Rant: Bought a GPU wasn't told it was smoked around.

Ozone gas has an extra oxygen molecule which binds to organic compounds and destroys them. These compounds are what causes the smell. A small ozone gas generator will easily clean out something like a PC part or even a car (you need to leave the car vents on recirculate).

I moved my daughter to a new state recently, and helped her purchase a condo. City ordinances changed back in the mid 1990s in that city that prohibited new condos being built there--so, the only condos available were pre-mid 90s or apartments that have been converted to condos. The most affordable condo we found in a good area had smokers in it previously, so it was very noticeable (probably why it was affordable). We could have changed all of the duct work (expensive without the guarantee that it would eliminate the odor), clean the duct work (not possible since some was just made out of a stiff foam), install an ozone generator in the duct work (generates a non-lethal amount of ozone), or have a one-time ozone treatment done (you have to vacate the premises for 2-3 days). Since the one-time ozone treatment was the cheapest option, we decided to start there and keep working up the list of options until the smell was gone.

The one-time ozone treatment did the trick. So, I'd definitely think it could help with PC parts from smokers' homes.
 
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Take the cooler off and run it through the dishwasher....let it dry for a day and put it back together...will look and smell like new....

I wouldn't be too keen to eat off of anything that came out of that dishwasher after the fact, but that's just me...
 
The one-time ozone treatment did the trick. So, I'd definitely think it could help with PC parts from smokers' homes.

Actually using ozone on pc parts is a very bad idea. Ozone destroys oil based products like plastic and rubber and it loves to eat away at copper and certain types of metals... all of which are commonly found in PC parts.

Identifying what you are cleaning is half the battle... using the right chemical to dissolve residues makes things much easier to clean without having to physically remove contamination.

Tobacco smoke in general is nasty stuff, and the residue it leaves behind is very hard to clean. It hardens quickly and doesn't readily dissolve unless you use harsh chemicals.

Marijuana smoke, while is claimed to be just as bad, in my experience is 10x easier to clean. It takes about a year for it to harden completely, and even then it readily dissolves in alcohol.

Best bet is to go to your local drug store or somewhere they sell first aid supplies and look for the 91% Isopropyl alcohol... not the 71%. Spray the device down liberally, or soak a rag or swab and wipe off affected areas, and let it dry for an hour or two. You can also go to your local automotive parts store and look for sensor-safe electrical cleaning sprays. Just don't forget to re-apply thermal pastes and adhesives... the cleaners will clean that stuff out as well.
 
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