Why your laptop overheats and what to do about it
A laptop that roars like a vacuum cleaner, burns your lap and stutters while you work is usually overheating. It’s not just unpleasant: at high temperatures the processor slows itself down to avoid damage, and long-term heat shortens the life of the battery and other components.
The most common causes
Dust in the cooler. The fan pulls in air together with dust, and over the years it settles on the heatsink fins like a felt mat. Air can no longer get through and the heat has nowhere to go. In laptops older than two or three years this is the number one cause.
Dried-out thermal paste. Between the processor and the cooler there’s a thin layer of paste that transfers heat. Over time it dries out and hardens, so it conducts heat much worse. A typical symptom: the fan runs at full speed, yet the laptop is still hot.
Blocked vents. A laptop sitting on a duvet, a sofa or your lap breathes through its underside, and that’s exactly what you block.
Programs running in the background. Sometimes the computer really is just working hard: updates, an antivirus scan, photo sync, or a browser window with dozens of tabs. Occasionally it’s malware.
What you can do yourself
- Put the laptop on a hard, flat surface. A stand or a book under the back edge also helps, so air can get underneath.
- Check what’s loading it. On Windows open Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and sort processes by CPU usage. If something you don’t recognise is at the top, or something constantly uses more than 50 %, that’s suspicious.
- Check the power mode. “Best performance” mode on mains power heats things up for no reason. Balanced mode is enough for everyday work.
- Blowing out the vents from outside with compressed air can help a little. Hold the fan still while you do it, so it doesn’t spin freely. Dust that has settled inside on the heatsink usually won’t come out this way, though.
Please don’t go at your laptop with a vacuum cleaner and don’t open it up without experience. Static electricity and snapped plastic clips can do more damage than dust.
When it’s time for a cleaning
If the laptop is loud even while you write an e-mail, the underside is hot to the touch and none of the above has helped, it needs cleaning on the inside. I take the laptop apart, clean the heatsink and fan, and replace the thermal paste with a quality one. Afterwards it’s usually noticeably quieter and cooler and stops stuttering.
You’ll find the price in the price list. We’ll agree on a date that suits you.