Sudden death acer l100

Hello

Hey I have some suggestions....I have this same kind of computer which is what I am using to write this post.

This kind is the same Acer L100 and I have had it for 17 months and I have never had a problem with it.

I found out the a way to reduce heat problems. It is simply based on the design of the machine and it actually works.

First and foremost this Acer in particular has 2 in built fans on the back.

I found out (using a smoke experiment) that in order to reduce heat build up you have to operate the unit in the vertical position....upright position.

This means you have to use the "stand" which comes with the computer.

I found out that the computer is able to circulate air better if in the standing position. There is a reason...the computer is designed to work this way.

Also ***Very Very important***** you must ensure that the little hatch---or door which covers the front USB and card reader panel must be open at all times.

I found out (and it is the reason Acer perforated or placed a mesh) in this area (front usb panel) is also to help the computer suck in air using its fans.

The computer draws in cold air through the top mesh and the front panel and cools the memory module and the CPU at the same time covering these two critical heat areas in a 3 dimension wind tunnel which then exists the computer as a hot stream of constant air behind the fans which blows outwards.

Covering any of these 2 areas is not only dangerous but will slowly begin a process of component damamge due to heat build up.

I think Acer thought that customers would use the front USB modules when using the computer so assumed that the hatch on the front which covers this panel would always be open but I think that was poor judgement on Acer's behalf.

Acer's ignorance to clearly explain this design feature was a big faliure on their part as well.


This cooling system not only cools the CPU and the memory module but also when the hot air leaves the machine the computer lower section stays cool.

These areas...the top mesh and the one on the front are the main air intake areas of the computer. If you operate the computer in the horizontal mode with the top air intake to the side...the computer will get hot very fast.

If you operate it while in the standing position with the front panel hatch closed....you are covering 1/2 of the computer air intake system and the machine will over heat gradually...and in the long run affect capacitors and other heat sensitive components on the main board.

The smoke experiment I used showed that when the fans are running....the computer pulls or sucks a lot of air through the front panel and the top mesh.

Dust collects on these areas as well and also on the fans and this is a good example of how air flows through this specific computer.

I usually clean the system every two weeks, using compressed air and ensure the fins of the heat sink the mesh on the front panel and the top of the computer are as free of dust as they can be.

While I must confess that I have no idea what Acer was thinking while confining high power and high heat components in a small space, I must say Acer was not clear enough on the operating conditions of this specific model of their computer.

You can only operate this computer in the standing position, with the panel door/hatch on the front part of the computer open at all times.

Room temeprature is also a big issue. Because of the design of this computer, cooler room temperatures are ideal to keep this system in working order.

Sometime back before I had AC, I bought a small external fan and ran it on low and placed the fan directly in front of the computer and there was a big change even in computer speed, stability and response.

Here are the signs of a computer heating up..regardless of make:

1) Computer fans swirling hard and become louder and louder even with few or no programs running

2) Response time decreases and the system will freeze with some programs freezing up...eg windows which will not close or a mouse pointer not moving even when you move the mouse

3) Screen freeze which is not a good sign...it depicts possibility of an instant failure or component damage which is slolwy going on.

4) Unexpected shut downs are a sign that the optimal temperature for normal operation has been surpassed and sometimes the computer will shut down to prevent loss of data or continued damage to components

A computer which shuts down and does not restart is a clear indication that damage has already occured.

My computer has a Foxxconn motherboard and Foxxconn is relaible as well as stable so the main problem here is heat build up but the design of the computer does show that the best way to operate this computer is in the upright postion, clear of any barriers and good air circulation from all sides.

Hope this helps

Supplied 6 of these to a client, so far 3 are dead, 1 repaired in warranty, the other 2 are month out of warranty and Acer will not do anything about it.

I have poked about and notice when you apply power the Piezo clicks and the LAN LED flashes once then nothing.

The PSU is definately not the problem as i have tested the machine on a psu from a working device and the psu from the dead devices on the working machines and all are fine.

Will poke about on the mobo to see if i can identify any faulty capacitors as see if i can repair myself, I shall let you know if I have any success.

Regards

Nick Sharp

I have 2 of these L1000 Acers and when my one in the basement started always shutting down for some reason I thought that it was a power thing. This went on of a week then one day it wouldnt even come on at all. So a friend said that it was def. a power supply thing. So first I tried was taking the unit to where my other one was and using its power supply (just the plug etc) and it came on. So I thought that it was just the plug. Then I brought the unit and it's power plug (etc) the store to get a new plug etc. and thought that I would try the plug unit again and it came on. So I got it home plugged it into my power bar and it worked fine. I installed XP on it and updated the drivers and everything was fine, it wasn't shutting down at all. (I found out that it was a virus that keep shutting it down) anyways then again no power a week later and so I unplugged the plug from the power bar and unplugged the back of the unit. Got up the next morning and poof it was working and I haven't had a problem in 3 months. I always have all of my computers on all the time, at least just the units so maybe the plug was just getting to hot.
But that's my story.

might be your token ring router check that

I have an Acer L100 and have sorted the problem completely.
Please be aware that there is ONE fan and it sucks air INTO the computer which then exits through the grilles.
However I have used a number of fixes and have spent more than the machine cost! I can't be sure which are the best ones. In order of effectiveness by my reckoning though are:-
1) In the BIOS turn off the Fan Control.( In System Health) Noisy but immediately solves the overheating problem. Fan now runs at 7200 rpm instead of 2800 rpm.Cost £0
2) Changed AMD X2 3800 65W ( 2.0GHz) Processor for a 5050e 45W ( 2.6GHz). Cost £55 ( modern equivalents are XII 240e etc)
3) Cut/drill a couple of small holes in the front left grille in front of the hard drive so air can exit. Cost £0
4) Switch the hard drive for a 2.5" SATA unit. Cost approx £30.

5) As the machine was now running almost at room temperature, I swopped the fan for a slower unit that ran at 5000 rpm and made less noise. Speed fan is actually trying to slow the fan down but can't as it is a 3 wire fan, not the original 4 wire.

All these changes combined have given me a machine where only 2 of the 7 or so temperatures on Speedfan are normal, the rest are cooler than normal.

I hope this helps .

Same symptoms/problem here....

I followed the procedure described by crownbar86 and it really worked!
Now my Acer L100 boots up from the first time when hit the power button.
It looks difficult when you read it but disassembling the L100 it is in fact very easy to do....a few screws and done.
The heat gun i used was a very big one from Bosh, normally to strip paint with it. It had a scale from 0 to 15....i put it on setting 7 and did the heating, moving the heat gun up an down, for about 2 minutes with a distance of one inch from the motherboard.

I also didn't use the AS5 as recommended but used some other heatsink compount that i found in the nearest electronic shop.

I suggests everybody to do the same if you want to "blow" new life into your Acer Aspire L100 again.

Succes!

Here is the description of Crownbar86 again:

To all of those out there with an Acer Aspire L100 SFF that has decided it will no longer boot -
Symptoms: fans spin up, DVD spins up, possibly HD spinning up - no power, HD or network lights on front panel.
Previous Fixes: Changing out 3 capacitors on the mainboard, re-seating memory and processor.
I tried all three of the fixes above and still no joy. I discovered to my surprise that this PC, due to it's heat "issues", had developed a malfunction similar to the XBOX 360 and Ibook G3...it's video chip had developed some connection issues with the mainboard. Due to the heat, the BGA solder connections under the chip has either flexed and become disconnected or corroded with the same result;
Try this: Remove the DVD/HD "sled" - Using 3 fingers, put pressure (not enough to break the mainboard, but a fair amount) on the heatsink for the video chipset. While doing this, press the power button. If it powers up, this is your problem. You might have to try a couple of times with varying amounts of pressure on the heatsink.
Tools: Needle nose pliers,philips screwdriver, small flat blade screwdriver, new heatsink compound (I suggest AS5), a heat gun
The fix: Firstly, the mainboard must be removed from the case, and the heatsink removed from the video chipset. To remove the push-pins, use a pair of needlenose pliers from the back of the mainboard to squeeze the expanders to release the pins. If yours is like mine, after removing the heatsink, you will find that the thermal compound has hardened and is no longer effective...have some AS5 handy. Second, place the mainboard on a flat work surface. Make sure memory, cables and mini-pci wireless card have been removed. Starting about 4 inches above the video chip, put your heat gun on low setting and ove a period of about a minute, move slowly down until you are about an inch above the video chip (this is to heat it slowly and not cause damage) hold there for 30 seconds - you should notice the solder on all the connections around the chip change sheen from dull to shiny - over about 30 seconds to a minute, slowly lift the heat gun away - letting the heat dissipate slowly. Turn the heat gun off and let the board cool for 10-15 minutes. Third, put a thin layer of AS5 on the video chip core and reapply the heatsink, being careful not to chip the core. then proceed to reassemble the machine.
I did this repair myself 2 days ago...still working great!

To all of those out there with an Acer Aspire L100 SFF that has decided it will no longer boot -
Symptoms: fans spin up, DVD spins up, possibly HD spinning up - no power, HD or network lights on front panel.
Previous Fixes: Changing out 3 capacitors on the mainboard, re-seating memory and processor.
I tried all three of the fixes above and still no joy. I discovered to my surprise that this PC, due to it's heat "issues", had developed a malfunction similar to the XBOX 360 and Ibook G3...it's video chip had developed some connection issues with the mainboard. Due to the heat, the BGA solder connections under the chip has either flexed and become disconnected or corroded with the same result;
Try this: Remove the DVD/HD "sled" - Using 3 fingers, put pressure (not enough to break the mainboard, but a fair amount) on the heatsink for the video chipset. While doing this, press the power button. If it powers up, this is your problem. You might have to try a couple of times with varying amounts of pressure on the heatsink.
Tools: Needle nose pliers,philips screwdriver, small flat blade screwdriver, new heatsink compound (I suggest AS5), a heat gun
The fix: Firstly, the mainboard must be removed from the case, and the heatsink removed from the video chipset. To remove the push-pins, use a pair of needlenose pliers from the back of the mainboard to squeeze the expanders to release the pins. If yours is like mine, after removing the heatsink, you will find that the thermal compound has hardened and is no longer effective...have some AS5 handy. Second, place the mainboard on a flat work surface. Make sure memory, cables and mini-pci wireless card have been removed. Starting about 4 inches above the video chip, put your heat gun on low setting and ove a period of about a minute, move slowly down until you are about an inch above the video chip (this is to heat it slowly and not cause damage) hold there for 30 seconds - you should notice the solder on all the connections around the chip change sheen from dull to shiny - over about 30 seconds to a minute, slowly lift the heat gun away - letting the heat dissipate slowly. Turn the heat gun off and let the board cool for 10-15 minutes. Third, put a thin layer of AS5 on the video chip core and reapply the heatsink, being careful not to chip the core. then proceed to reassemble the machine.
I did this repair myself 2 days ago...still working great!

I had the same issue on my l100 which had been working well for 2 years until one day not starting up, which I have fixed by replacing the capacitor

The problem capacitor was no 1. in the photo above, you should be able to tell which capacitor has failed by look at the top, good capictors will be flat, the failed ones will have a slight bulge outward.

I removed the motherboard entirely from the case to remove the solder from the underside, but this may not be necessary as I actually broke off the body of the capacitor from the pins, and soldered the new capacitor to the old pins which worked well, so it might be easier to try to do this before taking the motherboard out.

Capactors have a polarity so you must make sure the -ve pin on the new capacitor (which should have a band next to it) goes to the righthand pin on the photo above.

The parts from Maplin are DT69A, however this was out of stock so I used a much larger capacitor DT71M, which just fits on its side covered in insulation tape to stop it shorting out components on the motherboard.

Ive had the same problem died on me and wont switch on but I found itas a different capacitor on the board same value as the one mentioned I replaced the 1st one and stikk didnt work so replaced the 2nd & 3rd cap as they looked swollen and it worked, I couldnt find a 6.3 1000uf so I used 63v 1000uf slightly larger but fitted ok,
I dont know if it was the 2nd or 3rd cap that was faulty as I replaced both at the same time.
See the image attache and you can see where they are located also you can see they are swollen
Oh forgot to mention make sure you use high temp caps to replace them ie 105c

I have a solution for L100 heat problem. My idling temps before fix 55 to 65 cel. After fix 33 to 35 cel. If anyone is interested I will post step by step fix.

well fixed a guys unit today no caps blowen what so ever took it apart..........scrathed me head a little, then blow tourched the graphics chip without heatsink like 3, 4, in iches away up and down moshine up,down,up,down with flame very low
on torch used this because had no heat gun....
....................WORKS!!!!!!!!! this very minute 12:08am just fixed it

Exactly the same problem and solution as #8. I had no blue led. And a little pizzo squeal when I plugged in the PSU. This computer had been on constantly for months as it is low power and useful for torrenting with.

Anway changed the three caps as mentioned which were as described dome shaped (convex) on the top and now TOK. Also easier to solder onto broken cap legs than remove from the PCB as my antiquated solder ****** would not pull the solder out from these mothers.

Re-applied heat transfer paste on the CPU and overall the PC is actually quieter. Put 1000uF/16v and not 6.3v (Acer please listen) caps in now for headroom.

Thanks to you guys I was pretty sure that replacing the PEC19 capacitor would solve my problem. I'm not into electronics very much but noticed that the PEC19 capacitor wasn't o.k. Replaced the capacitor and the L100 is running again. \o/

To Nick Sharp - How did you know which cap was the bad one that needed replacing? Ken

I too am having the same problem with a client's machine. I have spent hours on it so far (non-recoverable time!). I've narrowed it down to 2 capacitors being blown on the motherboard - adjacent to the passive heat sink. Hardly worth fixing as I'm sure the heat is the source of the problem.

go back to stock pc parts.  get rid of proprietary motherboard and salvage what you can from this pitiful acer model.