It’s normal for dust particles to settle inside a PS5. After all, the device was built in a way that small particles could enter over time. When faced with this problem, the very first thing people would often do is use a vacuum, but can the PS5 handle the vacuum’s suction power?
You can’t vacuum a PS5 with common vacuum models because the suction generates dangerous levels of static and may harm the console’s fans. However, vacuums with low suction power can safely clean the PS5.
This article discusses how static electricity is formed by vacuums and how this might compromise your console’s fan. It will also explain how to safely clean your PS5, so if you’re dying to dust off your console and get back to playing, read on!
Can You Vacuum a PS5?
To keep the PS5 running the way it does, Sony has to produce precise metal components and wiring networks. When these are damaged, they cannot run the same way or may break down entirely. And as a fellow gamer, I know you wouldn’t want that.
A Vacuum Produces Static Electricity
Our science teachers taught us that static electricity is produced when you rub two materials together. This is even stronger when both materials are insulators. Upon contact, electrons move away from the atoms, producing a static electricity charge.
This mechanism allows many vacuum cleaners to produce lots of static electricity.
Remember that many current vacuum models have tubes made of plastic, and plastic is an insulating material. Additionally, vacuum cleaners draw in air. If your room is particularly dusty, many dust particles will find their way traveling through the tube.
The rubbing of dust particles, which are a bunch of insulators, and the plastic tubing create static electricity. This electricity produced can easily travel through everyday household electronics such as your PS5.
How Static Electricity Kills Your Electronics
This static transmission is dangerous for your PS5 because it can damage its sensitive electronic components. For one, too much static electricity can cause the metals to overheat or, in other words, a “frying” of the metals. It’s nearly impossible to recover a metal that has been fried.
Furthermore, it may also cause junction breakdown or oxide failure.
A Vacuum Can Damage Your PS5’s Fans
The blades on the fans that cool your PS5 tend to be made of light materials. This lightness is what makes them capable of producing air. If a vacuum with an overwhelming suction power damages this material, this can ruin the cooling capacity of the fans.
This leads to overheating. When this happens, you can anticipate the following problems:
- Slow loading times.
- Frequent screen freezes.
- Graphic glitches.
Vacuums can cause damage to other components of the PS5, too. Suction power that is too strong is always an enemy of sensitive electronics.
Luckily, some vacuum models are explicitly designed to deal with devices such as keyboards, phones, and even your PS5.
Dyson, for example, has come up with a vacuum accessory with very gentle suction power and soft bristles. They claim that although this product is tough on dust, it’s gentle on your product’s surfaces.
So unless you know that your vacuum can be gentle enough to neither produce static electricity nor damage sensitive components, it might be best to opt for a different cleaning method.
Can Dust Damage PS5?
Dust can damage your PS5 by blocking the holes that regulate heat. This is even more of a problem in areas with humid climates, as dust tends to clump more.
Furthermore, since dust is an insulating material, it prevents electricity transmission between wires. If your PS5 suddenly has performance issues, dust may have accumulated on sensitive components.
How Do I Clean the Dust Out of My PS5?
So how do you deal with the dust then if you can’t vacuum it? Well, there are a lot of safer but still effective options.
You can clean the dust out of your PS5 by removing the cover and using a soft-bristle brush to gently wipe the dust away. You can also use canned air. Regularly cleaning your PS5 will help maintain it in the long term.
Here is a step-by-step procedure on how to clean your PS5:
- Lay your PS5 horizontally on a surface. Tug on the upper-right corner and push to the left. This should take off the cover.
- Do the same for the other side. Now, you will see the exhaust fans. Beside them is a series of holes called the intake areas. Both sides of the PS5 have this.
- Using a soft brush, clean this area. Remove any residue using canned air.
- Take the cover aside. Use your brush to clean the clumps of dust.
- Clean the cover. You can spray the cover with alcohol and wipe the surface with some tissue.
If you still aren’t satisfied, you can do a bit more cleaning using these steps:
- Remove the corner piece on the upper left side of the PS5. You can find this above the fan.
- Unscrew the plates of the cooling fans.
- Remove the black adhesive plate below the fan’s lower left side.
- Use pliers to remove the fan’s connector. Be very careful with this. You should be pulling the head of the wires and not the wires themselves.
- Then, take out the fan and clean it with a soft-bristle brush.
- The place where the fan used to be is now hollow. Clean the grills below and on the sides using your brush.
- Connect the fan back together and place it in. Place the adhesive plate and the corner piece back as well. Place back the cover.
Ideally, you should have sufficiently cleaned your PS5, so dust should no longer be a problem for your cooling fans. But if you still want deeper cleaning, you may have to call an expert, as disassembling the PS5 further exposes the motherboard and other sensitive components.
Mishandling these may ruin the entire console altogether.
Is It Better To Stand Up the PS5 To Reduce Dust?
As long as your console fan is operational, dust will always be sucked into your console. No matter the orientation, be it vertical or horizontal, dust comes in at every angle. What really determines the amount of dust is the environment where the PS5 is located.
As such, it would be advisable to open the windows to let the fresh air take out dust particles and to make sure that the room with the PS5 is always clean.
It isn’t better to stand up the PS5 to reduce dust. Dust will inevitably settle no matter what angle the device is placed. The only way to ensure your console is clean is to regularly remove the cover and clean it.
Summary
Your PS5 provides you with hours and hours of entertainment, so you want it to be functioning properly at all times. To keep it functioning well, you need to clean it regularly to prevent the accumulation of dust.
While you can choose to use a vacuum if it has a soft brush accessory, it’s not recommended to use a standard vacuum cleaner, since this could damage the delicate electrical components of your console.
