“Laptop” – The very nature of the word indicates a product that is portable and can be used on your lap. While this is true for the most part, we all know that laptops can only be used for a limited time on our laps simply because of overheating and the potential of burning skin.

Even worse, an overheated laptop can cause a fire, or fry the graphics card or motherboard of your laptop. You may have even experienced the ‘blue screen of death’ and had a laptop automatically shut down on you caused by overheating issues.

How to Solve Overheated Laptop Issues

First and foremost, every laptop is different and may or may not experience overheating issues. That said, you more than likely know if your computer is overheating on you. So, what do you do? Keeping your laptop cool will preserve the life of your technology, as well as prevent the possibility of potential fire hazard.

Allow It Room to Breathe

If you pick up your laptop and look underneath, you will notice a series of vents and a myriad of hardware bays that all you to change out hardware components. The belly of your laptop is a critical area that you must pay attention to if you want to keep your laptop cool.

Take a closer look at the underside of your laptop and make a note of which vents are associated with the laptop cooling fan. Keeping these vents open and unobstructed is critical to keeping your laptop from overheating. If your computer has been overheating on a routine basis while laying on a desk, bed or couch, the blocking of this pathway may be the issue.

If there is plenty of air to the bottom of your laptop, the cause of your problem may be the laptop fan hardware within your device.

Check Your Internal Laptop Fans

The laptop fan is a critical piece of hardware within your laptop that is designed to keep your laptop at a low temperature under hot conditions. These fans are crucial to product performance and longevity, but often they will go out and need to be replaced.

If you need to replace your fan, look up your laptop model on Google and enter “laptop fan for [model]”. Replacement of this hardware isn’t recommended for the uninitiated, and should most likely be performed by your local PC and computer repair store.

Purchase a Laptop Cooling Pad

This is by far the most convenient and immediate way to decrease the heat generated by your laptop.

Laptop cooling fans are specifically designed to keep your laptop cool, and are a fantastic supplement to an internal laptop fan.

Even if your internal laptop fan isn’t in a working condition, a cooling pad may keep your hardware cool enough to function. You can find a number of laptop cooling pads through Google, Amazon or eBay.

Of course, there are also cooling pads available at your local OfficeMax or Wal-Mart, but these pads will most likely be more expensive.

Keeping your laptop at a reasonable temperature will not only keep your hardware happy, but will also keep you happy by not having to shell out extra cash for a whole new device.