“My Toshiba laptop suddenly shuts down by itself without any warning. Sometimes it works fine for hours, sometimes it shuts down in 10-15 minutes.” This complaint we hear from our customers over and over again. About 15-20% of all Toshiba laptops we get for repair, suffer from an overheating problem. Yep, OVERHEATING!
This is one of the most common problems with Toshiba laptops we deal with.
Indications of laptop overheating problem:
- The keyboard and the bottom of your laptop are very hot when the laptop is working.
- The CPU fans are working all the time at maximum rotation speed and operate much louder than before.
- The laptop suddenly shuts down by itself without warning. When it just started, the laptop was shutting down after 1-2 hours and how it shuts down after 5-10 minutes of operation.
- The laptop works fine when it runs idle, but shuts down as soon as you start using any memory demanding applications (DVD player, image editing software, video editing software, etc.).
Solution:
If the CPU heatsink is not clogged with dust and lint completely, you can use canned air and just blow it inside the laptop through the openings on the bottom and on the sides. It’s nice as a precaution measure, but it might not work if your laptop already has a problem and the heatsink is completely clogged.
- Open the laptop case, so you can access the CPU fan and the heatsink. In some cases you can access the heatsink through the latch on the bottom of the laptop. Sometimes (for example Toshiba Satellite A70/A75) you have to open the laptop case all the way down.
- Carefully disconnect the fan cables on the system board and remove the fan. If the fan makes unusual sound when it spins (grinding sound), I would recommend to replace the fan.
- Clean the fan and the heatsink with compressed air.
- I would also recommend removing old thermal grease from the CPU and applying new grease for better heat conductivity.
UPDATE: I just received a nice tip from MC N’Colorado. I think it could be useful for all of you with guys:
I decided to use a shop vac to suck the dust out and it worked. I tested it by letting the machine run all night and it worked. It’s been a couple of weeks now and I’m glad I did it. I was ready to take the machine apart, now I’m glad I didn’t. I’d suggest you use a heavy duty shop vac to clean out the fan and heat sinks first.
I agree. Try to fix the problem without taking the laptop apart first but I would recommend using a powerful air compressor instead of a vacuum cleaner.
If your laptop is still under warranty, you can take it to any Toshiba Authorize Service Provider and fix the problem at no charge to you.
Toshiba laptop disassembly guides with pictures and instructions.
Toshiba Satellite A15 Clogged Heatsink
Toshiba Satellite A35 Clogged Heatsink
Toshiba Satellite P15 Clogged Heatsink. Absolute champion!
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January 28th, 2009 at 11:17 am
My toshiba satelite m45 wont stay on. When I turn it on the blue light comes on the the fan then a few second go buy and I hear what i think is the dvd drive make a noise like it is starting then shuts off. I do this many times same thing. Every once in a while It turns on and works with no problems. If I turn it off though I have the same problem.
January 27th, 2009 at 10:06 pm
Oscar G,
Why do you think the CPU is bad?
I guess you’ll have to disassemble the laptop again and check the internal connections.
First of all, try reseating the CPU, make sure it’s properly connected to the motherboard.
Disassemble the laptop to the point when everything is removed and you have only motherboard and the CPU with the cooling module attached to it, nothing else. Now connect and external monitor and plug in the power adapter. Press on the power button which is located on the motherboard. If the laptop start fine with the external monitor, start assembling the laptop back installing parts one by one and testing after each part.
If the laptop will not start even when it’s disassembled to the bare bone system, there could be something wrong with the motherboard. If you didn’t remove the CPU during the disassembly process, I don’t think that the CPU is damaged.
By the way, do you have an external memory installed? Before you disassemble the laptop again, try removing/reconnecting the external module. Maybe it’s not seated properly and the laptop will not start because of that.
January 27th, 2009 at 8:13 pm
Tim:
to unscrew the screw you have to use the right screwdriver and use WD-40 put it in for 5 min and after give it some hits slow to do the WD- 40 penetreats in the hole. Be patient after that remove the screw good luck . Oscar
January 27th, 2009 at 6:36 pm
I changed the fans and I cleaned the heat sink, before this my computer Iwas very hot in that area and it was working good and jst shut down. Now, after the change the parts it doesn’t work the fan work for 5 second speed and after run normally no picture no display aanytihg, I thing the cpu is bad someone can tellme another solution. Thanks
January 26th, 2009 at 5:32 pm
Does anybody want my A75-S206 for parts? It has a new battery and a new power cord, just had the heat sink cleaned by a tech, but I guess now it needs a motherboard. I wanted to repair her, but I have been told I should just buy a new laptop. So I did.
January 24th, 2009 at 3:53 pm
I had the problem with my Toshiba laptop shutting down. I tried to use canned air, which cleaned the fans temporarily. I considered a new battery, then I read this website. I used the shop vac idea and my laptop works great. I sucked out the dirt and have had no problems since.
January 22nd, 2009 at 5:37 pm
Thank you, I was going to buy a new battery or laptop because of the shutdowns but the vacuum sucked all kinds of dust right out and now the heating is way down. I will continue to do this to keep my laptop clean. Thank you for saving me money!
January 20th, 2009 at 5:26 pm
I have the model A75. It heats up and shuts off, which i suspect to be caused by a clogged heat sink. I went to unscrew the back and found that none of the screws will come out. They simply spin in place, and whatever I’m attempting to unscrew remains latched down by the screw. They will neither unscrew or screw in, they simply spin in place. What can i do? I’ve already used brute force to access the hard drive and wireless card with minimal damage, but i don’t want to go that far with the PC case, maybe I’m not doing something right here, I’m just putting the screw driver in and turning it. Is there a trick to it? thanks.
January 20th, 2009 at 9:15 am
stop recommending macs as an end all solution to all computer problems… it’s so annoying
January 18th, 2009 at 2:03 pm
sir after taking apart my a45 i have a metal piece labled north? can’t seem to figure out where it goes?back side has plastic and a small amount of thermal grease