Dell laptop dead fan

cricri29 · 10-03-2006, 09:17 AM

Hello everyone,
I just bought through ebay a Dell Atitude laptop but the fan does not work. Is this dangerous for the laptop and where could I get a replacement if I need to do so?
Thanks in advance for everyone who will help.
Cricri 29

**PanamaGal** · 10-03-2006, 09:44 AM

It's not a good situation for a laptop, as the heat produced is concentrated in a much smaller space than a desktop. Search the internet for Dell Latitude parts and you should be able to find a replacement fan for your model. Worst case I think would be having to get one from Dell, where price would likely be at a premium.

cricri29 · 10-03-2006, 09:52 AM

thank you, I will try to find another provider, do you know if it has to be a dell fan or there are some other generics available?

**Fox** · 10-03-2006, 10:35 AM

What model is this laptop?

Some of the older models, it doesn't really matter. My sister uses my father's old Dell Latitude CPx, and the fan on the back (which used to run) now never runs.

She's been using it for upwards of a year now, and nothing heat related has happened. I think it's a pretty stable laptop in terms of heat output.

cricri29 · 10-03-2006, 11:17 AM

Thank you for your posting, actually my computer is the same as your sister's: old Dell Latitude CPx. So, you think it is not very dangerous to work it without the fan?

**Basementgeek** · 10-03-2006, 12:28 PM

Fans may likely be thermal controlled, it will come when it needs to.

I have 2 dell lap tops, one if the fan is running I never hear it, the other will cut in and cut off depending on its temperature

BG

cricri29 · 10-03-2006, 12:29 PM

But if you put your hand on the fan, don't you feel some air coming out?

**Fox** · 10-03-2006, 02:21 PM

Never. In fact, I hear it's quite common for the fans on this particular model to just not work, ever- particularly after a certain BIOS update that apparently some of them have from the factory.

**Fox** · 10-03-2006, 02:24 PM

Is yours getting hot to the touch when you use it? I know my sister's gets warm, but not to the point where she'd be risking damage to it.

cricri29 · 10-04-2006, 06:29 AM

It just gets warm never too hot. So if it's not dangerous I'll just keep on working on it without the trouble of another expense buying a new fan. Thank you.

**laboye** · 10-07-2006, 07:19 AM

This model appears to produce little amounts of heat sufficient to damage. Here's the assembly from Impact:

http://www.impactcomputers.com/1191t.html

Based on these replies and a few others around the net, this machine should run just fine.

**Fox** · 10-07-2006, 04:23 PM

Not only that, I don't think it's the fan that's malfunctioning- from what I've gathered, it's the BIOS not turning it on at all.

**laboye** · 10-08-2006, 07:35 PM

That's odd... I have nothing else to say! A BIOS update perhaps. (or a rollback?)

cricri29 · 10-10-2006, 07:17 AM

Thank you for your help. Actually, I noticed also that my laptop doesn't fill the battery, I was looking it over on the Internet and I did find that this too might be caused by a faulty BIOS. So my problems could be caused by the BIOS. What does one do about that?

**laboye** · 10-11-2006, 12:39 AM

Well, charging is the job of power and controlling that charge is the job if the "smart" chip in the battery. Some models to intertwine the charging with the BIOS, but it is not often seen. Try BatteryMon. It's an excellent little program (demo though :-( ...). Click the little red battery icon in its toolbar and report the information. Click start and monitor the battery charge and discharge. If you see jumps or drops in the graph, it means you have a dead cell or two (or four, or six, or all

).

cricri29 · 10-11-2006, 06:29 AM

But my battery gets charged 100% on another same model laptop. So, I presume it's not the battery but the laptop. Still I will try the BatteryMon to check.

**Fox** · 10-12-2006, 10:59 PM

Another thing you could try is swapping batteries. If the laptop whose battery charged completely doesn't with the other one, then you know it's the battery at fault and not the BIOS.

cricri29 · 10-13-2006, 06:25 AM

I did switch batteries, but still is not charging.

10-03-2006, 09:17 AM	#1 (permalink)
cricri29 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 42 OS: xp	Dell laptop dead fan Hello everyone, I just bought through ebay a Dell Atitude laptop but the fan does not work. Is this dangerous for the laptop and where could I get a replacement if I need to do so? Thanks in advance for everyone who will help. Cricri 29

10-03-2006, 09:44 AM	#2 (permalink)
PanamaGal Mentor Hardware Team Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Panama Posts: 1,240 OS: WinXP Pro SP2; Windows Server 2003; Windows Vista Ultimate; Vista Business	It's not a good situation for a laptop, as the heat produced is concentrated in a much smaller space than a desktop. Search the internet for Dell Latitude parts and you should be able to find a replacement fan for your model. Worst case I think would be having to get one from Dell, where price would likely be at a premium. __________________ It is hard to fail, but it is worse never to have tried to succeed.

10-03-2006, 09:52 AM	#3 (permalink)
cricri29 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 42 OS: xp	laptop dell fan dead thank you, I will try to find another provider, do you know if it has to be a dell fan or there are some other generics available?

10-03-2006, 10:35 AM	#4 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	What model is this laptop? Some of the older models, it doesn't really matter. My sister uses my father's old Dell Latitude CPx, and the fan on the back (which used to run) now never runs. She's been using it for upwards of a year now, and nothing heat related has happened. I think it's a pretty stable laptop in terms of heat output. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

10-03-2006, 11:17 AM	#5 (permalink)
cricri29 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 42 OS: xp	Laptop Dell fan Thank you for your posting, actually my computer is the same as your sister's: old Dell Latitude CPx. So, you think it is not very dangerous to work it without the fan?

10-03-2006, 12:28 PM	#6 (permalink)
Basementgeek Moderator, Home Support Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Central Ohio, USA Posts: 1,524 OS: XP Pro SP2/Vista Ultimate SP2 Blog Entries: 3	Fans may likely be thermal controlled, it will come when it needs to. I have 2 dell lap tops, one if the fan is running I never hear it, the other will cut in and cut off depending on its temperature BG __________________ Donating to the forum keeps TSF free for all. Proud member of ASAP

10-03-2006, 12:29 PM	#7 (permalink)
cricri29 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 42 OS: xp	But if you put your hand on the fan, don't you feel some air coming out?

10-03-2006, 02:21 PM	#8 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	Never. In fact, I hear it's quite common for the fans on this particular model to just not work, ever- particularly after a certain BIOS update that apparently some of them have from the factory. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

10-03-2006, 02:24 PM	#9 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	Is yours getting hot to the touch when you use it? I know my sister's gets warm, but not to the point where she'd be risking damage to it. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

10-04-2006, 06:29 AM	#10 (permalink)
cricri29 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 42 OS: xp	It just gets warm never too hot. So if it's not dangerous I'll just keep on working on it without the trouble of another expense buying a new fan. Thank you.

10-07-2006, 07:19 AM	#11 (permalink)
laboye TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Hollywood, FL Posts: 1,246 OS: Windows xp Pro/Vista Beta 2/Ubuntu 6.06 LTS My System	This model appears to produce little amounts of heat sufficient to damage. Here's the assembly from Impact: http://www.impactcomputers.com/1191t.html Based on these replies and a few others around the net, this machine should run just fine. __________________ Repair Windows XP Guide --- Resolutions Crazy Computer that I'm saving up for::Antec P180 Case;PC Pwr&Cooling 1kW Quad SLI PSU;Asus P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe;Intel Core2 XE X6800;Corsair TWIN2XP2048 2GB PC2-6400 DDR2 RAM;2xAsus GeForce 7950 GX2;BFG PhysX Accel.;IBM DVD-RAM/Plextor DVD±RW;Seagate 750GB HD 7200RPM;WDX 150GB 10000RPM;Vigor Monsoon TEC Cooler

10-07-2006, 04:23 PM	#12 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	Not only that, I don't think it's the fan that's malfunctioning- from what I've gathered, it's the BIOS not turning it on at all. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

10-08-2006, 07:35 PM	#13 (permalink)
laboye TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Hollywood, FL Posts: 1,246 OS: Windows xp Pro/Vista Beta 2/Ubuntu 6.06 LTS My System	That's odd... I have nothing else to say! A BIOS update perhaps. (or a rollback?) __________________ Repair Windows XP Guide --- Resolutions Crazy Computer that I'm saving up for::Antec P180 Case;PC Pwr&Cooling 1kW Quad SLI PSU;Asus P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe;Intel Core2 XE X6800;Corsair TWIN2XP2048 2GB PC2-6400 DDR2 RAM;2xAsus GeForce 7950 GX2;BFG PhysX Accel.;IBM DVD-RAM/Plextor DVD±RW;Seagate 750GB HD 7200RPM;WDX 150GB 10000RPM;Vigor Monsoon TEC Cooler

10-10-2006, 07:17 AM	#14 (permalink)
cricri29 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 42 OS: xp	Thank you for your help. Actually, I noticed also that my laptop doesn't fill the battery, I was looking it over on the Internet and I did find that this too might be caused by a faulty BIOS. So my problems could be caused by the BIOS. What does one do about that?

10-11-2006, 12:39 AM	#15 (permalink)
laboye TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Hollywood, FL Posts: 1,246 OS: Windows xp Pro/Vista Beta 2/Ubuntu 6.06 LTS My System	Well, charging is the job of power and controlling that charge is the job if the "smart" chip in the battery. Some models to intertwine the charging with the BIOS, but it is not often seen. Try BatteryMon. It's an excellent little program (demo though :-( ...). Click the little red battery icon in its toolbar and report the information. Click start and monitor the battery charge and discharge. If you see jumps or drops in the graph, it means you have a dead cell or two (or four, or six, or all ). __________________ Repair Windows XP Guide --- Resolutions Crazy Computer that I'm saving up for::Antec P180 Case;PC Pwr&Cooling 1kW Quad SLI PSU;Asus P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe;Intel Core2 XE X6800;Corsair TWIN2XP2048 2GB PC2-6400 DDR2 RAM;2xAsus GeForce 7950 GX2;BFG PhysX Accel.;IBM DVD-RAM/Plextor DVD±RW;Seagate 750GB HD 7200RPM;WDX 150GB 10000RPM;Vigor Monsoon TEC Cooler

10-11-2006, 06:29 AM	#16 (permalink)
cricri29 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 42 OS: xp	But my battery gets charged 100% on another same model laptop. So, I presume it's not the battery but the laptop. Still I will try the BatteryMon to check.

10-12-2006, 10:59 PM	#17 (permalink)
Fox TSF Enthusiast Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: NJ Posts: 7,752 OS: XP Pro, CentOS My System	Another thing you could try is swapping batteries. If the laptop whose battery charged completely doesn't with the other one, then you know it's the battery at fault and not the BIOS. __________________ Antec Neo Power 500W, ABIT IP35-E, Intel E2180@2.66Ghz, Corsair XMS2 2x1GB DDR2-800, PNY 8800GT, 320GB Seagate * lazy college student alert *- If I've inadvertently ignored a thread, please Let me know about it Have I helped you solve your problem? Donate to Techsupportforums Klart Skepp!

10-13-2006, 06:25 AM	#18 (permalink)
cricri29 Registered User Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 42 OS: xp	I did switch batteries, but still is not charging.