Airport Extreme Noise/Overheating message

[asleep]

I have the latest Airport Extreme 802.11ac and it has just started making a whirring noise and temporarily disconnects, then stops and reconnects and repeats...

I reset/rebooted/upgraded the firmware to no avail,

And got a message in the Airport App that said it "might be overheating"?

It's conveniently out of warranty.

It's sits on an open shelf with plenty of circulation -- nothing near it.

Is there a way to fix this issue, or is it just trash and a wasted $200?

I can walk over and buy another one, but is that throwing good money after bad if it's going to poop out in 2 years?

 

[Richdmoore]

I believe that the airport extreme is covered under the mac's AppleCare if you have purchased a new mac recently.

I would go to an apple store and talk to a genius anyway, at worse they will tell you they can't help.

 

[asleep]

I believe that the airport extreme is covered under the mac's AppleCare if you have purchased a new mac recently.

Ipads, iPhones... no Macs.

I would go to an apple store and talk to a genius anyway, at worse they will tell you they can't help.

I'll try, but the website only offered me paid support so I'm not optimistic.


I'm wondering of I should abandon Apple routers and try alternative tech?

 

[Richdmoore]

lm ,,.,

Ipads, iPhones... no Macs.



I'll try, but the website only offered me paid support so I'm not optimistic.


I'm wondering of I should abandon Apple routers and try alternative tech?

Applecare+ for iPad also covers an airport purchase up to two years prior.

AppleCare+ provides repair or replacement coverage, both parts and labor, from Apple-authorized technicians. Service coverage includes the following:

• Your iPad
• Battery1
• AirPort4
• Included USB cable and power adapter
• Coverage for up to two incidents of accidental damage from handling of your iPad, each subject to a $49 service fee plus applicable tax1

1. AirPort must be purchased up to two years before your iPad purchase or during the term of your AppleCare+ coverage.

http://www.apple.com/support/products/ipad.html

I believe the Apple TV plan also covers it (I did not look today) but it does not look like the iPhone AppleCare coverage includes the airport.

If you have a local official apple store, I would still bring it in. You never know, I had a airport express several years ago they replaced for free out of warranty. In the worse case, they tell you they can't do anything.

If you do want to try and fix it yourself (if you have nothing else to loose after trying an apple store) here is a teardown.

https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/AirPort+Extreme+A1521+Teardown/15044

Interesting to note: The DC brushless fan is labeled BSB0712HC-HM01 and is made by Delta Electronics.

I was able to google that part number and come up with some possible replacement parts, although they were not from web sites I recognized.

It's interesting time, with the rumor of the shutdown of apple's wifi router business. On one hand, the current router works great, a firmware update was even released yesterday. Apple has not officially discontinued their routers either. On the other hand, do you want to invest money into a router that is put on life support updates only?

If you do want to get a new airport router, I would keep checking the apple refurb store, they usually sell at a discount vs the full retail price. (Of course, you probably don't have a lot of time to wait for a refurb deal unless you already have a backup router in service.)

 

[rgarjr]

New firmare updates on time capsule and express

 

[Fishrrman]

If you decide NOT to repair it…
… I WOULD NOT buy another Apple router product, since Apple has discontinued them and future support is uncertain.

Instead, you might consider one of the new "mesh-type" wifi solutions, such as:
- eero
- luma
- google wifi
- Netgear Orbi (technically not "mesh", but a "base station" and "satellite" that works as well or better than the others above)

Do your "due diligence" research, and then buy...

 

[easy4lif]

If its in warranty, take it to an apple store for a fix. If its not, just open the bottom plate(step 3) to see if the airport has accumulated dust inside.

https://www.ifixit.com/Teardown/AirPort+Extreme+A1521+Teardown/15044

owned mine since release, opened mine recently. lots of dust up in there

 

[asleep]

Made an appointment at the genie bar,

Guy told my my Apple Care expired in September and it would not be covered under any of the 3 other Apple Care contracts I currently have.

He reset it -- did that already -- and told me they would repair it for $169.00...

"Otherwise, just take it home and plug it in and call Apple when it overheats again."

I told him I was disinclined to run an overheating device overnight in my home.

He moved me on my way, after 10 minutes with the snide genie.

Waste of time.

If you decide NOT to repair it…

Instead, you might consider one of the new "mesh-type" wifi solutions...

Yeah, I just didn't want to have to pay up now ($400) for something that I had already resolved with an Airport Extreme, Airport Express($300) extender setup just 2 and 1 year ago, respectively.


Thanks for the help to those who responded.

 

[Richdmoore]

I just checked the apple refurb online store, they currently have the AirPort Extreme ac in stock for $130.

http://www.apple.com/shop/browse/home/specialdeals/mac/mac_accessories

Anyway, at this point I would order a new fan and replace it and see what happens.

EDIT:
I pu that fan part number BSB0712HC-HM01 into google, and got a bunch of eBay listings showing the part available from $15 to $25.

 

[Crystal_Blue]

Hi Folks,

(Sorry if this is already solved)

I have never posted to any of those… but I know how to fix this, I fixed it - I'd like to share. I might copy & paste this to other message boards.

All you need is five things: Micro spatula, Exacto, T8, T10, and machine oil.

You probably have seen the iFixit article about disassembling Airport Extreme. You just need to go a little bit further.

After you take out the fan, inspect it - it consists of two plastic "shells," combined with four small plastic clips. Carefully open those clips with Exacto, and open the casing.

Gently pull out the rotating part (the fins). The metal shaft comes out with the fins, and on the casing, you see the hole (surrounded with the brushless motor electromagnetic units) where the metal shaft used to be in.

Apply ONE DROP of machine oil on the hole where the metal shaft used to be in.

Apply a very small amount of machine oil on the metal shaft.

Insert / pull out the shaft from the hole a few times, and finally fully insert the shaft. Turn the fins by flicking it with your finger a few times. It might not turn much first, but after a few "flicks" it should start spinning like those fans are supposed to.

Re-assemble everything, carefully, not to pinch or sever any small wires.

That's it.

I hope this works for you. I'm certainly not saying 100% of all the overheating cases can be fixed with this method, but - it makes sense. Fans break after a while. They need lubrication. My Airport Extreme has been happily working WITHOUT ANY CHANGES IN SETTINGS since I did this. This worked for an old graphic card, even worked for a very old battery charger that "broke" three years ago.

Good luck!

 

[Swhetst1]

Crystal_Blue,
Since you were recently successful, I'm having an issue with removing the the internal components even after completely loosening the 2 spring loaded torx screws. The fan/PS side is loose and separated from the housing, but, the port side will not pull up, any suggestions?

Thanks!

 

[Crystal_Blue]

Crystal_Blue,
Since you were recently successful, I'm having an issue with removing the the internal components even after completely loosening the 2 spring loaded torx screws. The fan/PS side is loose and separated from the housing, but, the port side will not pull up, any suggestions?

Thanks!

Hello!

This happened to me, too! And in my case, I had to gently pull the port unit away (towards the inside) from the outer casing (instead of sliding). This was achieved by very gently squeezing the internal chassis together and gently applying pressure on the outer casing to make more space. It did not feel like I could actually break it (like snapping the chassis).

I also remember having to carefully remove LED indicators from the outer casing while being careful not to snap those tiny wires. Also, I think the power cord socket came off separately from the ethernet & USB port units... sorry, this part my memory is a bit vague.

Hope you have a good luck!

 

[jkastin]

I have the latest Airport Extreme 802.11ac and it has just started making a whirring noise and temporarily disconnects, then stops and reconnects and repeats...

I reset/rebooted/upgraded the firmware to no avail,

And got a message in the Airport App that said it "might be overheating"?

It's conveniently out of warranty.

It's sits on an open shelf with plenty of circulation -- nothing near it.

Is there a way to fix this issue, or is it just trash and a wasted $200?

I can walk over and buy another one, but is that throwing good money after bad if it's going to poop out in 2 years?

I had the same problem. I put some little feet on bottom of unit to increase clearance and airflow. This solved problem completely.

 

[Rizvi1]

I have the latest Airport Extreme 802.11ac and it has just started making a whirring noise and temporarily disconnects, then stops and reconnects and repeats...

I reset/rebooted/upgraded the firmware to no avail,

And got a message in the Airport App that said it "might be overheating"?

It's conveniently out of warranty.

It's sits on an open shelf with plenty of circulation -- nothing near it.

Is there a way to fix this issue, or is it just trash and a wasted $200?

I can walk over and buy another one, but is that throwing good money after bad if it's going to poop out in 2 years?

My airport extreme router started mostly doing these things except it wasn't doing the disconnect part. But it was always flashing yellow, giving the warning of overheating if you turn on airport utility, and occasionally making the scary whirring noise. I was interested in fixing it, but the ifixit seems pretty complex. The other thing is the router itself wasn't giving me the speeds I was paying for wirelessly - wired it was. I've replaced it with the Synology and that is giving me much better speeds wirelessly. For now, the airport extreme's in storage and will just serve as a back-up. Maybe if I can fix the fan, I can use it for some non-wireless functionality.

 

[Richdmoore]

My airport extreme router started mostly doing these things except it wasn't doing the disconnect part. But it was always flashing yellow, giving the warning of overheating if you turn on airport utility, and occasionally making the scary whirring noise. I was interested in fixing it, but the ifixit seems pretty complex. The other thing is the router itself wasn't giving me the speeds I was paying for wirelessly - wired it was. I've replaced it with the Synology and that is giving me much better speeds wirelessly. For now, the airport extreme's in storage and will just serve as a back-up. Maybe if I can fix the fan, I can use it for some non-wireless functionality.

If you can get it working again, you can set it up wired to your new router so you can still do time machine backups over the network. You do not want the airport extreme to output a wifi signal in that case.

I believe these instructions work for both the time capsule, or the airport extreme with USB attached backup drives.

How to disable Wi-Fi base station features on a Time Capsule

A reader would like to use his Time Capsule only for backups, not as a Wi-Fi gateway.

www.macworld.com

How to configure a Time Capsule as an ethernet-only storage device

You can use the hard drive in a Time Capsule as a network storage device if you decide to stop using the router capabilities.

www.macworld.com

 

[Rizvi1]

If you can get it working again, you can set it up wired to your new router so you can still do time machine backups over the network. You do not want the airport extreme to output a wifi signal in that case.

I believe these instructions work for both the time capsule, or the airport extreme with USB attached backup drives.

How to disable Wi-Fi base station features on a Time Capsule

A reader would like to use his Time Capsule only for backups, not as a Wi-Fi gateway.

www.macworld.com

How to configure a Time Capsule as an ethernet-only storage device

You can use the hard drive in a Time Capsule as a network storage device if you decide to stop using the router capabilities.

www.macworld.com

Thanks for this but I believe the synology router I just got does Time Machine backups natively. If it doesn't, I'll go ahead and do that.

 

[yarik]

Hi Folks,

(Sorry if this is already solved)

I have never posted to any of those… but I know how to fix this, I fixed it - I'd like to share. I might copy & paste this to other message boards.

All you need is five things: Micro spatula, Exacto, T8, T10, and machine oil.

You probably have seen the iFixit article about disassembling Airport Extreme. You just need to go a little bit further.

After you take out the fan, inspect it - it consists of two plastic "shells," combined with four small plastic clips. Carefully open those clips with Exacto, and open the casing.

Gently pull out the rotating part (the fins). The metal shaft comes out with the fins, and on the casing, you see the hole (surrounded with the brushless motor electromagnetic units) where the metal shaft used to be in.

Apply ONE DROP of machine oil on the hole where the metal shaft used to be in.

Apply a very small amount of machine oil on the metal shaft.

Insert / pull out the shaft from the hole a few times, and finally fully insert the shaft. Turn the fins by flicking it with your finger a few times. It might not turn much first, but after a few "flicks" it should start spinning like those fans are supposed to.

Re-assemble everything, carefully, not to pinch or sever any small wires.

That's it.

I hope this works for you. I'm certainly not saying 100% of all the overheating cases can be fixed with this method, but - it makes sense. Fans break after a while. They need lubrication. My Airport Extreme has been happily working WITHOUT ANY CHANGES IN SETTINGS since I did this. This worked for an old graphic card, even worked for a very old battery charger that "broke" three years ago.

Good luck!

Man, thank you SO much. From the bottom of my heart.
My time capsule's fan noise was driving me crazy, your solution helped eliminate it completely.

 

[Type17]

Hi Folks,

(Sorry if this is already solved)

I have never posted to any of those… but I know how to fix this, I fixed it - I'd like to share. I might copy & paste this to other message boards.

All you need is five things: Micro spatula, Exacto, T8, T10, and machine oil.

You probably have seen the iFixit article about disassembling Airport Extreme. You just need to go a little bit further.

After you take out the fan, inspect it - it consists of two plastic "shells," combined with four small plastic clips. Carefully open those clips with Exacto, and open the casing.

Gently pull out the rotating part (the fins). The metal shaft comes out with the fins, and on the casing, you see the hole (surrounded with the brushless motor electromagnetic units) where the metal shaft used to be in.

Apply ONE DROP of machine oil on the hole where the metal shaft used to be in.

Apply a very small amount of machine oil on the metal shaft.

Insert / pull out the shaft from the hole a few times, and finally fully insert the shaft. Turn the fins by flicking it with your finger a few times. It might not turn much first, but after a few "flicks" it should start spinning like those fans are supposed to.

Re-assemble everything, carefully, not to pinch or sever any small wires.

That's it.

I hope this works for you. I'm certainly not saying 100% of all the overheating cases can be fixed with this method, but - it makes sense. Fans break after a while. They need lubrication. My Airport Extreme has been happily working WITHOUT ANY CHANGES IN SETTINGS since I did this. This worked for an old graphic card, even worked for a very old battery charger that "broke" three years ago.

Good luck!

Thanks for this - just fixed my ageing Airport Extreme back to complete silence!

 

[woefi]

I hope this works for you. I'm certainly not saying 100% of all the overheating cases can be fixed with this method

Well It worked! ...until it didn't anymore.

So, I managed to open up the AE, clean the fan, which was absolutely stuck, applying some oil (obviously the wrong one...) spinning it a few times so that it was loose enough and putting everything back together.

It booted up and after a few seconds yellow light, the fan was spinning. You could hear it only when you put your ear right next to it. ✅

But. After a few minutes the fan started to go mad, and it was relatively loud, with the led blinking yellow. Just about 30 seconds or so, then the led was back on green and all silent. 5 minutes later it started again. In between I could hear a little "clicking" noise, like the fan was starting and stopping... ❌


So I guess, I will have to look for a better oil? After all, this device should work 24/7 without supervision...

 

[Type17]

I used a very light oil (aerosol) and the noise came back a day or so later. I opened it up again and used a household "dribble-oil" (the slightly thicker kind of stuff that comes in a bottle with a dribble-spout), and it's been fine since then.
Maybe your fan is dead, regardless of the oil - they're on eBay...

 

[woefi]

So today I bought a machine oil "resin and acid-free", usually used for bicycles and sewing machines.
It seams to work better (a whole workday so far...)

 

[Kenjutsuz]

So today I bought a machine oil "resin and acid-free", usually used for bicycles and sewing machines.
It seams to work better (a whole workday so far...)

Nice info. Have a Airport Extreme 4th Generation. Still working perfectly. Bought a Airport Extreme 6th generation recently off eBay. Pristine condition. Wish Apple had never discontinued. They just work.