Fan/Heatsink/Cpu Overheating question

Jitter · Nov 9, 2009, 07:31 AM

A guy gave me his PC to look at, he said it would shut off after around 30 minutes or so. It has a e2200 dual core pentium in it. After having the PC on for only about 15-20 seconds, the bios says the CPU temp is 70 degrees C. I checked the intel site it says the max temp for that processor is around 73 degrees. I am sure that is a conservative number, but I dont think the CPU should be reaching 70 that fast. I have not seen it go past 71, but I have not left the computer on for very long. The fan/heatsink assembly seems loose and wiggles a little, I dont know if that is the problem or not. I can unscrew the fan/heatsink part, but there is a black thing the fan screws into that I am not sure how to take off (that is the piece that is loose). I will try to post a link to a picture.

First pic is the black piece the fan screws into. Like i said this piece seems loose, but not sure how to remove it or fix the problem if that is the problem.

This pic is just the bottom of the fan, the 4 screws are what screws into the black piece.

SeraphicSorcerer · Nov 9, 2009, 07:46 AM

There should be screws on the back that goes into the black piece, I am not totally familiar with the latest intel sockets, however, I would just have him buy, or you order and charge him for it a new cooler, because that to me doesn't look like a very nice setup. But call me a cynic. I suspect you are right of course the black piece is definitely the culprit, if it's not tight, then I'd replace it.

FrozenCPU.com | 1.877.243.8266 | World's Largest Selection of PC Modification Supplies has tons of reviews on this stuff.

And for the record a cpu/heatsink setup SHOULD NEVER "jiggle" The only thing that should be moveable is a locking retention mechanism and possibly the fan depending on design.

Jitter · Nov 9, 2009, 09:55 AM

well the black piece did screw onto the mobo. Only 2/4 screws were connected, hence the jiggling. I found two screws to put in, but it didnt solve the heat problem. I think you may be right that it is just a poor setup, either that or something is missing. The black piece feels like somekinda heavy plastic, and it doesnt seem to have a functional purpose other than give the fan something to screw into. It also keeps the heatsink at least 1/8" away from the CPU so I am not sure how it is supposed to work. To me it seems like there should be some piece that sits on top of the CPU in the hole of the black piece that makes contact w/ the heatsink/fan piece. There is a PC store near me I am going to see what they have in stock. Would there be any other reasons the CPU could be getting that hot other than poor cooling?

EDIT: I just thought of something.....DO you think that black plate should go on the back of the mobo and whoever built the PC did it wrong to start?
EDIT#2: Well that seemed to do the trick, it went from 70+ to around 40 and that was w/o any thermal paste. I wonder where he got the PC built in the first place???

Matth · Nov 10, 2009, 05:57 PM

Wow! Was thinking it looked more like a back plate.

Some heatsinks use the push pin holes (eg. stock Intel coolers), but the heavier ones use a backplate and screw through. Of course, this means the motherboard has to come out to fit the backplate, which is not standard.

Clearly whoever "fitted" this was nuts, I wonder what the result is if they assemble flatpack furniture?

Nov 9, 2009, 07:31 AM	#1
Jitter HardwareHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 533 Rep Power: 0	Fan/Heatsink/Cpu Overheating question A guy gave me his PC to look at, he said it would shut off after around 30 minutes or so. It has a e2200 dual core pentium in it. After having the PC on for only about 15-20 seconds, the bios says the CPU temp is 70 degrees C. I checked the intel site it says the max temp for that processor is around 73 degrees. I am sure that is a conservative number, but I dont think the CPU should be reaching 70 that fast. I have not seen it go past 71, but I have not left the computer on for very long. The fan/heatsink assembly seems loose and wiggles a little, I dont know if that is the problem or not. I can unscrew the fan/heatsink part, but there is a black thing the fan screws into that I am not sure how to take off (that is the piece that is loose). I will try to post a link to a picture. First pic is the black piece the fan screws into. Like i said this piece seems loose, but not sure how to remove it or fix the problem if that is the problem. This pic is just the bottom of the fan, the 4 screws are what screws into the black piece. __________________ Sony Vaio PCV-RX670 P4 1.8ghz XP Pro SP2 1 GB PC2100 RAM ATI All in Wonder 9700 pro Audigy 2 ZS Aquamark ~29,500 3dMark03 ~ 5,000

Nov 9, 2009, 09:55 AM	Thread Starter #3
Jitter HardwareHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 533 Rep Power: 0	Re: Fan/Heatsink/Cpu Overheating question well the black piece did screw onto the mobo. Only 2/4 screws were connected, hence the jiggling. I found two screws to put in, but it didnt solve the heat problem. I think you may be right that it is just a poor setup, either that or something is missing. The black piece feels like somekinda heavy plastic, and it doesnt seem to have a functional purpose other than give the fan something to screw into. It also keeps the heatsink at least 1/8" away from the CPU so I am not sure how it is supposed to work. To me it seems like there should be some piece that sits on top of the CPU in the hole of the black piece that makes contact w/ the heatsink/fan piece. There is a PC store near me I am going to see what they have in stock. Would there be any other reasons the CPU could be getting that hot other than poor cooling? EDIT: I just thought of something.....DO you think that black plate should go on the back of the mobo and whoever built the PC did it wrong to start? EDIT#2: Well that seemed to do the trick, it went from 70+ to around 40 and that was w/o any thermal paste. I wonder where he got the PC built in the first place??? __________________ Sony Vaio PCV-RX670 P4 1.8ghz XP Pro SP2 1 GB PC2100 RAM ATI All in Wonder 9700 pro Audigy 2 ZS Aquamark ~29,500 3dMark03 ~ 5,000 Last edited by Jitter; Nov 9, 2009 at 10:43 AM.

Nov 10, 2009, 05:57 PM	#4
Matth Flash Banner Hater Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: UK Posts: 3,411 Rep Power: 91 System Specs	Re: Fan/Heatsink/Cpu Overheating question Wow! Was thinking it looked more like a back plate. Some heatsinks use the push pin holes (eg. stock Intel coolers), but the heavier ones use a backplate and screw through. Of course, this means the motherboard has to come out to fit the backplate, which is not standard. Clearly whoever "fitted" this was nuts, I wonder what the result is if they assemble flatpack furniture? __________________ Mary had a little lamb, Her father shot it dead Now Mary takes her lamb to school, Between two crusts of bread

Nov 9, 2009, 07:46 AM	#2
SeraphicSorcerer HardwareHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Florida Posts: 2,295 Rep Power: 154 System Specs	Re: Fan/Heatsink/Cpu Overheating question There should be screws on the back that goes into the black piece, I am not totally familiar with the latest intel sockets, however, I would just have him buy, or you order and charge him for it a new cooler, because that to me doesn't look like a very nice setup. But call me a cynic. I suspect you are right of course the black piece is definitely the culprit, if it's not tight, then I'd replace it. FrozenCPU.com \| 1.877.243.8266 \| World's Largest Selection of PC Modification Supplies has tons of reviews on this stuff. And for the record a cpu/heatsink setup SHOULD NEVER "jiggle" The only thing that should be moveable is a locking retention mechanism and possibly the fan depending on design. __________________