Iceland volcanic ash and my PC

[David McNally]

On Tue, Apr 20, 2010 at 5:15 AM, axel <uraliin.asti at btinternet.com> wrote:
> On Mon, 2010-04-19 at 16:55 -0400, David McNally wrote:
>> On Mon, Apr 19, 2010 at 5:09 AM, axel <uraliin.asti at btinternet.com> wrote:
>> > Greetings!
>> >
>> > I run a Dell Inspiron 1501 with Ubuntu 8.04. and I live in London where
>> > the air pollution is so bad you dont need to smoke to be a candidate for
>> > all kind of breathing problems.
>> >
>> > About a year ago I had a Dell Service Tech replace the Dell PC fans ,
>> > filters and a few other bits and pieces : due to the fact that the PC
>> > was crashing due to high Temperature.
>> > His recommendation was to blow high pressure purified air into fan
>> > intakes.
>> >
>> > Further reading on the subject , I found the opposite opinion :that was
>> > the last thing you should do, as it blows all the dust inwards...past
>> > the filters and into the system.
>> > i.e. in other words the remedy lies in using a vacuum cleaner and point
>> > it at the fan intakes.
>> >
>> > Now with all this ash coming my way...
>> >
>> > I would appreciate your thoughts on the subject,
>> > Cheers,
>> > Axel.
>> >
>> >
>> > --
>> > ubuntu-users mailing list
>> > ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com
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>> >
>>
>> Hi! I don't really have much experience with this, but in my
>> experience the best thing to do if dust gets in your computer is to
>> just open the hardware, and shoot purified air into it with the
>> machine open. That's probably better than shooting the dust into the
>> computer.
>>
>> However, the ash from the Icelandic volcano probably isn't going to
>> mess with the computer that much. The ash is at very high altitudes,
>> and probably won't really affect you much at all. If you are nervous
>> about getting ash inside your computer, then don't take the computer
>> outdoors until the ash passes. If you do have to take it outside, put
>> it in a messenger bag or briefcase or something that will cover it
>> from the ash. I don't know if you usually use your computer outdoors,
>> but you probably don't want to try it (the weather won't be that nice
>> anyway).
>>
>> But really, the ash is so high up, you probably won't need to worry
>> about it. It most likely won't really affect you that much (unless
>> you're planning to travel on an airplane, in which case you're
>> screwed). And as Nils said, even if this could hurt your computer,
>> your own health is probably more important.
>>
>> David
>>
>> --
>> David McNally
>> david3333333 at gmail.com
>> Linux Kernel 2.6.31-17-generic
>
> David , Thank you. The "ash" was really mentioned tongue in cheek.
>
>> The real problem is the quality of the "London air".
> I brought the subject up in this forum , as I assumed air quality is a
> widespread problem this day, thus it would be of common interest.
> I was wrong.
> I got most comments from smart asses.
>
> Your suggestion is good...but how easy is it to take the "back cover"
> off? and not disturb something , that I will regret!
> Cheers
> Axel.
>
>
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> ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com
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>

Hi Axel.

I wish I could help you out with this, but I've only taken apart
desktops before. The only time that I opened a laptop was with
supervision from a Gateway customer service person over the phone
(back when I used Windows). Dell's customer service (which I've worked
with a lot) isn't very good, and you might not want to turn to them.
If you know someone who's good with hardware, maybe they can help out.
I have a family friend who is an electrician, and he's fixed my
hardware several times before. It usually takes him about 10 minutes,
and he's a friend of ours, so he does it for free. He's probably saved
me hours on the phone with customer service and lots of money in
repairs or new computers.

Cleaning the inside probably won't take more than 5 minutes for
someone who really knows how to, so if you know them well they might
do it for free (or cheap). If that doesn't work, then take it to a
shop that specialises in computer repairs. There's a place near me
that's great for these kinds of things, and it's just a small business
with three employees. They're a bit on the expensive side, but they're
good for fixing these kinds of things. Considering that you're in
London, you'll probably find something not far from where you live.
You can probably find someone you can trust to take apart the machine
for a few minutes nearby.

Good luck!

David

-- 
David McNally
david3333333 at gmail.com
Linux Kernel 2.6.31-17-generic