Laptop shutting off.

[Pusha]

Hi guys,

I've had my Lenovo Legion 5 for about a year now and the last two weeks it has completely powered off itself.

Checked today and CPU temps were up to 93-100c on some cores.

Anyone know why it would all of a sudden start overheating on games I've previously had no problems with?

Cheers

 

[Alecs]

Your warranty should cover it.

It's common for laptops to start overheating after certain time. It could be the thermal paste that it's getting dry, dust that worsens cooling, etc.

Does is shut off always or only when you play games? If it's the latter, you only need to clean it inside or change the thermal paste (that could void you warranty though).

 

[Pusha]

Thanks for the quick reply bud,

Yeah I've been playing Destiny 2, plugged into 4k Monitor on highest settings, it has ran it fine in the past but has started to shut down and get high temps recently.

Is thermal paste an easy job or worth just nipping into a local computer shop to get it looked at?

I have spoke to Lenovo but they just push hard on selling their "premium warranty" and I couldn't get to the point with the guy on the phone, he said it could be 6-8 weeks to get it looked at.

 

[mir2pion]

First check for dust plugging ventilation holes, also if you can see the fan if it spins. If you can't see the fan you should at least feel if the air is forced out by it.
You didn't by chance run the laptop lately while it rests on some surface that blocks some went holes underneath it (some laptops suck air from bottom and fan(s) are visible there).

Use vacuum to suck dust from vent holes but don't let it suck for longer time periods as it can spin the fan up to too high rpms which I heard is not too good for it.

For more thorough cleaning you need to split open the laptop shell, again vacuum but keep the hose at some distance and help to dislodge dust by some smaller and fine dust brush.

It may just be the dust that needs cleaning, I am a bit sceptic about it needing thermal paste replacement. You would need to release the heatsink and it may be done without removing motherboard from the laptop case, I would hope. But even splitting the shell to clean dust inside is not for everybody, also depends on the make as some laptops can be hard to work on, even figure out how to open them. If its in warranty you should do just checking for dust and cleaning it with vacuum without opening the shell.

 

[Jev]

Thermal paste reapplication is not too hard, make sure to completely remove all the old thermal paste. Less is more, do not over do the thermal paste. I’m sure a quick YouTube search can show you how to neatly apply thermal paste with the correct amount shown.

Unpopular opinion here but DO NOT use a vacuum near any internals. I personally find a clean makeup brush (make sure it’s new) works a treat.

Easy to also pick up some IPA on Amazon for £15-£20, pack of cotton buds.

It most certainly sounds like your cpu is thermal throttling sitting at those temps.
However you should only take apart your laptop if you’re confident enough to do it.

Search your laptop’s name on YouTube and look for a tear down video. Should really help you to get it apart and back together.

Also just try turning it on… can you hear the fans spinning?

 

[Pusha]

Thank you for the replies guys, I will be doing all of the above and checking if it improves.

The laptop is on my desk, I have brought a stand with some air vents under it to see if this helps as well.

Does anyone know what sort of CPU temps should be average while gaming on laptops ?

 

[Alecs]

Thank you for the replies guys, I will be doing all of the above and checking if it improves.

The laptop is on my desk, I have brought a stand with some air vents under it to see if this helps as well.

Does anyone know what sort of CPU temps should be average while gaming on laptops ?

Laptops always have high temperatures but it shouldn't be above 90. At least that's where I draw the line.

 

[Flatline]

Thank you for the replies guys, I will be doing all of the above and checking if it improves.

The laptop is on my desk, I have brought a stand with some air vents under it to see if this helps as well.

Does anyone know what sort of CPU temps should be average while gaming on laptops ?

for 4k gaming + destiny 2 on a laptop highest settings it seems about right for around 95 degrees also turn ya graphics down should never run the highest in any game especially laptop gaming Medium settings has usually next to no difference to highest most of the time anyways.

 

[Jev]

Does anyone know what sort of CPU temps should be average while gaming on laptops ?

Shouldn’t really be above 85

 

[Skyline]

Anything above 90 is not good.

Should ideally be at max 80-85.

If you believe you played Destiny 2 in 4k on the Highest settings before and had no issues then as others have said you will want to check the ventilation, make sure there's no dust clogging it up. You can do this by quickly taking off the back of the laptop and giving it a little clean.

You SHOULDN'T need to replace the Thermal Paste, but if you want to give it a try, there's a nice video here. Also shows how to clean the fans etc, so a hand video for you to follow.

 

[Martyn]

before even reading I knew it was something to do with overheating lol, if you can easily, but don't void any warranty see if you can take the back panel off and check the fans are clear from dust build-up.

 

[Alecs]

Anything above 90 is not good.

Should ideally be at max 80-85.

If you believe you played Destiny 2 in 4k on the Highest settings before and had no issues then as others have said you will want to check the ventilation, make sure there's no dust clogging it up. You can do this by quickly taking off the back of the laptop and giving it a little clean.

You SHOULDN'T need to replace the Thermal Paste, but if you want to give it a try, there's a nice video here. Also shows how to clean the fans etc, so a hand video for you to follow.

You wouldn't believe how much temps improve on some laptops after changing the thermal paste. On many Dell brand new laptops you can easily decrease the temps like 5ºC only changing the thermal paste because apparently they spread it in there with their dicks or something.

 

[Jev]

You wouldn't believe how much temps improve on some laptops after changing the thermal paste. On many Dell brand new laptops you can easily decrease the temps like 5ºC only changing the thermal paste because apparently they spread it in there with their dicks or something.

The thermal paste that comes out of some of these laptop factories is just terrible. I'd find it easy to compare to the PS4 launch issue.

 

[mir2pion]

Thermal paste should be spread thin using a spatula like tool, good one is a razor blade scraper with new blade inserted. You pull the paste around until it is nice, very thin even spread.

With vacuum you need to know what you doing. The tube end is not meant to touch anything, best it to wrap the end of the vacuum tube completely in you palm and watch that the suction doesn't overcome your muscles if you get too close. Its enough just to hold it nearby to create air movement that carries off the dust you are lifting with the brush.

I suppose electrostatic charge build up due to vacuum hose can be a danger here but I have never used any grounding when working on electronics, just common sense. Avoid working in places where in past you noticed an occasional discharge.

 

[Alecs]

But why would you use a vacuum?

They sell compressed air for like 5 euros and you blow the dust away. If you can't open the laptop, just blow through the holes from where the laptop takes the air towards the fans and the air vent. It'll spit a lot of dust. And if you can open it, just blow everything away, just make sure you don't break anything.

 

[PoPcOrN]

I might be wrong but the the moment you apply your own thermal paste, the warranty will be void. It's Easy to do especially with YouTube.

 

[mir2pion]

But why would you use a vacuum?

They sell compressed air for like 5 euros and you blow the dust away.

I would regard that as second best option. I am cheap, also I grew up under communist regime and learned to do with what was available. Compressed air in spray I still regard as a luxury. Some might also not like blowing dust around your living space as typical amateur cleaning will take place in living quarters.

And if you don't open up shell, you just blow most of the dust to the insides of laptop. Suction is best but must use common sense. I've even used industrial vac (it can pickup even large gravel stones if needed ) to clean my AIO PC recently. Some vacs you can plug the hose to their outlet and convert to airblower. Just be careful around fans since it can spin them really high, I imagine 10k rpm+ and experts say it can damage them. If situation allows, hold the blades with your finger or stick in a piece of something to prevent them spinning.

All computing devices that are actively ventilated need to be opened for cleaning every 2-3yrs. I once opened the casing of the classic PC tower P/S (they all have fan inside) and it was chock full coated with like compacted cobwebs, can't even call it dust. But that may have been 5yrs+ in operation.