Fixing My Filthy Overheating MacBook Pro

Its time I addressed my MacBook which is reaching temperatures over 90 degrees!
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[zerocks]

keep the compressed air can completely upright at all times to prevent liquid being released
alternatively get a battery operated air blower available at stores like PC Case Gear

[artemborodavka]

Solid guide, I like it. I used similar procedures when cleaning my 8 year old PC, which was prone to overheating. An additional step I did when replacing the paste was spreading the paste evenly over the chip with a credit card (use the one with highest account balance for better results).

[TheManInTime]

It would be interesting if you also posted some details about the temps you were getting before and after the cleanup!

[TheBetomann]

It grinds my gears when there is old residue of termal paste on the CPU before applying new paste. I use a cotton swab and isopropyl alcohol to clean the internals of my laptop.

[egs-zhdt]

That’s probably the hottest computer I’ve ever seen

[Elizabeth-potb]

My laptop recently died on me as it’s been on it’s way out for a while but watching these videos made me realise how important cleaning is and even though I’m not tech savvy, I know enough to access the fans to give them a clean and it seriously gave my laptop a new lease of life and I managed to get another year out of it. I have no idea what half of the stuff he talks about is but it’s still so interesting

[Drenixx]

Tip for the compressed air. Don't tilt the can if you hold it up right no moisture should come out. Great vids :)

[simh]

Thanks for the run through. My fans have been coming on for doing simple tasks lately. Now it’s working like new again.

[serialtoon]

In the future always hold the fan blade in place prior to hitting it with compressed air. Whats happening with this theory is that you're essentially over spinning the fan and causing potential damage. Ive ruined a fan or two doing this. Although the damage isn't done right away, the bearings over time can fail prematurely.

[densaldanha]

Just did this and it worked.
My MacBook is about 15-20 degrees lower than the previous temperatures. Plus it doesnt feel that hot on touch, previously I couldn't even place my finger on the metal area above the keyboard. Thanks for this tutorial!

[soyvila]

The compressed air is ALWAYS used in vertical, thats the reason of the ice in te

[brianajacosta]

I found your channel yesterday hugh and I love your videos! your videos are so satisfying to watch and love seeing the results of the repairs you do 😊

[apollothemanboy]

where's eucalyptus oil?

oh wait wrong channel

[BaronKube]

And then there’s me who dailies an almost-destroyed 2011 MacBook Air

[timgoddard]

Just to let you know you was using the compressed air wrong

[snakedoesdisco]

Helpful Video but two things that are worth revising / adding annotations for.


1. Spinning the fans with compressed air may result in them spinning too fast. This can destroy the bearings so it's suggested to hold the fan down while you blast it with air - to make sure it doesn't spin at all.
2. Keep your can upright at all times. The spray causes an 'icy' effect which is not ideal at whatsoever. This can introduce moisture and do more harm than good.

[jasonc]

I would recommend cleaning both sides of the mobo & the chassis underneath, especially on the 2010-2012 models.
There is a bit of room where dust can settle on the underside (but doesn't really affect thermals ime, it's just good to do if you're already taking it apart).

[garymiller]

Some top tips from me as I went to great lengths to solve this same issue (some of which I probably didn't need to do). I chased my tail for a few months and replaced the battery as I thought that was getting hot and draining too quickly, I also replaced the thermal paste and even the heatsink as I had read that they contain fluid and can leak. None of these helped reduced the temperature to below 90 degrees C.

You are right in cleaning the Mac with air, IPA and definitely replacing the thermal paste. I had read about the benefits of using liquid metal but I opted for Arctic MX4 as it was easy to use and seemed a lot less risky.

I had downloaded and installed the Intel Power Gadget and saw I was getting temps of 100 degrees C, even after cleaning and replacing components; so the only other thing I could try was to do a full restore of my computer. I saved my work/files and totally flattened my computer back to brand new.

I decided not to do a restoration from the cloud or a file, but keep my computer new. I have since installed only MS Office and the Intel Power Gadget. My Mac is now running steady at 42 degrees C and as I install more software I will monitor what happens via the Gadget. I believe I must have had an app/software running that I was unaware of and this was crucifying the CPU making it work hard, get hot and drain my battery quick.

Hopefully some of you will find my comment useful and as the video shows, give your computer a good clean and change the paste, but if you find it is still running hot (via the Intel Power Gadget) then restore it and hopefully you'll be surprised by how good the results are. Good luck.

[alientitimilk]

Yeah so I dropped my phone in a jet turbine

Hugh: yeah i can uh fix it with compressed air and uh a toothbrush

[johnboyjr]

I love that you highlight Apple not wanting us to maintain our own machines. Very important issue!