How to Fix a Computer Fan That's Loud or Making Noise GA S REGULAR Menu Lifewire Tech for Humans Newsletter! Search Close GO Software & Apps > Windows

How to Fix a Computer Fan That's Loud or Making Noise

By Tim Fisher Tim Fisher Senior Vice President & Group General Manager, Tech & Sustainability Emporia State University Tim Fisher has more than 30 years' of professional technology experience. He's been writing about tech for more than two decades and serves as the VP and General Manager of Lifewire. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on September 11, 2020 Reviewed by Ryan Perian Reviewed by Ryan Perian Western Governors University Ryan Perian is a certified IT specialist who holds numerous IT certifications and has 12+ years' experience working in the IT industry support and management positions. lifewire's editorial guidelines Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email Windows The Ultimate Laptop Buying Guide A louder-than-usual fan in your computer, or one that's making strange noises, isn't something to ignore. These sounds are usually an indication that a fan isn't working properly — a potentially serious problem.

Reasons Why Your Computer Fan Is Loud or Making Noise

Fans located throughout the inside of the computer help remove the large amount of heat generated by the CPU, graphics card, power supply, and other hardware on your computer. When heat builds up inside the computer, those parts heat up until they quit working...often permanently. The 8 Best Laptop Cooling Pads of 2022 Below are three distinct strategies for solving a noisy fan problem, all of which are worth investing some time and effort into. That said, cleaning the fans should be the priority if you're looking for the most likely solution. A lot of other "computer fan troubleshooting" articles out there recommend software tools that force your computer's fans to slow down, but we never recommend those. There's usually a very good reason for a fan to be running fast or making noise, the root cause of which you're working to solve with the steps below.

Start by Cleaning Your Computer' s Fans

Time Required: It'll probably take around 30 minutes to clean all the fans in your computer, maybe less if you have a laptop or tablet, and more if you're using a desktop. ​Lifewire / Theresa Chiechi Clean the CPU fan, as well as graphics card fan and any other component fans you might have like for RAM modules or other motherboard based chips. Canned air works great for CPU and component fan cleaning. You can usually pick up a bottle for around $5 USD at Amazon. Keep it upright, make sure the computer is turned off, and do the dust blowing outdoors if possible. Laptops & Tablets: Your device may or may not have a CPU fan and likely does not have a fan for other components. If you have trouble figuring out which panel to remove to access the CPU and fan, take a look at your computer's manual online. Desktops: Your computer will almost certainly have a CPU fan and will likely have a graphics card fan (a GPU fan). See How to Open a Desktop Computer Case if you've never had to get in before. Clean the power supply fan and any case fans. Canned air works great here, too. Laptops & Tablets: Your computer probably only has one fan and it's blowing out. Avoid blowing the dust directly back into the computer, which could aggravate the fan noise problem in the future. Instead, blow air at the fan at an angle, blowing the dust away from the fan grates. Desktops: Your computer has a power supply fan and may or may not have inflow and outflow case fans. Blow these fans from the outside and the inside until you don't see any more dust flying out of them. Due to safety concerns with power supplies, don't open the power supply and replace only the fan; the entire power supply should be replaced instead. I know that might be a big expense, and fans are cheap, but it's not worth the risk. If after cleaning a fan, it doesn't move at all, it's time to replace it. Check first that the fan is plugged into the motherboard or whatever is providing the power, but beyond that, it's time for a new one. If the fan is still working but not much better, or if it still isn't behaving like you think it should be, keep reading for some more ideas.

Keep Your Computer From Getting So Hot in the First Place

It's very possible that your fans are all in perfect working order and, now that they're clean, running better than ever. However, if they're still making a lot of noise, it may be because they're being asked to do more than they're designed to do. In other words, your computer is very hot and, even with great fans running at full speed, they can't cool your hardware down enough to slow down — thus the noise! There are plenty of ways to cool down your computer, from moving where it is, to upgrading to a better fan, etc. See Ways to Keep Your Computer Cool for a complete rundown of your options. If those ideas don't work, or you're not able to try them, it's time to look at why your hardware might be being pushed to its limit.

Check Task Manager for Hungry Programs

Unless your fan-cooled hardware has a physical issue and is heating up and making your fan noisy for that reason, your operating system and software are the primary reason your hardware works more (i.e., gets hotter). In Windows, Task Manager is the tool that lets you see how individual programs are using your computer's hardware, most importantly the CPU. Here's how: Open Task Manager. The Ctrl+Shift+Esc keyboard shortcut combo is the quickest way there but the link has some other methods, too. Select the Processes tab. If you don't see it, try the More details link at the bottom of Task Manager. Select the CPU column so that the programs using most of the CPU's capacity are listed first. Typically, if an individual program is "out of control" the CPU percentage will be very high — at or close to 100%. Programs listed in the single digits, even up to 25% or more, typically are not a concern. If a particular process seems to be driving CPU usage through the roof, which will almost always also be reflected as serious computer fan activity, that program or process may need to be repaired. Your best bet is to jot down the name of the program and then search online for the process and high cpu usage. For example, chrome.exe high cpu usage if you were to find Chrome as the culprit. Updating the drivers to your video card is an easy step you might want to try as well, especially if the GPU fan is the one that seems to be causing the problem. This isn't a probable fix for a speedy GPU fan but it could help and is super easy to do. See How to Update Drivers in Windows if you need help. How to Fix It When There is No Sound from Your Computer Speakers Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire How to Fix a CPU Fan Error How to Fix it When Your PS4 Is Overheating How to Control the CPU Fan on Windows 10 Simple Ways to Maintain Your Computer 11 Best Ways to Keep Your Computer Cool How to Clean Your PC How to Fix a Computer That Turns on but Displays Nothing How To Fix It When Your Computer is Making a Buzzing Noise How to Fix a Computer That Turns On and Then Off Task Manager (What It Is & How to Use It) What to Do When Your Hard Drive Is Making Noise How to Use a Power Supply Tester to Test a PSU How to Fix High CPU Usage in Windows 11 How to Fix It When Your PS4 Won't Turn On How to Fix a Computer That Makes a High-Pitched Noise How to Check CPU Usage in Windows 11 Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies