be blocked, the computer will overheat, and problems will occur.

To prevent this, check your computer to make sure the vents are not blocked. And don't wait until you get an expensive component failure. Do it today while you are thinking about it.

To give you an idea of how much dust can get inside your computer, check out the photos at http://amazingdata.com/pc-which-never-was-cleaned/

You'll be amazed. Then check your computer to see how yours looks in comparison.