MBP mid-2012 13inch overheat issues

[LongXP]

For quite a bit of time now, I've switched to using a mid-2012 MBP as my primary workstation. It's holding up great for now but I have a problem I'm encountering.
Well, to put it bluntly. It sometimes will just overheat for some reason. Now keep in mind I don't really run anything intensive. Yes, I tried gaming on it before but I basically never game on this thing ever. The most intensive thing I've run besides that is just android studio for the emulator, vscode, and chrome. I've tried switching back to Safari but that doesn't help much. Installing TG Pro it seems like my MBP is constantly hovering between 73 and 80~85 degrees with spikes up to 90~96 degrees which sucks especially for my left hand as the left side of my mac overheats there. Is this something that can be fixed with programs like TG Pro or Mac fan controls or are there any other solutions? As I don't really want my laps to be medium rare each session on my couch nor do I want an external fan blowing directly to my mac each time I want to use it.

 

[KeesMacPro]

First of all I would open it and dedust it .
When you remove the fan (3 screws) you'll probably see a lot of dust cloacked in the heatsink/around the fan.
The fan cable is fragile , so be careful .

Even better would be to repaste the CPU and GPU (about 10 years old and very likely never done), but should be done by an experienced person /professional.
E.g. ifixit has tutorials about disassembling/repaste etc

TG Pro or MacsFanControl can be very useful to keep the MBP a bit cooler.
I've got the fan in my MBP 2012 13 inch set like this:
-sensor = CPU PECI
- min Temp 55 Celsius
- max Temp 85 Celsius

This way the CPU/GPU never gets way over 80 Celsius.

BTW make sure that the MBP can "breathe" when in use i.e. try to keep the narrow space between the bottom and the screen open as much as possible( dont put it on e.g. a blanket )

 

[Mr Screech]

If your software is usable on High Sierra, roll back.
High Sierra is far less of a resource hog than catalina/big sur.

 

[LongXP]

If your software is usable on High Sierra, roll back.
High Sierra is far less of a resource hog than catalina/big sur.

I'm currently on Mojave so I'm not sure if it's better but I currently have some apps that I needed to use related to some of my work so I can't roll back for now

 

[LongXP]

First of all I would open it and dedust it .
When you remove the fan (3 screws) you'll probably see a lot of dust cloacked in the heatsink/around the fan.
The fan cable is fragile , so be careful .

Even better would be to repaste the CPU and GPU (about 10 years old and very likely never done), but should be done by an experienced person /professional.
E.g. ifixit has tutorials about disassembling/repaste etc

TG Pro or MacsFanControl can be very useful to keep the MBP a bit cooler.
I've got the fan in my MBP 2012 13 inch set like this:
-sensor = CPU PECI
- min Temp 55 Celsius
- max Temp 85 Celsius

This way the CPU/GPU never gets way over 80 Celsius.

BTW make sure that the MBP can "breathe" when in use i.e. try to keep the narrow space between the bottom and the screen open as much as possible( dont put it on e.g. a blanket )

Thanks for the info! I might try doing a repaste, and thanks for the TG pro settings recommendations.

 

[KeesMacPro]

Thanks for the info! I might try doing a repaste, and thanks for the TG pro settings recommendations.

I hope you're comfortable with disassembling lots of parts .
You could also just clean the fan and the heatsink in front of the fan to stay on the safe side.
There are lots of parts and connectors to be careful with....
Here's an ifixit tutorial to get an idea , note that it says : level difficult!!!

MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Mid 2012 Heat Sink Replacement

Are the gobs of OEM thermal paste causing your MacBook Pro to be sluggish while hot? Use this guide to remove your heat sink and apply new thermal...

www.ifixit.com

 

[LongXP]

I hope you're comfortable with disassembling lots of parts .
You could also just clean the fan and the heatsink in front of the fan to stay on the safe side.
There are lots of parts and connectors to be careful with....
Here's an ifixit tutorial to get an idea , note that it says : level difficult!!!

MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Mid 2012 Heat Sink Replacement

Are the gobs of OEM thermal paste causing your MacBook Pro to be sluggish while hot? Use this guide to remove your heat sink and apply new thermal...

www.ifixit.com

oof, I'll take some preps first by cleaning my fans and other parts to get a feel for it then before trying anything, Thanks for the heads up!

 

[KeesMacPro]

oof, I'll take some preps first by cleaning my fans and other parts to get a feel for it then before trying anything, Thanks for the heads up!

You're very welcome !

I think you made a wise decision, I'm experienced in this field and did a repaste on this exact model too, and can confirm that you have to be very careful (especially with all connectors and the direction in which they're inserted etc.).
If you clean the fan etc and set TG Pro/MFC like I did, you'll probably see much lower Temps.

 

[vince22]

oof, I'll take some preps first by cleaning my fans and other parts to get a feel for it then before trying anything, Thanks for the heads up!

after Arctic MX-5 paste used, just make sure ground yourself before removing parts.

 

[LongXP]

Welp. Didn't notice my thermal paste went out so I can't technically replace it at the moment. Though after cleaning my fans and blowing out all the dusts and grimes in my mac, the thermals are now much better (especially with TG Pro) and I can use it on my laps without burning myself now, thanks y'all! I'm still gonna order another tube for replacing the paste but for now it's running pretty good

 

[firelighter487]

i have one of these, replacing thermal paste won't help much, i've done that and it helps a bit but it's not worth the hours of time you'll spend doing it and the potential risk of breaking your device. these systems are getting on in age and need to work harder to complete typical tasks. take for example web browsing, websites are much heavier now than they were in 2012, therefore the MBP will spend more time at high cpu usage when doing these tasks.

Mac's Fan Control like already mentioned is basically the only way to keep it under control, and you'll have to put up with some noise. that's just what you need to accept when using a 9 year old computer.

i've since upgraded from mine, but it still sees regular use as a secondary computer.

i would strongly recommend sticking to Mojave or Catalina. i ran big sur on my 2015 MBP (my new main system) for a while, and it ran like ass. i'm now running Catalina on it and it runs a lot better, i wouldn't put big sur on your 2012 for that reason. it's a hog of an OS.

 

[KeesMacPro]

i have one of these, replacing thermal paste won't help much, i've done that and it helps a bit but it's not worth the hours of time you'll spend doing it and the potential risk of breaking your device. these systems are getting on in age and need to work harder to complete typical tasks.

Totally agree with you!

i would strongly recommend sticking to Mojave or Catalina. i ran big sur on my 2015 MBP (my new main system) for a while, and it ran like ass. i'm now running Catalina on it and it runs a lot better, i wouldn't put big sur on your 2012 for that reason. it's a hog of an OS.

Personally , I'd stick to Mojave : it's one of the most stable OSes ( like e.g. Snow Leopard back in the day).
Another pro of Mojave is the compatibility with (older) 32-bit apps.

I wouldnt recommend Big Suck either , but on this MBP 2012 that isn't natively supported anyway ; )

 

[justashooter]

I agree with the others here. I have 2 of these 2012 MBP 13's and love them. Leave the thermal paste alone, you won't get much of a benefit replacing it and it is quite a bit of work. I run Macs Fan Control sensor based setting. Let the fan run faster, no problems.

I've also stopped upgrades at Mojave, very, very stable.

 

[LongXP]

Mac's Fan Control like already mentioned is basically the only way to keep it under control, and you'll have to put up with some noise. that's just what you need to accept when using a 9 year old computer.

i've since upgraded from mine, but it still sees regular use as a secondary computer.

i would strongly recommend sticking to Mojave or Catalina. i ran big sur on my 2015 MBP (my new main system) for a while, and it ran like ass. i'm now running Catalina on it and it runs a lot better, i wouldn't put big sur on your 2012 for that reason. it's a hog of an OS.

Ah alright, I'm fine with the noise as I have my headphone plugged in most of the time and I don't really have any software that needed updating to something newer (Maybe xcode? But I don't do ios stuff anymore) so I'm sticking with Mojave anyways

I agree with the others here. I have 2 of these 2012 MBP 13's and love them. Leave the thermal paste alone, you won't get much of a benefit replacing it and it is quite a bit of work. I run Macs Fan Control sensor based setting. Let the fan run faster, no problems.

Ouch, I guess I can leave this thing fine as is without any further works then, thanks!

 

[Signum17]

The advice I got here is effective and much appreciated. I took the bottom cover off, disconnected the battery and blew out as much dust as I could before moving on to the fan. I had a special screwdriver for removing the 3 fan screws, and cleared a small bar of dust leaning up against the vents. Replaced everything and haven't heard a murmur from my fan. it's holding at 2000 (SMC report) and CPU 58C. I've been having a problem with the e,t, and i keys intermittently not responding to key presses, but no more fan racing to the 6000s and the CPU to 74C.

@justashooter I'm in agreement as well. I'm all thumbs getting those tiny screws out and back in, nevermind teardown sessions. First quiet evening with my mid 2012 thanks to the Macrumors forums.