Thinking of Opening my PS3 Phat to Clean the Dust. Thoughts?

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Ecofreak

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My 80 GB PS3 (software compatible version) is hitting it's 2nd birthday in two weeks, and I'm both anxious and curious about the amount of dust the Beast has inhaled. My concern has grown a bit tonight, as I felt like Super Street Fighter IV was stuttering at some points during training mode, which hasn't happened before. I felt the system's side and it felt hotter than normal.

So either I'm being overly sensitive to these "hiccups" or my PS3 is in danger of overheating because of all the dust it's eaten.

I wanted to get people's opinion on the matter. Should I
1) Open up the PS3 to clean and risk damaging the system during disassemble and repair. I have a couple of friends who are also good w/ electronics.
2) Leave the system until a problem actually occurs

There's a really instructive video on Youtube about how to open a PSPhat -- it's geared towards fixing the YLOD but I'd be following the same steps.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_Ic1_TY-GU&playnext_from=TL&videos=L8IL_kcrcvY


Does anyone have any experience with this?
 
Go for it. It can't hurt since there's no warranty anyway. Unless you're completely stupid, opening it up to clean dust won't hurt it.
 
I'm actually about ready to open mine up and give it a good cleaning. I'm not really worried about getting it back together. My apartment is extremely dusty, and the PS3 is the dust magnet.
 
It'd be pretty neat for those brave enough to snap some pics of the dust inside our systems and crown a winner of "dustiest system".

A dubious prize, perhaps?
 
I may have to open mines up, it started shutting off by itself and I saw the yellow light briefly the third time it happened..

Thanks for the link to the vid.
 
I have a 60gb phat and am about to open mine up to replace the power supply with a cooler running one. My system works great with no problems, but it does get real hot and the fan is soooo loud. This will be the first time opening up my system, but I know I can exchange the power supply no problem.
 
I've had my PS3 over 3 years now. It stays dusty as hell to be honest. I'm shocked it still runs without any issues to be honest with you. I know I would win a dust contest. Although I wouldn't open it up and clean it. I would be paranoid it would die or something since my luck is terrible. :lol:
 
[quote name='jman619']I've had my PS3 over 3 years now. It stays dusty as hell to be honest. I'm shocked it still runs without any issues to be honest with you. I know I would win a dust contest. Although I wouldn't open it up and clean it. I would be paranoid it would die or something since my luck is terrible. :lol:[/QUOTE]

Yup. This right here. The last console I opened up was the PS2. If it's working why am I going to bother opening it? I dust it, vacuum it out, blow compressed air in it and have the vacuum running to suck it all up. It runs fine.

Consoles are getting too hard to open up and put back properly. I blame the tinier screws.
 
[quote name='Paco']Yup. This right here. The last console I opened up was the PS2. If it's working why am I going to bother opening it? I dust it, vacuum it out, blow compressed air in it and have the vacuum running to suck it all up. It runs fine.

Consoles are getting too hard to open up and put back properly. I blame the tinier screws.[/QUOTE]

I agree with you. I wouldn't open mine unless there was something wrong with it that needs fixing.
 
[quote name='addicted2games']I have a 60gb phat and am about to open mine up to replace the power supply with a cooler running one. My system works great with no problems, but it does get real hot and the fan is soooo loud. This will be the first time opening up my system, but I know I can exchange the power supply no problem.[/QUOTE]

What type of power supply are you replacing it with?
 
OP, you must have the 80gig MGS4 bundle? Mine's approaching it's birthday as well. I would really like to crack mine open soon as well. Might do it tomorrow on my day off actually.

I think I'd be high ranked on the dustiest innards. You'd really have to see our 100 yr. old farm house with stuff from the 50's-70's still in it we were renting to truly understand.
 
do it just be sure to keep track of the screws and the order you take them out in. id suggest using baggies or ziplock bags of some kind. and if you do open it and notice your thermal paste is dryed out or one replace it before its too late. if youve never opened it before youll be surprised how much dust is inside. btw be extra careful with the power eject on off switch board and the ribbon connected to it its very easy to fuck the ribbon up. same for the ribbons on the blu ray drive and the card reader ( if you have a system with one) and the wifi board . theres a thingy on each one that holds them in place so be sure to flip it up or down to release it. btw mine is the 80gb mgs4 bundle.
 
Crack that b*ch open and get the dust out. Then take a vacuum to it once every few weeks thereafter.
 
For cleaning it out use a can of air and clean it outside. You don't want that dust going everywhere inside your house. Also please do not dissemble it on the carpet. You want to avoid static electricity.
 
DO NOT vacuum your system. Using a vacuum can result in a static shock, which can blow a chip inside.

I actually thought about dusting my system too. I have the same model as the OP but I haven't had any problems. Better safe than sorry.
 
If you vacuum it once in a while I'm sure it will be fine. In any case, my nearly launch model 60 gig is running totally fine. It's only a little bit louder than the day I got it. If you want to open it do so by all means...but since you did open it you might as well add new cooling compound (Arctic silver) on the CPU and maybe change out the fans for 19 bladed ones.

In any case, as much as I love my 60 gig if it seriously failed on me (which I doubt it will anytime soon) then I'll just buy a new slim for 300 bucks. These systems are meant to be used and played with if it breaks as a result of that then it did it's job long enough for me to feel like I wasn't ripped off.
 
[quote name='Sk']If you vacuum it once in a while I'm sure it will be fine. In any case, my nearly launch model 60 gig is running totally fine. It's only a little bit louder than the day I got it. If you want to open it do so by all means...but since you did open it you might as well add new cooling compound (Arctic silver) on the CPU and maybe change out the fans for 19 bladed ones.

In any case, as much as I love my 60 gig if it seriously failed on me (which I doubt it will anytime soon) then I'll just buy a new slim for 300 bucks. These systems are meant to be used and played with if it breaks as a result of that then it did it's job long enough for me to feel like I wasn't ripped off.[/QUOTE]

thats easy enough to say now because youre systems still working but you will feel differently if it dies on you especially mid game.
 
[quote name='addicted2games']I am replacing my original power supply with a APS-231 one that I got on ebay for $30. Here is a faq on how to keep your original fat PS3 running cooler to help prevent future problems:

http://boardsus.playstation.com/t5/...g-and-Greener-PS3-system-Models/td-p/45650070[/QUOTE]

Are all those power supplies used, pulled from 40GB models? Why would people sell them unless the original PS3 they were in bit the dust? That is my only concern, otherwise I'd seriously consider doing some preventative modding on my 60GB phat, which wasn't all that dusty when I cracked it open for the first time last week, but is definitely louder than when it was new.
 
Yes the power supplies are used. They are pulled from 40gb systems as you stated. I will be putting mine in soon, I am not too worried about it working. If it doesnt, I just send it back for another one. But the seller has sold many of these power supplies already.
 
im gonna pick up one of those fans and some ic diamond 7. the whole curing thing explains why ive had to replace the thermal paste so often. are there any other reputable retailers asside from microcenter that sell ic diamond 7?
 
there are no new aps-231 available because sony long discontinued making 40s. they're all used. theyre on ebay b/c you have to scrap what you can. just like cars, you go to a junkyard and scrape whatever part you need. the car maybe totaled but it still has working parts.
 
[quote name='lokizz']im gonna pick up one of those fans and some ic diamond 7. the whole curing thing explains why ive had to replace the thermal paste so often. are there any other reputable retailers asside from microcenter that sell ic diamond 7?[/QUOTE]

watch on id7 its pretty thick to work with. if i remember right, id7 hardens like a mofo too. (i might be wrong on the last part. but i seem to remember it was one of those ...)
 
[quote name='enufs8d']watch on id7 its pretty thick to work with. if i remember right, id7 hardens like a mofo too. (i might be wrong on the last part. but i seem to remember it was one of those ...)[/QUOTE]


yeah i was doing some reading on it and someone said you shoud heat it up or something before using it but the short curing time is worth the hassle.
 
[quote name='enufs8d']there are no new aps-231 available because sony long discontinued making 40s. they're all used. theyre on ebay b/c you have to scrap what you can. just like cars, you go to a junkyard and scrape whatever part you need. the car maybe totaled but it still has working parts.[/QUOTE]

its sad but true when it comes to ps3 parts pretty much all of it is used stuff slavaged from dead consoles. or any of you who get a replacement 40 power supply post to let us know if the difference in it is enough to warrant getting it.
 
The reason I am replacing my power supply in my 60gb with one from a 40gb system is that my system's fan turns on within 10 minutes of being on. Then every 30 minutes or so, it turns on to the next level and gets louder. After about 1.5 to 2 hours of playtime, I turn off the system so it can cool as the fan is at its highest speed it seems. The system puts out heat like crazy. Hopefully with this 40gb APS-231 power supply, it will barely get hot at all.
 
[quote name='enufs8d']there are no new aps-231 available because sony long discontinued making 40s. they're all used. theyre on ebay b/c you have to scrap what you can. just like cars, you go to a junkyard and scrape whatever part you need. the car maybe totaled but it still has working parts.[/QUOTE]

The concern I have is what killed those 40GBs in the first place? How do we know it wasn't a bad power supply? Any PSU problems can easily mess a system up, so even though we 60GB owners all want to avoid YLOD, it seems just as risky to rely on a used one that came from a defective console. Do 40GB have notorious defects that aren't heat-related and crop up after the warranty expires? The car analogy only works if they know for sure the PSU wasn't the problem in those units.
 
[quote name='addicted2games']The reason I am replacing my power supply in my 60gb with one from a 40gb system is that my system's fan turns on within 10 minutes of being on. Then every 30 minutes or so, it turns on to the next level and gets louder. After about 1.5 to 2 hours of playtime, I turn off the system so it can cool as the fan is at its highest speed it seems. The system puts out heat like crazy. Hopefully with this 40gb APS-231 power supply, it will barely get hot at all.[/QUOTE]

What's the room temperature when you play? During the winter, when it's 50 or so inside, I can play all day and the fans are silent. My fans alternate between low and medium after 70 or so. Now that it's regularly 80+ inside, my playtime is almost zero, as the fans sit in the medium range pretty constantly.

Time to bring out my GameCube and play catch-up, I guess.
 
[quote name='Vinny']DO NOT vacuum your system. Using a vacuum can result in a static shock, which can blow a chip inside.

I actually thought about dusting my system too. I have the same model as the OP but I haven't had any problems. Better safe than sorry.[/QUOTE]
Actually, Sony informs you to try either vacuuming the system or doing the 'fan test', which is supposed to blow dust out of the system by cranking the fan up to the highest possible setting for a set period of time.

They also did it last gen as one of the intermediate steps to fix the DRE issues last gen with the PS2. It was step #2 or #3, usually somewhere after entering 'diagnosis mode'.:roll:

If Sony themselves tells you to vacuum the system, then what does that say for their own tech/repair center reps?
 
I wonder how many people who suffered from YLOD did the "fan test" - especially those who did a modified version of the fan test on a non-40GB model. Sony has always been against using it, as far as I can see from a five minute search of the 'net.
 
has anyone thought of getting the to come up with a section here or a thread where people can trade or buy ps3 parts from each other? especially for those of you with dead consoles who dont want to pay to get them fixed or try to fix them yourselves?
 
[quote name='lokizz']has anyone thought of getting the to come up with a section here or a thread where people can trade or buy ps3 parts from each other? especially for those of you with dead consoles who dont want to pay to get them fixed or try to fix them yourselves?[/QUOTE]
You could always ask a mod if it'd be ok to make a master trade/sell/buy list in that forum for PS3 parts. Although I have to wonder if that might be considering modifying your console and be frowned upon, though modding is usually only chips/hardware that's not approved of by the manufacturer.
 
I would just vacuum it from the outside. I do this regularly on all my systems & computers I've owned for a decade and have never had a problem. You just put the vacuum up to all the vents on the outside and it gets rid of the dust.
 
[quote name='J7.']I would just vacuum it from the outside. I do this regularly on all my systems & computers I've owned for a decade and have never had a problem. You just put the vacuum up to all the vents on the outside and it gets rid of the dust.[/QUOTE]
That's what I've done as well. Then again, on the PS2 last gen I learned how to crack those SOB's open and really dust them out completely and put 'em back together within 30 minutes.

But the PS3 isn't near cheap enough for me to even think of cracking one open yet.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']You could always ask a mod if it'd be ok to make a master trade/sell/buy list in that forum for PS3 parts. Although I have to wonder if that might be considering modifying your console and be frowned upon, though modding is usually only chips/hardware that's not approved of by the manufacturer.[/QUOTE]

like you said its not adding chips ad what not to do illegal stuff its just a way to help out those with dead consoles or those who want to try and keep their fats up and running. and that way you dont have to deal with the hassle of ebay.
 
If someone were to start up a PS3 parts thread though, the OP should definitely also include links to some sites that offer up parts, in the event the part(s) the posters are looking for aren't available in the thread.
 
[quote name='IAmTheCheapestGamer']Actually, Sony informs you to try either vacuuming the system or doing the 'fan test', which is supposed to blow dust out of the system by cranking the fan up to the highest possible setting for a set period of time.

They also did it last gen as one of the intermediate steps to fix the DRE issues last gen with the PS2. It was step #2 or #3, usually somewhere after entering 'diagnosis mode'.:roll:

If Sony themselves tells you to vacuum the system, then what does that say for their own tech/repair center reps?[/QUOTE]

They mean vacuum it from the outside... I was talking about vacuuming an open system. Vacuuming from the outside will only clean out clogging in the intake/exhausts, which will help air-flow.

I'm not sure what a fan test is though... never heard of that.
 
[quote name='Vinny']They mean vacuum it from the outside... I was talking about vacuuming an open system. Vacuuming from the outside will only clean out clogging in the intake/exhausts, which will help air-flow.

I'm not sure what a fan test is though... never heard of that.[/QUOTE]
Basically, it ramps up the PS3's fan to max setting as soon as the console is turned on from the back. It involves holding the disc eject button on the front of the console, while switching the console on from the back.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhU4_Rm0GQU

Although, the way many people have demonstrated to do the 'fan test' essentially involves putting the system either upside down or holding it in midair while doing the same as the above video demonstrates.

Either way, if your PS3 sounds like the one in the video naturally, I would be worried about how much longer it has before it YLOD's on you.
 
vaccumin a ps3 wont get out all the dust. when i opened mine up i even found dust inside the power source and on the actual board which if youve seen inside on you know theres 2 plates of metal covering most of it.
 
Opening and taking apart the ps3 phat is scary at first but not so bad about the 3rd time around. I have a busted up 60 gb model that I'm looking at right now. Probably some parts in that I could sell. I'll be posting in your part trade/sell thread.
 
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