Hello helen, Saturday, July 2, 2005, 4:05:58 PM, you wrote: hw> Thank you so much and it does make sense, we have been in a heat hw> wave and I am sure it is full of fluff from the air--could you hw> offer advice on how to take it apart to clean? I have a Compaq hw> Presario. Taking a system apart to clean it isn't just a matter of opening up the case so unless you feel confident about removing a CPU Heatsink and fan, taking the fan off, cleaning the whole unit, re-assembling then replacing the thermal paste and fitting back on the motherboard I'd take it to a repairer. You'll probably find they are busy with many other systems having the same problem too, so as an interim measure you could take the side off of the case and use a desktop fan to blow in there. That'll give enough extra air movement to help with the overheating. If you are wanting to have a go yourself then good for you but only do this if you feel you are up to it. Remember that the main thing to watch for is static electricity, and if the air is very dry due to the high temperatures then it's even more of a problem. Keep one part of your body in contact with the metal insides of the case as you work within the system ( painted parts don't count here ) - working in short sleeves is ideal, but I guess you'll be wearing those anyway if it's so hot :-) You can get a special anti-static wrist strap, but be doubly sure that the clip can't jump free as you work - easy to do and you are then working without any protection though the strap on your wrist will make you feel as if you are OK !! Before you start, make sure you have a tube of thermal paste too - you can't re-use what was on there before. HTH and Good Luck -- Best regards, Barry mailto:barry@yobunny.co.uk MicroSoft Free Zone running Xandros 2.0 Deluxe