Appreciation post: I watched a friend try to fix his laptop with a vacuum cleaner

He was trying to clear dust from the fan vents on his gaming rig, and the static from his household vacuum made the whole thing freeze up. I had to explain that compressed air is the only safe way for that job, and it saved him from a dead motherboard. What's the weirdest 'fix' you've seen someone attempt on their own gear?

3 comments

3 Comments

andrew9161mo ago

Man, it's wild how people just assume anything with a motor and a cord can fix electronics. Same thing happens with fridges - everyone thinks you can just whack them or blow-dry the ice buildup without realizing you're basically signing the death warrant for the compressor. I swear, half the broken electronics I see in dumpsters are just victims of someone trying to "fix" them with a tool that clearly doesn't belong anywhere near a circuit board. It's like we collectively forgot that static electricity is real and can fry things in a blink.

grayb643mo ago

Ryanburns is totally right about the static risk. I watched a cousin try to 'clean' his PlayStation with one of those handheld vacs and it just never turned on again. He was so confused, but that zap must have hit something vital. It’s scary how fast it happens. A can of air is just so much safer for those tight spots.

ryanburns3mo ago

Made the whole thing freeze up"... that's putting it lightly. The static from a vacuum can actually fry components on contact. He's incredibly lucky it just froze and didn't spark.