Laptop fan

[schmenke]

I suspect the fan on my wife's laptop is going kaput. It's on pretty much all the time now but is sounds like it spins slowly, or at least erratically, with a disturbingly grinding noise.
The laptop itself feels abnormally warm to the touch.

Sorry, I'm by no means a hardware techie. Is it reasonably easy to have the fan replaced? Would it be a DIY? Or is the fact that the fan is always on a symptom of a bigger problem?

I've seen advertised "laptop cooling" pads to help dissipate heat. Will one of these do the trick, or is it just a temporary fix? Does anyone have any experience with these?

I await the flood of knowledgable(?) replies... :mark: Thanks.

[odykas]

What is the maker / model of your laptop?

It's always a good idea to remove the laptop cover so the fan is exposed and they attach the vacuum cleaner hose on it.
Dust and dirt can cause overheating problems.

[donKey jote]

^what ody says:
make sure the fanny is clean first and then worry about overheating :andrea:

[Brown, Jon Brow]

I'm a huge fan of laptops

[donKey jote]

cool !

[schmenke]

Where's Daniel when you need him? :p :


Ody, the laptop is made by MSI. Certainly not a "brand" name, nor is it a top of the line machine, but it's behaved quite well for the ~3 years that the wife has owned it.
She's just purchased one of those cooling pad thingies and it seems to have made a difference. The fan is engaging noticably less, although still doesn't sound good :erm: .

[donKey jote]

who need's Daniel ? :p

Send it to us, we'll sort it for ya :andrea:

[Donney]

:s mash:

[airshifter]

Computer cooling isn't rocket science by any means. The problem with laptops is that they have a million different ways the cases open. Usually it's just dust in the entire system limiting flow, or a fan going south. Both easy to fix if you have enough confidence to get the case open.

If you don't want to open the case, often a long soft bristled brush can clean the fan from the outside, and care with some air pressure can get a lot of the other crap out.

[ioan]

When did you clean it last time? You should do it every now and then otherwise to much crap accumulates in there and you get what you have now.
Clean it and see if it helps. If not you can buy a new or a 2nd hand one and change it, it is no rocket science.

[schmenke]

When did you clean it last time? ...

:erm: ...

[ioan]

:erm: ...

You mean you still didn't clean it since yesterday?!

[Daniel]

Where's Daniel when you need him? :p :


Ody, the laptop is made by MSI. Certainly not a "brand" name, nor is it a top of the line machine, but it's behaved quite well for the ~3 years that the wife has owned it.
She's just purchased one of those cooling pad thingies and it seems to have made a difference. The fan is engaging noticably less, although still doesn't sound good :erm: .

Get a Mac!

I'm still alive, just busy working etc etc.

Buying yet more cars that I don't really need.

The scene outside Daniel towers last weekend......

https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/919629_10151612965130189_1828778968_o.jpg

Cleaning all the fluff out of the fan will help, if the fan is dead then buy another one and replace it :)

[SGWilko]

Get a Mac!

I'm still alive, just busy working etc etc.

Buying yet more cars that I don't really need.

The scene outside Daniel towers last weekend......

https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/919629_10151612965130189_1828778968_o.jpg

Cleaning all the fluff out of the fan will help, if the fan is dead then buy another one and replace it :)

I bet the neighbours love you!

A laptop fan will probably cost no more than £5 on fleabay. When you have the case open, clean out all the fins on the processor heat-sinc, but dont try to remove it unless you have some spare paste to re-attach it.

Grinding noises and erratic speeds from a PC fan generally mean it is 'bombay ducked', so bet to replace it sooner than later.

[SGWilko]

rocket science.

Brain sugery - it's not rocket science, is it? ;)

[odykas]

The scene outside Daniel towers last weekend......



I can see two ferries, so it should be renamed as Daniel docks :p :

[ioan]

Brain sugery - it's not rocket science, is it? ;)

Nope, whatever that is! :p

[ioan]

Get a Mac!

I'm still alive, just busy working etc etc.

Buying yet more cars that I don't really need.

The scene outside Daniel towers last weekend......

https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/919629_10151612965130189_1828778968_o.jpg

Cleaning all the fluff out of the fan will help, if the fan is dead then buy another one and replace it :)

What cars? I see no cars there.

[odykas]

Some credit should given for having Italian cars and not panzerwagens :up: ;)

[Storm]

I read the thread title and thought, what a jerk..being a fan of laptops....well its schmenke we are dealing with!



I await the flood of knowledgable(?) replies... :mark: Thanks.
you know that's what always happens around here don't you? :erm:

[schmenke]

...you know that's what always happens around here don't you? :erm:

In hindsight, I don't know why I bothered :p :