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Thread: Overheating Laptom

  1. 07-08-2010, 04:03 PM #1
    n2ize
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    Overheating Laptom

    P.S... The above should read "Laptop" not "Laptom" LOL

    My Mom's laptop has been overheating. from what they tolkd me it sounds like its been going into "thermal protection mode" and either acting weird or slowing down. Once allowed to cool a bit it seems to become normal again. It's a Dell Inspiron B130. My Dad thinks that maybe the fan ain;t running right but, when i listened it sounded like the fan was on. I did notice that the area near where the CPU and heat sink are located does seem very hot. However, when i took a look inside the heat sink and surrounding area seems to be clear of dust. It may be normal operating but the recent hot weather may be proving the cooling system inadequate under these conditions... however...the area it's being used in IS air conditioned.

    Any ideas ? Anythings I should check ? And tricks on making it run cooler ?
    I keep my 2 feet on the ground, and my head in the twilight zone.
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  2. 07-08-2010, 04:09 PM #2
    KG4CGC
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    After you clean out all the dust, check to see how many processes are running in the background and what the CPU usage is at most of the time. There is no real need for it to be constantly running over 4% and if it's hitting 50% regularly it will heat the heck up. Also check the ambient room temp. Laptops don't do too well over 85 degrees which is why coolers that you sit the unit on top of are sold.
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  3. 07-08-2010, 04:11 PM #3
    NQ6U
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    Probably is due to the hot weather you've been having back there. I'd suggest that your mom put her laptop on something that will work as a heat sink; I've used a aluminum cookie sheet in the past but even a bare Formica table top will help.
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  4. 07-08-2010, 05:43 PM #4
    ad4mg
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    Plus, don't put the laptop in your lap! That blocks the cooling intake holes on the bottom. Make sure it has a firm surface to rest on.

    I would wager that some part of the blower assembly has dust in it. Be careful when blowing air into the thing ... if you spin the cooling fan fast enough, you're going to blow out a diode on the MB. Best to take it apart and manually clean it.

    I serviced a Dell laptop recently that had issues with the heat sink compound. It was all over the place, except where it needed to be. I took the blower assembly off the processor, cleaned all the goop outta there, and put a very conservative dab of Arctic Silver heat sink compound on the processor before reassembling. No more problems with that one!
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  5. 07-08-2010, 05:46 PM #5
    KG4CGC
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    Yes, heatsink goop does dry out from time to time and needs occasional replacement. I am currently running dry goop that I will replace soon after I get my tube of SWR grease.
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  6. 07-08-2010, 06:33 PM #6
    WØTKX
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    HOW-TO: laptop cooler for under 5 dollars!!!!



    Last edited by WØTKX; 07-08-2010 at 06:34 PM.
    "Where would we be without the agitators of the world to attach the electrodes
    of knowledge to the nipples of ignorance?" ~ Professor "Dick" Soloman


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  7. 07-08-2010, 06:39 PM #7
    WØTKX
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    My cat Milhous is an overheating laptom.
    "Where would we be without the agitators of the world to attach the electrodes
    of knowledge to the nipples of ignorance?" ~ Professor "Dick" Soloman


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  8. 07-08-2010, 07:06 PM #8
    KG4CGC
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    Quote Originally Posted by WØTKX View Post
    HOW-TO: laptop cooler for under 5 dollars!!!!



    Nice. I would just add enough metal to act as a heatsink.
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  9. 07-09-2010, 09:11 PM #9
    N1LAF
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    I have experienced similar symptoms twice now over the past few years, the latest the other day right after an Adobe upgrade. Do the three finger salute [CTRL][ALT][DELETE], and click on the "Performance" tab, ensure that the processor(s) are not running near 100%. If they are, click on the "Processes" tab, and click on "CPU" twice, to sort by CPU usage to see what process is eating up processor cycles. The latest one that occurred last week was AcroTray.exe. There are some elements of National Instruments LabVIEW that are necessarily turned on, and will spin out of control.
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  10. 07-13-2010, 01:05 AM #10
    n2ize
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    Quote Originally Posted by N1LAF View Post
    I have experienced similar symptoms twice now over the past few years, the latest the other day right after an Adobe upgrade. Do the three finger salute [CTRL][ALT][DELETE], and click on the "Performance" tab, ensure that the processor(s) are not running near 100%. If they are, click on the "Processes" tab, and click on "CPU" twice, to sort by CPU usage to see what process is eating up processor cycles. The latest one that occurred last week was AcroTray.exe. There are some elements of National Instruments LabVIEW that are necessarily turned on, and will spin out of control.
    It seems to be working okay now. They increased the space between the bottom vents and the tabletop. So now it's getting better airflow.

    They're using Linux and I usually run "ps" or "top" in continuous mode in a terminal to get a picture of what's going on. It looks good. I think the problem also happened when the machine was hot, then turned off then turned back on a few seconds later. Often the temperature inside a system will shoot up for a bit right after it is turned off as it loses the airflow from the fans
    I keep my 2 feet on the ground, and my head in the twilight zone.
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