Key Takeaways
- Turning off my PC and cleaning junk files every once in a while isn’t something I like doing, and it hasn’t affected my system performance.
- Cleaning my mechanical keyboard and mouse is something I do only when they get visibly dirty.
- Deep cleaning my PC is a daunting task, as is getting rid of the cable jungle behind my desk.
When you’re using your PC every day — whether for work or play — it’s easy to forget that you need to perform regular maintenance to keep everything working well. Then there’s a kind of PC user who’s too lazy to perform said maintenance tasks even if they remember them and are well aware of their importance. And that’s the group of users I fall into.
Over the years, I’ve built and used many PCs, and until a certain age, I used to diligently follow a PC maintenance schedule to keep my rigs spick and span. But, as the years took their toll on me, I grew lazier than usual and started ignoring some of the basic PC upkeep that’s considered essential. But in my defense, ignoring these maintenance tasks hasn’t posed any major issues to my PC in years. And that’s probably why I’ve grown accustomed to delaying them ad infinitum.
Related
6 things I do every month to maintain my PC
Here’s a list of the six maintenance tasks I perform every month to extend the longevity of my system
5 Turning the PC off once in a while
I prefer eternal sleep
You would have heard about this — shutting down your computer once every week/month is essential. The reason behind this age-old advice is that if your PC keeps running for days on end without a hard reboot, things like cache and a build-up of background apps and processes can start affecting the performance of the system. Hence, a weekly or fortnightly shut down can “flush the toxins” out of the system, so to speak, and give your PC’s memory some breathing room.
I want my rig to always be at the ready, hence I always use the Sleep mode.
While there’s merit behind this idea, I’ve rarely, if ever, noticed a performance drop on my machine simply because I didn’t turn it off for weeks. I’m one of the users who can’t wait for the extra few seconds it takes for their PCs to reboot. I want my rig to always be at the ready, hence I always use Sleep mode. Even Windows updates can’t force me to reboot, as it’s one of the apps I keep disabled on my Windows PC (I accept the consequences of my actions).
I also happen to run tons of apps in the background, from Wallpaper Engine and SignalRGB to Discord, Steam, and Plex, so I don’t like to wait for everything to turn on after every reboot.
Related
6 things about Windows that still frustrate me every single day
Using Windows every day is still not enough for me to get used to its many frustrating aspects
4 Getting rid of junk files and apps
I’m waiting till the drives bleed red
Freeing up space on your computer every month is another oft-advised and well-intentioned PC maintenance tip that can keep your drives performing at their full potential. It’s often mentioned that you should keep around 20% free space on your SSD to avoid performance slowdowns. While that number might seem a tad high, especially on 1TB and 2TB drives (also because SSDs already have over-provisioning controls in place even at full capacity), the logic is sound.
The only time I try to free up space is when I see one of the partitions turn red in the File Explorer.
An SSD with considerably more free space than one without will most likely perform better, but I don’t like sacrificing my precious storage space. So, apart from my boot drive, which always has around 20% free space, I don’t particularly engage in deleting temporary files or removing rarely used applications. Plus, my total 2TB of storage is currently more than enough for all of my files. The only time I try to free up space is when I see one of the partitions turn red in the File Explorer.
This has not affected the performance of my applications or the responsiveness of my system, so I’ll probably continue doing what I’m doing. As for the longevity of the drives, I’ll have upgraded my PC long before any of the drives are anywhere near their TBW rating.
Related
How does an SSD store data?
SSDs offer fast, durable, energy-efficient storage via NAND flash, advanced controllers, and DRAM caches. Here’s how they work.
3 Cleaning the keyboard and mouse regularly
I’m sure I’m not the only one
The keyboard and the mouse are the devices you have the most contact with when using your PC. Apart from the oil residue and dead skin cells deposited on your keyboard and mouse, they’re also prone to the dust in your room. In just a matter of a few weeks, my keyboard and mouse can start looking really old. To avoid this, I either need to clean them every few days, or use some other way to keep things relatively clean.
Well, cleaning a mechanical keyboard takes an awful lot of time.
I prefer the latter. My mechanical keyboard came with a transparent solid cover in the box, which is what I use to protect it from dust when I’m done using the PC. I don’t have a similar system for the mouse, but when I eventually start seeing serious discoloration on the left and right switches or the body of the mouse, that’s when I remove the shell and give it a good cleaning.
Delaying things until absolutely necessary is a theme you might have noticed about me if you’ve reached here. Well, cleaning a mechanical keyboard takes an awful lot of time, and I prefer reserving half a day every two months rather than cleaning it regularly every week or so.
Related
How to clean different types of mousepads
Because everyone deserves to aim like a pro.
2 Getting rid of the cable jungle behind the desk
Easier said than done
If you’re not one of the obsessive PC builders who go extremely hard on cable management, you likely have a mess of cables behind your desk. From the power cables for the PC, monitor, speakers, and more to the HDMI/DP cable, speaker AUX/USB cable, USB passthrough cable, and power strip cable, things can get pretty messy pretty fast. Achieving a cable-free PC setup look might be tough, but just tidying up this cable jungle is nothing short of arduous.
The best time to tidy up the back of your desk is at the time of building the PC.
Not once since I built my current PC around 2 years ago did I get around to solving the cable puzzle behind my desk. It doesn’t look clean, but it’s not getting in the way of anything, at least not yet. To gain the motivation to cable manage my way around this mess, something drastic will have to happen — either I’ll spend on a desk upgrade or decide to move houses.
The best time to tidy up the back of your desk is at the time of building the PC, since you’re already in work mode and you can better plan the entire setup. For others like me, however, try some self-talk techniques to convince yourself to take out time to finally address the cable jungle one day.
Related
The step-by-step guide for perfect PC cable management
PC cable management is an important part of the PC building process. Here’s a step-by-step PC cable management guide to help you get started.
1 Deep cleaning the PC
The PC maintenance final boss
The other PC maintenance tasks might look tame in front of this one, as deep cleaning your PC can send shivers down the spine of even the most dedicated PC users. After all, cleaning your PC isn’t limited to the exterior of the case or the tempered glass on the side. It includes painstakingly cleaning the case fans, graphics card, CPU cooler fans, hard-to-reach areas of the motherboard, and the rest of the interior of the case.
You can imagine my reluctance to go through this ordeal regularly, which is why I try to do this only once a year.
It goes without saying that to fully clean your PC tower, you need to disassemble it in most cases, take the CPU cooler and graphics card apart, and even remove the motherboard if needed. You can imagine my reluctance to go through this ordeal regularly, which is why I try to do this only once a year. A PC deep clean requires immense courage and gathering of all your internal strength and motivation to finally feel ready for the task, hence it’s not an easy job by any standards.
If you’re not lazy like me, you should aim for a deep clean every 3 to 6 months, if possible. If your PC room is relatively protected from dust, you might be able to make this a yearly exercise.
Related
How to stop your computer from overheating
An overheating computer can really dampen performance. Luckily, it’s easy to fix with this simple guide.
PC maintenance is a necessary, but not urgent, evil
Maintaining your PC regularly is the right thing to do. It prevents a variety of potential issues, and keeps your PC healthy, both internally and externally. But, it’s not always easy to do, whether due to a lack of time or motivation. Plus, if you’re like me, I try to push maintenance till the time it’s absolutely necessary. And it has served me well till now.