My MDD has transformed into a vacuum cleaner

[Dr.Gargoyle]

Ok, so I desided to give some last CPR to my old PM G4 MDD by putting 2GB RAM in it. When I opened it up, I found dust... LOTS of it...ok, perhaps not as much as you would find in a vacuum cleaner, but waaayy too much to be ok. I think so at least.
My questions now are as follows:
Is it just my general cleaning, or has other experienced the same thing?
Is it safe? I mean the computer is hot and the dust could catch fire, right? ...or am I wong?
How do you fix it? It is not like you bring out your normal vacuum cleaner, is it?

truly embarrassed...

 

[MacAficionado]

They are like that. Any computer for that matter. Just blow it out and it should be alright.
I use to clean mine every 6 months before I sold it. The friend who still has it brought it over recently and I cleaned it for him. It really can extend the life of your Mac.

 

[ipacmm]

My old MDD had a lot of dust in it; I would just clean it every few months with the air dust cleaner and it should run better and hopefully quieter.

 

[HugMnster]

This is normal for all computers. Just get some canned air at your local walmart or computer store an blow it out. Remember to also blow out the power supply using the vents. I have to do this often with the computers here at work specially the ones out in plant where all the paper dust is flying around in the air.

jack

 

[Eidorian]

The MDD is prone to get dust. Just blow the dust out every few months.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

Every now and then I get out my little air compressor and carefully blow my G4's case out. It can get pretty dusty in there.

Last year I noticed that may Radeon 9600 was running hotter than usual, and after looking at it I saw a lot of dust under the heatsink around the GPU. After a squirt of air it was running 10C cooler.

 

[iGary]

I blow out my G5 weekly, did with my MDD, too.

Don't have to do it so often now that we bought an obscenely expensive vaccuum cleaner....you wouldn't believe what is in most carpets.

 

[Dr.Gargoyle]

Thanx

Well, it was nice to know the dust wasn't just due to my inefficiency. So which option is best, a small dustbuster or a can of compressed air?

 

[Eidorian]

Well, it was nice to know the dust wasn't just due to my inefficiency. So which option is best, a small dustbuster or a can of compressed air?

I'd go with a can spray duster.

 

[Dr.Gargoyle]

you wouldn't believe what is in most carpets.

This is the sad part. I have hard floors and a fancy german made übervacuumcleaner (the problem isn't entirely new), so I guess I am not trying hard enough. The problem is that I seem to spend much more time at work than home...

 

[Lord Blackadder]

Compressesed air is best IMHO - a small air compresser is my favorite method because you can control it and get a nice low-pressure but high-volume flow going that will clean things out. You need finesse though - squeeze the trigger carelessly and you blast your Mac and cause damage.

 

[TDM21]

A can of compressed air and small vacuum cleaner make a great combination for cleaning out computers. The compressed air will break the dust loose and the vacuum will suck it up. Keeps the case clean and me from sneezing my nose off.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

True - I have no allergies so dust flying around doesn't bother me that much, but having a vacuum to suck up the dust you blow out everywhere is probably not a bad idea.

 

[Dr.Gargoyle]

Problem solved - Thanks again

It seem like compressed air combined with a regular vacuum cleaner will do the trick. Thanks again for enlighten me.

 

[MacAficionado]

Ahhh!!! Don't be so hard on yourself. Luckily the MDD are easy to open up. On the other hand, the iSight equiped iMacs are a big pain in the rear to open up.

The cool thing about the MDD is that right inside the vents on the front bottom, you know the holes on the bottom, there is a grille that collects a lot of the dust, when you blow it, it comes out of the bottom of the case. Reminds me of my Windtunnel Hoover vac.

 

[imacintel]

Ahhh!!! Don't be so hard on yourself. Luckily the MDD are easy to open up. On the other hand, the iSight equiped iMacs are a big pain in the rear to open up.

The cool thing about the MDD is that right inside the vents on the front bottom, you know the holes on the bottom, there is a grille that collects a lot of the dust, when you blow it, it comes out of the bottom of the case. Reminds me of my Windtunnel Hoover vac.

Ok what the heck are MDD

 

[iGary]

Ok what the heck are MDD

It's a model of G4 Power Mac - "Mirrored Drive Doors."

 

[Ryon]

Ok what the heck are MDD

Mirrored drive door

Edit: iGary beat me...

 

[dsharits]

Ok what the heck are MDD

http://everymac.com/systems/apple/powermac_g4/stats/powermac_g4_1.0_dp_mdd.html