In the UK, a spot of hot weather always gets us lots of extra support calls about computers crashing and running slowly and clients asking how they can keep their computers cool during the summer months and hot weather.
With each machine and person generating 100’s of watts of heat, it can soon become impossible to work both for you and your newfound mini-heaters. The hotter it gets, the more heat computers produce and the slower they work. This is because modem machines slow down their CPU to keep cool when they start to get too warm, so not only will you and your colleagues feel warmer, but your computer’s performance will be slower!
Our Tips To Keep Your Computers Cool During The Summer
To help you keep your computers nice and cool during the summer months, we’ve put together these helpful tips, which we hope you find useful!
Turn off spare or unused equipment
If it’s not in use turn it off! This includes monitors, plasma TV’s, unused fridges, spotlights (fitted LEDs) and anything else with a heat-generating power supply.
We can allow computers to be turned on remotely if needed.
Make sure everything that can be is off overnight
When your office is empty and overnight, ensure anything that doesn’t need to be on, is turned off! Install timer switches on water heaters and coolers, and anything else that gets warm to save time turning on and off.
Clear any junk from around the base unit
Removing plastic bags, handbags, box files, paperwork and yellow pages away from PC base units (sides, back and front) makes a huge difference to its ability to keep cool.
Keep laptops away from paperwork and on a clean firm surface
Laptops work much better and faster when they are cool, and when the space around them is clear, they will stay cooler! Also, the fans will only work if they are not obstructed.
Close down apps so your computer works less hard
Remove unnecessary software from your system and this will help save your computer on energy and hence help it to stay cooler. Run super-anti-spyware, cleaner and check for multiple antivirus software being installed, which will add to your systems processes.
Additionally, remove unnecessary start-up software and your PC will work less hard doing nothing useful, and hence run cooler.
Close blinds and windows to keep your machine out of direct sunlight.
Allowing sunlight and hence heat into your workspace will increase the air temperature and help your computers to generate more heat. Keeping blinds and windows closed and machines out of direct sunlight will help to keep your systems cooler. Additionally, use fans to circulate more air.
Get your heating turned off!
It sounds ludicrous, but a number of offices we visit out of hours have their heating on all year round. Often being turned up full blast overnight as well as at weekends, when they are completely empty. Track down the controls for your heating and get it turned off! Also, check for fan heaters running under desks and get rid of them before they burn down your offices!
If you have air conditioning, keep an eye out for leaks and get pumps replaced or cleaned regularly before they leak over your electrics.
Get your machines valeted!
We clean out fans, advise and install memory upgrades and re-seat the CPU fan, replacing the cooling paste.
This type of machine valeting can make a big difference and in dusty environments needs doing yearly. If you have pets and laptops, the fans inside can easily get clogged and can become slow and overheat.
Upgrade to a solid-state hard disk
Upgrading to an SSD will make your computers run up to 10 times faster, cooler and with no moving parts will be less likely to be physically damaged.
Give us a call on 020 8099 5540 to book a valet for all your office PCs. It’s much cheaper than buying new ones!
If all else fails, take your laptop to an air-conditioned cafe and work.
For more information speak to our team and book a valet for all your office PC’s; it’s much cheaper than buying new ones!