My 500 GB Apple Time capsule has always ran hot. It ran even hotter once I hacked it and installed a 2TB hard drive in it. You can read how to upgrade your Time Capsule hard drive here. I figured out an easy way to help your hacked time capsule run a little cooler. Read along to find this easy Apple Time Capsule Cooling solution for helping keep your Apple Time capsule from running so hot.
Apple Time Capsule Cooling Solution
Hardware
- Any hard drive time capsule, I have an upgraded 500GB Time Capsule Model A1254, Part No. MB276LL/A, Buy a new time capsule here: Apple Time Capsule 2TB ME177LL/A
Parts Needed
Step 1: Buy the USB fan I have linked above.
There are many options out there but this one is affordable, is eligible for Amazon Prime free 2-day shipping, it really is well-built, and it works perfect for this application.
Step 2: Unbox the fan and bend it as seen below.
Note that the open part of the end of the usb connector is toward the fan side:
Step 3: Plug in the fan.
Here’s the USB port location:
If the power is on to your base station the fan will come on immediately.
Step 4: Adjust the flow of air.
Bend the fan so it blows across the entire surface of the base station. Now plastic isn’t a good conductor of heat at all (actually it’s an insulator) but this will keep the surface of your base station cool where it typically would be hot, which is an improvement.
Now I must confess that this isn’t going to necessarily keep the insides of this base station cool but it will cool the case down significantly and that will make the inside somewhat cooler too. Another thing you could do to make it even cooler is to peel off the rubber pad from the bottom and put 4 rubber bumper stickers on the bottom to allow air to flow underneath.
Did this article help you? Do you have an alternative solution? Questions? Please leave a comment!
I’ve contemplated doing heavier modification of my time capsule to cool it but I haven’t had an issue in over 5 years use of this hacked time capsule so I’ve let it go. If you have a suggestion or question, please share in the comments.
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Other pertinent links:
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