First, Google found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts, by
which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

Cheers

Dave R

On 24/02/2014 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts, by
which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

I've used compressed air applied to the outlet side where I've first
locked the fan by a screwdriver.

Certainly saw a lost of dust exit the laptop.

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 12:46:25 +0000, Fredxxx wrote:

On 24/02/2014 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts,
by which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk
factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it,
so if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix
it.

I've used compressed air applied to the outlet side where I've first
locked the fan by a screwdriver.

Certainly saw a lost of dust exit the laptop.

Thanks - allegedly already been tried but I think I'll give it a go just
to observe the results.

At the moment the fan whines like a banshee but there is virtually no air
flow from the vents.

Cheers


Dave R

On 24/02/14 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts, by
which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

Cheers

Dave R


Get a very powerful air-in-a-can (the ones with metal "straws" work well
(I use Kenair Air Duster). Blast it in every cavity, and primarily the
air vents.

You will surprised what comes out! Best to do this outside...

"David.WE.Roberts" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 12:46:25 +0000, Fredxxx wrote:

On 24/02/2014 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts,
by which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk
factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it,
so if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix
it.

I've used compressed air applied to the outlet side where I've first
locked the fan by a screwdriver.

Certainly saw a lost of dust exit the laptop.

Thanks - allegedly already been tried but I think I'll give it a go just
to observe the results.

At the moment the fan whines like a banshee but there is virtually no air
flow from the vents.


Could the bearings in the fan be goosed? Air duster, as already advised,
always works fine for me by the way.
--

Cheers
Niel H

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 13:44:57 +0000, Niel H wrote:

"David.WE.Roberts" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 12:46:25 +0000, Fredxxx wrote:

On 24/02/2014 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal
starts, by which time virtually everything else has already been
removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart
from completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high
risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it,
so if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to
fix it.

I've used compressed air applied to the outlet side where I've first
locked the fan by a screwdriver.

Certainly saw a lost of dust exit the laptop.

Thanks - allegedly already been tried but I think I'll give it a go
just to observe the results.

At the moment the fan whines like a banshee but there is virtually no
air flow from the vents.


Could the bearings in the fan be goosed? Air duster, as already advised,
always works fine for me by the way.

I am wondering if one problem is that the fan is 'whiney' and so makes it
sound worse than it really is.

Pretty sure it is not pushing air through as it should anyway.

Searching for an air duster at the moment.

Can you quieten a whiny fan with a little WD40 in the vent, or is this
just asking for trouble?

Cheers

Dave R

On 24/02/2014 14:00, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

Searching for an air duster at the moment.

What happens if you use a vacuum cleaner on the outside of the case,
where the air vents are? What's wrong with that?

On 24/02/2014 13:28, Tim Watts wrote:
On 24/02/14 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts, by
which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

Cheers

Dave R


Get a very powerful air-in-a-can (the ones with metal "straws" work well
(I use Kenair Air Duster). Blast it in every cavity, and primarily the
air vents.

You will surprised what comes out! Best to do this outside...
Before you do anything that may turn the fan blades at any great speed,
such as applying a vacuum cleaner or air jet, make sure the blades can't
move, or you may well blow the control circuitry, even on brushless fans.

--
Tciao for Now!

John.

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:19:40 +0000, John Williamson wrote:

On 24/02/2014 13:28, Tim Watts wrote:
On 24/02/14 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts,
by which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart
from completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk
factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it,
so if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to
fix it.

Cheers

Dave R


Get a very powerful air-in-a-can (the ones with metal "straws" work
well (I use Kenair Air Duster). Blast it in every cavity, and primarily
the air vents.

You will surprised what comes out! Best to do this outside...
Before you do anything that may turn the fan blades at any great speed,
such as applying a vacuum cleaner or air jet, make sure the blades can't
move, or you may well blow the control circuitry, even on brushless
fans.

Is that because whizzing them round turns them into a generator?

Cheers

Dave R

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 13:28:59 +0000, Tim Watts wrote:

On 24/02/14 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts,
by which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk
factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it,
so if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix
it.

Cheers

Dave R


Get a very powerful air-in-a-can (the ones with metal "straws" work well
(I use Kenair Air Duster). Blast it in every cavity, and primarily the
air vents.

You will surprised what comes out! Best to do this outside...

Kenair? Kinell! Expensive.

Any high street sources for Kenair?

Maplins has some bits, but the web site shows them out of stock.

Jessops show a vacuum kit - but it is not clear if this also works as a
duster or if you need another nozzle.

Jessops seems potentially the best option for a quick turn round at the
moment as long as the vac kit can act as an air duster.

Cheers

Dave R

I was worried about the sound of this fan. I have a dell inspiron and its
fan is very quiet. Are you sure the fan is not faulty in some way?
Brian

--
From the Sofa of Brian Gaff Reply address is active
"Tim Watts" wrote in message
...
On 24/02/14 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts, by
which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

Cheers

Dave R


Get a very powerful air-in-a-can (the ones with metal "straws" work well
(I use Kenair Air Duster). Blast it in every cavity, and primarily the air
vents.

You will surprised what comes out! Best to do this outside...

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:30:30 +0000, Brian Gaff wrote:

I was worried about the sound of this fan. I have a dell inspiron and
its fan is very quiet. Are you sure the fan is not faulty in some way?
Brian

Noted further up :-)

Considering if a small spray of WD40 might quieten down the fan.

IIRC this works for heater fans in cars.

Cheers

Dave R

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:12:43 +0000, GB
wrote:

On 24/02/2014 14:00, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

Searching for an air duster at the moment.

What happens if you use a vacuum cleaner on the outside of the case,
where the air vents are? What's wrong with that?

1) Doesn't work very well, sucking-from-everywhere as opposed to
blowing-in-a-straight-line

2) Risk of static buildup transferred to your kit. Bzzt!

Cheers - Jaimie
--
"If you're not able to ask questions and deal with the answers without feeling
that someone has called your intelligence or competence into question, don't
ask questions on Usenet where the answers won't be carefully tailored to avoid
tripping your hair-trigger insecurities." - D M Procida, UCSM

On 24 Feb 2014 14:24:50 GMT, "David.WE.Roberts"
wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:19:40 +0000, John Williamson wrote:

Before you do anything that may turn the fan blades at any great speed,
such as applying a vacuum cleaner or air jet, make sure the blades can't
move, or you may well blow the control circuitry, even on brushless
fans.

Is that because whizzing them round turns them into a generator?

Yup.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
"Hey T-Rex! This ice cream cake is delicious!"
"Thanks! You don't think it tastes like... *philosophical compromise*?"
"Only a little!
-- http://www.qwantz.com/index.php?comic=1093

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:38:36 +0000, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:12:43 +0000, GB
wrote:

On 24/02/2014 14:00, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

Searching for an air duster at the moment.

What happens if you use a vacuum cleaner on the outside of the case,
where the air vents are? What's wrong with that?

1) Doesn't work very well, sucking-from-everywhere as opposed to
blowing-in-a-straight-line

2) Risk of static buildup transferred to your kit. Bzzt!

Cheers - Jaimie

On the subject of static - you can get quite a strong air blast by using a
12V compressor for car tyres and fitting the metal thin nozzle used for
blowing up footballs (feetball?).

Seems to me that this may have similar issues to using a vacuum cleaner.

However, if so, is there any way to reduce or eliminate static, such as
earthing the metal nozzle?

Cheers

Dave R

On 24 Feb 2014 14:32:02 GMT, "David.WE.Roberts"
wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:30:30 +0000, Brian Gaff wrote:

I was worried about the sound of this fan. I have a dell inspiron and
its fan is very quiet. Are you sure the fan is not faulty in some way?
Brian

Noted further up :-)

Considering if a small spray of WD40 might quieten down the fan.

IIRC this works for heater fans in cars.

It can, but not for very long - WD40 is a cleaner, not a lubricant. It
might work for a bit, *if* you can get the spray into the business end
of the fan - and that's usually very well hidden from the surface
grills.

It's not *very* likely to do any harm, but it's possible the solvents
could interfere with plastics (case and ribbons and PCBs) as well as
risk to screen coatings.

Generally the trick to refettle fans is a drop of 3-in-1 or similar to
the spindle, but that might necessitate some or all of the disassembly
that you don't fancy. In the case of a fan that's gone properly off
balance and destroyed its bearing, no oil will do much anyway.

Is it definitely not something flapping in the blades?

Cheers - Jaimie
--
I hope I live long enough
to vindicate my pessimism -- http://www.boasas.com/?c=1108

On 24 Feb 2014 14:42:23 GMT, "David.WE.Roberts"
wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:38:36 +0000, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:12:43 +0000, GB
wrote:

On 24/02/2014 14:00, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

Searching for an air duster at the moment.

What happens if you use a vacuum cleaner on the outside of the case,
where the air vents are? What's wrong with that?

1) Doesn't work very well, sucking-from-everywhere as opposed to
blowing-in-a-straight-line

2) Risk of static buildup transferred to your kit. Bzzt!

On the subject of static - you can get quite a strong air blast by using a
12V compressor for car tyres and fitting the metal thin nozzle used for
blowing up footballs (feetball?).

Seems to me that this may have similar issues to using a vacuum cleaner.

Only if you touch the kit together.

However, if so, is there any way to reduce or eliminate static, such as
earthing the metal nozzle?

That would do it. Have the laptop plugged in to the mains as well.

Frankly, the risk of static is vastly oversold.

Cheers - Jaimie
--
"I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has
endowed us with sense, reason and intellect has intended us
to forgo their use." - Galileo Galilei

David.WE.Roberts wrote :
On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 13:28:59 +0000, Tim Watts wrote:

On 24/02/14 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts,
by which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk
factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it,
so if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix
it.

Cheers

Dave R


Get a very powerful air-in-a-can (the ones with metal "straws" work well
(I use Kenair Air Duster). Blast it in every cavity, and primarily the
air vents.

You will surprised what comes out! Best to do this outside...

Kenair? Kinell! Expensive.

Any high street sources for Kenair?

Maplins has some bits, but the web site shows them out of stock.

Jessops show a vacuum kit - but it is not clear if this also works as a
duster or if you need another nozzle.

Jessops seems potentially the best option for a quick turn round at the
moment as long as the vac kit can act as an air duster.

Cheers

Dave R

For small jobs like this one I use these http://tinyurl.com/ooq9a5a For
blowing out dusty/cruddy computer cases I have a small compressor out
in the garage.

On 24 Feb 2014 14:00:35 GMT
"David.WE.Roberts" wrote:

Searching for an air duster at the moment.

Can you quieten a whiny fan with a little WD40 in the vent, or is
this just asking for trouble?

Asking for trouble, and not a very good lubricant anyway, I think.

On 24/02/2014 14:00, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 13:44:57 +0000, Niel H wrote:

Could the bearings in the fan be goosed?

They can be but remove the dust first.

I am wondering if one problem is that the fan is 'whiney' and so makes it
sound worse than it really is.

Pretty sure it is not pushing air through as it should anyway.

Searching for an air duster at the moment.

Can you quieten a whiny fan with a little WD40 in the vent, or is this
just asking for trouble?

Spraying WD40 round your laptop is asking for trouble. I suppose you could
argue that once you've stripped the laptop down and got at the fan you could
lubricate the bearings only but they are supposed to be sealed for life and
replacement of the fan is the only way to be sure of a long-lived repair.

The fan speed is automatically regulated to get the required cooling. If the
ventilation ducts are clogged with dust the laptop will increase the fan
speed, and hence noise, to compensate. So the first step is to get rid of
the dust then check to see if the fan speed and noise return to normal.

As well as the video you found it's also worth having the Dell service
manual, e.g. from
http://www.dell.com/support/my-suppo...n-1764/manuals
or follow the support links around Dell's website for a UK-specific manual.

(I thought the video author was going to take a club hammer to his laptop
until he switched it on and revealed it to be an electric screwdriver. :-)

The fan is close to the edge of the case on this model. If you can block
the fan rotation by sticking something through the ventilation grilles
you may be able to blow/suck the dust out without having to strip down
the laptop.


--
Graham Nye
news(a)thenyes.org.uk

On 24/02/2014 14:45, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:

Is it definitely not something flapping in the blades?

Can the OP tell without dismantling? However, coupled with the lack of
air flow, that must be a likely possibility.

David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts, by
which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

Cheers

Dave R

IME by the time that they get noisy or stop, they have had it. I'd buy
a new fan if I wanted reliability. Oiling computer fan bearings IME
doesn't last.

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 15:21:04 +0000, GB wrote:

On 24/02/2014 14:45, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:

Is it definitely not something flapping in the blades?

Can the OP tell without dismantling? However, coupled with the lack of
air flow, that must be a likely possibility.

Blades seem to be rotating freely (although they may well be coated with
crap - the fan I removed from my graphics card has all sorts of crap on it.

It is possible that the fan only used to run at low revs when the airways
were clear and some of the noise is due to the fan thrashing at high speed
against back pressure.

Cheers

Dave R

On 24/02/2014 15:24, Capitol wrote:
David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts, by
which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

Cheers

Dave R

IME by the time that they get noisy or stop, they have had it. I'd
buy a new fan if I wanted reliability. Oiling computer fan bearings IME
doesn't last.


I watched the dismantling video, and David R wouldn't have to do quite
as much in order to release the fan. For example, the video shows the
drives and screen being removed. Even so, by the time I had done that, I
would want to replace the fan. There's a replacement fan on Amazon for
about £10.

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 12:36:10 +0000, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts,
by which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk
factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

Cheers

Dave R

Having just had a look at the (excellent as always) Dell manual for this
model, I reckon it would take a maximum of 15 minutes to expose the fan.
(Probably less time than you've spent posting here ;-))

Does the fan always run at full speed? (It shouldn't.) Does the software
run slower than might be expected?

BTW, please do not even consider spraying any sort of lubricant into an
air intake. It won't get near any bearing surfaces, and it will leave the
air ways coated with something sticky to retain all future dust.

Chris

--
Remove prejudice to reply.

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 15:38:07 +0000, GB wrote:

[...]

Even so, by the time I had done that, I
would want to replace the fan.

+1

There's a replacement fan on Amazon for
about £10.

And dozens on eBay in the 7-8 quid range.

Chris

--
Remove prejudice to reply.

On 24/02/2014 14:27, David.WE.Roberts wrote:


Kenair? Kinell! Expensive.

Any high street sources for Kenair?


Are you near a Poundland? They have air dusters for . . . yes, you've
guessed it!
--
Cheers,
Roger
____________
Please reply to Newsgroup. Whilst email address is valid, it is seldom
checked.

On 24/02/14 14:27, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

Kenair? Kinell! Expensive.

Sadly everything else is utterly crap IME - you'd be as well off blowing
through a straw.

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 15:47:35 +0000, Chris Whelan wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 12:36:10 +0000, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts,
by which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk
factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it,
so if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix
it.

Cheers

Dave R

Having just had a look at the (excellent as always) Dell manual for this
model, I reckon it would take a maximum of 15 minutes to expose the fan.
(Probably less time than you've spent posting here ;-))

Does the fan always run at full speed? (It shouldn't.) Does the software
run slower than might be expected?

BTW, please do not even consider spraying any sort of lubricant into an
air intake. It won't get near any bearing surfaces, and it will leave
the air ways coated with something sticky to retain all future dust.

Chris

Chris/GB,

Just very nervous about prying things apart.

If I had longer, or it was mine, I might go slow and steady and accept
that if I broke something I would wait and source a replacement.

However I only have two days (and even that it pushing it).

I am assuming I have to remove the plastic moulding above the keyboard
then the keyboard, and that looked a bit risky in the video.

{Consults manual}

Well, it does look doable - I am just aware of sod's law and the risk/
benefit ratio.

I will try an air blast first to see what that does, and then review my
aversion to risk :-)

Thanks for all the help to everyone.

Cheers

Dave R

On 24/02/2014 12:36, David.WE.Roberts wrote:
First, Google found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts, by
which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.


Dell Do very good manuals that tell you exactly how to get at it. Just
search the Dell site.


--
Peter Crosland

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:46:53 +0000, Jaimie Vandenbergh
wrote:

On 24 Feb 2014 14:42:23 GMT, "David.WE.Roberts"
wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:38:36 +0000, Jaimie Vandenbergh wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 14:12:43 +0000, GB
wrote:

On 24/02/2014 14:00, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

Searching for an air duster at the moment.

What happens if you use a vacuum cleaner on the outside of the case,
where the air vents are? What's wrong with that?

1) Doesn't work very well, sucking-from-everywhere as opposed to
blowing-in-a-straight-line

2) Risk of static buildup transferred to your kit. Bzzt!

On the subject of static - you can get quite a strong air blast by using a
12V compressor for car tyres and fitting the metal thin nozzle used for
blowing up footballs (feetball?).

Seems to me that this may have similar issues to using a vacuum cleaner.

Only if you touch the kit together.

However, if so, is there any way to reduce or eliminate static, such as
earthing the metal nozzle?

That would do it. Have the laptop plugged in to the mains as well.

Frankly, the risk of static is vastly oversold.


Indeed, _very_ oversold, ime.

The obvious way to vacuum out the cooling vents is to apply suction
to the fan inlet. True it makes the fan spin like a turbocharger but
has never proved fatal to any and all of the fans I've "over-sped"
with this technique.

This will 'back flush' the debris and fluff out of the heatsink fins
on the exhaust port of the fan which neatly avoids wedging the rubbish
even more firmly into the heatsink fins. Only _after_ back flushing do
you try dragging any trapped muck by applying suction to the exhaust
side (alternating between intake and exhaust a few times to 'dislodge'
any trapped dust bunnies).

This will clean things up quite sufficiently in most cases without
having to do any amount of dismantling. The technique is so simple
that you could spend a few minutes every 2 or 3 months to maintain the
cooling performance to better than 80% for the life of the laptop and
most likely never ever have to disassemble it for that reason alone.
--
Regards, J B Good

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 15:15:37 +0000, Rob Morley
wrote:

On 24 Feb 2014 14:00:35 GMT
"David.WE.Roberts" wrote:

Searching for an air duster at the moment.

Can you quieten a whiny fan with a little WD40 in the vent, or is
this just asking for trouble?

Asking for trouble, and not a very good lubricant anyway, I think.

+1
--
Regards, J B Good

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 15:47:35 +0000 (UTC), Chris Whelan
wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 12:36:10 +0000, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts,
by which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk
factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

Cheers

Dave R

Having just had a look at the (excellent as always) Dell manual for this
model, I reckon it would take a maximum of 15 minutes to expose the fan.
(Probably less time than you've spent posting here ;-))

Does the fan always run at full speed? (It shouldn't.) Does the software
run slower than might be expected?

BTW, please do not even consider spraying any sort of lubricant into an
air intake. It won't get near any bearing surfaces, and it will leave the
air ways coated with something sticky to retain all future dust.


+1
--
Regards, J B Good

In message , David.WE.Roberts

Can you quieten a whiny fan with a little WD40 in the vent, or is this
just asking for trouble?

WD40 will end up a sticky mess to which even more crap will adhere.

The fan in my wife's Tosh laptop was extremely whiney, and we were
worried it may overheat or something, so I eventually plucked up courage
to dismantle it. Either that, or buy her a new laptop :-)

Found a video on YouTube showing the procedure, which I followed
carefully. Not something I would want to do too often, and required a
magnifying glass to see some of it! However, having finally removed the
fan, I could see the problem. It was clogged with brownish gunk. Wifey
mainly uses the laptop at the kitchen table, plus we have cat and dog in
the house, which may explain the crud in there. Gave the whole thing a
thorough 'Hoover', reassembled and it has been silent ever since. No, I
didn't attempt to lubricate the fan - just cleaning it thoroughly.

--
Graeme

On 24/02/14 15:59, Roger Mills wrote:
On 24/02/2014 14:27, David.WE.Roberts wrote:


Kenair? Kinell! Expensive.

Any high street sources for Kenair?


Are you near a Poundland? They have air dusters for . . . yes, you've
guessed it!

Do they work?

Every cheap air-in-a-can hasn't been worth a dime IME.

In message , Roger Mills
writes
Are you near a Poundland? They have air dusters for . . . yes, you've
guessed it!

The Poundland air duster turns black Lenovo's whiteish in patches while
the can freezes itself to your hand. Does the job, though.

The mottled white seems to slowly revert to the original colour, so it
may not be too serious.
--
Bill

After serious thinking David.WE.Roberts wrote :
First, Google found
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts, by
which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart from
completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it, so
if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to fix it.

Cheers

Dave R

Every year or so I blow my desktops and laptops out with a compressed
air line, I just make sure I wedge the fan blades to stop them
spinning. No need to even open them up usually.

--
Regards,
Harry (M1BYT) (L)
http://www.ukradioamateur.co.uk

On 24 Feb 2014 12:36:10 GMT, "David.WE.Roberts" wrote:

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it

Australia = hot as f*ck and sometimes hotter

Two days to fix it = not enough time by the sounds of your declared expertise
(spraying WD40 etc)

Time to buy a new laptop / tablet maybe on the way out to Australia

--

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 16:07:49 +0000, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 15:47:35 +0000, Chris Whelan wrote:

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 12:36:10 +0000, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

First, Google found http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAfHwlP8DRk
and watching this you get to about 9:30 before the fan removal starts,
by which time virtually everything else has already been removed.

AFAICS there is no immediately obvious way to get at the fan apart
from completely stripping the laptop, which does have a very high risk
factor.

So are there alternative strategies to clean a laptop fan without
disassembly?

I have a couple of days before my son sets off for Australia with it,
so if I break anything I will almost certainly not have the time to
fix it.

Cheers

Dave R

Having just had a look at the (excellent as always) Dell manual for
this model, I reckon it would take a maximum of 15 minutes to expose
the fan.
(Probably less time than you've spent posting here ;-))

Does the fan always run at full speed? (It shouldn't.) Does the
software run slower than might be expected?

BTW, please do not even consider spraying any sort of lubricant into an
air intake. It won't get near any bearing surfaces, and it will leave
the air ways coated with something sticky to retain all future dust.

Chris

Chris/GB,

Just very nervous about prying things apart.

If I had longer, or it was mine, I might go slow and steady and accept
that if I broke something I would wait and source a replacement.

However I only have two days (and even that it pushing it).

I am assuming I have to remove the plastic moulding above the keyboard
then the keyboard, and that looked a bit risky in the video.

{Consults manual}

Well, it does look doable - I am just aware of sod's law and the risk/
benefit ratio.

I will try an air blast first to see what that does, and then review my
aversion to risk :-)

Thanks for all the help to everyone.

Well, the air blower didn't shift anything of note.

Gentle exploration of the fins must have dislodged a dust bunny because
after that the fan wouldn't spin.

So I bit the bullet and stripped it down because I really had no choice.

Part way through I remembered that the laptop had been repaired a couple
of times under warranty.

That explains why about 25% of the screws were missing.

I even had to chart which holes started out with screws in so I could put
it back together the same way.

Bloody Dell field engineers!!

Anyway there was a big wedge of dust in the fan, and I also had a bit of a
poke between the fins of the heat exchanger to clear out any dust there.

Back together, and it actually runs!

Also, fan spinning quietly and temperatures seem to be staying down.

So it looks as though things have improved.

Thanks again for all the help and suggestions.

Cheers

Dave R

On Mon, 24 Feb 2014 21:40:20 +0000, David.WE.Roberts wrote:

[...]

Well, the air blower didn't shift anything of note.

Gentle exploration of the fins must have dislodged a dust bunny because
after that the fan wouldn't spin.

So I bit the bullet and stripped it down because I really had no choice.

Part way through I remembered that the laptop had been repaired a couple
of times under warranty.

That explains why about 25% of the screws were missing.

I even had to chart which holes started out with screws in so I could
put it back together the same way.

Bloody Dell field engineers!!

Anyway there was a big wedge of dust in the fan, and I also had a bit of
a poke between the fins of the heat exchanger to clear out any dust
there.

Back together, and it actually runs!

Also, fan spinning quietly and temperatures seem to be staying down.

So it looks as though things have improved.

Glad it worked out OK; Dell laptops are the best for repairing!

Chris


--
Remove prejudice to reply.