Hi, I've read somewhere you should never clean fans by vaccuuming them, as it could send them into an RPM higher than what they were designed for, and neither should you manually rotate them when they are off (forgot the reason). My question is, is this true? If my fan is off and I move the blades around to clean it, am I actually breaking it? Also, I've searched and search for an explanation on how fans work, and what makes a ball-bearing fan any different from another model. Any pointer would be appreciated! TIA!
A fan is basicly a propellor attached to an electromotor... The basic principles of electromagnetism work on this, there for if you supply a current to the windings inside the motor, the shaft (and therefor the prop) spins... But also the opposite is true. If you spin the shaft, there will be a current generated. If you vacuum a fan, it spins very fast, faster than what it was designed for, and induces a much higher current... Therefor it can break (and everything it supply's current to, like your mobo)... But don't be frightend, if you manually spin it, at low RPM's the current won't be high enough for damage... And the type of bearing doesn't matter in your question. I don't know if you know what bearings do, but they essentially make the connection between a rotating and a static object. The type of bearing just influences the resistance... Off course, everthing I told is much simplified for a more detailed explanation, use google
You shouldn't vacuum anything electronic - vacuums are static generators! In theory you could send it to crazy RPMs and break it, but that's unlikely. As for turning them when they're off, never heard that, and I've done it hundreds of times without issue. You generate power that way, so if they're connected to anything and they're going at 12000RPM, there's a chance of damaging something they're attached to. As for ball-bearing versus other types, it basically comes down to lifespan, price, and noise levels. All basically do the same thing.
what if you were to didconnect the fan and hold it so it doesn't spin while vacuuming... will this harm it as well??
The only time I broke a fan by making it go too fast was when i gave one a blast with a can of compressed air. It was a very old 40mm fan though. Itjust broke off the bearings and flew off.
I do this all the time and I've never broken a fan... you'll find that the dust is stuck to the blades sometimes though, so a cloth or piece of tissue is handy for getting it off.
All that may be true, but a case fan has a semiconductor switching system and when not plugged in all those switches are firmly off. No circuit, no current. And static rarely affects components once the pins are soldered or plugged in place. Vacuum-cleaning only damages components if you put them on the floor and go over them with the beaters, just use the brush attachment on the hose. I usually loosen the crud with a paint-brush, then vac.
I'll chime in to say that I've just cleaned my 2x 12cm in/out take fans, vga cooler fan and cpu heatsink with a vaccuum, a painbrush and a lint-free cloth / rubbing alcolhol combo. Worked wonders -8c average !! Thanks for all the info.
paper towel or old t-shirt is what I've always done.... (Lint free? Uh -probably a good idea, but I've never bothered...)
