14 replies to this topic

[Kaitlynn]

Ok, so, I've been wondering about this for awhile (ok only a few weeks). I have a Dell Inspiron 6000 and its roughly 4 years old, and with the exception of a faulty hard drive I've had no issues. My question is, should the monitor be hot? Its only one part of it...the piece along the bottom that says "DELL". It gets almost too hot to touch and this worries me. Nothing has melted, it hasn't interfered with the screen working, I'm just wondering why the hecker it does this and if there is anything that can be done about it? At this point I occasionally take an ice pack and wrap it in a thin cloth and put on it for a few minutes to keep it cooler, but you know that whole defrosting with condensation thing is a worry. Rather not do it. I don't leave the monitor on or anything when I'm not using it and I rarely use it for extended periods of time (normally its only an hour or two at a shot these days, and this isn't every day either). Any ideas anyone? Thanks!

[8210GUY]

I'm trying to picture you mean, but I don't know that model so a couple of questions, this is a laptop from doing a search on the model yes ?
If so which bit is getting hot, is it the screen half of it or the base (actual laptop itself) thats getting hot ?
I appreciate you said it's where Dell is thats getting hot, but as I don't know it I can't picture in my mind where that is exactly, I suspect it's the screen half but just want to confirm.

But mixing water with ANY electronic device is dangerous practise, it could cost you your life if the worst ever happened, so NEVER do that again for ANYTHING electric based, even unplugged because if you turn it on and water has reached inside then it could be game over, water + electrics = Death (albeit worst case scenario).

Anyway here are a couple of thoughts to your heat issue, I'll mention both halves to be safe, so the bottom half (the PC itself), there are vents underneath it, and a fan, if these are obstructed they can cause overheating and that could damage the system, so be aware when sitting it on your lap, or on the bed or similar, not only will you be obstructing the airflow, it will also be sucking up hairs and dust etc, so get in the habit of sitting it on a hard flat surface, eg a large book, or better you can get a Cooling Pad for it to help it.

Now the top half, there is very little I can imagine getting hot, about the only thing I can think of would be the bulb that lights the screen, problem is I can only think of 1 possibility that could be making it hotter than normal, and thats the bulb may be on the way out, I can't be certain, but bulbs may get hotter before they burn out, have you noticed any difference in the amount of light from the display ? has it got darker or anything ?
Thats all I can think of for now, hope it helps a bit.

[Kaitlynn]

Ok, so here is a photo of my exact model of laptop. On the monitor, the part that has dell plastered on it is the part that seems to get exceptionally hot. The rest of the PC (the base) does not get hot and is properly ventilated (i have it on a cooling system).

To answer a few of your questions, the screen it self has not gotten darker or anything as of late (or ever). It was just my sheer happenstance that I even noticed this part of the monitor getting hot, as there was a bit of dust on it one day and i went to wipe it away. To my surprise, it was hot.

[8210GUY]

Ah I was picturing it right then, just needed to be sure, anyway without feeling the heat we can only guess, but my guess is this is probably normal, if you think about ANY light, touch it and you feel heat, it's a reaction of the light as you probably know, the fact this appears to be isolated specifically in that area where the word Dell is suggests it's probably the light source for the monitor, although I must admit I've never stripped a laptop down to that degree, but I've hear about back-light bulbs and that seems a logical place to put them. I'll see if anyone else more familiar with laptops can confirm my suspicion, but ATM with the info so far I wouldn't be surprised if it's normal, if it isn't it may be the beginning of the bulb starting to burn out (hence asking about the brightness), but I can't think of any other reason for this personally, logically theres nothing else it could be I'd of thought, but I will ask others who are probably more familiar with this issue, but needles to say if the heat is that bad that plastic starts warping, or your getting physically burnt then shut it down and get it checked or it could cause an electrical fire, obviously this is worst case, but only you can feel the heat so I mention it to raise awareness.

[Kaitlynn]

Alrighty. Thanks much for the input. I guess I wont worry about it unless warping or something telling happens.

[Doug]

Kaitlyn,

I just fired up two laptops on my bench here.
One is a similar Dell

I'll let them run for an hour and then physically inspect for heat.
I've put them both the running video, so the screens are getting a workout.

I'll post back.

In the meantime, please download and run Everest and give us the Sensor Quick Report to get us a little better idea of what may be going on.


Will you please download and run Everest 2.20 (free)
It will give you a read-out of Temperatures and voltages which could be useful information to us in diagnosing the present situation.

Download Everest 2.20 here for free: http://majorgeeks.co...wnload4181.html

After download, Select to Run Everest 2.20
Then in the Everest 2.20 panel, Navigate to - Computer - Sensors
Create a Quick Report in Plain Text

Include the Quick Report - Sensors in your next reply.

[Doug]

Sorry Kaitlyn, I could not produce an uncomfortably hot situation on either machine. I have both on a flat table top with no additional external laptop ventilation cooling. If I slip my hand underneath either, it feels hotter than just warm but not so much as to cause be to need to withdraw my touch. How about those Everest Sensor Reports? Also consider removing your Dell Battery and run only from A/C power supply. does that make a difference? I make it a practice to run laptops without battery at almost all times, except when needed or preparing (charging) for need.

[Ztruker]

I've also had a Dell Inspiron 6000 for 4 years and that area is never hot, so this is not a normal occurrence. Since this is a saftey issue (possibly) you should give Dell a call and see if you can talk them into talking to you (no warranty after that long I'm sure).

You could also try the Dell Laptop forum, see if you can get any information there.
Another good place would be the Laptops and Notebooks forum of TomsHardware.

[Digerati]

Inverters can get hot - is this hotter than normal? Or has it been hot for 4 years?

[Kaitlynn]

OK, sorry it took so long to get back to you, Doug. Here is the Everest results.

--------[ EVEREST Home Edition © 2003-2005 Lavalys, Inc. ]------------------------------------------------------------

Version EVEREST v2.20.405
Homepage http://www.lavalys.com/
Report Type Quick Report
Computer KAITLYNNSLAPTOP (Kaitlynn's Laptop)
Generator Caitline
Operating System Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition 5.1.2600 (WinXP Retail)
Date 2009-06-08
Time 21:17


--------[ Sensor ]------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sensor Properties:
Sensor Type HDD
Temperatures:
CPU 45 °C (113 °F)
FUJITSU MHV2080AH 35 °C (95 °F)


--------[ Debug - PCI ]-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

B00 D00 F00: Intel 82915PM Memory Controller Hub [C-0]
B00 D01 F00: Intel 82915PM PCI Express Graphics Root [C-0]
B00 D1D F00: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - USB Universal Host Controller [B-1]
B00 D1D F01: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - USB Universal Host Controller [B-1]
B00 D1D F02: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - USB Universal Host Controller [B-1]
B00 D1D F03: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - USB Universal Host Controller [B-1]
B00 D1D F07: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - Enhanced USB2 Controller [B-1]
B00 D1E F00: Intel 82801FBM I/O Controller Hub 6 (ICH6-M) [B-1]
B00 D1E F02: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - AC'97 Audio Controller [B-1]
B00 D1E F03: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - AC'97 Modem Controller [B-1]
B00 D1F F00: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - LPC Bridge [B-1]
B00 D1F F02: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - ATA-100 IDE Controller [B-1]
B00 D1F F03: Intel 82801FBM ICH6-M - SMBus Controller [B-1]
B01 D00 F00: ATI Mobility Radeon X300 (M22) Video Adapter
B03 D00 F00: Broadcom NetXtreme BCM4401-B0 Fast Ethernet Controller
B03 D01 F00: Ricoh RL5C476 CardBus Controller
B03 D01 F01: Ricoh RL5C552 IEEE1394 Controller
B03 D01 F02: Ricoh SD Bus Host Adapter
B03 D03 F00: Intel PRO/Wireless 2200BG 3A Network Connection (Dell)
PCI-8086-2590: Intel i910/915/925/945/955/E7221/E7230 MM
PCI-8086-2590: Intel i910/915/925/945/955/E7221/E7230 MMR
PCI-8086-2590: Intel i910/915/925/945/955/E7221/E7230 MMR

--------[ Debug - Video BIOS ]------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

C000:0000 U.............................IBMX.............. 761295520......
C000:0040 ??..............2005/01/31 17:33.....h....!........g.@(.. ......
C000:0080 ..M22P A13 Dell Tobago 225m/300e...© 1988-2003, ATI Technologi
C000:00C0 es Inc. BK-ATI VER008.017M.192.058. mttbg-11.346 v611 .P22 PCIED
C000:0100 GD1U?..OEM VER.001.001..l......:l..".],...............(.. `T....
C000:0140 ....~..w...........$TVS..V....................................
C000:0180 ........PCIR..`T........x.......ATI MOBILITY RADEON (M24) .~'..
C000:01C0 ....L.......................~'......L...........................
C000:0200 ............`...@....ff.............`T0u@....A........A.......
C000:0240 .A.......L ....0.....4.....0.....4.....0.p...4....@0.....4.....
C000:0280 0.....4.....0.....4.....0.....4.....0.....4....@0.....4.....0...
C000:02C0 ..4......@............a.d.A.....OD..P ....P`........X ..........
C000:0300 | ..........X`.........J.........J........0....@.A.....=..x.. ..
C000:0340 |........................................... ...........+.......
C000:0380 f..........`...........w.U.........w.U..!.....I.............*...
C000:03C0 ........*...&.......C.../.....m.....%......."".......M.......[..


------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

__________________________________________________

I havent yet to try running on only AC power. I wasn't really aware that it was ok to run it with out the battery (i also don't have anything to protect the battery compartment when the battery is MIA).


And in answer to someones question, I don't think it's been running that hot for four years, at least not to my knowledge.

[appleoddity]

This is the location of the inverter board. If the heat is located only at the middle under the DELL logo, it is definitely the inverter that is overheating. The inverter should not be getting this hot. They get warm, but if it is getting severely hot to the touch it is too much. Something is wrong with it. Inverters are easily replaced by a technician.. Inverter boards cost no more than 15 or 20 bucks used and probably no more than 35 new.

[Kaitlynn]

I'm able to touch it and keep my hand on it for a good while. I can understand it getting warm, but to me it just seems like its overly warm. I have SpeedFan installed on my computer and (from what I know) its reading everything possible and nothing is ever labeled as overheating so I'm not sure. I guess I just have to wait for Doug to asses my Everest log.

[Doug]

Temperatures for your CPU and HD are within normal range. Appleoddity is giving you very good information. The inverter should not be getting excessively hot. What is "excessive"? Too hot to leave your hand touching it. I've seen laptops functioning well with a wide subjective range of "hot" inverters. But it should only be warm-to-very-warm. This is something that you would want to take in to a shop for a quick diagnostic. But since you've already been concerned enough to try to cool it down, you probably already know the answer. Replacing the inverter, if necessary, is a job for a technician. Best Regards. You can leave the battery bay open when running on A/C. Just keep it clean.

[appleoddity]

"Hot" is relative after all.. I had a friend tell me once, "If you put your hand on a hot stove, one second can seem like an hour. If you put your hand on a hot woman, one hour can seem like a second." Anyways, the inverter will definitely get quite warm when it is running. But, it should not be too hot to touch. A hot bath would be about as hot as I would expect it to feel while it is running for extended periods of time. If you find yourself walking away from the laptop for periods of time, you may want to adjust your display power settings so that it shuts down after a few minutes rather than 15 or 20 like it may be right now. Those settings are in control panel under power settings. You can also dim the screen some by using special hotkeys on your keyboard. To do so, hold the FN key and press the brightness control keys (I believe it is the up and down arrow keys on this laptop). The brightness control keys have the image of a shining bulb on them. You should not have to dim your screen to keep it at a reasonable temperature. But, if you are concerned about it, this is one possible solution. Heat will reduce the life of your electronic components and the inverter may fail sooner than later. If that section of the laptop starts to feel excessively hot, such as to where it would burn you, or the plastic starts to deform you know there is serious trouble and it is time to get it taken care of right away.

[Kaitlynn]

Alrighty, thanks Doug. I'll take it in and get it looked at. And also a thanks to Appleoddity. You both answered my questions. =)