Hey any technical experts out there,

Lately my laptop is becoming to be quite loud in terms of the venting. I don't know if it's just due to age (1.6 years) or some other mechanical problem. I recently replaced the battery but it still continues to exhibit the same feauture. Does anyone know how I can make it quiet, a way a lap top should be?

Thanks

 

Two things to look for.

1) Fans
2) HDD

Fans drive cool air to, and hot air away from the hot components. If they or the thin slits/holes of your laptop get clogged with dust, you might end up with a fan drawing air in a manner which causes whistling noises to occur.

Depending on the fan, it can also be a bearing failure. Two kinds of fans exist, those with ball bearings, and those that are suspended in a liquid (the engine part or thereabouts). Fans that begin to reach the end of their life cycle will often begin to rattle and buzz (if it's a ball bearing failure), or they simple die without making a noise (as is the case for those that use liquids). The liquid ones are nice as they are quiet, but do come with the disadvantage of giving no ample warning when they go the way of the dodo bird.

The second thing to look out for is the HDD (Hard Disk Drive). Some models can make quite a whine, especially if they're about to fail. Find out if it's the HDD, and replace it. Most laptops will let you replace the HDD quite easily (maybe even to a faster and larger version), but laptop HDD's generally cost more money then an equivalent sized desktop model. If you don't want to lose your data, you can transfer it from one disk to another using an IDE splitter and a program such as Ghost.

If this part about disks is confusing, go find a local shop that sells PC bits and pieces, and ask them if they'll transfer the data from one disk to another for free if you buy a new quieter disk from them. Most will agree as it's a simple and quick procedure. You can make it even simpler for them by bringing in just the disk (if you're not afraid to open up your laptop, but do be careful as you could void your warranty, and if you're not very good with your hands, leave it to the experts, better safe then sorry).

If you do proceed with the disk copy, keep your old disk in a safe place (don't delete the info on it), this way you've got yourself a backup in case the new disk dies and you need to replace it and still keep all your old info.

And finally, if it's all under warranty, take advantage of this warranty of yours

Hope this helps.

 

Just unplug all the fans and harddrive and it should be quieter.

 

Wow, that is very useful information. Thanks a lot. I think my warranty is expired but I'll check out a few stores to see what and how they can fix this problem.