my macbook air bottom pegs are melting off

[bbhegedus]

Well the title pretty much says it all. The little black bumps on the bottom of my macbook air 2011, 11 inch, are melting off and making a huge mess of black stuff. Should I get a replacement or what should I do? anyone having similar issues?

 

[misterneums]

Apple Store. As soon as possible.

 

[ShiftClick]

I haven't had this issue, can you share a picture?

 

[Young Spade]

Good God. Yea you should definitely take that thing in as soon as possible and get the bottom replaced.

What do you do on your machine that causes it to heat up like that?

But yea, the next time I'm at walmart, I'm going to get 4 of those little cushiony feet that you can put on the bottom of chairs and stuff to give my MBP a little bit more breathing room.

 

[bbhegedus]

yeah I'm thinking about getting a Speck see thru satin case for it. that has it's own little feet on it. The most intensive thing that I do on my macbook air is watch netflix. and usually not for long periods of time, maybe 30 minutes at max. sorry i don't have a pic of it, I should've taken one but I wiped off the melted part so the black wouldn't spread on everything that I set my macbook air down on.

 

[richpjr]

I wonder if encasing an already hot MBA is going to trap more heat in and melt things further...

 

[bbhegedus]

But essentially what it looked like was a flat melted square-ish thing on the bottom of on of the pegs. It was pretty horrific haha

 

[ZBoater]

yeah I'm thinking about getting a Speck see thru satin case for it. that has it's own little feet on it. The most intensive thing that I do on my macbook air is watch netflix. and usually not for long periods of time, maybe 30 minutes at max. sorry i don't have a pic of it, I should've taken one but I wiped off the melted part so the black wouldn't spread on everything that I set my macbook air down on.

I just ordered one of those too. Should be here today or tomorrow. In any case, I'd be concerned if the little black rubber feet are melting. That is most definitely not normal.

 

[bbhegedus]

I wonder if encasing an already hot MBA is going to trap more heat in and melt things further...

It covers the top and bottom of the Macbook air. The air vents for the fan are hidden where the screen and the keyboard connect, where the black thing is that swivels up and down and closes your macbook.


(This thing)

 

[bbhegedus]

I just ordered one of those too. Should be here today or tomorrow. In any case, I'd be concerned if the little black rubber feet are melting. That is most definitely not normal.

Ugh, this is what I get for buying it from Best Buy.

 

[misterneums]

Ugh, this is what I get for buying it from Best Buy.

You might be able to swap it out at an Apple Store? Otherwise--good luck trying to get a replacement from Best Buy--seems like almost all 3rd party retailers are having supply issues due to Apple having not being able to keep up with the 13" demand.

 

[bbhegedus]

You might be able to swap it out at an Apple Store? Otherwise--good luck trying to get a replacement from Best Buy--seems like almost all 3rd party retailers are having supply issues due to Apple having not being able to keep up with the 13" demand.

I got the 11", also I would be able to replace it at an Apple store since it is covered under the manufacturer warranty. They check the serial number to see if you're covered, then you're all good.

 

[ZBoater]

Ugh, this is what I get for buying it from Best Buy.

Well, I'd usually be the first in line to throw Best Buy under the bus, but if this is a thermal malfunction its not their fault. I prefer to buy from the Apple Store because I have greater confidence in their ability to take care of me. Best Buy sometimes acts/feels like a used car sales lot. In any case, if you have an Apple Store close, they should be able to take care of you. Good luck!

 

[Young Spade]

I dont' see how any of this has to do with Best Buy. They just sell the thing, they didn't have anything to do with you getting a machine with faulty feet.

 

[bbhegedus]

I dont' see how any of this has to do with Best Buy. They just sell the thing, they didn't have anything to do with you getting a machine with faulty feet.

I know, I'm just trying to say that its Apple karma for not buying directly from them. It's a joke

 

[ZBoater]

I just now got the Speck satin case. It is amazing. Fit is excellent, although now it won't fit into my Knomo leather case. Looks like that one is going on eBay shortly. It does fit into my Bohdi case, so I am good to go.

If your system is overheating, I think the Speck shell is going to make things worse. I wouldn't recommend a clamshell case until you've gotten that melting thing figured out.

 

[iphonsteve4ajob]

What do you do on your machine that causes it to heat up like that?

I'm curious to know this as well. What is causing this much heat to the bottom of the enclosure??

 

[IngerMan]

I just now got the Speck satin case. It is amazing. Fit is excellent, although now it won't fit into my Knomo leather case. Looks like that one is going on eBay shortly. It does fit into my Bohdi case, so I am good to go.

If your system is overheating, I think the Speck shell is going to make things worse. I wouldn't recommend a clamshell case until you've gotten that melting thing figured out.

incase makes a perforated case. The bottom is great but the top is ugly as hell. So I only use the bottom, which in my field takes most of the abuse constantly setting it on other peoples work areas.

 

[bbhegedus]

I'm curious to know this as well. What is causing this much heat to the bottom of the enclosure??

I suppose it's netflix. I watched an episode of Mad Men last night and then this morning I realized that one of the bottom pegs had begun to melt, only one though, surprisingly. but I think it's the one that is directly under the CPU, which tends to get the hottest out of all the computer.

This had begun to happen a little over a week ago while playing a game of Plants vs Zombies but was pretty minimal. Pretty odd actually. I'm heading to an Apple Store tomorrow to talk to someone there.

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I just installed SMCfancontrol and set my minimum fan speed to 4000rpm. My operating temperature currently is about 50°C

Will having the minimum RPM set higher, lower battery life?

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Yet another update - just tested running netflix on my macbook air with the smc fan control open so i could monitor temperature. Within a minute the temperature had gone from 46°C to 67°C and felt noticeably hotter. Now just imagine that for 40 minutes...it would just get hotter...and hotter...and hotter. Looks like ill have to go back to watching netflix on my iPhone.

 

[hfg]

Do you actually notice the heat being hot enough to melt the bottom of the feet?

It seems more likely that the feet are having a chemical reaction with the surface it is sitting on and simply disintegrating the rubber material. It could be the stain or finish on a wood surface, or cleaning solution residue left on a table surface.

 

[bbhegedus]

Do you actually notice the heat being hot enough to melt the bottom of the feet?

It seems more likely that the feet are having a chemical reaction with the surface it is sitting on and simply disintegrating the rubber material. It could be the stain or finish on a wood surface, or cleaning solution residue left on a table surface.

They've melted on my leg before... and I just had it sitting on a step stool last night when it was really bad.

 

[bbhegedus]

Oh crap... I just looked up the proper operating temperature for a macbook air on the Apple website. Mine isn't even close to that temperature, even with the fan turned on pretty high. And when I get on netflix, forget about it. 67°C on netflix??? and the highest it should be is 35°C, uh oh. Anyone else have high temperatures like this or does yours operate under the temperature that Apple says it should. you can check using the smcfancontrol application. http://download.cnet.com/smcFanControl/3000-18487_4-102230.html(Download)

 

[iphonsteve4ajob]

I suppose it's netflix. I watched an episode of Mad Men last night and then this morning I realized that one of the bottom pegs had begun to melt, only one though, surprisingly. but I think it's the one that is directly under the CPU, which tends to get the hottest out of all the computer.

This had begun to happen a little over a week ago while playing a game of Plants vs Zombies but was pretty minimal. Pretty odd actually. I'm heading to an Apple Store tomorrow to talk to someone there.

----------

I just installed SMCfancontrol and set my minimum fan speed to 4000rpm. My operating temperature currently is about 50°C

Will having the minimum RPM set higher, lower battery life?

----------

Yet another update - just tested running netflix on my macbook air with the smc fan control open so i could monitor temperature. Within a minute the temperature had gone from 46°C to 67°C and felt noticeably hotter. Now just imagine that for 40 minutes...it would just get hotter...and hotter...and hotter. Looks like ill have to go back to watching netflix on my iPhone.

Okay I was just about to ask what the temps were while watching Netflix, but I see your update. Hmm...I think your temps are normal watching Netflix. Silverlight will kick up my processor to about 30% and my temps will ramp to about 70C, fans at approx 5-6K. Not ideal for watching Netflix, but asides from the slightly higher noise from the fans...doable. Normally my only concern is my CPU percentage; if this kicks up to 90% or so, the video stutters and becomes unwatchable.

I have iStat 3 monitoring my enclosure temps and I have yet to notice high enough temps to possibly melt my rubber feet. I know this because since purchasing my 13" i5 I've run many tests watching processor and enclosure temp ramp up. Running FF, Chrome, and Safari.

Also, the 67 degrees you mentioned above is the CPU temp I'm assuming? The CPU will shut itself down if it is danger of overheating. However, the residual heat affecting other parts of the laptop, coming off the CPU should not be enough to kick the enclosure temps high enough to melt. At least not in my opinion. Though I don't doubt your story. I will keep an eye on my computer while watching Netflix a bit more now. Below are pics system pics in iStat 3 while watching Netflix. Notice the enclosure temps...I can't say for certain where the temps are measure from within the laptop, but they're fairly low.
Yes CPUA temp is high, but that's about normal for Netflix.

 

[iphonsteve4ajob]

Oh crap... I just looked up the proper operating temperature for a macbook air on the Apple website. Mine isn't even close to that temperature, even with the fan turned on pretty high. And when I get on netflix, forget about it. 67°C on netflix??? and the highest it should be is 35°C, uh oh. Anyone else have high temperatures like this or does yours operate under the temperature that Apple says it should. you can check using the smcfancontrol application. http://download.cnet.com/smcFanControl/3000-18487_4-102230.html(Download)

You're mistaken. The operating temp you see there is referring to the "environment" of the laptop. Not the operating temp of the CPU and various internal components and spaces.

It means don't go using it in an Arizona desert at 110 degrees F, or conversly somewhere really cold.

 

[Apple OC]

those temps should not be melting the pegs ... seems like the pegs are made from Gummie bears.

I bet Apple will replace them and you will be good to go

good luck