Things You'll Need:
- Laptop Cotton swabs Canned air Small electronics vacuum
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Step 1
Unplug the laptop's AC cord and remove the battery.
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Step 2
Locate the laptop's air vents. These should be located around the sides and on the bottom of the laptop.
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Step 3
Open the laptop and see if the vents are blocked. This is often the main reason a laptop overheats. Surprisingly, using a laptop on your lap is one of the worst places to use it. It's one of the main culprits when it comes to a laptop's fan breaking down as the bottom vents cannot work at all when sitting on top of clothing. Make sure to use your laptop on a flat stable surface, such as a table or a desk.
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Step 4
Poke a dry cotton swab into the laptop's vents and run it along the sides to remove any buildup of dust, lint or pet hair.
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Step 5
Spray canned air into the laptop vents after cleaning them with a cotton swab. The canned air will remove the debris from the vents, but it will also blow it onto other components, so you want to manually remove as much of the build-up as you can with the cotton swab.
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Step 6
Open the laptop using the manufacturer's directions if the other steps do not work. These directions can be found in the user's manual that came with the laptop or online at the manufacturer's website.
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Step 7
Vacuum the lint build-up from around the fan. Spray the canned air around the fan's components.
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Step 8
Close the laptop and turn it on. If the fan still does not work properly, you will probably need to replace it.
