[Found the right stuff] Axle Grease for fan in HP Pavilion Laptop

[BrianHG]

I need a cheap axle Grease for fan in my HP Pavilion Laptop as it's bearing is now vibrating when it spins.
My original fix 2 years ago, just taking out the fan and adding a drop of Olive Oil has lasted until now.  I would like to get another year or two out of it.

Here in North America, what is a good cheap grease for this tiny fan which will stay in the bearing?
In the past, I used to have a type of blue grease which was used in the gears of VCR tape mechanism which just never dried up, but wasn't super thick, of fluid like an oil.  I'm basically looking for the same thing at a Home Depot type of store.

Any product suggestions, something cheap like a few bucks...

[MarkF]

You might try Labelle #106 grease.
A good lite weight grease to have around. 
Although, a new fan might be cheaper.

[BrianHG]

You might try Labelle #106 grease.
A good lite weight grease to have around. 
Although, a new fan might be cheaper.

The laptop fan was specifically engineered into the laptop's heatsink.  And that microscopic connector...
Still, after a google search, the one which appears to look like the one in my laptop is 30$ unless I go to an Aliexpress clone and have to go bonkers waiting over a month and pay 15$.

[BrokenYugo]

You're probably after "semi fluid" grease, you can often find #00 sold at farm supply stores. Most chassis/wheel bearing grease in the auto aisle is #2, roughly peanut butter consistency.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NLGI_consistency_number

[Gregg]

I used a tiny drop of Hoppe's #9 gun oil for the squealing fan in my MSI laptop.  Grease may be too viscous. Sewing machine or clock oil are possibilities.
If you really want grease, try Superlube; it is a relatively thin grease with superior lubricating properties.

[coppercone2]

maybe long silicone oils? you can get them in various viscosities

[DavidAlfa]

Vaseline works great. Just a little layer, too much will brake the rotor down.

[BrianHG]

Anything with a NLGI number of 0 should do.  An NLGI number of 000, IE cooking oil would be what I already used.
A NLGI number of 1 will be a little too thick, but would probably still work as the axle is as thin as a sewing needle.  The rotation torque down at that diameter is fairly large.

And the fan doesn't squeak, it rumbles or hums.  Basically like a continuous phone vibrator.

[coppercone2]

but honestly does anyone here expect results for a fan? I only ever grease intermittent motors. Something continuous IMO needs replacements because its just not gonna last at all. Power tool or manual OK, I can maybe live with that. But imo its guaranteed that this wont work for more then a few months. A fan on a welder that kicks on once in a while, OK.

But for a continuous computer fan I have a feeling you will be disappointed.

[Muttley Snickers]

I haven't tried it on a computer fan but can certainly attest to the use of paraffin on noisy pedestal fans. I had one squealing like a stuck pig a few years ago so I filled a syringe with white paraffin and injected it into the brass sleeve bushings and the fan is still silent to this day. 

I have paraffin in half kilo buckets and use it on just about everything but you need to be careful as the stuff travels terribly. This aspect can be handy at times as it means not having to do a full dismantle on equipment to address a minor squeak in a difficult to access spot.
   

 

[coppercone2]

maybe thats a oil bronze bushing that soaks it up and lasts. but a hardened ground one is just worn

[Zenith]

but honestly does anyone here expect results for a fan? I only ever grease intermittent motors. Something continuous IMO needs replacements because its just not gonna last at all. Power tool or manual OK, I can maybe live with that. But imo its guaranteed that this wont work for more then a few months. A fan on a welder that kicks on once in a while, OK.

But for a continuous computer fan I have a feeling you will be disappointed.

Yes. I've done it before and the fan has gone on for ages. I used sewing machine oil. I would have thought grease was too stiff. There are loads of YT videos on cleaning and re-lubricating box fans.

The only reason I'd do it these days is if the fan was hard to find, or for some reason I didn't want to fork out for a new fan.

[coppercone2]

I had it last about 3 weeks on a computer fan.

I think room fans last alot longer, maybe big ones. I tried it also on a small one (8 inch black plastic) and it also lasted maybe 1 month before it started making obnoxious noises again

[Zenith]

One of those things where YMMV.

Modern computer case fans seem to last for years and there are good ones at reasonable prices, so if I had one acting up, I'd buy a new one. I'd be more inclined to try lubricating the bearing in a fan in a piece of TE, where a replacement could be hard to find or expensive.

[BrianHG]

I found this mid range grease:
https://www.lucasoil.ca/pdf/TDS_White-Lithium-Grease.pdf
It's viscosity is 227 at 40deg.  I believe it is similar to the last stuff I used which lasted a few years.
The anti-seize lubs have a viscosity of 100,000 to 200,000, they are like vaseline.  Definitely too thick for the fan.

Unfortunately, The lucasoil will also take a few days to get.

There is also a lithium grease 'Permatex 80345 White Lithium Grease' with a 22 cst viscosity, however, I'm afraid this is similar to a thick motor oil, am I right?

Opening the laptop is a hassle and I only want to do it 2 more times as I will probably also order a replacement fan which will take ~6 weeks to arrive.

[BrianHG]

The lucasoil will be here tomorrow if you believe Amazon.
I'll let you guys know how it works...

[jpanhalt]

Lubriplate 105 (NLGI 0) is widely available and used in NA.  It's calcium based.  I use it as my less viscous lubricant on fine parts and assembly.  I am unfamiliar with Lucasol grease, but the brand is certainly familiar for other automotive products.*  Lucas Oil Stadium is where the Colts play football.  Aside from viscosity, there is probably not much difference in functionality.

*My goto NGLI 2 grease around implements, automotive, and machinery is Lucas Red "N" Tacky grease (NLGI 2).  For very fine work, I use synthetic watch oil, but that is probably not what you need.

[Koray]

Wrong viscosity grease can hold the fan from spinning freely and may cause an SMD fuse to blow. Exactly my experience.
K.

[2N3055]

Chainsaw grease might be something similar to what you need.

[madires]

Any mineral oil based lubricant will do the job, but grease would be the wrong lubricant for that application. You want the oil to enter the space between the sleeve bearing and the fan's shaft. Grease would just sit outside. Stay away from using vegetable oil! It works only for a short period, then makes things even worse, and you have to completely clean it off before applying a proper lubricant.

[jpanhalt]

Chainsaw grease might be something similar to what you need.

I agree.  Chainsaw "bar and chain oil" in NA has no solids like lithium or calcium soaps.  An almost equivalent oil is "way lube" for machinery.  That is much harder to find in small amounts, and a machinist friend suggested just using bar and chain oil.  That's what he uses.

[tunk]

Ball or sleeve bearing?
Some time ago I put some (I think) hydraulic oil in
a laptop fan (don't remember which bearing type).
It now has a problem starting, so grease or heavy
oil may not be the best.

[2N3055]

Ball or sleeve bearing?
Some time ago I put some (I think) hydraulic oil in
a laptop fan (don't remember which bearing type).
It now has a problem starting, so grease or heavy
oil may not be the best.

Op wants to put a heavy lubricant into bearing that is so worn out it rattles, to quieten it up a bit, and buy some more time.
It is custom fan not easy to replace because of availability.
It is not about proper lubrication of good bearings.

[CaptDon]

Axle Grease is totally wrong for this. You probably can't even get it to go where you need it since it doesn't 'flow'. Were you thinking of rear end differential lube like 80W90? That may work. If I had to go through all the trouble of disassembly to get to a fan that sounds like the sleeve bearing has excess clearance and the buzz is from running off center and out of balance I'd just replace the fan. Probably find one from a used laptop on Ebay and possibly by the whole entire laptop for the price of a new fan. Old laptops only bring $30 or so, even less with a broken screen or sold with no hard drive / battery / CD drive etc. Most laptops are a P.I.T.A. to get to the innards! Fix it correctly once!

[Zenith]

Chainsaw grease might be something similar to what you need.

I agree.  Chainsaw "bar and chain oil" in NA has no solids like lithium or calcium soaps.  An almost equivalent oil is "way lube" for machinery.  That is much harder to find in small amounts, and a machinist friend suggested just using bar and chain oil.  That's what he uses.

Chain oil is sticky so it's not thrown off the chain so easily. I've always thought of it as a specialised product for chainsaws. There are other special products such as two stroke oils, gun oils and cutting oils, which might do at a pinch to lubricate squeaky hinges say, but I'd be inclined to use them only for their stated purposes.

I've used a light machine oil for fans and as far as I'm aware, they don't have soaps, and are expected to lubricate mechanisms for long periods.