MacBook Pro fans start running loud out of nowhere

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IsaiasF2002 Author

Level 1

39 points

MacBook Pro fans start running loud out of nowhere

My MacBook is at room temperature, nothing big currently running. This issue started happening around 2 days ago. I was just watching YouTube videos, and I suddenly hear a loud sound. I found out it was the fans of my laptop. It happened yesterday as well.

Today, I came home from school and opened up my laptop and got on YouTube. The fan suddenly starts, then stops, then starts again, and stops again. Really loudly, only for a few seconds. The only thing I left open from last night was Safari.

MacBook Pro with Retina display, macOS High Sierra (10.13.3), 13 inch, mid-2014

Posted on Mar 5, 2018 6:01 PM

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Answer 1

y_p_w

Level 6

17,762 points

Mar 6, 2018 5:53 PM in response to IsaiasF2002

IsaiasF2002 wrote:

There's not much

How much is "not much"? If it's sustained (not just a peak that drops quickly) at about 30% the fans will often speed up from the idle speed.

You might also want to try a program like iStat Menus to see if the temperature is increasing. The fans don't react directly to CPU usage but based on the temperature sensors.

If a temperature sensor is malfunctioning, that can cause runaway fan activity. Not saying that you did, but some users have spilled liquid that got to a temperature sensor, which then led to runaway fan activity.

Did you run Apple Hardware Test?

How to use Apple Hardware Test on your Mac - Apple Support

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Answer 2

y_p_w

Level 6

17,762 points

Mar 6, 2018 5:25 PM in response to IsaiasF2002

Did you check in Activity Monitor? Video can result in high CPU usage.

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Answer 3

dominic23

Level 10

84,018 points

Mar 5, 2018 11:44 PM in response to IsaiasF2002

Reset SMC. Choose the method for “If the battery is non-removable”.

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

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Answer 4

IsaiasF2002 Author

Level 1

39 points

Mar 6, 2018 4:59 PM in response to dominic23

I tried doing so; 3 times already. The problem persists.

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Answer 5

IsaiasF2002 Author

Level 1

39 points

Mar 6, 2018 5:29 PM in response to y_p_w

There's not much

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Answer 6

IsaiasF2002 Author

Level 1

39 points

Mar 6, 2018 8:15 PM in response to y_p_w

I just ran a hardware test and there's nothing wrong. I also downloaded iStat Menus; the fans turned on but there is no temperature increase. It stays the same. The fan turned on with only one tab in safari open (this discussion), and iStat running. When usually I'm running Logic, Safari, Word and messages and the fan never turned on.

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MacBook Pro fans start running loud out of nowhere

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