Keep It Flowing

Do you know the saying about the sidewalk being hot enough to fry an egg on? It sounds funny, but not if it applies to the inside of your computer case. Air flow is key to the longevity of your system. Your case should have a front and rear fan, along with your power supply fan and any other cooling devices you have installed. In order to regulate the temperature inside your case, you do not want all fans blowing out of the machine. Pushing hot air out alone will not cool the components inside. The fan at the front of your case should be blowing inward, sucking cool air in and filtering it across the inside. The rear fan should be extracting the hot air generated by the computer, sending it outside the case. Also, you should regularly check the vents on your computer case for dust building up. This can block the vents and stop the fans from doing their jobs. Use a can of compressed air, holding it a few inches away from the openings, to clear dust away. You should also do this carefully to the inside of the case every so often to avoid any dust building up inside the system as well.