Great video, simple and professional. Just removed Santa's beard from my fan. Now my laptop even sounds different than before. I think the dust muffled the sound of the fan. Now that the dust is gone, I can hear it so much better. And the fan doesn't run as much, so it made a difference. Thanks!
Thank you for this video! I'm helping a friend out with their computer and this video will help me since their computer smells like burning plastic and is thermal throttling like a mean bull!
Cleaning the fans is a great start. I understand not wanting to remove the thermal paste and putting on new, it does make a big difference if you do that, but as long as there is thermal past still on the chip and cooling system you are ok. I would highly suggest though that you do replace it with new as the old stuff gets hard and does not work as well. Very important that you have at least something.
I did it!! I love you!! I didnt know how to open my 1545 and you explained it SO good! My fan was about to explode! :P And the guys at the computer service wanted to charge me almost 100 to do this! Thanks!!
Hi - just wanted to say thanks for this video, my Dell had CPU temp averaging 85-95C (fan constantly running full speed); after just cleaning dust/lint (leaving existing thermal paste in place) it's down to 50-60C and fan is much quieter..
2 mistakes: 1) When blowing compressed air into a cooling fan DO NOT allow the fan to spin, the air pressure spins it much faster than it naturally spins and ruins it. 2) Way too much thermal paste!
Wow! this video helped me a lot. i tried myself for the first time but didn't know what to do with that cooling system..thanks to you, now i know. Keep it up.
@neviatha - yes overheating will cause the machine to lag on all kinds of things. And yes you can do a full dismantle and get to the fan. In the case of this vid we did not need to do that, but just do a search for the make and model number here on RU-vid and I am sure there is a tutorial. Thanks and good luck!
Yes, very similar process, I would have a razor blade handy to lightly scrap off the old thermal paste and a larger screwdriver. But pretty much the exact same process. Thanks!
Quality video, easy to follow and great advice. Used your advice to clean and reapply thermal paste to my 3 year old inspiron 1545, running so quietly now and about 8-10 degrees cooler when running full tilt. Thanks alot mate!
Interesting, you must keep a clean desk! Yes don't scrimp on the thermal paste, this is important, if it is hard, it must be replaced! Thanks for commenting.
Hi Jack, this is not a great PC for gaming, you can try to upgrade the RAM in it, however, the best advice you can get from anyone who is into gaming, is to stop using a laptop and buy a dedicated game console like a PS3 or an Xbox. I did this years ago and there is no more lag, no more hoping the games I buy will actually run well. Games made for consoles have to work before they are approved for market. Easy. Good Luck!
Double check the antenna wires are seated properly. One other thing to check is the wifi switch, you may have bumped it when you were working on it. Let us know!
Took my 1545 apart recently, expecting it to be horrible... I have a cat and 2 dogs. After taking the heatsink completely off, it was almost spotless. Using real thermal paste seemed to make a difference in temps too.
Make sure that you are using the right size screwdriver for this, very important. If you have a hardware store near by, it would be worth a drive to get a 3.5 mm screwdriver, they usually come in a set, and totally worth it. Let us know! Don't give up!
Glad it went well. I try to convince people all the time that this will add life to an older computer. It does not take very long, and it puts money in your pocket! Go buy a burrito with the money you saved and call it a day! Thanks for the comment and enjoy!
I just replaced the trackpad buttons on mine. There's a deep irony in the fact that you have to take half the laptop apart to do the above, whilst replacing the heatsink compound takes a couple of screws and that's all! Usually it's decidedly the other way round! Still, not the worst-designed machine I've ever worked on...
@westmakati - The thermal paste creates a semi liquid "glue" that transfers the heat from metal to metal. - It's important in my opinion. However just cleaning off the dust is also a good step, but to achieve the best results you should follow the video every step of the way. Thanks for commenting!
@SwaleyBlue - Not sure about the access panel on the 1464. Flip it over and pull off that bottom panel, if you can see the cooling system it will be that same. Let me know!
I had to replace my DC I/O daughter card last week which required heat sink removal (1545 Inspiron laptop). All is fine, but I worry about the heat pads which I didn't replace. 1) Do the pads have a limited life span? 2) Do you think you applied too much thermal paste? I've seen countless videos here on YT and there are MANY opinions. One video here shows a single 'pea drop' on the center and demonstrates the spreading with clear plexiglass for total THIN coverage. Not trying to be critical
This helped a lot I managed to get the thermal paste and successfully cleaned out my fan. :) The fan is quiet now and it isn't getting hot anymore. I'll be sure to continue to do it often to keep it in good condition. The only problem I seem to be having is that now I occasionally get a sound/video stutter when viewing/listening to media. Could I have possibly done something to cause this?
Superb my man.... appreciated. Was totally nervous i would fuck it up but everything went without a hitch (touch wood).... was way more easier than i imagined! Just lacked confidence i guess... lol Peace!
Thank you so much this is the first time i ever cleaned the cooling agent and then dust was so compact that the fan i could here from my parent room, google chrome would crash my comp and it was extremly slow to where turning it off was a difficulty. But now its 3 times faster and everything runs great Thank you so much Sub'd, Liked and fav'd
THANKS very much for this vid. Wasn't sure if I'd tackle, but your visuals, calm/plain instructions seemed clear enuf, so thot what the heck. Think laptop was saved (HOT to trot!) dust bunny sz of NY found, also part of a leaf (?). too bad, no cash, haha. FYI, anyone looking for thermal compound/paste, ordered online frm Walmart ('Artic silver' (ceramique), $3.71 before tax), have 'site to store' serv., so just picked, no handling (yep, penny pinching now!). Got 'compressed air' in store $4.83
my inspiron 1545 heats up to a point where it is practically painful to touch, but it's still working to my surprise. i suppose it's time to take it out of isolation and clean it up.
Hi. My Dell Inspiron 1545 is making a loud grinding noise every time I turn it on. It sounds like it's coming from the fan. Can you please tell me what you think is wrong with it? Thank you!
The fan needs to be replaced or at the very least you need to follow my video and clean it. But once they start grinding, you most likely have a bad bearing and will need to be replaced. Good Luck!
Most likely it is overheating. You need to follow this video and it should stop shutting down. Also make sure the fan has not completely failed. If it has pull the part number, go to ebay and find a replacement. Easy fix. Wait too long and the motherboard will fry out.
hi this has worked really well for me got a ton of gunk out of my fan. I just have one problem though I cannot connect to the internet wirelessly anymore can you give me any advice.
I remember a while ago my laptop was making a lot of grinding noise; I had not watched this video yet and just opened it and picked up a ball of lint. After this, it stopped making noise and overheating. It was doing it again another time, and I did the same --- and after watching your video, I bought compressed air and thermal paste to give it a better fix. However, it seems like my fan is not working now. I was not checking for it before for some reason, so maybe it is running but not producing much air? Is there a way to check for it precisely, and is there a easy way to change the fan if it comes to this? Thanks a lot! In any case, your video was very helpful and informative! :)
Actually that is what you want to have happen. Thermal paste should remain some what paste like. When it gets harder the transfer of heat is not as efficient. So you are good. So what noises is the machine making!? Fan clicking?
Hello I think the antenna wires may be the problem as one was out of place, I moved it and turned it on again and it connected to the internet but there was a poor signal. I opened it up again to try and adjust it but it's not picking up anything now. how are the wires supposed to go do they click into place or rest on top?
@zovaze - 100% necessary. If you don't apply it, the machine will overheat and fail. Wait and buy some, apply it and get some more years out of that machine.
I need help with something. Recently, when the fan starts up, I hear it hitting something for a brief second. It doesn't happen all the time, but it's starting to worry me. Can this be fixed without dissasembling the laptop and can this be dangerous?
i dont think there is a way without disassembling the laptop. open it up, and check the fan for dust dirt and any blocking. also check for anything surrounding the fan, cables, pieces of broken plastic... and it could be dangerous for your laptop because it can break the fan.
Hello, my lap laptop is a dell Inspiron 15R 5520 and I've had it for a year and a half. I haven't cleaned it out before and as such the exhaust is blocked. However, for me, I have to open up the computer, remove the motherboard, flip it over, then take out the fan. I don't want to damage anything with ESD, so is it a good idea to touch a ball of aluminum foil to dissipate any charge build up on me as I work on the laptop? Also, when I remove the thermal cooling assembly, will I need to reapply thermal paste? I don't have any.
Hello I have a Dell Inspiron 1546 computer and stop Suddenly I went to the office of repairs and told me that the problem is in the graphics card does not know how to fit graphics cards and the problem is that the computer work and work van and there is no image on the computer screen or in the external monitor and the computer re-furbished
I have this model too, and I have a few problems (it never shuts down) and I think it's due to over heating. I've had it for a couple of years now so.... so thanks for posting this. Was wondering if there was any way to get into the fan as well? I have to confess the air intake had gotten quite grimy too. the worse problem I have been having is streaming media is become really laggy sometimes unpredictable. Do you think that this could be a side effect from over heating?
i have a inspiron 1545 i love it but its hard to play some pc games cause of the video card. do u have any videos showing where the graphics card is and how to replace it?
Ah cool... that's exactly what I have just bought as well! lol Really wasn't sure how much of a difference any brand or what medium the paste is made from would make....
i have a question. i have experience working on this, and i did everything already. i have 2 laptops like this. perfectly cleaned out now, but they still overheat. i have no idea why.
Oh right, cool.... well I've been looking into it. Just working up the courage to do it! lol Thanks anyway, you're video is great by the way. Can I ask just one last question. When I was looking into 'Thermal paste' i noticed that there were various types (ie silver, coper, ceramic I think) what would you recomend would be best to use on this... or do they all work fine?
Thanks a lot buddy! :) also may I ask you 1 question. I replaced thermal paste on CPU and graphic card, and my dell's runs 40-50C (104F- 122F) temperature is this fine or should I buy the better thermal paste? Thanks for your answer.
I read online that I could just blow into the fan and the heat sink and it would clean the dust out. Well now, the fan stopped working overall. I don't have any thermal paste or compressed air to clean it with :| This stupid thing is almost 4 years old now, I really need a new one.
although your video is about dell 1545, but i just need a quick reply please, please tell me does inspiron 545 desktop psu fan blows air in or out,, i was cleaning it today because it was dirty and noisy but forgot to check its air flow, was it blowing air in or out ? now i set it to blow air in but i don't think its right and can't find about on web anywhere can you help me ?
I have the Dell Inspiron 1546 laptop and it has always been very warm at the bottom of the laptop and you can always hear the fan. In the past few months (maybe even up to a year ago), it has been pretty hot at the bottom and a couple of months ago, I would try to turn on my laptop and it would just shut down immediately and not turn on again, even if it wasn't on low battery. I would try a few times and it wouldn't turn on but, eventually it did turn on. However, about a month ago, it shut down again and I would not be able to turn it on at all! So, my parents took my laptop to a nearby tech repair shop and they said that there was something wrong with the motor and that it would cost $120 for them to try to fix it but, they said that there was no guarantee that it would be repaired. I'm just wondering if the motor got destroyed because of the cooling system not working at its best? I thought it was normal for laptops to be hot at the bottom and make a loud noise and I didn't see the problem, although I was aware that my brother's slightly newer laptop did not have this issue. I thought it was just an old laptop thing and I just had to deal with it by putting it on a table or a board thing. To be honest, even if my laptop doesn't get fixed, I'm fine with it because I only really want to get all my files from it. My brother said something about taking out the hard drive. I might get a new laptop in a few months anyway but, I'm curious as to what caused my laptop to be like this that way, if something similar happens in the future, I know what to do.
Yes the fan failed and probably took the motherboard with it. You should have taken it in prior to all of these shutdowns. It may have saved the laptop!
DIY Tech I know :( but I didn't know that overheating was bad, I was so misinformed. I thought it was normal and that most laptops did that. T_T Oh well, lol, lesson learned. I have an iMac now haha.
