G1S/others - External Fan For Heat Exhaust Modification / Other Modifications

Greets y'all! Recently I've constructed a modification to an external fan that latches onto the heat exhaust vent of my G1S. I've been working on various things to get my G1S to cool down. I created this thread in hopes to share this mod with others, and also to get some people brainstorming on other innovative solutions/modifications for hot laptops (or any improvements in general).

On to my mod....

Here's the fan in it's original form.
http://www.startech.com/item/NBFAN-External-Notebook-CPU-Cooling-Fan.aspx

To all G1S owners: unless you modify this thing, it will be relatively useless for you. The internal fan that comes with this thing is WEAK! It won't pull the heat out fast enough for us. In fact, it was restrictive to airflow and I ended up getting HOTTER temps. Now, this may not be the case for other laptops/users. That's why I say this message is specifically for G1S owners as this is a pretty well engineered product, it may be perfect for different model laptops. It just needs more power for the G1S...

On to the more power....

This thing originally ran off of a USB port and has a selector for 2 speeds. Not anymore... I completely tore off the fan/wire/control switch. It's gone... Fini. Also, that's the hardest part of this mod... Getting that damned fan off! It's also got sping-loaded hooks that clip onto vertical heat exhaust vents. That's what what I was after. All I had left was the top housing/vent mount. Now, I needed a suitable fan for a replacement. I had a Nidec Gamma28 lying around and found it was a perfect fit, so I decided to mate the two. I used Loctite Stik'n Seal Ultra - universal adhesive - This stuff is great as it seemingly has the holding power of superglue, and also acts like a sealant. It's real gooey and thick which was needed to fill any gaps betwixt the mating surfaces(we want this thing air tight!). After that, I had to wire up the new fan to accept power from a 12V DC universal power adapter. I bought a universal DC power adapter that came with a BUNCH of attatchments. I found the most uncommon one that I'd prolly never use, and attached it to the fan's wire leads.


It's pretty easy to take this thing on and off - it just clips. This thing is more quiet than the internal fan of the G1S running at full speed. It averages at least a 5C drop in temp for CPU/GPU. I'm pretty happy with the results.

Here's some pictures of the finished product, and a screen cap of one of my latest overclocks/3DMark06 test results with the max GPU temp marked, note: the clock speeds = crazy.

 

It looks really nice, specially the results you got. nice score to for a G1S with the T7300.

What drivers are you running?

And the cooling mod, it looks efficient, but sounds like a whole lot of parts where needed. I don't have extra fans laying around

BUT - i give ya +REP powa because its a good idea

 

Thanks! Yeah I was fortunate to have all these parts laying around(remnants from my Celeron 300A days). I'm hoping someone comes up with a good solution involving common household items. I heard of one person trying to hook up a vacuum to his vent.:wub: A little too loud for my tastes.

I'm running forceware 175.80 with the original inf's. I try and use the originals whenever available. Just look for it in the original inf's folder after extracting all the files. Then copy all the inf's into the main directory and install the new drivers using the setup.

 

Quite impressive results mate! But how's the noise? I'm afraid the additional fan has to run with quite a lot rpm, right?

Well here's my beast - 2x120mm ebm-papst industry coolers integrated into a wooden rack... I run these coolers in windows and non OCed only with half speed which makes them really really silent. When I run them at full speed they become quite noisy of course, however I get my CPU down to 28°C and GPU until 47°C in Windows (this is with backlid removed)

(excuse the poor images - just have my crappy cellphone here)

 

Thanks! I thought it might be loud/annoying, but honestly... it's not bad at all. The Nidec Gamma28 is shaped like a mini turbocharger and it kinda just whispers. It's quieter than the G1S's internal fan when maxed out(believe that?). Also it's not as high pitched as the G1S's fan. It doesn't distract me when gaming. When I have my headphones on I can't hear it at all.

Those are some impressive #'s with your setup! Thanks for the picture too!

I was also thinking people who don't really take their G1S(or other lappy's for that matter) on the go could flip their keyboard up for better cooling (as this exposes the heatspreaders). Maybe put a fan and or heatsink on it. Set up an external keyboard/mouse(bluetooth?), and get to some serious overclocking! It's pretty easy to flip the keys up. All ya need is a credit card. Snaps back in place in a sec.

 

Looking nice, man. How did you attach that thing to the case?

 

Just tried that and it definitely improved GPU temperature, even without a fan or heatsink!
Here're my windows temps after 24 minutes internet surfing - lids opened, keyboard removed...now onto some overclocking, just installed the 175.80s

 

@nattfoedd: Are you sure your temp readings are correct? They seem a bit low to me, even with the lids open. Have you used any other applications to verify that temp readings?

 

Yeah quite sure that they're correct (HW-montior also measures 97°C GPU-temps when using it without any cooling-mods).

Remember I also removed the keyboard, which reveals a big copper cooler! Room temperature is 20°C.

Here's a screenshot with various other programms open, after a run of 3dmark...

 

Alright. Not that I'd doubt your readings- It just sounded too good to be true

 

Glad to hear that worked out for ya. I figured it would help mostly for cooling/OCing the memory (since that copper spreader mainly covers the 8600's mem). Also heat rises, and the keys are in the way, soo.. yeah.. coolness! Could prolly plop a heatsink/fan right on there... maybe even a peltier cooler if ya wanted to get crazy!

I'm really hoping these tips/tricks help those who are on the edge of their thermal woes with their G1S/ect...(maybe get us crazy OC'ers that extra frame) Expecially when it doens't really cost anything!

P.S. So far I'm lovin the 175.80's.. They're the best yet(for me)

 

Not sure if you mean the new fan to the housing, or the whole setup to the laptop. But I'll answer both...

There used to be a smaller internal fan attached to the bottom housing of the StarTech external fan. I ripped it off and basically covered the hole that was left with the intake of the Nidec Gamma28. I attatched them together with Loctite Stik'n Seal Ultra(it's like superglue/silicone sealant in one). Then, the whole assembly clips to the vents by these adjustable metal hooks. First, there's a button ya sping the hooks closed with, and then it springs back open to hook itself to the vent. Then it has a screw you tighten the whole thing on there with(pulls the hooks in). It's was a great design by StarTech, it just had too small of a fan. It couldn't keep up with the heat of the G1S (matter of fact.. the heat got worse). But it was such a great way to attach something to the vent! I couldn't let it go to waste. So I took out the weak link....the fan... put in a bigger one... gave it some life w/ 12V..and viola! -5~10C!

It might be great as-is for other laptops/uses, but not for the G1S...

 

How's that 175.80 drivers with original INFs treating you? I just thought I'd ask before I switch to it from 174.xx series.

 

Best yet for my G1S... Stable, the best performing(so far), overclocks REALLY well ( I got some crazy clocks out of my 8600: Core/Shad/Mem @ 661/1404/828). No problems yet.

 

Alright, thanks for the answers, 3DLink. I don't have one of those fancy radial fans lying around here but I think any 90-120mm fan attached axially to a funnel that converts its metrics to those of the exhaust would do as well. Not that compact though, but still... I'll try that.