Richardfromsharon

Q: My 2009 MBP started to get very hot over the last few months and trying to clean the fans did not get me much cooler during usage.  I do have the 1189 battery in my unit but it doesn't seem to be MY problem because I have removed it and use AC.

My MBP is getting very hot.  Followed the procedure to clean the fans, still hot.  Opened the Activity Monitor and "quit" any functions using the CPU, still hot.  Now I am strictly running on AC, removed my 1189 battery, still have heat issues, any thoughts out there?

MacBook Pro (17-inch Early 2008), Mac OS X (10.5.6), final cut express

Posted on May 9, 2016 8:24 AM

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Q: My 2009 MBP started to get very hot over the last few months and trying to clean the fans did not get me much cooler during usage. ... more

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  • by Grant Bennet-Alder,

    Grant Bennet-Alder Grant Bennet-Alder May 9, 2016 9:26 AM in response to Richardfromsharon
    Level 9 (60,951 points)
    Desktops
    May 9, 2016 9:26 AM in response to Richardfromsharon

    You should not run any MacBook without a battery installed except for very brief periods while doing Hardware debugging.

     

    In a desktop Mac, large capacitors in its power supply act to smooth out perturbations on the DC power. On a notebook computer, that function is performed by the battery.

     

    A notebook computer without a battery installed is subject to serious damage by fluctuations in power.

     

    In addition, there are many operating conditions where best performance is obtained by "borrowing" a small amount of battery power when nominally operating on the Power Adapter. Your Mac may run strangely without the ability to do this, including getting unexpectedly hot.

  • by Allan Jones,Apple recommended

    Allan Jones Allan Jones May 9, 2016 9:40 AM in response to Richardfromsharon
    Level 8 (35,151 points)
    iPad
    May 9, 2016 9:40 AM in response to Richardfromsharon

    Overheating can be a software issue too. Please see this Apple article:

     

    Apps can affect Mac performance, battery runtime, temperature, and fan activity - Apple Support

     

    That article's Step 1 is very important to getting an accurate result.

     

    You will get the cleanest resluts by quitting all applications you opened before doign the test, but don't do the test right after a restart--it may not find the culprits. Use the computer normally for 4-6 hours and then do the test.

     

    Also let Activity monitor run from at least a minute. As processees swap in and out, some miscreants can hide if you make a decision after viewing only a few seconds of results.

  • by OGELTHORPE,Apple recommended

    OGELTHORPE OGELTHORPE May 9, 2016 10:43 AM in response to Richardfromsharon
    Level 9 (52,360 points)
    Mac OS X
    May 9, 2016 10:43 AM in response to Richardfromsharon

    How hot is hot?

     

    Reset the SMC:

     

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

     

    Run an Apple Hardware Test:

     

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

     

    Note than an error free AHT is not conclusive.

     

    Install a temperature/fan speed application.

     

    Set Activity monitor to ALL PROCESSES and CPU to display values from high to low.

     

    When the MBP gets hot, post images of both for review.

     

    Ciao.

  • by Richardfromsharon,

    Richardfromsharon Richardfromsharon May 10, 2016 8:00 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder
    Level 1 (12 points)
    Audio
    May 10, 2016 8:00 AM in response to Grant Bennet-Alder

    Thanks for your advice,  I replaced my battery back into my unit and was advised to check my

    SMC.  We'll how this works.....thanks again