Laptop gets very hot - what to do?
If your laptop gets very hot, this can not only cause crashes, but also damage to the hardware. We'll show you what you can do about it.
Measure hardware temperature
- With a little madness you can really understand the changes in the individual measures.
- With the HWMonitor you have the possibility to read the current temperature of the hardware. So you can be sure that the changes are effective.
- Alternatively, you can also use the Open Hardware Monitor or the Argus Monitor.
Laptop gets very hot - check the surface
If your laptop gets hot quickly, a good surface is particularly important. So that the fans can work properly, you need space on the underbody. Pillows, non-smooth fabrics or your own lap are not suitable as a base.
- If you always use your laptop on a table or similar, it may store the heat of the laptop. To find out, turn off the laptop and let it cool down. Then turn it on again and just let it run for 30 minutes without it having to do any work.
- If your laptop gets hot and you feel the warmth on the surface, it is not suitable for the laptop. We'll show you what helps in the next two paragraphs.
Laptop gets hot - clean the fan
In the best case, cleaning the fan is sufficient. If dust collects here, the fan can no longer work properly, causing the temperature of the hardware to rise.
- Software: Many laptops are provided with certain software by the manufacturer. You will usually find a fan cleaning tool in this software.
- Manual cleaning: Manual cleaning is much more effective with heavily contaminated fans. To do this, you need to unscrew your laptop and gently clean the fan. We show you exactly how this works and what you should pay attention to in the fan cleaning instructions.
- Caution: If you unscrew the laptop yourself, your warranty could be void. Check with your dealer beforehand.
Laptop gets hot - cooler and stand
If cleaning the fan didn't help much, a laptop stand or cooler can help.
- Cooler: So-called laptop coolers or cool pads serve as a base for the laptop. The coolers usually contain several fans that cool the laptop from below. The power consumption is relatively low because you are connected to the laptop via USB. These are already available on Amazon for little money.
- Stand: Laptop stands work much simpler. This will lift the laptop off the floor or place it on a cool surface. You can also get these from Amazon for little money.
- You can also improvise such stands. Usually, the increase by a few millimeters is sufficient for the laptop to cool properly.
Clean the fan of a Macbook
If your laptop seems to go out for no reason, it doesn't have to be due to the temperature. You can find further measures in the practical tip "Laptop just goes out - what's wrong?".