Joe on the October 10th, 2007 Before I get started, I should thank Dan and Sherree for this article that saved me the headache of trying to go enter my wife’s Dell Inspirion 1100 from the bottom only to find that would be a waste of time. Now on to the destructions.. er.. I mean INstructions.
First, I like to label the screws I’m going to remove on a piece of paper to avoid confusion. If there’s a lot, I like to use scotch tape to keep them all apart. In this case, we only have five screws, so no tape.
Also, you’ll need a slotted screwdriver and a Phillips head as well. The Phillips head should have a small point on it. Needle-nosed pliers will also make unlocking the ZIF CPU socket easier.
Diving in, you want to pry up the top plate with a slotted screwdriver. Remember to open the laptop all the way (push the screen all the way back) to let the plate come up easily. There’s four or five plastic slots that will pop out as you pry the thing up. Go from right to left.
When you pull the top plate off, you’ll see four black screws. You’ll need to remove these to pull the keyboard up. I’ve pointed to them with my screwdrivers, but I’m sure you’ll see them.
Remember. The keyboard should remain attached, so use care when lifting it out of the way. On the right side, you’ll see a metal cover protecting the heat sink, CPU, and other vital stuff from, well, you. Just remove that. It has only one screw, so they want you in there, anyway.
With the metal protective plate removed, you should see the heat sink / fan assembly and probably some dust. The assembly has four screws. Hold on. First, unlock the ZIF CPU socket before trying to pull the heatsink out.
Now throw the new one in there and lock the ZIF CPU socket again.
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on October 14th, 2007 at 5:37 am
[...] JoeTech - How to replace a Dell Inspiron Laptop heat sink and fan assembly. I’m so not technical, I’ll think I’ll read this blog more often now. [...]
on October 15th, 2007 at 1:18 pm
I was wondering if this would be the same way to replace the charger connector. I have an Inspiron 5100 that can’t charge up so it’s been sitting for about 3 months collecting dust. Nothing else is wrong with it. Actually, I just need to take it somewhere to get fixed because I’m sure there will be more wrong with it if I try to fix it myself. I really miss the programs I have installed on it.
on October 15th, 2007 at 4:32 pm
In Dan and Sherree’s article (see link above), readers commented that it did, in fact, work the same to replace the heatsink/fan assembly on a 5100. I don’t know for sure about the piece you’re talking about, but I imagine it couldn’t be too much trouble to replace.
on October 16th, 2007 at 7:10 am
It’s a little square hole where the AC adapter plugs in. It no longer works, so I’m thinking it’s a connection problem. Or a battery problem. I have no problem pulling apart a pc tower but going into a laptop is more intimidating. lol
on October 26th, 2007 at 3:51 am
Hey, I tried this and got my fan cleaned. Bad thing is that now my computer doesn’t work. The unit powers up, the fan runs, but there is no signal to keyboard or monitor.
on October 26th, 2007 at 9:34 am
Laura,
I know the feeling. The first thing to do is search google for any articles that discuss replacing the power connector on a Dell Inspiron 5100. If I hadn’t found the article I linked to at the top of this post, I would have been winging it, which would have definitely cost me more time and possibly a laptop, too. This will also help you determine the exact part (and sometimes the part number) for the part you need to replace. Of course, you should always take precautions such as grounding yourself and unplugging the hardware before working on electronics of any kind, but you should be extra careful with power supplies. Beyond that, I wouldn’t be much help since I’ve never done it before. Good luck.
on October 26th, 2007 at 9:42 am
Andy,
I would guess that the best you could do on your own (second to taking the laptop to a professional for help) would be to turn it off and open it back up. If it worked (turned on and booted) before you started and it doesn’t now, more than likely, something happened in the process when you had the laptop open. My first guess would be that something got bumped and possibly disconnected in the process. There’s a lot of delicate stuff in there, and hopefully that’s all it is. If, for example, you accidentally disconnected the video cable, you should be able to reconnect it and be up and running. Before doing anything, diagnose the current problem. Plug in an external monitor and see if you get video. Plug in an external keyboard and mouse and see if those work. Note any details about what happens that isn’t supposed to or what doesn’t happen that should. Then search Google for articles that might shed more light. Let me know any symptoms and I’d be glad to do a couple quick searches.
on November 16th, 2007 at 7:53 am
i blew out the dust on my inspiron 5150 with compressed air to clean the fan, the fan stopped running. i turned the computer on and off a few times, and thankfully the fan stared again, i ran an f-12 analysis and the fan is working properly. the information in your blog i checked, just for future reference, really good stuff, with photos. would have save me from going through the bottom too, lol!!! thank you.
on December 1st, 2007 at 5:19 pm
Thank you so much for your post and comments! Your post was so detailed and it had pictures! It helped so much. I almost started going in from the bottom too! Thank you for your help!
on December 4th, 2007 at 1:07 pm
frankie and Pam: Glad I could help. When I decided to record and post the process, I thought a couple people might benefit from it. I had no idea it would end up getting so much love. =)
on January 12th, 2008 at 5:14 am
[...] as I’ve done here. When giving a tutorial, use screenshots, or photos like I used in my laptop repair article over on [...]
on February 5th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Hi,
I got a 5150, with heating issues. Before I discard my machine finally, I decided to try putting in a heat sink and fan I found on ebay (for the same line). Let’s see how it goes, it isn’t such a bad machine. I’ll try it in the next couple of days and post how it goes.
Apurv
on February 6th, 2008 at 9:23 am
Apurv: I’m interested in the results, so let me know. Great photos on your site, by the way.
on April 25th, 2008 at 7:28 am
Joe,
I have a Dell Inspiron 5100 and would like to upgrade the CPU. I think the best match is a P4 3.06 with 533 FSB (.13 micron) for the same Intel 845P chipset. I have built many desktops, but never ventured into a laptop. The Dell manual does not provide any guidance on replacing the CPU. Your instructions above give me confidience that I can do this. Anything else I should know? Is there any other detailed instructions you are aware of?
Many thanks, Dennis
on April 25th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
Dennis: The first thing I would do is consult the hardware specs for that model and find out what motherboard you have. Then search google for specs on the motherboard. This should tell you what processors will work with your laptop. From there, you can pretty much follow most of the steps above to replace it. As always, take it slow and make sure you cover all your bases. Good luck!
on June 20th, 2008 at 3:13 pm
This article has probably saved my lappy from melt down…
CPU was running at 75oC before taking the thing apart as per the instructions above.
I didn’t have to replace the heatsink/fan assembly, just blew all the dust out.
CPU temp now 40oC and no whining fan noise.
Great article.
Thanks.
on June 21st, 2008 at 8:54 am
WattAJ: Thanks. As long as it helps at least one person, I’m happy. Stay tuned. My new Sony is such a piece of junk I’m constantly finding something to fix on it.
on August 15th, 2008 at 6:31 pm
What if the ZIF CPU socket? How do I do that part?