sunnywood

Q: Why is my MacBook Pro running so hot? Fan problem?

My MacBook Pro 13", Model5,5 seems to be running very "hot". Could this be a fan problem?

Posted on Aug 1, 2015 1:44 PM

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Q: Why is my MacBook Pro running so hot? Fan problem?

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  • by stedman1,

    stedman1 stedman1 Aug 1, 2015 1:46 PM in response to sunnywood
    Level 9 (74,189 points)
    Apple Watch
    Aug 1, 2015 1:46 PM in response to sunnywood
  • by Kappy,

    Kappy Kappy Aug 1, 2015 1:49 PM in response to sunnywood
    Level 10 (271,755 points)
    Desktops
    Aug 1, 2015 1:49 PM in response to sunnywood

    Runaway applications can shorten battery runtime, affect performance, and increase heat and fan acti…


    Pre-Mavericks

     

    Open Activity Monitor in the Utilities folder.  Select All Processes from the Processes dropdown menu.  Click twice on the CPU% column header to display in descending order.  If you find a process using a large amount of CPU time (>=70,) then select the process and click on the Quit icon in the toolbar.  Click on the Force Quit button to kill the process.  See if that helps.  Be sure to note the name of the runaway process so you can track down the cause of the problem.

     

    Mavericks and later

     

    Open Activity Monitor in the Utilities folder.  Select All Processes from the View menu.  Click on the CPU tab in the toolbar. Click twice on the %CPU column header to display in descending order.  If you find a process using a large amount of %CPU, then select the process and click on the Quit icon in the toolbar.  Click on the Force Quit button to kill the process.  See if that helps.  Be sure to note the name of the runaway process so you can track down the cause of the problem.

  • by OGELTHORPE,Solvedanswer

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE Aug 1, 2015 3:36 PM in response to sunnywood
    Level 9 (52,730 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 1, 2015 3:36 PM in response to sunnywood

    Try a SMC reset:

     

    https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201295

     

    If no change, download and install a temperature/fan speed monitoring application.  Report the highest temperatures and the application using the mosy CPU resources.

     

    Rub an Apple Hardware Test:

     

    https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201257

     

    Note that an error free AHT is not definitive./

     

    Ciao.

  • by sunnywood,

    sunnywood sunnywood Aug 2, 2015 9:18 PM in response to OGELTHORPE
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 2, 2015 9:18 PM in response to OGELTHORPE

    Oglethorpe,

     

    Thank you so much for your reply.

     

    This is a MacBook Pro5,5 mid 2009 running Mavericks. My client uses it to run her business.

     

    I pulled out the battery and reset the SMC. Then I re-started holding down the "D" key & the "Option" & "D" keys, but no AHT test appeared. I think I have this on a flash drive at work, but I'm on vacation now...I am an Apple Support Tech for the Eugene School District, so I've been working on hundreds of Macs for more than a decade. But I also have my own repair business "on the side".

     

    I don't know how/where to download the heat/sensor test.?? I think the problem is continuing - running "hot". She says sometimes the fan really revs up, yet the laptop seems to be getting adequate ventilation. Any further suggestions? Thanks.

     

    Sunny Wood

    sunnywood@me.com | www.macsnmore.com

  • by OGELTHORPE,

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE Aug 3, 2015 3:28 AM in response to sunnywood
    Level 9 (52,730 points)
    Mac OS X
    Aug 3, 2015 3:28 AM in response to sunnywood

    sunnywood wrote:

     

    I don't know how/where to download the heat/sensor test.?? I think the problem is continuing - running "hot". She says sometimes the fan really revs up, yet the laptop seems to be getting adequate ventilation.

     

    I am referring to any third party application that performs those functions.  As an example, there is iStat menus:

     

    https://bjango.com/mac/istatmenus/

     

    There are others.

     

    Ciao.