2011 MBA - fan's been on constantly in the past few days

[Feltzem]

I have a 2011 MBA and when I normally use it the fan never comes on. I can run Safari, iTunes, Xcode, etc and it doesn't get hot. In the past few days the fan always comes on pretty soon after I start using the laptop. This is with light usage - it runs about 4500rpm and gets quite hot & uncomfortable with just Safari and iTunes open.

Is this a hardware problem? I've tried resetting the SMC and using a vacuum near the vent. Maybe it needs to be opened up?

 

[Jpeppard]

Open up activity monitor, select all processes from the drop down menu, see what is using up the most CPU.

It sounds like a program is using a lot of CPU power.



Also get a can of compressed air and try to clean your vent that way.

 

[Feltzem]

This is All Processes in Activity Monitor:

I had this problem last year too - I took it to a repair specialist, they charged me $200 & tried to tell me my laptop was not powerful enough and couldn't handle the applications I was running even though the fan had never been like that before.

I'll look into using a can of compressed air, thanks.