Laptop Overheat

[Ragnarok]

I have a Toshiba Satellite A30 Laptop which has 2 fans under it (one to try to keep the CPU cool all the time the other to cool it rapidly if it gets too hot). However, over the past few months I have noticed a steady increase in the amount of times the BIOS cuts the power because the prossessor is reaching the core temperature limit. My laptop is about 13 months old and it is the second time I have had problems with overheats.

I currently have my window open every time I think my room is getting warm. My system has some software installed that allows me to change settings like how long before it switches the monitor off etc, in which I can also change the speed of the prossessor (which is currently on the lowest setting). It is also stacked up on a few DVD cases so that air can get to the fans and I have a desk top fan also sending a get of air at it. As you can tell I am trying hard to stop this from happening. This is partly because last time I sent it away to be fixed with exactly the same problem I didn't see it for a month when they said it would be ready in a week maybe two.

The last time it happened the machine was 5 months old, as I mentioned above the machine is now 13 months old and I have been having these problems for about a month.

I would like to know what you would recomend I do?

I have a few options and these bellow are the ones I think are best since it still is covered by warrenty.

Get the company to replace the laptop.
Get the company to install a better heatsink and fans.
Get the company to redund my money so I can buy a desktop which an nice large heatskin with more fans that I can count.

Seen as this is the second time this has happened which a new fan I am not sure I want to do the first one. What would you sergest I should do?

[tiberis]

I've heard that Toshiba's have this problem. Do you operate in many different windows at once like having 5 word documents, internet, and other programs running at once?

[Ragnarok]

Normally I will have Dreamweaver and Firefox open most of the time. I don't normally have more than 4 windows open at once

[sjhawker]

Ok

My first post, and unless this is old news I think this should make some people very happy!

I too have a A30 Toshiba laptop and after about 5 months it over-heated more and more often - having to prop the computer up to give the fans space. Even with this it would sometimes switch off and the noise of the fans was most distracting.

Then I tried something which now means the computer is running for days without switching off, no need for proping it up and the fans come on just for a few seconds every minute or two....

1. Simply switch the computer off and unplug alll things.
2. Get a hover (and a bit of strong tissue paper if you want full satisfaction)
3. Simply suck all out all the dust which will have collected in the computer (if you use the tissue paper over the vent, you will see how much has been collected)
4. Your computer should now behave!

[Ragnarok]

Its currently away being repared and I have got another PC, althought not as powerful and I managed to frie 25MBs of Memory in the first few days (Im not quite sure how it only fried 25Mbs and not all of it).

But I will remember that for future reference!

[cdbs]

I have been having exactly the same problem with an A30 of similar age. I have been trying to find software to monitor the temperature - does anyone know of something suitable? I downloaded Hmonitor but it is not compatible with the A30.

Also, is a memory upgrade likely to help? I was planning on doing this anyway, but I don't see the point on upgrading a machine that is still going to keep stalling.

[Surrey Quays]

I too have the same problem with my Toshiba laptop. It's driving me nuts. I asked toshiba about the problem when it began around 6 months ago and they told me that laptops were not designed to run pentium 4 processers and just to keep it ventilated. Needless to say this did not solve the problem - indeed, it has gotten worse. now i am Unable to:

Cut and paste anything; Run any media including the DVD player; open graphic heavy web pages; restart the computer; download much; Upload to an iPod; and open certain files.

The laptop is under warranty so it is going into the shop in the summer, when i've finished my uni work. To compound the problem my DVD RW drive has decided to give up the ghost so i'm in danger of losing a hell of a lot of work and music if the laptop is replaced.

To be honest i'm at the end of my teather with the whole thing. I'm coming to the conlusion that Toshiba are a peice of cr*p and i feel like throwing it across the room everytime it turns itself off. If nothing else i empathise whole heartedly with your problem and would be interested in any replies you get.

Yours
-Simon

[Surrey Quays]

sorry to be a pain, but suck the dust out of where?

-Simon

[Ragnarok]

On the bottom of the laptop their are two circle wholes which a mesh over the top of them.

[Surrey Quays]

oh so just suck the dust out of the fans. cheers man. now all i need is a working vaccuum

[Catweazle]

ALL computers need regular internal cleaning. If you have a laptop, and are not sufficiently equipped with 'handyman' skills to periodically open it up and clean the internals, then you should periodically drop it in to a technician to be opened up and properly cleaned. I'd suggest that simply sucking out the dust from the ventilation holes is not adequate.

From the comments in this post, it seems rather obvious to me that cleaning every 6 months sounds sensible :)

I clean all my computers on a yearly basis, but they operate in a relatively dust free environment.

[Surrey Quays]

Yes!! Suck the dust out! yes, yes, yes! thank you, thank you, thank you!!! PErfect. It works. The bloody thing works! This is a very happy day! You should have seen the rubbish that was coming out of it. God knows where all that fluff came from.

I can do everything again! It's incredible. It runs almost silently, just like the day i got it. It can do anything - no problems! Once again a million thank you's to all the people on this fourum - especially the geezer with the vaccuum idea. I will now clean it regularly and take it in to a tech for some internal cleaning every 6 months.

Thank you all!

-Simon :cool: :cool: :cool: :lol: :p

[holleh]

Erm I tried that.. and my computer turns off more? :S The fan isn't even coming through anymore... Thanks alot

[phattness]

haha You must have got a chunk wedged in there next to a booger it hardens . I have to vaccum my toshiba a70 every 2-3 months. Its like a car it lets you know when its out of gas, only it turns off. I read this thread today so im too late . you got the best advice already, go to the car cleaning place and use there vaccum i do :P Or just get rid of that program in the background. I just sacrificed norton it was a chore. I pretty much had to vaccum it to uninstall norton. It shut off so much i couldnt sleep at night. I wont even get into the power cord/motherboard issue i had to fix with a hot nife.

[Elmtailye]

Seeing this is a Toshiba thread, I thought I may get help here.

I have an A30 I've inherited. I have the recovery CD's, and they have been imaged using PQI. I have PQI software, but the recovery CD's are password protected, as per Toshiba policy.

I don't know what the password is, help! Does anyone have an A30 or know what the password would be?
:eek: