Take apart your Toshiba Satellite L300D laptop's cooling fan.
The Toshiba L300D laptop's cooling fan sits directly on top of its processor. The fan keeps the processor from overheating. If the fan stops working, the processor may overheat and cause significant damage to the laptop's motherboard. In rare cases, the laptop fan's motor may burn out. Repair the problem yourself by dismantling the laptop's fan to access and replace the motor. This repair job voids any active warranties on the laptop's fan.
Instructions
Removing the Fan
1. Power down the Toshiba laptop. Disconnect the AC power cable from the laptop. Disconnect all peripheral devices from the laptop. Close the display panel, and flip the laptop over. Position the laptop with the front opening edge facing toward you. Remove the battery pack from its compartment along the top edge of the laptop's bottom casing.
2. Remove the hard drive compartment cover and its two retaining Phillips-head screws from the lower left corner of the laptop. Slide the hard drive to the left to disconnect from the connectors inside the compartment. Grasp the black pull-tab protruding from the drive. Lift the hard drive out of the compartment, and set it aside.
3. Remove the memory compartment cover and its two retaining Phillips-head screws from the center of the laptop. Remove both memory modules from the slots inside the compartment. Each module is secured to its individual slot by two plastic retention clips.
4. Remove the single Phillips-head screw that fastens the CD/DVD drive to the left side of the laptop. Insert the screwdriver into the vacant screw hole. Push on the back of the drive to eject it from its compartment. Remove the CD/DVD drive from the laptop.
5. Remove all screws from the laptop's bottom casing. Place the laptop face up, and open the display panel as far as possible. Use a flat-head screwdriver to pry the small, plastic keyboard strip situated above the keyboard assembly. Remove the Phillips-head screws that fasten the keyboard to the laptop. Tilt the keyboard upward from the keyboard's top edge. Disconnect the large ribbon cable extending from the keyboard's bottom side to the motherboard. Remove the keyboard from the laptop.
6. Disconnect all cables connecting to the motherboard from the laptop's top cover. Insert a thin, guitar pick into the gap along the outside edge of the laptop's casing. This gap separates the top cover from the laptop's bottom casing. Work your way around the entire perimeter of the laptop until the top cover is completely separated from the laptop's base. Remove the top cover from the laptop to reveal the top side of the motherboard.
7. Disconnect all visible cables from the motherboard. Take note of how and where they are connected. Remove all remaining Phillips-head screws that fasten the motherboard to the laptop's base. Carefully lift the entire motherboard out of the laptop. Flip the motherboard over. Place it on a clean, flat surface.
8. Locate the CPU cooling fan in the upper right corner of the motherboard's bottom side. Disconnect the fan's cable from the motherboard. Remove the four Phillips-head screws that fasten the fan to the motherboard. Lift the entire fan off the motherboard.
Dismantling the Fan
9. Place the fan with the label sticker facing upward on a flat surface. Use a thin, flat-head screwdriver to peel away the label sticker from the fan.
10. Use the flat-head screwdriver to pry out the rubber plug revealed by the label sticker. This process reveals a hole that provides access to the fan motor's bearings.
11. Use a flat-head screwdriver to carefully remove the metal ring that secures the fan blades to the fan's shaft. Slide the fan blades off the cooling fan's shaft. This process exposes and provides free access to the fan's internal motor.
Tags: from laptop, Phillips-head screws, flat-head screwdriver, bottom casing, hard drive, label sticker