Processor Fan Grinding Sound
 

Lately my CPU fan has been making a faint grinding sound. It didn't used to do this.

Any thoughts on why it would start doing this and ways to fix it??? The computer has been working fine, but betetr safe than sorry.

It could just be dirty. Turn the computer off, unplug it, and suck the dust out of it (carefully) with a vacuum cleaner. If that doesnt work, try some lube--peel the sticker off the middle if there is one, and drip something in the hole there. If none of that does it, the fan is probably just on its last legs, and its time to replace it.

bearings could be dying, too... best bet is to clean the dust out (compressed air will help there) and if it doesn't help, replace the bugger

what's the average life for a fan? This one is about 2.5 years old.

I'd say its time to get a new one, pronto.
The fan goes out, then there is a real danger of the CPU overheating. That happens, you can kiss it monkey, goodbye..

is there any way to be sure it's the processor fan? I'm pretty sure it is, but my way of figuring it out was opening the case, sticking my head in, and listening wheer the sound came from ;) There's got to be a better way :)

Don't want to buy a new one if that's not the problem

Simply unplug all ur case fans, leaving the power supply and cpu fan only.

actually, listening a little bit closer, I think it's actually my GPU fan. Would probably explain some of the minor issues I experience only every now and then though.

Well, the way I've seen most techs test that kind of thing is the old fashion way. Open it up, turn it on, and stick your finger against the fan for a second. Dont worry, it doesnt hurt (unless you have some kind of super-fan), and it wont fry your cpu since it only takes a second. If the noise stops, you've hit the right fan.

If you're comfortable with it, fans are pretty simple pieces of equipment. taking them apart completely and cleaning everything out will usually fix any grinding noises. But dont do that if its not something you're comfortable with doing.

Zegel, you're right - it doesn't hurt. And it is my GPU fan. Thanks for encouraging me to stick my finger in - cause I would have thought it would hurt :)

By GPU I'm assuming you mean the fan on your graphics card? If so, that sucks =(. You can try to open those up and clean them out if you're careful.... but they're usually impossible to actually replace, so if cleaning doesnt work you're either stuck with getting a new card or living with the sound.

HAHAHAHAH.


Yeah buddy, I thought the same thing too.

Thanks to my 7000 rpm dragon orb 3, and the same "Oh, it won't hurt" mindset, I have one less tip of a finger.

Hrm, check screws, aircan the damn thing to hell until you can't see any dust, then check.. I do this monthly at least..

Also a tip, touch the middle of the fan and you can feel it spin and stop it without it ripping your finger (if its a faster fan) just push down a little harder or you'll burn your finger (I doubt it though) :)

If you can take it fully apart...only guaranteed way to make sure that its clean and old toothbrush does wonders for cleaning them out too.

well id get a new gpu cooler....

thermaltake makes pretty good ones... heres there gf4 cooler
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...=BROWSE&depa=1

i couldnt find any of their other gpu coolers on newegg...

I had a problem similar and when i opened up the case to check it out, I found out the fan was grinding the sticker that came with it, sometimes its as simple as that. Try cleaning it out with a compressed air can, and checking screws like stated earlier. :D