Taking apart Acer Aspire 4830T to replace fan

posted in: 1. Acer | 6

Acer Aspire 4830T fan replacement

In this guide I’ll be taking apart an Acer Aspire 4830T in order to access and replace the cooling fan.

In my case it started making lots of noise.

In this model there is no easy access to the fan, it’s mounted inside the case, under the keyboard.

Before you start, make sure the laptop is turned off.

STEP 1.

Remove one screw securing the service cover on the bottom.

Remove the cover.

Remove service cover

STEP 2.

When the service cover removed, you can get access to the hard drive and both RAM modules.

You can install up to 8GB (2x4GB)  DDR3-12800 SODIMM RAM modules into this laptop.

Access hard drive and RAM

STEP 3.

It’s not necessary to remove the hard drive for the purpose of my disassembly. I just show how it’s done in case you need it.

Remove two screws securing the hard drive mounting bracket.

Remove hard drive screws

STEP 4.

Lift up the right side of the hard drive and disconnect the cable.

Remove the hard drive.

Upgrading this 2.5″ hard drive to a 2.5″ solid state drive will speed up the system.

Disconnect hard drive cable

By the way, in Acer Aspire 4830T the CMOS battery buried deep inside the laptop.

You can see the battery through the opening in the case.

CMOS battery location

STEP 5.

Remove one screw securing the optical drive.

Remove optical drive screw

STEP 6.

Insert a small flat head screwdriver between the optical drive and bottom case.

Removing optical drive

STEP 7.

Carefully pull the drive out of the case.

Pull optical drive out

STEP 8.

Remove the optical drive.

Note: it’s not necessary to remove the optical drive for the purpose of my disassembly. I just show how it’s done.

Remove optical drive

STEP 9.

Remove three screws securing the palm rest assembly.

Remove palm rest screws

STEP 10.

Lift up the palm rest assembly as it shown on the following picture and carefully turn upside down.

Be careful, it’s still connected to the motherboard.

Lift up palm rest

STEP 11.

Before you can remove the palm rest completely, it’s necessary to unlock and release the track pad cable.

Access trackpad cable

STEP 12.

Here’s how to unlock the connector.

Lift up right side of the cable retainer (brown piece) with the fingernail.

The retainer will open up at a 90 degree angle.

Unlock trackpad cable

STEP 13.

Now you can pull the cable out of the connector and remove the palm rest.

Disconnect cable

STEP 14.

Remove screws from the bottom of the laptop.

Remove screws from bottom

STEP 15.

Remove three screws securing the keyboard assembly.

Remove keyboard screws

STEP 16.

Disconnect two keyboard cables from the motherboard.

The left connector can be unlocked the same way as we did in steps 12 and 13.

Access keyboard cables

STEP 17.

Here’s how to unlocked the right connector.

Slide the cable retainer about 2-3 millimeters to the shown direction.

The retainer must remain connected to the connector base.

Unlock cable connector

STEP 18.

Now remove tape securing the connection and pull the cable from the connector.

Disconnect keyboard cable

STEP 19.

Lift up the keyboard assembly.

Lift up keyboard assembly

and remove it from the laptop.

Remove keyboard

STEP 20.

If you need to replace the keyboard, it will be necessary to remove the mylar cover and screws securing the keyboard.

I do not show this procedure in this guide but it shouldn’t be very difficult.

Replace keyboard

Now you can get access to the cooling fan.

The battery also accessible here.

Access fan

STEP 21.

Remove the mylar cover between the fan and heatsink.

Remove mylar cover

STEP 22.

Disconnect the fan cable.

Disconnect fan cable

STEP 23.

Remove four screws securing the fan assembly.

Remove fan screws

STEP 24.

Lift up and remove the fan.

Now you can replace the failed fan with a new one.

Remove fan

STEP 25.

Instead of replacing, you can try lubricating the fan first.

Separate the vent from the motor.

Separate fan from cover

STEP 26.

Apply a drop of multi-purpose oil on the fan pin and inside the motor, right in the middle.

Assemble everything back together and test the laptop.

It’s possible that lubricating the fan will fix the noise problem. If not, you’ll have to replace the fan.

Oil fan

In the next guide I explain how to replace Acer Aspire 4830T screen.


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6 Responses

  1. Lindsey

    Is the fan blade supposed to just pop off the motor? I’m trying to lubricate the fan in my Acer Aspire V5-571 but the blade won’t come off easily and I’m afraid to pull on it any harder. I’ve seen some say you can remove the sticker on the other side and underneath the sticker will be a rubber piece you can pop off and you can add the oil to the shaft/well that way, but there is no rubber piece to remove or any way to access the shaft this way either. Do you know how I can access the shaft or well on this particular model? My fan is making a terrible noise and until I can replace the fan entirely, I still need to be able to use my computer. Thanks!

  2. Archie

    I have a 4830TG and the bottom case near hinge is broken to the point that the broken part sticks out every time the lid is closed. Do you know where I can possibly purchase the bottom case? I don’t mine buying generic or used ones.

    Thank you very much.

  3. Sayeed

    I could remove and clean the fan of my 4830TG, but when i assembled my laptop back, it is not starting up when I power on. I can see the power light is on, fan rotating normally and USB ports also have power. But the laptop just doesn’t start up and processor light doest not light up. Can you advise how do I get my laptop started.

    Thanks

  4. Toshi

    It’s almost perfect procedure and most helpful guide to replace fan.
    But, I had three small differences on my machine.

    1) In step 9, there is NOT exist center screw in my machine.

    2) Before step 19, there is TWO MORE connectors at most left side and right side.
    One is in left side of the keyboard frame. It’s thin small connector.

    3) Another is in center of keyboard frame. It’s left to right thick cable.
    It is connected to USB port board at right side was fixed this on keyboard frame with screw.

    I’m very very glad at your helpful guide.
    I’ll donate a little for this.
    Thank you.

  5. Karen

    Thank you for these useful instructions. I had no trouble taking the laptop apart. Like Toshi, above, I also had to disconnect two more connectors before I could remove the keyboard.

    But to prevent anyone else having the problem I had, the fan requires a 0000 phillips screwdriver. (all other screws are a size 0) Before I figured this out, I destroyed the heads of 2 screws. Once I had the correct size tool, the other two screws came right out. So do yourself a favor and buy a 0000 Phillips before you start.

    Now that I am in this predicament, my alternative is to remove the entire motherboard so that I can access the full fan assembly including the air channel. I’ve decided that is more than I want to tackle, so I am going to put the laptop back together and take it to a repair shop.

  6. Mark

    Thank you for this column. I have been repairing my Acer 4830T for 10 years and just cannot let go of it. The bottom case has cracked open under the power button and I cannot find a replacement. Can I use other bottoms? Like 4830TG or? I do not know what models used this same bottom. I would really appreciate your reply very much. I cannot close the case or move it anymore and have tried different glues and now it is just taped together 🙁 Thanks!