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Something seriously worrying just happened to my laptop
BabySquare
Posts: 7,869 Member
I was on sims4, and usually when I play the exhaust fan speeds up a bit, presumably because of the extra power being diverted to the graphics.
I'd only been playing for about five minutes, and I noticed the computer was quiet; the fan wasn't going. Just as I thought this odd, out of nowhere the computer shuts down with a clicking sound, which it never normally does - it just went OFF - no warning, nothing.
I thought I'd run the battery flat, but it was plugged in and is fully charged.
I'm now thinking maybe the insides were heating up and it shut off to protect itself - it's now on again and the fan is going like it would during gameplay but I'm very shaken up - Have you ever had a situation like this? where the internal cooling failed to engage?
I don't know why this happened and I'm worried about it happening again when I load the game again.
Does the sims 4 have anything to do with it? This is the first time I've loaded the game since the 21st April patch installed a few hours ago, is there a link?
I'd only been playing for about five minutes, and I noticed the computer was quiet; the fan wasn't going. Just as I thought this odd, out of nowhere the computer shuts down with a clicking sound, which it never normally does - it just went OFF - no warning, nothing.
I thought I'd run the battery flat, but it was plugged in and is fully charged.
I'm now thinking maybe the insides were heating up and it shut off to protect itself - it's now on again and the fan is going like it would during gameplay but I'm very shaken up - Have you ever had a situation like this? where the internal cooling failed to engage?
I don't know why this happened and I'm worried about it happening again when I load the game again.
Does the sims 4 have anything to do with it? This is the first time I've loaded the game since the 21st April patch installed a few hours ago, is there a link?
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The fan is now working - it's cooling the excess heat out. I vacuum the whole computer regularly, and I pay particular attention to the intake and exhaust vents - I last did it about 3 weeks ago.
I'm on windows 7 - is there any way I can run a diagnostic check on the fan?
I doubt it
I'm having issues with mine but I'll be getting it replaced. It will work from time to time but with randomly stop and it may get worse as mine did since now there is a loud clicking sound all the time.
If it is clicking or squeaking it could be a broken blade or bearing inside, or is could just be debris in the fan. Some manufacturers use this awful orange tape to hold down cables, but the tape loses its sticky when the unit heats up. Now there are just little bits of tape in there, getting stuck in things.
I have a heat pad of sorts: a hard plastic covered thick board I rest it on and it lives on there all the time, has done since I got it in december 2012 - I've played sims 2 and 3 (which really heats it up) a lot since then and have never had a problem until tonight which is why I'm so rattled.
The heat does vent away very well. I make sure air can get in all around and the pad it rests on never gets hot.
I'm trying to download the Cooling Performance Diagnostic Tool from Toshiba but I can't find the 64 bit version for my system model.
The fan's just gone down a level then come up a level again. I'm glad it's working but I'm not sure what's going on. Norton security found and resolved 26 threats so maybe there's a connection.
If it were a low spec pc, I would understand it heating up a lot during gameplay, as the hardware would be struggling to keep up, but it's quite high spec; it doesn't struggle to run TS4 so I can't imagine why it makes it heat up so much.
Notifying...
@chesterbigbird
@phoebebebe13
For the best cooling pads, you'll need to look at Cooler Master, Thermaltake, and Zalman.
Cooler Master:
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-NotePal-X3-Cooling/dp/B0079T2KHG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1461291275&sr=8-1&keywords=cooler+master+cooling+pad
Thermaltake:
http://www.amazon.com/Thermaltake-Aluminum-Adjustable-Temperature-Notebook/dp/B00J0NZYOK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1461291235&sr=8-1&keywords=thermaltake+cooling+pad
Zalman:
http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-NC3500-Laptop-Cooling-Ports/dp/B008WJAY8O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1461291258&sr=8-1&keywords=Zalman+cooling+pad
The air coming out is now cool. I don't use compressed air; I probably take about 45 minutes to hoover it properly - I go around all the vents - 6 in total, from all 4 sides and then face-on with the vent - each angle of vacuuming I do for about 30 seconds each, per vent.
P.s. I promise not to spend the rest of my life telling the internet what temperature the air from my laptop exhaust vent is.
Hey do they have cooling pads in best buy or any other store that deals with electronics.
Please don't ever allow blankets to cover the vents. If anything overheats too much, quite simply you might not live to regret it.
I looked at the links you so very helpfully provided @Colton147147 - the cooler master one is a bit out of my price range, but something by thermaltake seems more likely - their fans are quite reasonably priced (I had to log in to view the prices in £'s) and although I've not had time to read the reviews yet I've skimmed over them and it sounds like a good product.
Most likely.
See cooling pad suggestions above.
It connects via usb. the one I have also has a usb slot on it, so you don't actually lose any usb ports when it's plugged in
These are good points. We look after a couple of stray cats, but as I'm allergic and a bit ocd, I'm VERY firm in not allowing them upstairs, let alone near my room, which is where the computer always is (the mere thought is enough to induce a panic attack) and I don't smoke anymore but I vape in the room and while on the computer, but I make sure to blow the vapour the other way, and when I did smoke my parents always made me go outside, which is fair when there are other ex-smokers and cats in the house.
I once read an article by a pc repairman about all the things he found inside desktop CPU casings; spiders, spider's webs, mini tumbleweed, even an ant's nest! I've got some idea of the horrors in there. I also wipe over the whole screen, keyboard, buttons and touchpad with alcohol wipes - the sort used to clean lenses, every time I vacuum.
I know the avarage keyboard is home to a lot of dead skin, hair, saliva and let's call it "human bodily waste" so it's a good idea to clean the keys too!
That's good to know, thanks. I have 4 USB ports and I'm usually using one with three free, but it's good if it has one of it's own
It's a good idea for a present isn't it? but four and a half months, you really need something sooner than that. Could you afford to buy it yourself, and have a relative give you the money for it on your birthday?
ie, would I need to use a pad when, say, browsing the internet, when the fan isn't even going half the time, and when it is it's minimal.
I thought internal computer components were like muscles: not good for them to be exercised when cold, or am I wrong?