TravelMate 8204 - funny buzzing noise from cooling fan

I have an 8204 that I bought in June. About a week ago, whenever the fan kicked into high speed (like when playing a game), it started to make a loud buzzy noise. Now it does that noise at any speed, and for some reason it seems like the fan is running at a higher speed more often. I don't know. There is a big peice on the bottom of the computer that I could take off that would give me access to the fan, or so it seems... do I want to take that off and take a look in there? Any advice? I really don't want to send it in.

 

if the noise is constant and reoccuring it tells me that one of two things has happened.

#1. it is constantly running because the heatsink has become loose on the underside of your laptop (did you drop / bump it?)

#2. The fan is for some reason failing or become clogged with some dust or debris. The easiest way to determine this is to obviously open the laptop up and take a look at it. I know you have some worries about doing this properly, so I'm going to stress that you get some help in the matter.

The last thing you want to have happen is break your laptop when checking to fan. Also you don't want to have your laptop break because the fan is not cooling the pc properly and it overheats.

Either way let us know what you decide upon. With the relative age of the pc I'm going to first suggest that you send it off to acer to be looked at before you go and do anything else.

--ssx--

 

It's hardly ever left my desk... I bring it to school occasionally but I have a backpack made for laptops and it's very well padded. Anyways, it stopped making such a loud noise for a while.... now it sounds almost like a loud harddrive, you know like the old ones that made clicky noises. It doesn't run at full speed all the time, just the medium or low speed all the time.

My room is exceptionally dusty though, a nice layer of dust accumilates in just one night on my pretty carbon fiber screen

So I'll check it out, thanks.

 

Okay, I opened up the cover thing a little and blew some air in there... I didn't really notice any dust or anything, but it's running a little quieter than it did before.

And doesn't the computer shut off automatically if it overheats?

 

Okay the noise is back. Whenever I set the laptop on its left side... so that the vent on the right is pointing straight up, it runs perfectly quietly like it did when I got it. When I set it back down or lean it other ways, it is inbetween clicky and just loud.

Damnit!

 

I cleaned out some fuzzy junk from inside the fan... but still making that noise.

There has to be something I can do besides take it in to get it fixed...

Anyone?