Does Cleaning Your PC Improve Performance & Temps?

[@Bitwit]

Thanks to those warning to not let fan blades spin freely when dusting which can cause damage. You learn something new everyday!

[@TheNotedHero]

Oh good, I thought I had been pointlessly avoiding overspinning the fans all these years. Nope, I just know better :P

[@NWGR]

Not a huge risk, just a possibility. Like getting hit by a car when crossing the street; not likely to happen, but a possibility. I've been building PCs since 2015, and use the same metro datavac you used in this vid and have never damaged any fans. I've built and cleaned dozens of PCs, being the family+friend PC guy.

[@TheTalonts]

I couldn't figure out whether the "revving" was the fans or you, but either way, it had me cringing.

[@johngy6296]

It’s not only fan damage, but when you spin the fan blades with air, the motors then act as generators, able to inject (over)voltage to whatever board they’re connected to. Some fans and components may incorporate basic protection (or ‘theoretically’ won’t backfeed power), but you won’t know until it’s too late, as such protection isn’t usually documented.

[@NWGR]

@@johngy6296 I'm pretty sure that was debunked; I don't remember who did the video, but they ran a leaf blower on it for like 5 minutes and it generated less than 2mv. Not even close enough to damage anything. I guess not an impossibility, but you have a higher likelihood of getting struck by lightning and mauled by a rabid walrus simultaneously.

[@YoloVib3s]

Bro, I’m loving the lyle intro I heard it on the last video and was absolutely floored

[@kerrystanger5324]

Best ad slot I’ve heard in a while.

[@galilelollel9658]

F.......RRRRRRRRRR

[@TheGameBench]

On the PCMR subreddit, I saw someone that made an elevated platform for his cat to lay on. I don't think it's going to help from a dust accumulation standpoint, but the PC will be able to breath better.

[@LynKazoyuu]

Omg that sponsor section got me weak

[@threadripper979]

Noisy, like American woman. LOL

[@Collin_J]

Lyle is such a pro

[@timlaw4720]

Loved it had me chuckling 😂

[@Ldunk]

This ad is almost as good as J2C'S Ifixit ads!

[@jsackett42160]

"The typing feel like happy ending"....WTF 😂😂😂😂😂

[@ardademir1]

I was using tiny nylon fan dust covers and it is simply amazing. It both keeps fur and dust away and doesnt obstruct airflow. Just added these dust covers to only intake fans and they are simply great.

[@kevrich19]

Happy to see you're uploading more Tech videos again dude and love the unscripted vlog style. This style content is really good for everyone and not just PC enthusiasts as it can be translated into other electronics around the home.

[@MrGiulik]

Glad to see you back and I expecting more cool videos about PC builds, testing, water cooling and tips .

[@johnmonkey1874]

This reminds me of what I'll be doing tomorrow. I have to dust mine out every 3 months. Many moons ago, I learned my lesson about keeping a dust free PC. I had a GPU die on me because of dust build up. I was so pissed off, but it taught me a lesson.

[@imaginerus]

How do you know the dust had anything to do with it?

[@SD-ht1ht]

Your computer was growing a beard.

[@Bitwit]

Like system like admin 🧔🏻

[@ptpoul]

Bearded Chad PC runs fast

[@lowstryder1022]

More Bitwit videos Kyle!!! Miss having you in my video rotation on the reg. Was watching your Verge reaction yesterday to reminisce

[@willanrac]

@0:56 made me spit my coffee LOL was not expecting that.

[@nocheckmarkgames]

I think it would be a bigger difference if you waited like.... a decade and then cleaned it. I ran through an old Prebuilt my parents had from like 2006, and the fan was LOCKED clogged with dust, it was so heat throttled it wouldn't even run windows at any kind of usable speed.

[@Djuntas]

Nah. Just go see LTT's old "extreme cable mangement" something video. They filled a case with crap and its still fine or something. You clean the PC to increase its longevity. Imo fans cant last long if you are dirty, smoking or animals. Also resale value. Edit, old video but found it: Cable Management - Does It Impact Cooling Performance? At All?

[@nocheckmarkgames]

@@Djuntas notorious liars LTT said something? you don't say. LoL, But nah, my parents don't smoke, they haven't had a dog since.... yeah like 2008? it's just one of those Rural country houses where dust is just... in the air and on the stuff. Once the PC was clean the fan (Which was your stock 2006 Intel Fan, which pretty much just blew cold air directly onto the CPU.) it worked just fine.

[@Djuntas]

@@nocheckmarkgames wtf...Bro Just check the video. I dont mean anything by what I said directed at you. Its an old luke video where hes just having fun.

[@nocheckmarkgames]

@@Djuntas oh no no I didn't take offense, LoL. I just, haven't watched LTT since the controversy.

[@dangermouse9494]

One thing I would add to Kyle's thing about rubbing alcohol. Use 90% or higher. This prevents any possible water deposits or possible leftovers. I have used only90% or better for a lot of sensitive electronic circuit boards, sensors, and measuring devices while in the Navy and working for Honeywell.

[@MrBaritone]

I always enjoy your random tech vlogs like this. Just a slice of life that may or may not benefit the average consumer. But hey, you're having a good time.

[@texanrob]

I clean my desktop out around every six months! It is amazing how much dust can accumulate over time. Thank you for this video!

[@damiencloake01]

Just when I thought sponsor reads couldn't get any worse, you go and prove me wrong.

[@TheKingOfHarrtz]

rofl that ad for the keyboard had me on the floor lmao

[@donavinnezar]

been a hot minute since i last watched one of your videos , great to see lyle is still employed !

[@40kknight]

I have a similar brand to the data vac, it works well. I use it twice yearly, once when the weather starts to get nice, and again towards the end of summer. Regular maintenance saves time in the long run to prevent that nasty blackish caked on dust and other debris from building up - that's when cleaning becomes more of a task and is harder to remove. Of course the real motivator is just having the PC looking nice.

[@hellionfi]

The PC underneath your desk (yes, I know, but still), and a lot of cable mis-management mess above it so that it is not easy for the cats to wonder around there. Has worked for me so far.

[@twrex-13]

Thanks for the reminder to clean my PC today! Definitely need to do that, even though it's in a self-contained closet

[@Teh_Monk]

I see an Asus B650E-F in there. Solid AM5 Mobo right there.

[@NowThatsPCGaming]

Lyle needs to seriously consider stand up comedy... As a side gig of course. His first job will always be to disrupt kyle's peace lol.

[@shadowr2d2]

Ditto one hundred 💯 percent. Lol..

[@Bitwit]

In this climate?! Haha

[@perpetualprocrastinator]

@@Bitwit F the cancel culture

[@shadowr2d2]

@Bitwit - Lyle needs his own channel. Talking 👄 about computer 🖥. Plus anything he feels like it. Maybe a heart ❤️ felt debate with Kyle. About who is better. INTEL, or AMD for gaming 🤔, & business program 🤔..

[@Skobeloff...]

@@BitwitDo you believe your form of humor may be a problem for people who are not racist cave dwellers?

[@dismuter_yt]

The build up on top of the front radiator is pretty telling of negative pressure. Dust is getting in from just above where there is no filter. You want positive pressure to avoid that. Either add more intake fans where there are dust filters, or increase the speed of the existing intake fans, so that they suck more air in than the exhaust fans expel. You may want to remove the back exhaust fan, it's not very useful, or if you want to keep it for looks, make it spin very slowly.

[@chettiarsirusraj9501]

You should think about getting battery backup for your home along with solar panels installed at your house so you don't have to deal with the wims and sudden price increases of your electricity supply company during summer season's especially because of high electricity demand blackout's could be a semi-frequent accurance to deal with. Having energy backup also allows you to run the second pc you made for your cats more or less 24/7 without worrying/dealing with high electricity bill prices.

[@MD2389]

That sponsor spot gave me EMOTIONAL DAMAGE!

[@watercannonscollaboration2281]

Compared to some of the PCs on PCDC this thing was spotless before cleaning Also Lyle sponsor jumpscare

[@CarlosDeBernardMrAgapi]

incredible that the pc has not short it out. good

[@delayeedbms]

i was going crazy with my GPU with the core temps going to 82c (could be way lower i just use very low fan speeds due to noise) I just cleaned the bottom air filter and repasted the CPU (already tried everything with gpu) and got 12c lower GPU temps. what a relief and just realized how much dust actually affects temps. way more than what any thermal pad/paste did for me

[@ZomgZomg007]

for a few early days put like shiny reflective things on top. yes it will jump scare the cats, but after awhile they wont go up there

[@NivekOtakuSan]

Best Sponsor Ever

[@Jzwiz]

Tip when cleaning, never let the fans spin. Tape em down or something, some fans generate a charge when spun

[@CimInc]

Desk mount, so you mount it under the desk so they can't lay on it. also gives you back some desk space and it feels less cluttered.

[@Gremlin256]

Please creare move vlogs like this! Enjoyed the video!!

[@DyslexicChiahuahua]

I'm a PC gaming rookie and I found this video very entertaining despite half your words sounding like Enchantment Table to me 😂

[@markperalta4831]

Another Goated content

[@benshakespeare268]

Oh I'm so glad Lyle wasn't let loose on this, can you imagine 😂

[@2muchjpop]

I think what you need is a an older PC with caked in dust. First just replace thermal paste. Then clean first. These 2 tests will show if replacing paste is good enough or if the caked in dust plays a big role.

[@fubarfubar1977]

Cheers Kyle you just cost me $129! Seriously tho, this was the push I needed to order a proper Air Duster and stop messing around with cans, thanks!

[@Bitwit]

Haha nice. So worth it!

[@TommyThousandFaces]

A PC should not be cleaned just when it starts to throttle down. Cleaning it keeps as much dust as possible out of the fan bearings, making sure they're gonna live much longer. To a degree also open contacts might have dust build up in them and show issues when mounting devices in them. To keep the cats off the PC you could build a little shelf to place on top of the PC. That should keep them off and reduce the de-furring needed.

[@ventilate4267]

I'm pretty sure new fans are usually using sealed bearings

[@eveypea]

Should put a sticker on it with "Now with REAL CAT PIECES"

[@twrsofficial]

Misread the title and saw Dogs cleaning your pc. I was confused after the first two minutes of no dogs. Great video though!

[@DJCaptainPicard1701]

That's the only time I haven't skipped an ad. 🤣😂

[@cracklingice]

Don't spin fans with air like that. You can spin them faster than they were designed to and damage them. They also become generators and push voltage into the parts they are connected to.

[@janthony21]

I had a cat who loved sitting on my case, and there was no issue. One day he saw me leaving and hopped on top of my case and urinated into it. I replaced the motherboard and lost 2 sticks of RAM. (I sent them to a friend and he recovered the board and one of the RAM sticks.) Now the computer is on a lower table and another table is on top of that. So it's effectively inside a makeshift shelving unit that has complete access to air.

[@TECHiSuppose]

Yeah, seems like the top opening of the case is the biggest issue. Though, with a different design the cats wouldn't get that nice airflow. 🐈🐈‍⬛ Maybe you could do a case roundup focused on cats. 😸

[@DreamsToolong]

I just cleaned my PC and replaced the fans in it. I'll be honest Kyle your PC not that dusty I built my current PC 7 months ago and my fans, radiators, and gpu cooler were completely blocked by my cats hair. Always enjoy a nice PC cleaning video though

[@gasracing5000]

Your sponsor approved that spot 🤔😂

[@johnpaulbacon8320]

Interesting results.

[@Jeff-dd2pt]

More Lyle please.

[@kaseyboles30]

FYI any electric motor is also an electric generator. I hope those fans where disconnected when being spun by the dusters air flow. Or perhaps on circuits protected against that, some gpu fans have been don't know if FE 30 and/or 49 series are though.

[@bowlinbob6]

I'd setup a heating pad near the pc, that would be more enticing for them to sit for warmth and would choose that over the pc.

[@jamesharvey9031]

I clean mine about twice a year. We do have a cat but she does NOT hang out on top of my PC, but I do vape. I know at some point down the road I'm looking at a complete tear down and clean but so far, after 3.5 years it's still running strong.

[@frederickpolk]

Kyle! Where did you get the shirt? It is fire and I wanna buy one! Thanks for the video and cleaning that PC 🙂

[@p3rk1nzz]

Bust my ass to save up for a pc. This guy builds a beast for his cats to lay on 😭😭😭😭

[@JackyTheCoww]

So people saying that you should hold the fans down when blowing it so not to cause static buildup or whatever, is that true?

[@penguin32383]

I always feel guilty when I laugh at Lyle, but I always laugh.

[@TheDracoArt]

and thats why I dont remove the dustfilters on top of my case mimi you dont need a dustfilter on exusts if you have pets yes you do

[@Dantan45]

yayyy new vid

[@abunk8691]

For me cleaning my PC means reducing the likelihood of an early rusting in screws, the case, and components considering uts very humid where I'm from and I got no AC to dehumidify the room.

[@Montisaquadeis]

Pretty sure it takes far more then this to really make a "difference" in temp. Because yes I have personally seen systems overheat because of dust build up

[@36bounce]

Kyle..... might temps be a thing in peoples minds? If your system doesn't thermal throttle then are temps really a concern?

[@TheNotedHero]

My primary reason for cleaning my PC isn't performance, but rather noise levels. Nice clean radiators, fans and heatsinks = less temp which = less fan RPMs = nice and quiet.

[@Quessir]

I've seen people claiming that blowing air onto a fan - moving the fan - is really bad for it?

[@homestar2112]

Yeah, when the fan is spinning uncontrolled it turns into a generator that pushes current into the motherboard. If the current is high enough it could do damage to the fan header or the motherboard. If someone is going to use an electronic duster, they should hold or tape the fans in place so they don't move. It will also make sure it's blowing the dust out and not the fan blades around.

[@johnmonkey1874]

@@homestar2112 Kinda funny. I always take q-tips and slot them thru case vents and through the blades and tape them in place. It's awkward as hell, but it works. I honestly dunno if I'd even go to such lengths to keep blades from spinning, but my electronic duster has two settings: mild and strong. The strong setting is insane. I use the same duster to clean out the bottom of my zero turn lawn mower if that tells you how strong it is. I love my duster, but I have to be extremely careful with it.

[@joshnanyabiz6668]

@@homestar2112I came here to comment this 😂

[@pandalife_gaming]

Generally speaking, it's probably not going to do any damage. Like 99% of the time, it's not gonna hurt anything at all. But you know, you hear of like 3 people that did actually damage something and everyone loses their minds lol. If you're a "better safe than sorry" person, you can stick something in there to stop them from spinning. I've never done it and I've never hurt anything. Been building and cleaning pc's for 8 years 🤷‍♂️

[@IceSam87]

That is indeed true, it can break the fan and as homestar2112 quoted also put charge on the mobo..

[@haydenfanias7913]

So much dust, this video made me sneeze lol

[@csabsz13]

good video! an idea: just build up a non-system. a used case with fans, but the fans should be powered by not a real system. a look-alike PC 🙂

[@Dronston]

Could it be that dust increases more surface area to absorb and dissipate heat? And you van buy heated cat sleeping pads, no sure how much watts they use.

[@BrandonJanoski]

My Cats are the exact reason my top exhaust has a dust filter!

[@Kentesh_1]

ABC if you also playing without a graphics card because they are to expensive

[@craig9365]

i had to put my headphones on just to hear lyle. thank god hes back

[@GregoryHarris-ym1qz]

This cleaning reminds me to ask. How often should you check or repaste a CPU? I get temp spikes at different times.

[@bigbrownmab189]

Maybe just make a 3d printed A frame lookin vent cover, with say 2.5 or 3 inches at the peak of the crest.

[@pieterjanplessers5968]

As you said yourself, cleaning your own PC is in the top 3 most fun things to do for PC builders. So of course I'd say, make more videos about cleaning.

[@neondemon5137]

I thought the front filter wasn't too bad but when he opened it I shat bricks.

[@JohnPob]

I definitely just spat my drink out when i heard Lyle

[@TheKingOfHarrtz]

, heres a hack for you, i have two gsd so i know all about fur in weird places, heres a tip, i have the same case and fans i have a 360mm aio as intake at the front and the rest are exhaust, so when i see dirt starting to build up i ramp all my fans to max and leave the pc running for like 30 mins while i go do something else and usually by the time i switch back to my normal settings the pc has blown the dust out with positive pressure

[@Gavrev]

Grab a couple of Linus's pet boxes.. they'll love those snuggly things.

[@WeatherMan2005]

I just cleaned my front pannel + front dust filter and my max gpu temps went from 81C to 76C. I also am able to keep keep my cats off my pc due to its large size it has only a couple of inches from the bottom of my table.

[@MikeNovelli]

The cat hair was filling the gaps, providing insulation and direct pathways like channels and tunnels for the air to flow. Your little friends basically made you a flow shroud out of cat hair and dust.

[@DethNade]

Do you have any Air Purifier? Should buy 2 of them.

[@Fifthranger]

One PC I had about a decade went from running Dota 2 very well to barely running it on potato settings. Cleaned it and it ran like new. Think that was like a year and a half of not cleaning.

[@superpandabacon]

Can’t believe they let Lyle do the sponsor spots now lol

[@NagoyaRR]

Kinda funny that the inside is basically as dusty as mine without any dustfilter at the front.

[@jameshopkins1919]

How many rpm did those fans get to when you were blowing, that was aircraft turbofan sounding!

[@virtualmidwest3394]

[@kharkaroto9486]

Your pc wasn't even that bad. Looks pretty clean for 6 months.

[@nebadon2025]

get the cats heated bed/ heating pads?

[@TheBlueBunnyKen]

My nephew would probably have his allergic cat reaction just by watching this video

[@mbrosenb86]

Looks like you’re gonna need some magnetic top dust filters, because of all the cats and gravity

[@RemyL75]

IT'S LYLE!! HI LYLE!! WE MISS YOU LY&LE!!

[@Ashstonished]

Wait.. your cat had PC? PC for Cats... I guess KZbin failed to notify me of the old cat pc video then. Wish I was a cat.. meow

[@hang10wannabe]

As a fellow pet owner, the dander and fur is the real struggle!

[@harishnarain]

Is there going to be another Hotline in the future?

[@Gremlin256]

Never use a duster/blower on a case fan... it will create electricity back into the board

[@feeterican]

Yeah, I keep my PC clean by having it on the floor under my desk. It's been a year since I cleaned mine and looks 10X better than the before of your PC. And I have a long hair cat.

[@TheBlueBunnyKen]

It all depends on area too, if you live in a dusty area, you will have to dust more often. I live in a desert, so dust builds up fast. I don't let it build up though

[@ImranOO7]

You can have a cover put on the tower when you’re not using but otherwise you’ve allowed the cat to lay there while you’ve been using it. I’ve never known anyone to allow their cats to lay on top of their tower especially when it’s been on, unless you wanted to make a video.

[@bikedoc4145]

4000D has extremely good airflow or at least my 4000D Airflow did. So other cases that don't breath as well you will probably see a bigger difference than with the 4000D

[@stefanpotirniche]

You can solve the problem by moving your pc in a case which doesn't have top exhaust like antec p120 crystal and fractal torrent, quick models from my memory

[@DRFyfe-yb8hc]

I see you don't subscribe to the notion that spinning your fans at a high speed will damage components. It's never broken anything of mine.