Cooling the MBP...

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Cooling the MBP...

Hey guys i need some help here. When playing a game on bootcamp my laptop gets EXTREEMLY hot basically enough to burn your self. I have the fans running 100% yet its still that hot. I was wondering which fan would help keep the temperture down? I was looking at the zalman one...

http://www.zalman.co.kr/ENG/product/Product_Read.asp?idx=280

I think it actually could work because of the way the air gets pushed onto the bottom in a huge area.

Any ideas at all, i could really use some help as nobody on the internet so far that i found does this...

Thanks, Dani C.

MacBook Pro (15-inch 2.4/2.2GHz, Mac OS X (10.5.3), Running win xp pro sp3 while on the games and having heat issues...

Posted on Jun 25, 2008 7:30 AM

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Answer 1

Jun 26, 2008 1:03 PM in response to dani190

That looks like a perfect cooling method, Just what I've been looking for. I think it would work, most nnotebook coolers are just fans that consitrate on one area but this looks like its all over.

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Answer 2

Jun 26, 2008 3:39 PM in response to joey jo jo

That is a perfect thing to get as the ram is on the bottom where the battery is so the bottom will more definitely get very hot. Having a fan blow on them will certainly decrease the temperature. Google for a program called SpeedFan. This will monitor the temp and give you more of an idea once you obtain this product. FYI the apple support guy told me not to put Vista on bootcamp because it gets severely hot. Hope you don't have that. If so I would be very interested in how much cooler it gets after using that.

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Answer 3

brktigin

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Jun 27, 2008 2:54 PM in response to dani190

On bootcamp I usually work with 3D softwares and get render for about 6 hours (it is real 100% cpu load) or more but it is not that hot to burn myself. It is interesting. Have you checked the fan speeds and temperatures? On a good surface, generally MPB can cool itself with internal fans. I use Thermaltake T1000 but it is not very good. Especially the built quality. Maybe you want to search for Belkin Cooling Stand. It seems good to me.

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Answer 4

dani190 Author

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Jun 28, 2008 8:14 AM in response to brktigin

first of all im running win xp

Also the fans are at 100% maybe something was wrong with the build of the laptop?

Maybe the thermal paste or something of that sorts?

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Answer 5

Rod Hagen

Level 7

32,000 points

Jun 29, 2008 6:08 AM in response to dani190

What else are you doing at the time, Dani? Charging up a flat battery, for example, will add a lot of heat to the system and if you are playing a processor and graphics intensive game at the same time the effect will be cumulative. (If the battery is in poor condition, or defective, charging can add even more load).

You might also want to check whether any additional background proceses are adding to the temperature, or additional external power hungry devices that might add to the power system load.

I haven't found any situation yet with my own MBP though, where simply sitting it on a flat chopping boardboard (no fans, no battery drain , no additional noise, next to no expense) to provide a small amount of airflow underneath isn't sufficient.

Cheers

Rod

Message was edited by: Rod Hagen

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Answer 6

dani190 Author

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Jun 29, 2008 10:22 AM in response to Rod Hagen

well yes i am playing a game. Usually im not charging the battery but a few times i was.

So maybe the amount of heat the processor and graphics card produce heat up the case quite a bit because reported temps of the cpu only go to 70c.

Maybe that fan that blows on the whole bottom (the 1 i showed above, the zalman) would be quite good?

I am thinking of buying it soon because sometimes the heat just really worries me...

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Answer 7

Rod Hagen

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Jun 29, 2008 3:17 PM in response to dani190

What sort of surface are you working on Dani and does the battery hold a normal charge level?

With a CPU temp of 70º C its working solidly but not overly stressed.

THe main thing with work surfaces is to make sure that it has no obstruction to airflow underneath it. That's why working on your lap , or on a soft surface like a bed, tablecloth or a pillow are discouraged.

If the battery is having probs holding charge then this generates a lot of heat , too (probably one of the most common reasons for notebook "heat" issues, in fact.

Is the heat most noticeable in any particular area? This can help to track down problems.

The fan base may cool it a bit, but if there is a problem of some kind causing the heat it is better to address the cause , rather than simply deal with the symptoms.

Cheers

Rod

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Answer 8

dani190 Author

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Jun 29, 2008 5:04 PM in response to Rod Hagen

Ok well the surface is solid its a desk with an acrylic sheet covering it so nothing is obstructing it that way.

The battery holds charge perfectly, i can squeeze at least 3 hours out of it.

As for the heat being in a certain place, let me go play a game and il reply back that way i can check were the most heat is.

Message was edited by: dani190

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Answer 9

dani190 Author

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Jun 29, 2008 7:57 PM in response to Rod Hagen

Ok i played for about an hour or two and these are the results i have come up with.

*ON THE TOP*

-The whole left side before hitting the keyboard is quite hot, but not hot enough to burn.
-The top middle the little thin strip of metal is quite hot almost enough to burn you

*ON THE BOTTOM*

-The bottom left and right near the end of the laptop (were the vents are but still on the bottom of the laptop) are so hot i almost burnt my self after like 2 seconds (any more and i would of burnt my hand)
-The Area around the ram is so hot i also almost burnt my self and its the same conditions as above.

Now the reason i am also worried is because i read that you shoudlnt be getting the battery up to 100c and if the area around the battery and ram is basically 100c (probably less but definetlly close) I am wondering is that even safe any more?

Should i call Apple about this?

Thanks, Dani

_+Also the battery was fully charged when observing these things and had not been charging for quite some time.+_

Message was edited by: dani190

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Answer 10

Rod Hagen

Level 7

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Jun 29, 2008 8:54 PM in response to dani190

Ok, the "left side before hitting the keyboard" is the HD. Sounds like it has been working quite hard. Does it have plenty of free space, especially on the partition you are booted from?

The heat sinks are in the places you mention at the rear ("bottom left and right near the end") and that spot in the center (top middle of little thin strip) sounds like it is probably being heated by the conductors from the processor area to the heat sinks). THe RAM is close to the processors too, so it does sound as if much of your heat is processor related.

Are the fans definitely working properly? You can hear them when it gets hot?

Do you get these symptoms at any time OTHER than when you are running from bootcamp and playing this game?

Rod

Message was edited by: Rod Hagen

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Answer 11

dani190 Author

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Jun 29, 2008 9:11 PM in response to Rod Hagen

I can only get this sorta heat when i am basically running a lot of video and processors running at full blast for a while.

And while playing games...

I definitely hear the fans running, i have the at full always, they dont bother me.

if i didnt im pretty sure it would auto shut down due to heat

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Answer 12

dani190 Author

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Jul 2, 2008 5:55 PM in response to Rod Hagen

sooo??

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Answer 13

Rod Hagen

Level 7

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Jul 3, 2008 4:02 AM in response to dani190

Soooooooo!

You say "definitely hear the fans running, i have the at full always, they dont bother me."

I'm guessing that this means that you are using a well known third party utility to boost the fan speed? Or do they run full speed regardless of what you do? Under OSX (In which case you probably need an SMC reset or have a hardware fan sensor problem or have a background process hogging processor time) or both OSX and Windows or just when you are using XP?

If the problem was occurring while you were using OSX I'd suggest that you run Activity Monitor to see if anything is hogging processor time and thereby generating extra heat. No doubt there are similar things for Windows, but I'm afraid I don't know what they are.

It takes a lot of heat to shut down the processor, by the way. Around 100ºC for the Intel C2D's from memory. Way above the temps you mention.

Cheers

Rod

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Answer 14

dani190 Author

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Jul 3, 2008 7:02 AM in response to Rod Hagen

i hear none of that, so maybe this is just normal meh. I think i will be getting those coolers soon so i can reply with the new temps

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