As PC users, each of us has a lot to say about the best PC building tips, the best PC practices everyone should follow, or even the PC maintenance tasks a PC user should perform regularly. Still, when it comes to following our own advice, many of us bend or break the rules, doing what we please. This includes some persistent habits that seem absurd to a sane person, but feel normal to PC users. Deep down, we know we can’t justify them, but we can’t seem to let go. If you see yourself in one or more of these senseless PC habits, take comfort in the fact that you’re not alone.

Delaying deep cleaning for years

Even when it’s clearly hurting performance

I know I’m guilty of not cleaning my PC for three years, but in my defense, it wasn’t particularly dusty, and there was virtually no hit to performance or temperatures. Plus, I always clean the dust from the outside of the tower and a few surfaces inside as well, so the occasional upkeep prevents the need for a deep clean. Many PC users, on the other hand, will go years and years without taking so much as a second look at their PC, no matter how clogged their vents and fans are. Even if their PC is gasping for breath and overheating like a CPU running without a cooler, they remain oblivious to the reality.

We’ve all seen so many dirty PCs making the rounds on the internet that delaying a deep clean has almost become normalized. Believe it or not, regular PC cleaning is one of the most essential maintenance jobs you should perform at least once every three months, especially if your PC is visibly dusty. This will not only keep your PC running cool and silent, but will also allow it to run at its maximum potential. It’ll also extend the life of your components since the chances of them overheating will be minimized. Some people might be able to go years without a deep clean if there’s barely any dust in their surroundings, but almost everyone else needs to take PC cleaning seriously.

Obsessing over performance numbers instead of enjoying the PC

Cursed with knowledge

This is one area where I believe “ignorance is bliss” is actually true. The more you know about CPU temps, overclocking, undervolting, fan speeds, and benchmarks, the more you’re prone to getting bogged down by the numbers instead of using your PC for what you got it for. I’m not saying being clueless about basic stuff will make for a better PC experience, but enthusiasts, in general, are more worried about their machines compared to the average user who sets up everything once and then forgets about it. Wasting hours benchmarking your PC after every little setting tweak, or staring at HWiNFO after overclocking or undervolting your hardware for the fifth time in a month, can easily kill the fun of using a PC.

Becoming obsessed with performance numbers can ruin your PC experience; many of us still keep doing it. It’s novel during the first few days or weeks after assembling a new PC, but it becomes a distraction after that. Staring at the FPS counter while gaming is dumb, but many of us can’t help ourselves. Once you know that your PC is performing as it should, you don’t really need to stress about optimizing it for those 1% extra gains. The ROI is just not there. If you find yourself spending more time maximizing performance or minimizing bottlenecks on your PC than actually using it, take a step back and consider letting go of some of your longstanding obsessions. It’s easier said than done — I know I have struggled with this — but we’ve got to start somewhere.

Overspending on “gaming” peripherals despite knowing they suck

There are better alternatives

It’s widely known that most “gaming” peripherals are terrible products dressed up in fancy marketing. They’re often worse than regular quality peripherals in terms of performance and functionality. Most people end up buying an overpriced headset or keyboard from a gamer brand due to the omnipresent marketing or because they think spending more will get them more features and reliability. On the contrary, you can often buy a non-gaming alternative, such as a dedicated microphone and headset separately, for cheaper than a popular gaming model from a big brand.

Most gaming headsets suffer from terrible microphones, poor soundstage, and questionable durability, even when they cost hundreds of dollars. Gaming keyboards from popular brands can barely compete with smaller, niche brands in terms of features, performance, and value for money. Even gaming mice with tons of buttons, switchable weights, and RGB lighting are worse than standard lightweight mice with the right size and fit. Most of the time, you’re simply paying for esthetics and the brand name. Even most first-party vendor software is nothing less than bloatware.

Perhaps we all do this because it’s easier to get these popular gaming peripherals than put in the research to figure out the alternatives. Buying quality IEMs for gaming rather than crappy headsets and lesser-known keyboards instead of the oft-recommended models, might take more time and effort, but you could save money and get a better experience at the same time.

Holding on to old parts in hopes of “repurposing” them

You know that DIY project is never getting off the ground

It’s hard to let go of old CPUs, GPUs, and storage drives, even when you know in your heart that you’ll never start that DIY project to repurpose any of them. Most of us tend to store our old components for years with no intention of doing anything useful with them. If they’re in working condition, you might convince yourself that you’ll make a DIY NAS someday, or make a retro gaming console from an old PC. On the flip side, if your CPU or GPU is dead, you think there’s no point in selling it or giving it to a friend or family member, and so it remains in a drawer or shelf forever.

Some PC users convince themselves that they’re saving their old processor for some hobbyist CPU delidding down the line, or their set of old hard drives for expanding their game library or experimenting with Linux distros. Let’s be clear: while some people truly bring those plans to fruition, most of us are just living in self-delusion. I know I’ll never touch my old HDD or Ryzen 5 1600 ever again. There’s even less possibility of reusing my old air cooler or B350 motherboard for anything useful. I’m not the tinkering type, and if you know you’re like me, it’s high time you admitted it to yourself and got rid of that junk.

Hoarding ancient component boxes and cables

Acceptance is the first step

I’m certain every single one of you reading this is guilty of storing countless USB, HDMI, Ethernet, and power cables somewhere around your house. It might be in a drawer, a clear plastic pouch, or your old motherboard box, but it will be there. Speaking of old boxes, I bet you still have your 10-year-old GPU and cabinet boxes gracing your room, holding within them additional RAM and SSD boxes that have zero chance of being useful ever again. Well, I can admit I haven’t thrown away my B350 motherboard and GTX 1660 Ti boxes from 2017 and 2019, respectively. Even my Ryzen 5 1600 box is still gathering dust in a basket along with the other two.

You might have convinced yourself that you might need those micro USB, SATA, or Cat5e cables someday, but if you never even thought about them in the last five years, it’s safe to conclude that you won’t. I know hoarding old cables and boxes feels like investing in contingencies, but you’re only adding to the clutter in your house. For the slimmest of probabilities that you’ll need that USB cable or cabinet box, you’re gathering junk in your house. Over the years, this hoarding problem can get worse, and you might end up with dozens of useless items in your drawers. The next time you’re cleaning your house, consider donating or recycling all your old cables and boxes. You’ll feel better, probably. I haven’t done it myself, so I can’t be sure.

With multiple PCs come multiple absurd habits

Perhaps it’s a natural byproduct of using numerous PCs over the years that most PC users end up hoarding boxes, cables, and components they have no intention of using ever again. You probably know you shouldn’t buy that $300 gaming headset or $200 gaming keyboard, but you still do it because you like it. Delaying a deep clean of your PC can be attributed to laziness, and worrying about performance numbers can be considered a normal symptom of being part of the so-called PCMR. That said, it might be time to get rid of these mindless PC habits. Let’s hope 2026 is the year to do it (who are we kidding?).