Studio 1535 fan runs continuously at max RPM

It's interesting that the fans would turn off if you pick up the system.   Unless it's suddenly getting airflow, or the vents are blocked somehow when stationed on a table, it would make me think of a mechanical error like a loose wire?   Have you cleaned the fans & vents lately?   Made sure the fan is moving freely?   Check out the user manuals on our support site, http://support.Dell.com for information on repairing and basic maintenance.  I also assume you're up to the latest BIOS?

There is a link in my signature for "Parts for your Dell" which will lead you to the online parts ordering service if that is what you decide to do.

Hi Todd,

I clean the fan and vents every couple months and check that the fan rotates freely at the same time. I've also upgraded to the recommended BIOS on the Dell drivers page.

The only way that I get the fan to run quietly (like it used to) is to prop up the back of the laptop a couple of inches. I managed to find some posts online where people had the same problem with the Studio 1535 and other Studio models. The fixes varied from having the cooling parts replaced, motherboard replaced, propping up the rear of the laptop or just replacing the laptop.

This machine is only a year and a half old and for what I paid for it I'd like to get a couple more years out of it, but it's really useless to me in this state as I work in a quiet environment.

Thanks anyway!

PS: I followed your links to the "Parts for your Dell" page, I couldn't find any replacement cooling systems, do you have a link to parts other than processors and hard drives?

According to the developer, it's not intended for the likes of our respective XPS and Studio laptops Joe, but given the problems you're having, you might want to try I8kfan GUI anyway?

I8kfanGUI is a graphical Windows application to show the internal temperatures, and to control the fan operation on the Dell Inspiron/Latitude/Precision notebook series.

Thanks TheRealFireblade, The fan control software takes care of the problem! I'd still like to know what is the root cause of the problem but at least I can use my machine now, thanks again.

After installing I8kfan GUI it made a difference for an hour or so, now it cycles the fan (albeit at a lower speed) continuously, on for a half second, then off for a half second, extremely annoying. I'm going to open the case up, pull the fan out and get a local shop to order me a replacement part, either that or get a Lenovo or HP... very frustrated with this Dell garbage.

I purchased my Studio 1535 over a year ago, and I've had the same ifan ssues since day one.  Updating to the latest BIOS temporarily fixed the problem, but it wasn't long before the fan started running at high speed again.  it seems to be a combination of issues, ranging from faulty fan parts to poor design (what genius designed this laptop so that when upright, the screen blocks the air vents?).  i tried dell support a while back, and after several unsuccessful phone conversations with people in their (bangladesh?) call center, i gave up.  my studio runs very hot, so i don't think it's just a fan issue.  i'm trying the fan control software that another poster recommended...will report back.  lesson learned: do not buy a first generation of a model from a company who has a reputation for poorly performing laptops. 

just got the same ptoblem. but with some extras. some buttons didnt work unless u pressed em hard, power button had to help in before it would start, touch pad didnt work sometimes. touch buttons on top of keyboard for eject and such work when they felt like it.  so i opened it up and what do i find? there was a screw in there rolling around that i guess got left in there when they built it, so i took it out, took out the mb battery to reset all the bios settings, rebooted, fixed setting and everything is back to working the way it supposed to. buttons work, touchpad works, fan works right. and touch buttons on the top work.

I have the same exact problem on my 1537 after about 1 year of age (worked great in warranty).

The fan will constantly turn on at max RPM.  If you rock, bump, or in anyway slightly move the laptop (without changing the airflow characteristics), the fan will IMMEDIATELY shut off.  Give it a few seconds and it'll come back on.

I've monitored the temperature of the CPU cores with Real Temp and both cores are usually around 25-35 degrees C.  This temperature should NOT require max fan speed.  I'd be OK with the "slow" RPM speed as you can barely hear that.  Often the fan will be at max RPM right from a very cold boot or resume.

I'm running Win7 64-bit, latest (A09) bios, latest ATI drivers. 

I cleaned out dust from the laptop and fan area with compressed air.  I also removed the heat sink and applied arctic silver 5 compound for the CPU and reinstalled.  The thermal pad for the GPU was nearly melted through so I've also applied AS5 with a copper shim to that.  As noted above, the laptop isn't overheating and doesn't require full speed fan usage.

Searching the forums, I've also changed the power management settings in Win7 to use "Passive Cooling" strategy and configured the video card to maximize batter life instead of performance.  I changed the laptop's power management when plugged in to act as if on battery (optimize for battery use vs. performance) in an attempt to keep heat down.  None of the settings appear to change anything.

I called Dell and a new heat sink/fan combo is ~$60.  I can't imagine the fan is *bad* as it does work.  If anything I'd think the BIOS software is incorrectly enabling the fan at high speed or some faulty temp sensor.  I also tried all of the fan diagnostics in the Dell boot utility and all tests pass with flying colors.

It's also very odd that just lifting up or shifting the laptop will instantly turn it off.  I mean INSTANTLY.  Some posts have suggested that it's the excessive motherboard flexing that is reason for that.

I also tried the remove-the-battery-and-let-the-power-drain "fix" but that doesn't fix anything.

Anyway, it's very annoying for a laptop that I paid $1200 for.  I could try a new fan but I'm not too convinced that it's going to be the root cause.  I'd be interested if anyone else has some suggestions....

Noticed in this thread that the Studio 17's have the same problem:

http://en.community.dell.com/forums/p/19326840/19687534.aspx


►Permanent running fan
fan starts causeless running at increased speed shortly after turning the 1747 on. Fan keeps blowing at increased speed, even if Windows boots all over and CPU idles - because of the still-blowing fan only at ~32° C. You can stop the fan only with a reboot or by stressing CPU - if temperature reaches 48°+C, fan slows down to lowest level. Turn off stress test, temperature drops below 48°C, fan turns off then. Confirmed by several users. 4 new users reported me this curious issue in the last few days!

How can we get Dell to fix this?

Thanks for the suggestion, I'll try removing the MB battery. I did however find a different and not so elegant fix to my fan problem, I removed the housing around the fan and inserted shims to keep the fan further away from the bottom of the computer housing, this seems to have solver the problem of the loud fan, unless something blocks the fan intake vents, then it fires the fan up again. I also have problems with touch controls that don't work and many other hardware problems, hopefully resetting the bios will fix them.

Funny thing is when I opened up the case I also found a screw rolling around inside!! One positive thing I'm taking away from this whole experience is to never purchase another Dell product and to let everyone that I know that they should avoid Dell computers at all cost.

The laptop has been sitting here for about 5 minutes with the fan on HIGH.  Temp in the low 20's.

It was sitting kind of proped up in the front (but nothing blocking any of the vents).  I bumped the side of the laptop and the fan instantly shut off.......

@joebubba - I'd be interested in seeing a pic of your fan/housing mod!

me too!  sounds awesome / hilarious.  mine still runs very hot (bottom gets super hot after 20-30 minutes of use), so i think it's more than a fan problem.  the only way to get the fan to stop running is to prop the laptop up on something or closing the clamshell (which obviously prevents me from seeing the screen).  still think it is a combination of poor product design and something faulty inside. 

btw, i tried I8kfan GUI, and it seemed to work initially.  it actually shuts the fan off...but the problem is that once that happens, the keyboard, touchpad, and overall performance becomes sluggish.  after a while, it will turn the fan on / off in short less-than-a-second bursts which just sounds bad.

frankly, i'm now just waiting for my 1535 to just die so i can buy something non-dell. 

I agree. Having the same problem but keep the computer propped up so air can get to it which still does know good. Has anyone come up with a solution. It is no fun to use the computer now with the roar in my ear constantly.

You might ask him which Bios he is using. I unwantingly upgraded to the A10. Never had a fan problem prior to that and now it runs continuously just like his. I have spent weeks trying to get back to A09 but each time it tells me I have a newer bios. It is the fan or the bios which is the problem

I solved the fan problem by removing the aluminum cowling from the top of the fan and jamming the bottom cover of the laptop open on the corner that covers the fan. You can jam it open by not inserting the clips on the cover into the laptop body when you put the cover back on, there's two clips that will stick out and keep the plastic cover away from the fan

I realize this isn't a very elegant solution to the problem but it works and will hopefully work long enough that I can justify replacing this DELL with some quality brand in a couple years.