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Inspiron 6400 Fan Repacement Help!
Yes, I'm a n00b at opening up my laptop. Never really had to do it before, but the other day with a loud grinding, freaky noise, my fan died. At least, I'm lead to believe that's what happen. No air is coming through the vents, and a BIOS check gave me this error:
Error Code: 3700:011B
Msg: Expected Processor Fan on high RPM of 4200. Dectected fan RPM=0
So now it looks like it's busted, and I'm all for buying a new replacement part and tinkering with the thing but... I can't seem to properly open up the laptop, and the user manual doesn't tell you how to specifically do it for the fan. Can anyone point me in a guide of how to properly remove the fan?
And while we're at it, THIS is the fan replacement I need, no?
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/products/Cooling/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=YD615&mfgpid=167678&chassisid=8438
Any help would be most appreciated.
Antiapplekid
7 Posts
0
November 25th, 2008 16:00
If you have never opened a laptop before I would not reccomend doing it I would talk to dell about it because if you brake something it could void your warrenty I took apart my Inspiron 1705 Here is the inside of my latop
Antiapplekid
7 Posts
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November 25th, 2008 16:00
have you been able to get the frount plate off buy the screen or how far have you been able to get too
Aila
10 Posts
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November 25th, 2008 16:00
I don't have a warranty anymore, so that's why I'm all for doing it myself then paying them a couple hundred bucks to fix something so simple. I've always fixed my computers myself, this however is my first laptop. I have tons of experience with upgrading desktops and opening up their innards, so I'm confident in my ability, I just want to be sure of the steps to acess the fan first because everything else I can acess no problem, it's just this stinking fan. I've tried aready via removing all the screws, but it only opens it so far. Not enough for me to acess the fan to properly do anything with it.
Art
1.5K Posts
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November 25th, 2008 20:00
When you open it up, you might be lucky enough to just get away with removal of built-up dust-bunnies :)
Here is a link to the page you need in your 6400 Service Manual
<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed / replaced from this post by Dell>
You will see steps 2 - 5 (with links to those pages) that must be done first.
I have only had Latitudes, but following service manuals has worked well, take your time, have some masking tape to control and label screws and use screwdrivers that fit. Most difficult for me has been when it is just plastic parts that 'snap' together, but they have never cracked with necessary pressure.
Art
1.5K Posts
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November 26th, 2008 01:00
When you open it up, you might be lucky enough to just get away with removal of built-up dust-bunnies :)
Here is a link to the page you need in your 6400 Service Manual
<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed / replaced from this post by Dell>
You will see steps 2 - 5 (with links to those pages) that must be done first.
I have only had Latitudes, but following service manuals has worked well, take your time,
have some masking tape to control and label screws and use screwdrivers that fit.
Most difficult for me has been when it is just plastic parts that 'snap' together, but they have never cracked with necessary pressure.
Aila
10 Posts
0
November 26th, 2008 07:00
Thanks a ton, it helped a bunch. When I did get to the fan there, I found surprisingly huge hair balls, but then again I have a lot of pets, so I guess I shouldn't be so surprised. After taking them out, the fan started working again, but according to BIOS it's only working at half capacity/speed, and... it's very VERY loud. Annoyingly so.
Anyone know if there's a fix to this that I'm maybe missing, or should I go ahead and order a new fan? The noise quiets down when I put pressure on the laptop over the fan. I thought maybe a screw might be loose, so I went back and tightened everything, but it's still noisy as can be. Happy to have the noise since it's now working, but it's so annoying. XD
Art
1.5K Posts
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November 26th, 2008 19:00
Happy for your success! At least you can tell when it is working now.
Hair presents a major problem with any rotating device (like a cooling fan) as it winds around the shaft and works its way into the bearing.
New fan would be cheap enough to have, before even trying to remove any hair wound around your present fan's shaft.
Fans arn't intended to be even lubricated, much less taken apart, but with a new one in a box, might be worth a try ???
Heat is an enemy to the longivity of your laptop, so watch the temperature.
My Latitude also has a fan that is a pain to access, I use compressed air weekly to blow in through the Heat Sink's cooling fins, but prevent that from overspeeding the fan disc with short bursts.