Laptop Fan Broke
 

Hello all.

I think I've just managed to break my laptop fan and was hoping for a bit of advice. I've always found the buildup of dust to be a bit of an issue with laptops so I've always used a piece of equipment normally used to blow dust off DSLR Camera Sensors to blow the dust out. It delivers a short, precise blow of air when squeezed:
http://media.the-digital-picture.com...Air-Blower.jpg

I've done this for a while and did so a few minutes ago but seem to have broke my laptop in the process :mad:

I squeezed the blower, then a fair amount of thick dust / soot came out. I'm not sure if this was caused by me or already inside my laptop. However, now my laptop fan doesn't spin at all and is silent.

I can browse fine but I think if I try to do anything else my laptop will just go into meltdown mode. Is there any software available to manually 'force' your fans to run at a certain speed (so I can test if they are completely kaput or not). I downloaded SpeedFan but it's only showing me CPU temps and no fan data.

Or, is my only solution to run my laptop down to a computer shop and see if they can fix it (how easy is a broken fan to replace?).

Thanks again

PS - Is using my laptop while the fan is broke a good idea? or is there a chance it'll completely die on me if I do so?

Liked the picture ... looks like something medical!

Seriously, how did you use it? Just stick it in the exhaust slots of the lappy, or take off the keyboard and address the fan?

From the description, it sounds like you did the former. If so it is possible that there was a fair bit of dust around, which has been blown into the fan & jammed it. Next stage is for you physically to inspect the fan - see if you can spin it. If you're uncomfortable about using a finger (static & all that) you might like to use a cable tie or summat with a bit of give in it... or even give a puff with your camera cleaner.

It's usually quite easy to get into the innards if you work carefully and slowly and remember where all the bits come from. Ive been known to use a digital camera to prompt me old memory sometimes...

There is a program called RivaTuner that can be used to adjust GPU fan speeds and schedules. Be careful with it though, its primarily designed as an over-clocking tool, so one wrong click might trigger the meltdown.

You could always try getting the hoover out and sucking out any dust from the intake side.

I simply put the nozzle of the rocket-blower to the vents of my laptop and squeezed it to blow air into the laptop, which forces all the dust outwards usually.

However, when I did it today (for some reason I did it with the laptop still turned on :=), after I lifted up my laptop there was some black marks on my wooden table which matched the air vents. I'm not sure if that was created from some sort of motor 'burnout'. Looking back I guess if I forced air towards the fan while it was spinning, it could of caused the motor to blow or something?

Thanks once again, I feel like such an idiot :ugh:

Not particularly likely, I should think. Probably just a large wodge of fluff has caught between the fan's blades & its case. They're just as powerful as they need to be to cool the cpu - which ain't v. powerful. Either take the lid off or get someone to do so.
Good luck

p.s. don't start us all on idiotic things we have done: yours was pretty minor imho ;)

It's normally pretty easy to take the base off. There are loads of free service manuals on line. If blowing the dust out of fans with compressed air, best to hold the fan stationary with something. If not, it can spin very fast, act as a gennerator and blow something.

The internet is stuffed with practical advice on how to fix various bits of laptops: try searching by model. I was really surprised what some people are prepared to do to help. Anyway, maybe you pushed the fan connector off (come to think of it if the fan was running you couldn't have). Can't see how you have done anything much wrong there. Hold the thing upside down and gently shake it ? I go for the big lump of fluff theory.

I have in the past, used a leaf blower to clean a pc inside. You're in good company.;)

Well, believe it or not, I think it's working :eek:

I took your advice and took the laptop apart (some good youtube tutorials on how to do so, even I managed it :}) and found some bloody huge clumps of dust/hair/pizza/god knows what inside the fan :sad: Pulled it all out with a pair of tweezers and put my laptop back together again. Turned it on and the fan started :eek: As said previously, I must've blown the dust further into my laptop and clogged it up :O

Thanks for the helpful replies, you've saved me a very expensive trip to the local computer shop :ok:

Well done!:ok:
If you want to do the advanced course next time, try spilling beer over the keyboard. You'll be surprised where it gets to.

Well done 750XL!

It's not for the faint-hearted, laptop surgery!

So the moral is suck, not blow? ;)

SD

750XL,

Next time all you need is one of these ....

http://www.rapidonline.com/netalogue...M118292W01.jpg


Getting an "invertible" one is very important. Unless you want to freeze your laptop.

Otherwise, an Apple MacBook (particularly the aluminium pro).... they have better designed heat dissipation and lesser need for the large vents and fans that you find on PC laptops. :p

My three year old Macbook Pro gets so hot it is uncomfortable to use on your lap. My first one fried itself after 3 weeks and was replaced FOC with the comment that Apple had some cooling issues with the Macbook Pro.

Like so many things Apple the evengelical preaching by the converted does not necessarily tally with the reality.

I've owned three of them for at least three years now and none get hot at all. I also know a number of people who have had no such issues either. I'm afraid you're seeing the rare exception rather than the rule, therefore no need to get all smug with your anti-apple comments. :ugh:

The older Apple laptops (pre unibody machined aluminium) occasionally could get a little warm when you pushed them hard, I'll give you that. But the new chassis does an excellent job at heat dissipation.

If you read the manual (for any laptop, irrespective of manufacturer), you're not supposed to use the things directly on your lap either (also not a good idea for males to use laptops directly on the lap due to proximity of certain parts of the anatomy). As you probably know there have also been instances of laptop users burning themselves to death by falling asleep whilst using a laptop in bed and it sinking into the duvet and starting a fire.

Someone gave me one of these for Christmas....highly recommended....

http://www.slashgear.com/gallery/dat...ch-Lapdesk.jpg


(It's a Logitech Lapdesk)