My laptop keeps shutting off randomly

Does your laptop get hot? Does it shutoff randomly? It might be overheating. This morning I cleaned out a 1/2 inch of lint caked inside a laptop air vent. Its unbelievable this laptop ran more then 5 minutes. Check out the picture below.

How to fix an overheating laptopOften 2-3 year old laptops get very hot and shut down at random. Most times this is due to overheating. Because the fan intake is on the bottom of a laptop it draws in lint, dust and pet dander straight into the computer. Once inside the lint builds up on the heatsink just like in your home’s air filter. The heatsink has very thin metal air ducts designed to disperse heat into the passing air. The larger lint specs cannot pass through these thin vents and build up, eventually blocking airflow and ultimately preventing the laptop from cooling itself.

Once a laptop is shutting down from overheating its usually too late to fix it yourself. In most cases fixing it yourself would require completely disassembling the laptop to access the heatsink and blockage, unless you’re one of those lucky folks with plastic hatch right over the fan. If you are, check out this article for cleaning it yourself. If you’re not you’ll need to call a professional, like us, to clean it for you. You should expect to pay around $100-$150.

Preventing Overheating

[message type=”info”]2 minutes of preventative maintenance can save you $$ down the road.[/message]

The KEY is PREVENTING the problem from happening. Its inevitable that lint will build up but if you blast it out with canned air every couple of months you can prevent most build up.

  1. Pickup a bottle of canned air from your local Walmart.
  2. While the laptop is running find where the air exhaust is coming out. It is usually on the side of the laptop and has warm air coming from it.
  3. Turn OFF the laptop
  4. Blast canned air IN the EXHAUST vent. ***HOLD CAN UPRIGHT***
  5. Turn laptop back on

*** WARNING: Please ONLY do this on a new laptop – less then a few months old. If there is already a build up of lint to could blow back into the fan causing the fan to stop spinning causing a bigger problem***

About Lambros Computer Solutions
Lambros Computer Solution is a full service computer solution provider, headquartered in Lehigh Acres, FL, specializing in small business and home users. Their services offered include Fort Myers computer repair, PC repair, laptop repair, laptop screen replacements, data recovery, starter websites, website design, website hosting, hosted exchange, wireless setup, servers and networking. Lambros Computer Solutions operates with integrity, fairness, and a passion for helping people. For more information, call 239-303-4343.