Computer Equipment Care

1. Keep your computer in a clean, cool, and dry place.

2. Keep the computer out of direct sunlight and away from heat sources.
3. Clean your computer and keyboard inside with canned air at least once per year.
Clean your computer more frequently if it is in a particularly dusty location.
Caution: Ingesting canned air has serious side effects, make sure to keep the can out
of reach of children (of all ages).
4. Use a damp (not wet) rag to wipe the outside of your computer, keyboard, monitor,
and mouse. Don’t forget to take the ball out of the mouse and clean out the cavity and
the surface of the ball. Note: computers should be unplugged during this process to
avoid electrocution and damage to parts.
5. Turn your computer off when you are not using it. This can save hundreds of dollars a
year in energy costs (estimated at over $300). It also provides a “clean start” for your
software each time you turn on your computer.
6. Never eat or drink near your computer. Food and liquids spilled in keyboards and
picked up by mice can render them unusable. Keep paperclips and staples out of the
keyboard as they can fall between the keys and cause undesirable results.
7. Treat the equipment with care. The old “kick it” philosophy is not good.
8. Keep area around computer free of clutter so that fans and circulation of air are not
hampered (causing the computer to overheat).