Helix LT "self-servability"?

[boynigel]

I've a dog in the house.  at least weekly I have to dust fur off of my LT and it got me wondering how much hair has made it's way inside the unit, via the openings for the EXP pedal hinges.

 

I consider myself pretty handy, as I've done many electronics repairs and mods to my pedals, guitars, and amps over the years.  I'm just wondering how much of a "project" it would be to blow out any accumulated dust/fur inside my LT.  Has anyone done this?  I'm wondering if in order to do it properly, I'd need to remove multiple PCB's, and if there's any general words of caution from anyone who's done this before?

[PierM]

There'll be no fur inside the unit.

 

Maybe a bit of dust (and some dust/fur under the pedal), but these are passive cooling device, so there is virtually no in/out air flow.

 

I believe you are a bit overthinking. :)

 

PS; I've 3 cats, and when I repaired my helix floor ( 2 years old), was pristine in the inside.

 

[theElevators]

When I opened up my Helix after a couple years, also no fur inside.  I have a cat, and cover the Helix with a blanket though.  It's a good practice to cover your gear, otherwise dust will find its way inside and gunk up the already crappy microswitches. 

[boynigel]

On 12/4/2022 at 6:44 PM, theElevators said:

When I opened up my Helix after a couple years, also no fur inside.  I have a cat, and cover the Helix with a blanket though.  It's a good practice to cover your gear, otherwise dust will find its way inside and gunk up the already crappy microswitches. 

I cover it up but fur still gets on it over time as it falls off the bottom of my feet onto it while in use

[boynigel]

On 12/4/2022 at 3:28 PM, PierM said:

There'll be no fur inside the unit.

 

Maybe a bit of dust (and some dust/fur under the pedal), but these are passive cooling device, so there is virtually no in/out air flow.

 

I believe you are a bit overthinking. :)

 

PS; I've 3 cats, and when I repaired my helix floor ( 2 years old), was pristine in the inside.

good to know, thanks.  As someone who likes to be PRO-active rather than Re-active, yes, I tend to overthink things.  It's a double edged sword that's saved me lots of money over time, but surely wasted some of my time too!

[thauma]

I've just had to sort a squeak on my Helix LT pedal. I followed the following video by Chuck Brand https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2TgtCzZHng which addressed the concerns I had about opening up the helix LT, and the process was pretty simple. Now he doesn't touch any of the circuit boards, but you can clearly see how it all hangs together once the case is off.

 

However, the inside was pretty clean, and I've had the Helix on the floor and uncovered for 2-3 years, albeit in a cat/dog free house.

[PierM]

They are not like those PCs with negative internal pressure due the forced airflow, pulling tons of dust and crap in the inside.

 

Air Pressure inside a passive cooling device, that also has no vents like the Helix, it's same as the outside. (Always better to use a vacuum cleaner instead of compressed air)

 

Risk to damage an electronic device opening and touching circuits, twisting and pulling ribbons, is WAY higher than a bit of dust.

 

As for the tactile switches; Isnt dust the problem...they do either naturally break or get surface oxidation.