# Noisy fan on HR 24-100



## TDK1044 (Apr 8, 2010)

My HR 24-100 suddenly has what sounds like a noisy internal fan.....either that or the hard drive is making a lot of noise. The device is working perfectly and I've run a system check and performed a reset on the device. Everything tests fine. Anyone else had this issue?


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## TDK1044 (Apr 8, 2010)

Now it's totally quiet again. Internal temp is 106 , so no temp issue. It's working perfectly, so I'm just going to ignore it.


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## Doug Brott (Jul 12, 2006)

I've heard the HR24 fans go into hyperdrive mode at times. They can be quite loud. They seem to have multiple speed and generally the super-fast (loud) speed goes away quickly.


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## sigma1914 (Sep 5, 2006)

Mine sounds like a small jet in the distance sometimes on start up from rebooting.


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## TDK1044 (Apr 8, 2010)

That must be it, Doug. It's been totally quiet for a while now. Thanks.


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## marquitos2 (Jan 10, 2004)

I got the same unit and no problems to report, I have this unit for around 6 months now.


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## TDK1044 (Apr 8, 2010)

My HR24 500 is quiet, but my HR24 100 seems to drop into hyperdrive and become noisy randomly each day. The device tests are all fine though and the internal temp is about 106. As long as the thing isn't going to catch fire, I can live with the noise.


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## TDK1044 (Apr 8, 2010)

When I got home from work today, the DVR was quiet. I checked the internal temp and it was 143 degrees!!! What? It's never been above 109. How does it jump to 143? 

The device is well ventilated. I decided to reboot it. The device went into a self imposed cooling down mode, and it only came up after it had cooled itself down to 120 degrees. The device continued to cool down and quickly went back to 109 degrees. It has been at that temp for several hours now.

Just as it was coming up, I called Directv to report these events. The CSR seemed totally unconcerned, and her view was that the device would sort itself out.

Has anyone seen anything like this? The CSR seemed to think that I was overreacting. My worry is what caused the jump in internal temperature? The DVR is sitting in a ventilated entertainment center in an air conditioned room. Nothing outside the box has changed.

I have to admit though that it has been quiet and cool at 109 degrees for several hours now. 

My plan is to keep a close eye on the device. Anyone have any thoughts on this?


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## CCarncross (Jul 19, 2005)

TDK1044 said:


> My plan is to keep a close eye on the device. Anyone have any thoughts on this?


Sounds like the fan didnt kick on when it should have and the unit began to overheat.


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## Smoot (Jun 4, 2003)

TDK1044 said:


> When I got home from work today, the DVR was quiet. I checked the internal temp and it was 143 degrees!!! What? It's never been above 109. How does it jump to 143?
> 
> The device is well ventilated. I decided to reboot it. The device went into a self imposed cooling down mode, and it only came up after it had cooled itself down to 120 degrees. The device continued to cool down and quickly went back to 109 degrees. It has been at that temp for several hours now.
> 
> ...


Has the fan continued to work? I got home yesterday, and my daughter told me to "fix the TV." The blue circle light was just spinning. After a a hard reboot, I had a blue screen saying that the internal temperature was like 145 deg F, above the max. internal working temperature of 140 deg F, and that it needed to cool down in order to function . . . so I unplugged it and waited. After it was cool to the touch, I plugged it back in and rebooted, and now I get nothing. No fan sound, no self-check, nothing. If I leave it plugged in, it gets quite hot.

I called Directv, and they are replacing the unit (but not until Tuesday, which really sucks on a free HBO/Cinemax weekend . . . sigh). Mine was an HR21-200. We'll see what I get. But I too had a well ventilated area, with no obstructions to the side vents at all and never a problem at all with heat in the past. So, keep a close eye on your unit, just in case.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

TDK1044 said:


> My HR24 500 is quiet, but my HR24 100 seems to drop into hyperdrive and become noisy randomly each day. The device tests are all fine though and the internal temp is about 106. As long as the thing isn't going to catch fire, I can live with the noise.


Hyperdrive is very hard for the HRs to regulate. The dilithium crystals might be breaking down. Beam me up, Scotty!.......:lol:

Rich


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## TDK1044 (Apr 8, 2010)

Smoot said:


> Has the fan continued to work? I got home yesterday, and my daughter told me to "fix the TV." The blue circle light was just spinning. After a a hard reboot, I had a blue screen saying that the internal temperature was like 145 deg F, above the max. internal working temperature of 140 deg F, and that it needed to cool down in order to function . . . so I unplugged it and waited. After it was cool to the touch, I plugged it back in and rebooted, and now I get nothing. No fan sound, no self-check, nothing. If I leave it plugged in, it gets quite hot.
> 
> I called Directv, and they are replacing the unit (but not until Tuesday, which really sucks on a free HBO/Cinemax weekend . . . sigh). Mine was an HR21-200. We'll see what I get. But I too had a well ventilated area, with no obstructions to the side vents at all and never a problem at all with heat in the past. So, keep a close eye on your unit, just in case.


Ever since my HR24-100 performed its self cooling down process, the temp has been back to normal (106 to 109) for several days now.


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## matt (Jan 12, 2010)

Based on my own testing hard drives start to fail the receiver's short SMART test around about 160 just to give you an idea on how hot you got.


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## TomCat (Aug 31, 2002)

CCarncross said:


> Sounds like the fan didnt kick on when it should have and the unit began to overheat.


Having a process that regulates fan speed has its drawbacks as that implies that the process can fail on occasion, especially if it is a process running independently on the CPU (which is why a reboot will fix it).

Maybe it is better to just have a dumb fan that spins at the same speed all of the time; the only thing that can fail there is the fan bearing or the 12v supply. Of course that implies better cooling design so you don't need a 2-speed fan.

BTW, the "jet" sound description sounds very much like what an Intel 2500 server sounds like at startup, as it cycles its fans to top speed for about 20 seconds.


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## rkr0923 (Sep 14, 2006)

Mine is super noisy, you can hear that thing working OT from time to time, think thats what causes my audio drops too. You can be watching something and out of no where you lose audio. Change channels and all is fine. On recorded shows when audio drops I have to rewind a bit and its fine.


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## TomCat (Aug 31, 2002)

rkr0923 said:


> Mine is super noisy, you can hear that thing working OT from time to time, think thats what causes my audio drops too. You can be watching something and out of no where you lose audio. Change channels and all is fine. On recorded shows when audio drops I have to rewind a bit and its fine.


Are you getting audio drops that are not accompanied by video stuttering or breakup? While common a few years ago, that is very uncommon as of late, and is usually not indicative of a reception issue. Audio drops (usually with video issues as well) can be from a number of sources, including a faulty HDD, but the noise issue is probably a separate issue (which does not mean the HDD is not at fault, of course).


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## kelli902 (May 14, 2011)

The fan on my HR-24-100 runs all the time. I turn off unit but still runs. It is loud enough I have to unplug it at night time. I do not remember it running like this in the begining. I worry it will over heat. I am not tech savy and don't know how to check temp or anything. Need to know if this is normal. It does this even when not recording.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

kelli902 said:


> The fan on my HR-24-100 runs all the time. I turn off unit but still runs. It is loud enough I have to unplug it at night time. I do not remember it running like this in the begining. I worry it will over heat. I am not tech savy and don't know how to check temp or anything. Need to know if this is normal. It does this even when not recording.


I can't help you much. But I can tell you that I have a 24-500 in my bedroom and it is very quiet, as is the good old 20-700 on the shelf below it. I can tell you that it's not normal for the fan on your 24 to be that noisy.

The fans on all the HRs will run when you put the unit in standby, that's normal. I don't know if the 24s have a control that shuts the fan down and turns it on when needed.

In any event, the 24's fan shouldn't be so loud that it annoys you.

Rich


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## MikeS. (Dec 4, 2010)

My HR-24 started making fan noise about 2 months ago. Tonight I noticed a small red light flashing on the front and switched to that box from another. The screen said the temp was at 147 and the system had shut down until it reached 120* It has been running about 109* since then.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

MikeS. said:


> My HR-24 started making fan noise about 2 months ago. Tonight I noticed a small red light flashing on the front and switched to that box from another. The screen said the temp was at 147 and the system had shut down until it reached 120* It has been running about 109* since then.


I would think the fan shut down completely and caused you to get the high temp reading. We've seen a couple reports on threads of the same thing happening. I believe the heat sensor is on the internal HDD, but that doesn't account for the fan being noisy.

Is it noisy when the temp is 109?

Rich


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

Many posts lack of info about temperature - rich584, could you post the gold sequence to posters here ?

As to a sensor, usually such boxes has separate [LM75] small chip (8 legs) on mainboard (BTW, you , as an owner and did replace internal HDD, should take a look and find where is the chip located).


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

P Smith said:


> Many posts lack of info about temperature - rich584, could you post the gold sequence to posters here ?
> 
> As to a sensor, usually such boxes has separate [LM75] small chip (8 legs) on mainboard (BTW, you , as an owner and did replace internal HDD, should take a look and find where is the chip located).


I really think it is on the HDD itself. When I was running a 20-700 only on an external HDD with the internal HDD, I got zero degree readings. I will look for that chip.

As to the temps for the HRs, the 20-700s will run at about 123-126 degrees (if you put an internal EADS HDD in one you will see 118 degrees, stick an EVDS drive in one and you hit 123-126 again, go figure).

The 21 series runs cooler, usually around 110 degrees and the 24s usually run about the same.

Rich


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

I mean pressing buttons sequence to obtain temp value .


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

P Smith said:


> I mean pressing buttons sequence to obtain temp value .


Oh, misunderstood your post. You just hold the Info button down for a couple seconds and should be taken to the System Info and Test page. You should see the Run System Test button highlighted. Scroll down to the More System Info button and hit Select. This will bring the temp up in the results.

Rich


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## Cramps (Dec 21, 2013)

The fan in my HR24 stopped working. I found a replacement fan. In China.

Aliexpress.com

JMC 5015-12 12V 0.08A 5015 5CM CPU chassis cooling fan P / N: 05001A003

Just copy and paste this info in you search browser and it should pull up a number of hits, just look for the Aliexpress.com link.

It's $15.99 with free shipping. Since it is coming from China, it will take about 4 weeks to arrive.

Since the fan wasn't working, the unit shut itself off due to high temps. I simply removed the top cover which allow the unit to remain operational and disapate the heat without the restriction of the enclosed case. Once the fan arrives, and if it does fit and work. I will pop the top cover back in place.


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

I wouldn't pay for it more then $5 in local stores... usually Fry's have them for $3.99 on regulars sales


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## minerscorner (Jan 25, 2013)

My replacement HR24-100 makes noise that wakes me up at night. Unit is approx 15 feet from the bed. I never noticed the "whir" noise before with the other, same model, unit.

When I listen closely it sounds like the hard drive spinning and not the fan. Perhaps I am mistaken. Only options I can see are return and pay $20.00 and cross my fingers replacement is quieter or move unit into my 2nd bedroom and bring a receiver only into the MBR. Not a great compromise.


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## jimmie57 (Jun 26, 2010)

The HR24-100 that is in my bedroom is 5 feet from my head and I can not hear it running. Can't hear the one in the den when I am close to it either.
The fan is the most likely thing you are hearing. Most hard drives are dead before making any noise.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

jimmie57 said:


> The HR24-100 that is in my bedroom is 5 feet from my head and I can not hear it running. Can't hear the one in the den when I am close to it either.
> The fan is the most likely thing you are hearing. Most hard drives are dead before making any noise.


I've had a completely different experience with the 24-100s. Out of the four that I have only one is quiet. The rest I've put in noisy rooms or rooms that don't get used for sleeping. They all work fine, but, let's face it, they're cheap and I'm not surprised at the noise mine make. I don't have that problem with any of my other HRs, just the 24-100s. Even my old 20-700 is quiet.

Rich


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## SoCool (Feb 16, 2007)

Have 4 of these dvr's. Have measured the db at 68-70. What is D going to do about this? Sounds like a blow dryer in the bedroom.


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## peds48 (Jan 11, 2008)

SoCool said:


> Have 4 of these dvr's. Have measured the db at 68-70. What is D going to do about this? Sounds like a blow dryer in the bedroom.


Obviously something is wrong with those DVRs. My HR24 is whisper quite.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

SoCool said:


> Have 4 of these dvr's. Have measured the db at 68-70. _*What is D going to do about this? *_Sounds like a blow dryer in the bedroom.


Sadly, nothing will be done. You might try replacements.

Rich


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## jimmie57 (Jun 26, 2010)

SoCool said:


> Have 4 of these dvr's. Have measured the db at 68-70. What is D going to do about this? Sounds like a blow dryer in the bedroom.


A couple of choices.
1. Change it out to an HD ( non DVR ) receiver.
2. Call them and tell them it will not power on and ask for a replacement. They usually do not replace one because it is noisy.

I have 2 or the HR24-100s and they are very quiet.

If you had that much noise from the hard drive it would be dead. This is most likely the bearings in the fan. At some point they will fail totally and the units will start to overheat.


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## acostapimps (Nov 6, 2011)

I had a noisy fan on a HR24-200 which comes and goes, sounded like a grinder, Replaced it with a HR24-500 and only fan noise on that one is a reboot which last a second.


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## coolman302003 (Jun 2, 2008)

I have a HR24-200 and it's extremely quiet, and like acostapimps, I only hear the fan running briefly when it's rebooting...


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## mailiang (Jul 30, 2006)

My HR22 fan ocassionaly makes a loud humming sound, but then the noise completely disapears for days on end, but comes back. Very strange.


Ian


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## Jason Whiddon (Aug 17, 2006)

One of my dell laptops fan has been like that since new. I just rode on it and didnt worry. Still doing it after 3 years LOL.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

mailiang said:


> My HR22 fan ocassionaly makes a loud humming sound, but then the noise completely disapears for days on end, but comes back. Very strange.
> 
> Ian


A loud humming noise could be caused by a fan motor locked up. Have you checked the temps on that HR when you hear the humming?

Rich


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## mailiang (Jul 30, 2006)

Rich said:


> A loud humming noise could be caused by a fan motor locked up. Have you checked the temps on that HR when you hear the humming?
> 
> Rich


No, but if it does it again I will. Although it looks pretty clean, I used an air can on it yesterday to clear any dust or debri, and the fan turned freely. I had to go through the vent since the cover has a seal and breaking it would violate the replacement warranty. If it continues to be a problem I will have them ship me a new one. I just hate to lose my recordings. Thanks.

Ian


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

mailiang said:


> No, but if it does it again I will. Although it looks pretty clean, I used an air can on it yesterday to clear any dust or debri, and the fan turned freely. I had to go through the vent since the cover has a seal and breaking it would violate the replacement warranty. If it continues to be a problem I will have them ship me a new one. I just hate to lose my recordings. Thanks.
> 
> Ian


I really can't think of anything else that could cause that hum. I gather you have no problems with the HDD?

Rich


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## mailiang (Jul 30, 2006)

Rich said:


> I really can't think of anything else that could cause that hum. I gather you have no problems with the HDD?
> 
> Rich


I can't thing of anything else either. No problems with the HDD. Reboot and test shows no issues. Records and plays content like a charm.

Ian


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

mailiang said:


> I can't thing of anything else either. No problems with the HDD. Reboot and test shows no issues. Records and plays content like a charm.
> 
> Ian


Damn shame we can't replace the fans ourselves on leased HRs, but I understand that we are anomalies in the D* world. God knows what would happen if everyone could open up a box whenever they wanted to. The real shame is, it's so easy to replace a fan. But I can't begin to imagine the chaos that would be caused if everyone was allowed to change them.

Rich


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## mailiang (Jul 30, 2006)

Rich said:


> Damn shame we can't replace the fans ourselves on leased HRs, but I understand that we are anomalies in the D* world. God knows what would happen if everyone could open up a box whenever they wanted to. The real shame is, it's so easy to replace a fan. But I can't begin to imagine the chaos that would be caused if everyone was allowed to change them.
> 
> Rich


You can always buy your own box, which I had to do years ago when I had Dish. However, it just doesn't make economic sense to buy something that you still have to pay a monthly service charge for. That being said, if I could, I would try oiling it first. Just a drop of WD-40 into the bushing would solve most fan issues. If not, replacing one would probably set you back a measly 4 or 5 bucks. 

Ian


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## itzme (Jan 17, 2008)

Now I'm curious if anyone was able to fix their noisy fans with some WD-40. If so, how/where did you apply it? Through one of the vents?


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## mailiang (Jul 30, 2006)

itzme said:


> Now I'm curious if anyone was able to fix their noisy fans with some WD-40. If so, how/where did you apply it? Through one of the vents?


The problem is, you would have to remove the DVR's cover (which in my case has a Directv seal) and then remove the fan from it's housing to access the bushing. In some cases there is a thin paper or foiled shield glued to the back, covering it.

Ian


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## Jason Whiddon (Aug 17, 2006)

Not sure WD40 on an electric fan is the best move.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

mailiang said:


> You can always buy your own box, which I had to do years ago when I had Dish. However, it just doesn't make economic sense to buy something that you still have to pay a monthly service charge for. That being said, if I could, I would try oiling it first. Just a drop of WD-40 into the bushing would solve most fan issues. If not, replacing one would probably set you back a measly 4 or 5 bucks.
> 
> Ian


Actually I have over 10 HRs that I own. Naturally, with my luck, a fan has never failed.

Rich


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

Jason Whiddon said:


> Not sure WD40 on an electric fan is the best move.


Why? I have used it on my whole house fan for years. Both on the motor and the fan itself.

Rich


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

Jason Whiddon said:


> Not sure WD40 on an electric fan is the best move.


oil for small appliances or watches will works OK


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## hasan (Sep 22, 2006)

Rich said:


> Why? I have used it on my whole house fan for years. Both on the motor and the fan itself.
> 
> Rich


Because it is flammable and it has poor staying power when compared to light machine oil. It also does not lubricate nearly as well as machine oil. Its primary advantage is that it is a SOLVENT and will cut through corrosion and temporarily lubricate at the same time. I won't use it in or near electronics, ever. (besides that, it stinks) :eek2:


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## mailiang (Jul 30, 2006)

hasan said:


> Because it is flammable and it has poor staying power when compared to light machine oil. It also does not lubricate nearly as well as machine oil. Its primary advantage is that it is a SOLVENT and will cut through corrosion and temporarily lubricate at the same time. I won't use it in or near electronics, ever. (besides that, it stinks) :eek2:


We're only talking about a drop, but I have to agree, light machine oil is a better option. My point was, the bushing lubricant drys out and causes most of these fan issues. The oil is a quick and easy fix.

Ian


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## hasan (Sep 22, 2006)

Yep, and my main objection to WD40 is the solvent effect along with it being a very mediocre lubricant in this application.


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## itzme (Jan 17, 2008)

Has anyone posted that they fixed their fan noise with WD-40? Until they do, I'm thinking this whole conversation about it is moot.


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

Just use your own common sense and oil


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## Jason Whiddon (Aug 17, 2006)

ELECTRIC fans need a particular oil/lubricant, not something that is a poor lubricant and* flammable*. As already stated. Also, WD is hard on the lubricant already in a fan bearing, depending on the type of fan.

Hey, it's your house.


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## Rich (Feb 22, 2007)

hasan said:


> Because it is flammable and it has poor staying power when compared to light machine oil. It also does not lubricate nearly as well as machine oil. Its primary advantage is that it is a SOLVENT and will cut through corrosion and temporarily lubricate at the same time. I won't use it in or near electronics, ever. (besides that, it stinks) :eek2:


Gotcha. Good explanation. Didn't realize it was used as a solvent.

Rich


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## mailiang (Jul 30, 2006)

itzme said:


> Has anyone posted that they fixed their fan noise with WD-40? Until they do, I'm thinking this whole conversation about it is moot.


I haven't lubed one from a DVR, but I have serviced and old noisy PC fan, which is very similar. I confess that I didn't use WD40 (what was I thinking! :biggrin I believe it was 3&1 oil, and it worked like a charm. See examble video.






Ian


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

doing such fix properly does require prepping step - cleaning by dripping isopropanol to the area, drying, then oiling


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## codespy (Mar 30, 2006)

WD stands for water displacement....formula #40 worked after several attempts by the creator. The 40th test proved successful and marketed accordingly, hence the WD-40 name.

Although it may appear to lubricate a fan, it is not a long term solution for a fan like this.

I did try this on one of my HR24-100 fans and it did not help. 

Again- Ali-express has replacements available, especially for the beveled fan, if you are looking to keep your receiver for many years and want to keep your recordings.

I am searching for a thread where people got nailed by DirecTV for fines and/or jail time if the tamper sticker was compromised in any way when they had to return the IRD. Yes it is against the TOS.....but just wondering who suffered repercussions because of it, and what they were. I cannot find any horror stories to date.

Thanks in advance for your help.


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## P Smith (Jul 25, 2002)

There is none of such poor souls.


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## mozartman (Jul 1, 2006)

I have HR24-100 DVR and fan was making noise like turbo jet several times a day. Two days ago I got messge on the screen that DVR overheated to 65°C (149°F) and began cooling down proccess. I put my ear to the box, and I didn't hear any fan noise, just very quiet noise of spinning HDD. I called DTV and they said that it looked like fan died. They replacing DVR and don't want back my HR24.


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## mailiang (Jul 30, 2006)

mozartman said:


> I have HR24-100 DVR and fan was making noise like turbo jet several times a day. Two days ago I got messge on the screen that DVR overheated to 65°C (149°F) and began cooling down proccess. I put my ear to the box, and I didn't hear any fan noise, just very quiet noise of spinning HDD. I called DTV and they said that it looked like fan died. They replacing DVR and don't want back my HR24.


Certain HR24's are not recoverable. My HR22 was noisy, but it didn't overheat. I took an air can to the fan and it seems to have done the trick. Never goes above 100 degrees. Like yours, my DVR is no longer recoverable, so if it acts up again, I have the option of servicing the fan or having Directv send me a replacement.

Ian


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