I can't stand this fan noise any longer, thinking of modding!

I posted a similiar thread a while back, but I keep coming back to this issue. I would really appreciate some ideas and feedback!
The fan noise on my T410 is driving me crazy. I could try repasting a second time, but I'm not sure it would make a lot of difference. Earlier this evening I had the keyboard off and was looking at some things, comparing pictures as I found a socket G cooler. I noted that temps with the keyboard off were 5 to 10 degrees C cooler! Fan was still spinning at 3,500 rpm however.
This is the cooler I found, but after looking inside it will not fit as the cooler is square, and the 4 screw holes on the laptop are rectangular. So unfortunately that isn't an option.
My only other idea and one I've been kicking around, is buying this Jetway motherboard and gutting my laptop for parts. I'd hate to get rid of the T410 because it's been a solid machine for the past 15 months, I just can't live with this damned fan noise any longer, it's high pitched and very bothersome, and it's finally getting to me after all this time.
Also I noted while I had the keyboard off that the power buttons are part of the keyboard, there is no way to separate it from the whole unit.
What do you guys think? Here's a few pics I took earlier while I had the keyboard off. I hope these images will be the right size.

 

Do you run TPFanControl? CPUs idle pretty low, the fan doesn't have to be on. My X220 is super loud but with tpfancontrol the fan is like never on. Unfortunately Thinkpad fans don't breathe too well since there's so many design considerations. Under load my fan screams at 5300rpm I guess one thing you can try is cutting away those plastic things on the edge of the keyboard that seals it in, it would allow a little air to flow through the keyboard.

 

I came to edit my post to mention it. I use linux 99% of the time, and have used thinkfan quite successfully. The problem is, the fan has to come on at some point. I've noted that fan noise starts to become bothersome to me at about 2,500 rpm, and gets almost painful at 3,500-3,800 rpm (high pitched whine).
The fact that my cpu ran 5-10C cooler without the keyboard installed says something. I'm not comfortable with running the processor 60+ C on passive cooling, and 1,900 rpm is not adequate to keep it below 60C when I'm viewing a lot of flash videos or even watching movies, let alone playing games in windows.
At this point I have to fix the problem at the source, or just get rid of my T410.

 

I have my fan control set so the fan turns on at 65C, I don't think 70 would even hurt really? Your fan looks like it has some dust in it, might want to try vacuuming that out. Before scrapping your laptop, I'd consider cutting the vents in the bottom a little bigger.

 

I plan on repasting soon and giving the internals a good cleaning, that's already next on my list. Since I recently got the 90 watt power adapter the fan noise has been more frequent and perhaps that's why I'm more sensitive to it lately. I got the 90w adapter so I could get the processor's full potential without having to have the battery in, mainly for games.
My initial hope was to get an aftermarket cooler, splice the connector cable to fit the motherboard's connector, and either make or find a custom power button or be able to extract it from the keyboard, so I could permanently have it off. Neither is a possibility it would seem.
This is just from web browsing, doing nothing spectacular:

Code:

acpitz-virtual-0
Adapter: Virtual device
temp1:       +48.0°C  (crit = +100.0°C)                 

thinkpad-isa-0000
Adapter: ISA adapter
fan1:       3568 RPM
temp1:       +48.0°C

 

Wait I thought Thinkpads will revert to low power mode without the battery in...or maybe that's just the current generation. With the battery off, the fan's flow improves quite a bit, as the fan is designed to pull air through the battery compartment to keep it cool. I definitely think trimming the plastic off the edge of the keyboard should do something. Perhaps only trim it near the fan so you don't have a wiggly keyboard. I'd also consider getting Liquidmetal pro for the CPU, since it's a laptop and you probably won't need to open it up ever again. If you can get a small lump of gallium you can melt it on with a small heatgun, just don't let it touch aluminum or the magnesium chassis.

 

Not a good idea in case I'd want to open it up again. I just checked, and the battery compartment is completely sealed off from the inner components. Also, the processor will down clock without a battery if you are using a 65 watt adapter. The fan speed is more exaggerated with the 90 watt adapter, but it was still pretty annoying with the 65 watt one.
I was also planning on taking apart the ODD and seeing if there's anything I can do before I toss out, as I'd like to save it if possible. Those are on my to-do list.

 

Is the temperature drop while the keyboard is removed due to (i) improved airflow to the fan or (ii) radiation / convection off the CPU and heat pipe?

I would look closely at the possibility of improving airflow in the vicinity of the fan. Also, with Lenovo using fans from several sources, it's possible that another T410 fan would be less noisy.

John

 

The battery isn't sealed! In your 3rd picture there are those holes, see? I taped pieces of paper to the different vents on my X220 to see which ones had air going through, I was pretty surprised at some of the places air was going through. At any rate it's completely ridiculous how tiny the gaps they expect the fan to pull air through are. In your case I'd really consider making the intakes on the bottom of the computer wider by cutting some of the material away.

 

You're very observant, I didn't notice that. I just took a pic of the back, the keyboard is blocking the holes.

@John, I didn't have a fan on the notebook, so it would have to be your second choice. It kind of surprises me because although the heatsink is dinky, it almost totally covers up the processor.

 

If the fan is so unusually loud, are you sure it isn't just defective and in need of replacing.

 

It's not unusually loud, just really annoying. I'm currently looking into options, and possibly just buying a new heatsink/fan assembly from IBM if John is right that different manufacturers made them.

 

I was referring to the T410's fan. Is it able to breath better (ie shift more air for a particular speed) without the keyboard in place or is radiation / convection of heat giving the fan less work to do?

Pages 165 / 166 of the T410 hardware manual list 2 different models of the heatsink assembly for each of integrated and dedicated graphics.

John

 

Is the noise from passing through the heatsink radiator (whistling effect) or the fan itself? If it's the former, would slightly shearing the radiator thus warping the rectangular slats to a parallelogram help? If it's the latter, what about swapping in some lubricant with different properties?

 

It would appear so, but the fan speed was relatively the same, but the processor was a few degrees cooler. I think it's the over cautious fan settings Lenovo programs into the BIOS.

 

I still think that the design of the chassis is giving the fan serious restriction. I find Thinkpads tend to be less affected by placement because they pull air in rather...resourcefully. However the super tiny holes they give the fan to breathe (presumably so dust has a harder time getting in? dunno) can barely suck in any air. The fan seems to be a centrifugal blower with intake on both sides, since it seems to pull air through the battery then under the gap between the keyboard and chassis. I'd first try pulling the keyboard and removing the material holding the keyboard to the rest of the computer for about 2 inches from the top left corner. So trim that 5mm of plastic above the escape key and try to get a bit off the area above the volume controls, and to the left of the escape and ` keys.

If that doesn't work, I'd try removing the fan and drilling some holes in the chassis under it. Or use a Dremel to enlarge the holes in the bottom. I can draw you a diagram if you like to show what I mean.

At these temperatures, my guess is that a thermal paste change knocks off maybe 3C unless you're going with a gallium/indium based one which might knock 6C off.

 

Thanks for the advice. I'll look into it in the coming days.