Praneel’s Blog

Toshiba R15 Tablet PC / Laptop Fan Sound Problem - Solution

My Toshiba R15 Tablet is making a lot of noise and the Fan is running at full speed almost all the time. In addition to this the laptop is overheating. Usually this is caused by clogging of the heat-sink or fan blades with dust.
My options were -

1) Send it to service (1200km away)
2) Replace the fan and heat sink by my self
3) Try a simple repair. Though risky I took the third option and proceeded with the cleaning.

[Caution: This procedure is not tested thoroughly and any harm caused to the equipment is unknown. Proceed at your own risk.]

Procedure:
1) Turnoff the laptop, remove battery and Remove all connectors.
2) Use suction to remove easy dirt.
3) Use fine nozzle attachment to blow away hard dirt.
4) Use suction again to remove any dirt residue. (If the cleaning is complete, you will hear a whistle during suction- this indicates the vents and fan blades are dirt free.)
5) Plug-in all connectors, replace battery and plug-in power.
*Extra Caution: Some suggest removing Ram modules and Hard Disk also during this procedure. I did not remove them and there seems to be no problem.

After the cleaning my Laptop is cooler and more silent than before. I might need to change the fan later, but this cleaning bought me more time and less noise.