Hardware Repair

Troubleshooting an Overheating Gaming Laptop

February 25, 2024

Introduction

As an avid gamer, I understand how frustrating it can be when your gaming laptop starts to overheat. An overheating laptop can lead to decreased performance, system crashes, and even permanent hardware damage if left unchecked. Thankfully, there are several troubleshooting steps you can take to identify and resolve overheating issues on a gaming laptop. In this guide, I will walk through the common causes of overheating in gaming laptops and provide solutions to cool things down.

Check for Dust Buildup

The first thing to check is whether dust buildup inside the laptop is causing the overheating. Dust can clog up the fans and heat sinks, preventing proper airflow and heat dissipation.

To check for dust buildup:

Use a can of compressed air to blow out any dust from the laptop’s air vents and fans. Hold the can upright and spray in short bursts.
If possible, open up the bottom panel of the laptop to expose the internal components. Use compressed air to thoroughly clean dust from the heat sinks, fans, and other components.
Inspect all air vents and make sure they are not blocked by dust. Use a cotton swab to remove any stubborn dust clumps.

Thoroughly cleaning out the dust can help your laptop’s cooling system work properly again. Be sure to do this regularly to prevent dust buildup.

Check the Laptop’s Cooling Pads

Gaming laptops come equipped with soft thermal padding that sits between the internal components and bottom panel. These pads transfer heat away from components like the CPU and GPU. If the pads have worn down over time, it can cause overheating.

To check the condition of the cooling pads:

Carefully remove the bottom panel of the laptop to access the internal components (be sure to disconnect the battery first for safety).
Inspect the thermal pads around the CPU and GPU. Make sure they are making full contact and haven’t degraded or worn out.
If the pads are worn, apply new thermal pads before reassembling the laptop. Replacing the pads can significantly improve heat dissipation.

Update Graphics Drivers

Outdated graphics drivers can sometimes cause overheating and stability issues in gaming laptops. I recommend keeping your Nvidia or AMD graphics drivers up-to-date for the best performance.

To update graphics drivers:

For Nvidia GPUs, open the GeForce Experience app. Go to the Drivers tab and click “Check for Updates” to download the latest driver.
For AMD GPUs, go to AMD.com and find your specific graphics model. Download the latest driver available for your GPU.
Follow the on-screen instructions to uninstall old drivers and install the new update. Restart your laptop when prompted.

Updating to the newest graphics drivers can potentially fix overheating by improving system stability and hardware management. Be sure to keep drivers updated regularly.

Lower In-Game Graphics Settings

If overheating persists even after cleaning out dust and updating drivers, the next step is to lower in-game graphics settings. High graphics settings load down the GPU and can cause overheating in games.

Try lowering these graphics settings in your games:

Resolution – Lower from 4K to 1080p or 720p. Fewer pixels puts less stress on the GPU.
Texture Quality – Lower texture quality from Ultra to High or Medium.
Anti-aliasing – Disable or lower anti-aliasing settings like MSAA or TXAA.
Anisotropic Filtering – Reduce from 16x to 4x or 2x.
Shadows – Reduce shadow quality or use fewer cascaded shadow maps.
Effects – Disable or reduce particle effects, depth of field, ambient occlusion, etc.

Experiment with lowering different graphics options to find a good balance between cooling and visual quality. This can provide a temporary fix while diagnosing other overheating issues.

Check for Proper Airflow

Another common cause of overheating is improper airflow to and from the laptop. Gaming laptops require good ventilation to dissipate heat.

When using your laptop:

Avoid soft surfaces – Use a hard, flat surface to allow proper ventilation under the laptop. Soft surfaces like beds can block vents.
Give space around the laptop – Avoid crowding other objects too closely around the laptop to allow airflow.
Do not block vents – Make sure clothing, cables, etc do not obstruct the air vents while gaming.
Use a cooling pad – An external USB cooling pad can help provide additional airflow and cooling.

Proper airflow and space around the laptop is key for keeping it cool during intense gaming sessions. Make sure vents have clearance and add a cooling pad if possible.

Repaste the CPU and GPU

If you have ruled out the above solutions, the issue may be that the thermal paste on the CPU/GPU has dried out or lost effectiveness. Reapplying high-quality thermal paste can drastically improve heat transfer and lower temperatures.

To repaste CPU/GPU:

Purchase a thermal paste/compound such as Arctic Silver or Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut. Avoid liquid metal pastes for laptops.
Follow a repaste guide for your specific gaming laptop model.
Carefully remove the old paste from the CPU and GPU dies using isopropyl alcohol and a microfiber cloth.
Apply a small line or dots of the new paste directly onto the dies.
Reassemble the laptop and power it on. Monitor temperatures.

It takes some effort but repasting is one of the most effective ways to improve cooling on aging gaming laptops. Just be slow and careful when disassembling the laptop.

Undervolting the CPU/GPU

For advanced users, undervolting the CPU and GPU can lower temperatures by providing the chips with a lower, more optimized voltage. This reduces power consumption and heat output.

There are risks with undervolting so do your research:

Undervolting reduces system stability if set too aggressively. Test in small increments.
Undervolting is done through BIOS settings or 3rd party software like Intel XTU or ThrottleStop.
Set a small CPU/GPU voltage offset such as -50mV to start with and stability test.
Increase the undervolt in small increments if stable, such as -100mV, -125mV etc.
If crashes or BSODs occur, scale back the undervolt or reset to default voltages.

When done properly, undervolting can lower temperatures several degrees with minimal performance loss. It takes time and testing to find the maximum stable undervolt for a given chip.

Summary

I hope this guide gives you some troubleshooting steps to tackle an overheating gaming laptop. Start with simple solutions like cleaning out dust and lowering game settings. For persistent issues, consider repasting the CPU/GPU or undervolting. With some targeted troubleshooting, you can get your gaming laptop back to running cool and stable. Let me know if you have any other overheating issues arise during your gaming sessions!