Broken fan.

the fan of my laptop stopped working. when i start the computer it goes for like a second than stops, goes for another second, stops, and than stays put.

what do you think is the problem?

 

Also try using a fan control tool to control the fans, the system may just not need them much after startup. Watch your temps though cause heat is definetly not a good thing

Is it under warranty? If so send it in, might need new fans I've had to replace a few usually its a fairly cheap fix (20 or so) but it can be complicated (some systems mobo needs removing)

 

according to the manufacturer the fan is suppesed to be running all the time. the fact that it's not, is b/c something is wrong.

 

What kind of computer do you have (e.g. brand, general specs)

 

Dell laptop, about year old.

put a vacum cleaner by the fan grate for a few seconds. nothing changed.

 

I am fixing an old Vaio for a friend in which the fan stopped working. It has a 550Mhz K6 in it, a bloody huge core die that requires a decent amount of cooling. I don't know how long he's been running it sans-fan, but when I touched it I couldn't comfortably keep my hand on the surface of the keyboard / speaker area (which is near the screen) or on the bottom. I rigged a standard PC fan (powered by another PC's PSU) at the back to cool it while I was working on other things, and the fan jumpstarted and works most of the time (albeit, EXTREMELY loud, I think the bearings are shot). I doubt that will work in your case, but I thought I'd share. I thought about the vacuum idea, too, but I figured that might be TOO much air being sucked through it.

 

Can you be any more SPECIFIC?

Which DELL laptop??????? E1505, E1705..etc?????

HOW long EXACTLY is left in the warrenty???????? What does "about year old" exactly mean?????? Which warrenty did you purchase when you bought the laptop??? standard 1,2,3 year?

How do you expect people to help you when you post NO INFO about your system?? Please take some time and explain what happened to your system, or what caused the fan to stop working and check how long is left in the warrenty. If it's still under warrenty, then give DELL a call, otherwise, call DELL parts department or try ebay and get a replacment fan for your system, I guess they're cheap. You can always open up your system and see if a cable is loose if you know how to do it.

 

How old is your laptop? My guess is your fan is dying. Still under warranty=send it in. Not=buy the screwdriver set you need to open the case, buy new fan from Dell (or third party), install yourself.

 

While I personally do not have this problem yet... I am looking for replacement fans for a Dell E1705... I prefer to let the fans run full throttle most of the time, and I *know* they are going to burn out quick.

I need to know the part number and/or the specifications of the fans... What is the wattage, amperage, voltage for the fans? Both fans, preferrably, unless they are actually the same kind and type, of course....

Please PM me if my wuestions are answered, as this thread is buried.

 

Inspiron 1200. standard Dell 90 day warranty. i don't know why the fan stopped working.

just wondering, is it at all possible for it be software related?

 

Do you hold the laptop in your lap often? Put it on carpet or on a bed? Or even a table with a tablecloth?

MANY things can make the fan work too hard and burn it out....

You need to make sure that the vents ALL AROUND THE LAPTOP stay free of anything that could impede air flow... sounds to me like you ran it into the ground....

Was this unit used? Or 'clearance'? Business or home purchase? Sometimes you can get repairs free out of warranty depending on how the system was purchased...

Besides, if you can figure out the fan part number, you should be able to pop out the screws, unplug it, rescrew, and it's fixed.

If nothing else, you can pop it open and see the fan itself... check if it will spin AT ALL when you push it... If not, the bearings are shot to hell.

You could also connect a 9 volt battery to the fan and see if it spins...

The 9volt could harm the fan, depending on the voltage... I know NOTHING of voltages in a laptop... the fan could be 12 volts, I don't know... In which case, the 9volt wouldn't help... although the fan would spin longer after pushing it if it wasn't faulty...

Methinks ultimately, open it up, get the part no. off the fan, jump online, order, replace.

A novice might be able to do this... if you are worried about doing it, you might have a 'techie' friend that would love to open up a newer laptop.. I would do it for free, just to look inside...


Good luck! And DON'T USE IT UNTIL THE FAN IS FIXED!!! IT'LL OVERHEAT IN MINUTES (possibly) AND FRY

 

Never.

Always did that.

wha?

New. out of warranty, Dell will try to help me diagnose the problem - for a fee of course. for the same price i could just take it to a repair shop.

when i put a vacum cleaner to the fan intake, it spins.

 

Don't even bother trying to fix such a problem by getting your hands dirty. Dabble a little with software and the BIOS, and if that doesn't work, send it back. You do have the 1 year standard, right?

 

what are you refering to? my Q. about if it's software related?

No. Dell standard is 90 days.

 

Try I8kfan to see if you can run your fans via software. My fans do not run when first booted unless I set them to do so with I8kfan. You can also try the hardware test with your model(?) to check the sensors. I think it was hold the fn key down during boot but me forgets.

 

on one website that i think is the I8kfan website it has a graph that says which system is compatible with this utility, and by the Inspiron 1200 (the one i have) it has ????, so i guess it was never tested.

 

i bought this Clean Safe Dust Remover (IQ products company) - it's liquid in the can. air out of the can - i blowed into the intake vent tons of short bursts and had the vacum at the exhaust vent. then i blowed into the exhaust and sucked the intake. nothing doing. my fan still does the same shtick. when i start the computer it goes for like a second than stops, goes for another second, stops, and stays put.

have i for sure ruled out dust as the problem? what now?

 

Is your computer overheating and BSOD or other? It may be that your bios has decided that chips are not hot enough? None of my 3 different laptops run the fans right after cold boot but YMMV?

What happened when you ran your dell diagnostic checks, if available on your model?

when i start the computer it goes for like a second than stops The fan may be fine but the bios shut them down. I find it very odd that any notebook would turn fan, and noise, on during first boot when cold?