Problem with cooling - HP Compaq Presario CQ70-211EM

[Viper13]

Hi, I didn't really knew where to post, so I decided to post here, sorry if it's wrong place.

So, I have this laptop (HP Compaq Presario CQ70-211EM) for 3 years now, everything works fine, except cooling system, whole laptop gets REALLY hot after 10(!) minutes, I always have it on all day, it's standing on a special stand, fan has been cleaned(by me) 2 months ago. Areas that get really hot are: hard drive, ram, area around the fan, and whole left side of laptop.

I don't know what to do, any ideas? I really need help

Additional info:

Windows 7 Ultimate x86(32bit), 160GB HDD, 2GB RAM, fan always on, always plugged in (battery is dead).

[CherylG]

It may be time to clean gpu and cpu, and replace the thermal pads or paste.It does deteriorate after awhile especially in the heat of a laptop.

You could also go into Advanced settings of your Power Plan and set the max power of cpu while on power to 90% rather than 100%. I have seen some posters who claim this does lower temps and very little, if any, noticeable difference in performance.

[SSDdrive]

Hello Viper13,

                Normally this would be considered a Lockup and Freeze issue. If you repost under Lockups/Freezes you will more readily receive the proper help.

                                      'I am a volunteer!

If it were a rattler. . . .

[Viper13]

Thanks , Now I know what to do, and where to post in future

but I still have some questions about replacing paste:

What kind of thermal paste would be good?

Where to buy thermal paste?

How to remove old thermal paste? (I've heard about using alcohol to do that..)

How to properly apply it? how much of it?

I know that CPU is processor, is GPU something on graphics card?

Is it safe to do all that? with my 'skills' I'd mess something up

*I've just reduced CPU usage to 90% when on battery

Again, big THANK YOU to you both :3

[CherylG · Accepted solution]

You can also remove the battery since you mention it is dead anyway.Removing it sometimes aids cooling. When you set the processor speed lower-you did change it under 'Plugged in' didn't you?

Yes, clean the old compound off with alcohol.You can get Arctic Silver 5 here or at many stores, Radio Shack, Best Buy,Staples,etc. Below are  videos showing applying Arctic Silver and Ceramique, both good.

http://youtu.be/Mnj-fUNgRs8

http://youtu.be/hdHMsDXpvew

http://youtu.be/A_C0RkpO7LU

[Viper13]

I keep the battery in only because, when I take it out, the whole laptop tilts left when on stand. But I'll remove battery if it helps.

I've just asked my friend who has eBay account if he could get it for me (I'm buying this one)

I did set both, "On battery" and "Plugged in" to 90%, I can actually see the difference in temperature, not a lot, but still.

Again, thank you very much for help, I'll see if this works for me ^^

[CherylG]

Just leave the battery, may not be worth the added nuisance of laptop tilting. Glad to hear changing cpu settings has helped some. Probably the thermal will help even more noticeably.Good luck with your project!

[Viper13]

Hi, it's me again, I've finally got Arctic Silver 5 and I'm about to replace old thermal paste with new one.

I don't have any strong alcohol at my house, but I've heard that some people use nail polish remover to clean processor and heatsink, and I was wondering , if it's safe to use it?/will it not do any damage?

[CherylG]

Nail polish remover usually has some light oil in it, and fragrance. Neither is too good when cleaning a heatsink.Alcohol is best.

[Viper13]

I've taken my laptop apart today, everything went alright, except I used wrong screw for (I think it was speaker) and it went through laptop case, right in the place where battery was - so I'm not able to put battery in...

I replaced old thermal paste with new one, did this with cpu and gpu.

So, I plug it in - laptop turns itself on (power button circuit falure?) It boots without any problems, but works kinda slow when I logon, also, after I logon, the laptop makes noise like AK47 -.- even though it's muted... I've shut it down straight away.

It looks like I've messed something up really badly, and I'm not gonna be able to fix it myself (me & my skills lol)

Laptop is not on warranty and I don't really wanna buy a new one, or pay for expensive repairs.

Any tips how could I fix it? 3: btw, I didn't use nail polish remover, just glass wipes

@Update:

I managed to fix it,  it works fine and doesn't make any noises, actually, after I've cleaned the fan (I had to take fan apart) it's so quiet I can't even hear it

I was wondering if these temperatures are normal:

This is without any stuff running, except web browser

I think I didn't apply enough thermal paste S:

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@Update 06.07.2012

Laptop works fine, except that the CMOS is dead and I can't be asked replacing the battery, and there's something wrong with power button (when I plug laptop in, it turns on by itself)

Everything works way faster and I'm happy now xD

These are the temperatures I get with just a few programs open (Firefox, Skype, Winamp, etc)