Dirtiest computer...

**Guts3d** · October 31st, 2005, 06:47 AM

I just pulled out fistfuls of hair, dust and unidentifiable gunk out of the dirtiest, dustiest computer that it has been my misfortune to work on. I am going to charge this clown extra for the maid service! I wish I would have taken pics to post here... Anyone else have this happen?

**TechZ** · October 31st, 2005, 08:08 AM

Dust is a common problem over here, so seen lots of that, never hair and stuff, ewww.

**Ferrit** · October 31st, 2005, 09:40 AM

I just plant potatoes usually

**firemonkey** · October 31st, 2005, 02:01 PM

I worked on a machine, that had a inch of nicoten stained hair, dust, mice poop and cob webs. The front of the computer between the case and the pastic benzel was packed solid with the same mixture actuall sticking out the front. The fan was stuck with hair. I have pics someplace I will have to post them if I can find them.

BTW.

we charged double to clean it.

**BOB IROC** · October 31st, 2005, 02:42 PM

I think the dirtiest computer I ever worked on is when I was a tech for Gateway and when I opened up the case a family of cochroaches scattered. It was filled with all sorts of dust. The sticky kind like someone smoked around the computer and it was caked with tar. We actually billed the customer for our extermination fee of the cochroaches. It was gross. At one point I had pictures of the inside of the case. It was so bad you could hardly make out individual computer componants. And the customer wondered why the computer was locking up and they called it a piece of sh!t. I could only imagine what their house or trailer looked like. Yuck!!

**Atodini** · October 31st, 2005, 02:46 PM

A few years back we had a contract for a health authority to service computers at doctors, dentists, health centres and general medical offices. The schedule was just to blow out, clean and remove any unauthorised software every six months, plus call-outs.

The first dentist surgery I visited, when I opened the case I could not believe what I saw. Shame that in those days I didn't carry a digital camera around with me!!

The whole of the interior of the case was solid full of grey/white dust, with tunnels set into it where the air paths went..... spooky! Unsurprisingly, neither the CD ROM or the floppy drive worked, and both had to be replaced - more surprisingly the dust had failed to penetrate the hard disk which worked fine! All the machines were Compaq by the way, mostly PII 350 EN's, all running WIN 95.

The next dentist I visited had two machines, both of which were almost identically clogged up - this became the norm for dentists surgeries, though at subsequent visits the machines were just very dusty, seems that none had been serviced for some time..

Even now I'm still puzzled as to what dentists do to fill up their computers like this....

After our two years was up we declined to renew the contract, nothing to do with the medical staff, many of whom have remained regular customers to this day.

The reason for quitting was simply that, if I needed to replace any components on site I had to retospectively fill in a "variation" form to claim the cost back, all too often this was rejected as unnecessary, to the extent where we ended up making a (thankfully small) loss on the contract.

I will not be tendering for any public sector work again!!

The worst customer for computer cleanliness that I have presently is actually a very nice lady with an immaculate house who is unfortunately an extremely heavy smoker! Her computer gets three-monthly clean-outs but is always full of thick brown evil smelling tar & sticky fluff, which gets everywhere!! NOT a pleasant job I assure you. Nicotine must be quite a good insulator though as the (once red) MSI mobo is now stained completely black but still the beast works!! It must also be a lubricant as well as I've never had to replace any fans in three/four years, even the northbridge one - my own (similar) MSI mobo is on its third northbridge fan in the same period.

John

**El_Squid** · October 31st, 2005, 03:24 PM

I can only assume that the greyish white gunk in those Dentists' machines was either ground up teeth (yech) or that fine powdery junk they use to sandblast your teeth with. Did it have a minty aroma to it?

**Potato Salad** · November 5th, 2005, 12:53 PM

The comp i was working on wasnt physicaly dirty but the guy had 5000+spyware/virus's and about 20gigs on downloaded porn. So of course he bought anti virus from me.