gpu fan cleaning

[ibmp200]

i have the voodoo4 4500 agp. it has an attatched fan on the gpu heatsink. ive noticed a faint scratchy sound that seems to be coming from the area of the fan when the pc is powerd on and running. the sound stops if i stop the fan with my finger. im supposing the whole assembly needs cleaning and the fan itself, with some slight lubrication. lets assume that the fan isnt scraping against the fan assembly anywhere.

so i have two questions.

one, if i am only running games from the mid to late 90s, do i really need to have the fan run? and what about basic internet browsing and word processing?

AND

two, how exactly do i lubricate the fan safely. ive heard that you take the sticker off if there is one. add a small drop of sewing machine oil, or clean motor oil. spin the fan by hand to distribute the lube. replace the sticker, and youre good to go. is that correct, or is there some other way thats better?

thanks

[ps47]

the first question: the VSA-100 chip needs active cooling (unless you want to go for a heatpipe),this has been discussed many times.

the second question: correct.

[bloodworm]

you can use compressed air to clean the fan, but make sure you don't let it spin up under the pressure of the air, or you may ruin the "bearing" surfaces inside it.  hold the fan with one finger while hitting it with the compressed air.  if these are sleave type bearings, and plastic to boot, then replacing the fan outright may be your only option.  but the oil trick is worth a try.  try just cleaning it first, the weight of the dust and such on the fan blades will unbalance the fan and cause it to run noisy.