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AKLGUY79

87 posts

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#282778 11-Mar-2021 15:21
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Normally I go through an can once every couple of months of a small can of compressed air like https://www.pbtech.co.nz/product/TOLSTO1040/Dynamix-CK-AD400-400ml-Air-Duster-Non-Flammable-hi

 

 

 

Does anyone have a nice small USB solution that can do the job without getting a big heavy duty compressor.

 

I have seen USB blowers on AliExpress but they do not seem to have the blowing power as in couldn't move dust in a small box that the can of compressed air does 


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neb

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  #2672022 11-Mar-2021 21:59
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If you've got a compressor, what about one of these?



dt

dt
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  #2672046 11-Mar-2021 23:20
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if you're going through them that often maybe consider getting yourself a small air compressor, I picked up a second hand ozito on trademe last year for $75

 

bunnings sell the same one I have for $159 so would pay for itself in a year with the amount of cans youre going through

 

https://www.bunnings.co.nz/ozito-6l-1-5hp-air-compressor-kit_p0048827

 

few other cheaper options you could consider on there as well or just keep an eye out for bargains on trademe 


Scott3
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  #2672049 11-Mar-2021 23:42
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Anybody tried the likes of this?

 

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/10000183906144.html

 

6500+ orders and good reviews. Marketed as a drop in replacement for canned air.

 

 

 

Otherwise something like this?

 

https://www.dealsdirect.co.nz/product/blower-600w-ingco/

 

 

 

Good on you for phasing out your canned "air" use. I couldn't find out what was in Dynamix can's, but typically the non-flammable dusters are R-134a, which has a global warming potential of 1430. 




fe31nz
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  #2672055 12-Mar-2021 00:13
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The major reason for using canned "air" instead of using your vacuum cleaner is to prevent static electricity damaging your PC.  Anything you use to replace canned air must meet that requirement, and not much does.  You can buy commercial anti-static vacuums (for a price) from places like Element14 - you would use them in a data centre for example.  But there is nothing I know of that is anti-static and priced for home use.  Compressors create a lot of static electricity - avoid them.


neb

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  #2672302 12-Mar-2021 14:25
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fe31nz:

The major reason for using canned "air" instead of using your vacuum cleaner is to prevent static electricity damaging your PC.



Unless you're living in a sealed air conditioned office this is unlikely to be an issue in NZ's subtropical climate. When was the last time, in NZ, that you got a zap from static buildup?

Juicytree
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  #2672306 12-Mar-2021 14:38
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If you have any Ryobi tools and hence a battery, you may be able to adapt one of these Inflators - RYOBI Tools


 
 
 

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Ge0rge
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  #2672330 12-Mar-2021 15:08
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neb:
fe31nz:

The major reason for using canned "air" instead of using your vacuum cleaner is to prevent static electricity damaging your PC.



Unless you're living in a sealed air conditioned office this is unlikely to be an issue in NZ's subtropical climate. When was the last time, in NZ, that you got a zap from static buildup?


When I get out of the wife's car. Every. Single. Time.

However, back on topic - you can earth the nozzle of the compressor to help alleviate static build up

DonH
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  #2672358 12-Mar-2021 16:28
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Agreed. Metal / earthed nozzle. Using a small air compressor shouldn't be a problem so long as the nozzle is metal and in contact with your hand to drain any static buildup.

 

As for getting zapped when getting out of your car, it's not static buildup between the car and road - it's between you and the car, caused by your clothes rubbing over the car seat. I developed the habit of resting my hand on the top of the door while exiting to drain the charge.





People hear what they see. - Doris Day


neb

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  #2672368 12-Mar-2021 17:08
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Ge0rge: When I get out of the wife's car. Every. Single. Time.

 

 

I got it in office buildings in the US, and occasionally in Europe, to the point where I would always ground myself on door handles using a metal key before opening them. Luckily now I've got a brass Hygiene Hand that does the same thing for me automatically.

fe31nz
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  #2673527 13-Mar-2021 00:07
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For those who do not know about static electricity and electronics, you do not need to have a visible spark for there to be a problem.  The discharge can be completely invisible but still do damage.  A visible spark is likely to do heaps of damage.  And there is also damage that happens by field effect.  If you have a static charge on you or some equipment, and you put it near a semiconductor junction, you are creating an electrostatic field between the two, which is also capable of doing damage.  Static damage will not necessarily immediately kill a device - it may only weaken it and reduce its lifetime.  Field effect damage is more likely to work like this.

 

So whenever you are working on electronics, always make sure you are using a wrist strap to keep yourself at the same potential as the electronics.  And preferably also use an anti-static mat under the electronics as well.  When electronic devices are not in a circuit, or a card is not in a device, keep them inside anti-static bags and only touch them when you have a wrist strap on and are at the same potential as the bag.  If you are careful with your electronics, it can have a very long life.  If you never take proper anti-static precautions, it is likely that your electronics will die early and often.

 

If you are working on electronics and do not have a proper setup, but you do have a stainless steel sink bench, by law that sink bench must be grounded, so it is a good workspace.  If you keep one hand on the metal, you will also be properly grounded.  However, make sure whatever you are working on is never powered up on the sink bench as a short to such a good ground from the mains through you is usually fatal.  Proper wrist straps and anti-static mats come with a big resistor in the path to earth to prevent death in the case of mains coming in contact with the mat or wrist strap.  The resistor slows down the discharge of static electricity also, so when you put on the wrist strap or touch the mat, if you have a charge on you there will not be a spark as it discharges.

 

If you are going to use a compressor and ground its nozzle, that ground also needs to be the same one connected to the PC you are working on and to you via a wrist strap.  I would still not recommend using a compressor though, unless you are able to test its airflow for static electricity by using an electroscope.  Having the nozzle grounded does not necessarily mean that all the air coming out of the nozzle is at ground potential.  Air does not conduct well so air from the sides of the nozzle may have been grounded, but air from the centre may not.  The air blowers used around electronics production lines used to ensure the air was not carrying a static charge by passing it past a radiation source.  There is probably a better way now, but when I was working for an electronics manufacturing company, our Chief Engineer had to be certified for handling the atomic radiation used in the blowers.


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