Cleaning the vents of XPS 1530

I think its time i gave everything a quick clean.

What is the best method?
Compressed air?

Do you take the back off and clean down the fans etc or does this void the warranty?

Thanks

 

For the most part, pushing compressed air through the thermal solution should get rid of most of the junk in there, but if you really want to be thorough/sure you should indeed take the machine apart and clean the affected parts individually. It shouldn't void your warranty.

Obligatory link to the service manual:

http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/xpsm1530/en/SM/index.htm

 

as far as cleaning goes, i would just open the cpu panel ( the largest panel right below the exhaust ) and just blow compressed air into the fan, heatsink and vent, from inside out, so that the dust exits through your exhaust.

dont bother removing the heatsink, and remember to hold down the fan when blowing air so that it doesn't rotate, this is to prevent damage to your fan.

 

If you don't want to track down compressed air, or already have some, blowing the old fashion way with your mouth works just as well.

 

LOL, or THAT good one gaah, i dont like doing that since my mouth isnt exactly "dry" and wet+electronics= not a good idea... besides, you get a breath of that dust and you'll be coughing for the rest of the day.

 

ok thanks guys, thats everything i wanted to know

 

what about stickin a vacuum wand on it?

 

Very bad idea, they can generate static charges. My dad used a vacuum cleaner to clean my sisters computer and I ended up yelling at him telling him never to come near my computer

 

If you have no compressed air I agree blowing into it but use a soft brush also to dislodge clinging dust bunnies.

 

Removing screws and lids won't void your warranty. Dell tech guys sometimes instruct you to remove the back covers over the phone.

 

when i do hoover my room, same time i used that vacuum cleaner to clean the vent and also dust from the key board. i haven't had any hardware problem so far, even my machine is quite new to look at. i don't see any harm on it unless u r very much careful.

 

My first post here! Just joined because my 1530 started overheating (had for a bit more than one year), and I was looking around for a solution, this forum helped a lot!

My CPU/GPU used to max out at 92 for CPU and 93 for GPU max (at that point they either started downclocking or simply shutting down the computer).

Looked around the internet for solutions, and this place had the most info. Right now waiting for the oldest revision heatsink (big, copper pads), AS5 and arcticlean, as well as a rosewill cooling pad for laptop.

Anyway, more to the point of cleaning.
Since I'm waiting for the stuff to come, I've decided to try something I can do without those things. First, I undervolted the processor, which brought temperature down a couplea degrees (to the point that processor no longer downclocks when running orthos+rthdr)
Then, I opened up the rear panel, and took off the heatsink. I also separated the fan from the heatsink - it's held in place by a sort of hinge and 4 (or 5) tiny screws. After you screw them off, the fan will just come off. What I found between the fan and the heatsink was a 3-4mm layer of dust. Peeled (getting rid of that layer can only be described as peeling almost like cleaning the clothes dryer) dust off, then cleaned the fan blades, then installed everything back. Turned the computer back on, ran the test, and voila! The temps went down 20 degrees celsius!
For the Orthos+rthdr 8-minute test, I had 71/88 CPU (max/min) and 78/93 GPU before cleaning. Now, it's 57/65 for CPU and 69/75 for GPU!! Also, before cleaning, after running the test for ~15 minutes, the computer would shut itself down (probably because the temps passed 90+), now it averages at about 65 degrees for CPU (so, it fluctuates, sometimes going over 66, sometimes going down to 64).
The idle temps didn't change much - but I would guess that's due to fans not working at low temperatures (so, at idle, I get around 40/50 min/max CPU).

Needless to say, I'm glad with the results so far But still, can't wait for the new old heatsink, arcticlear and arctic silver to make it even cooler!

I also heard the the newer fan is quieter than the old one, and that it has more blades. So, I'll be switching fans between the two to make a perfect combo.

Oh, and finally, those heatsinks are pretty cheap on ebay, and they're said to be much better than the other two revisions (I have the aluminum, sh**ty one right now). Look for XR216 (that's the serial number), and look for copper pads.