How to keep your modem from overheating

Just like mobile phones, routers and other electronic devices, modems are prone to overheating problems. Unfortunately, this is common with all modems but the advantage is that at all times it can be solved. Let us look at how you can keep your modem from overheating.

An overheating modem is a normal and common problem especially if you are living in high temperature areas that could possibly increase how much heat is being emitted from your modem. Because of this, you will have to familiarize yourself with preventive measures that would help you keep your modem from overheating.

To keep your modem from overheating you need to reduce the temperatures around where you have placed your modem, avoid exposing your modem to direct sunlight, switch off your modem when it’s not in use and purchase a multifunctional cooler.

Before all else, what causes your modem to overheat and what are its effects?

Generally, modems have been designed to be placed on hard and flat surfaces such as your desk, a television cabinet or even a customized modem stand where they can freely operate without any hindrances. Also, they are sensitive to sunlight.

Sometimes, overheating may signal the need for a firmware update but activities such as placing your modem on surfaces that are hit by direct sunlight, covering the ventilation surface on the top part of your modem and placing it on soft surfaces like the couch or the carpet may cause it to overheat. Modems have been designed in such a way that they have no internal fan therefore they should always access enough air to at least reduce it from emitting a lot of heat.

Overheating is a potential threat to the overall efficiency of your modem. It causes poor performance in terms of connectivity speed and it may start behaving in an erratic manner. In extreme situations, overheating can cause permanent damage to your modem in such a way that you will have to consider its replacement.

How to keep your modem from overheating

Some situations are unavoidable such as the sun’s rays hitting your desk or modem surface throughout the day maybe when it rises and sets depending on your living location or when a firmware update is needed. However, in an instance that overheating occurs, you should at least know how to control it and bring back your modem to normal temperatures so that it can serve you longer.Here, we will look into the preventive measures that will keep your modem from overheating.

Reducing the temperatures around which your modem is placed

Proper ventilation is an important aspect to consider when trying to cool off your modem after overheating. However, how do you really do this considering the fact that it doesn’t have its own internal fan to help you out? There are two ways that you can use to cool your modem; by moving it to an area with enough air circulation or by turning on a desk fan to cool the modem directly.

You need to move your modem away to an area where the back or its top is exposed to enough air circulation depending on where its vents are placed. You can do this by placing it on a high shelf where there is upward and downward flow of air or you can turn it vertically depending on its design.

Alternatively, you can turn on a small fan and position it to face your modem which will slowly bring it back to its normal temperature.

Standard temperature and humidity ranges of your modem

Avoid exposing your modem to direct sunlight

Perhaps you have placed your modem in a corner of your room that receives direct sunlight through the day and you notice that it is frequently overheating. For this reason, you need to at least move it from that particular side to a corner that doesn’t get affected by the rays of sunshine to avoid overheating.

Switch off your modem when it is not in use

Switching of your modem when you are not using it simply gives it ample resting time and allows it to cool. When you want to use it again and turn it on, it will regain its normal temperatures and maintain its efficiency. Also, you can control your connection logs to reduce an overuse of your modem. This will in turn help reduce heat emission from your modem.

Using a multifunctional cooler

Sometimes, your modem may over heat frequently and it may get exhausting to frequently move it and put on a fan.If you are looking for a more permanent solution to keep your modem from overheating, then you should consider purchasing a cooler that has been designed to reduce overheating on your modem.

Coolers and cooling pads, operate to reduce the temperatures that stress your modem. It works by moving air around your modem and pushed cold air into ventilators to remove the heat instantly.

Evercool Dr. Cool Multi Functional Router, Modem, or Switch Cooler RC-01

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One of the most recommended coolers for your modem is the Evercool Dr. Cool Multi-Functional Router, Modem, or Switch Cooler RC-01. It is very easy to set up because all you need to do is extend the clips, fit in your modem and power it up using a USB. It doesn’t take up much space on your desk and it has a fan whose noise level is less than 21 decibels; meaning that it runs quietly throughout its lifetime. It cools your modem at the top and the bottom at the same time. However, in case the bottom of the modem continues to remain hot, you can elevate it on a block surface with the cooler on top to allow air to flow in from the bottom as well for more efficiency.

Keeping your modem from overheating- Solution

How hot should a modem get?

Generally, the fixed operating temperature of your modem should be between zero and forty degrees Celsius. Whenever, the temperatures go above forty degrees, your modem starts to overheat and becomes slow. If this persists, then your modem can turn itself off either temporarily or permanently.

Conclusion

As you make use of your modem, you should always keep in mind that when your modem overheats it needs to be brought back to its normal temperatures for it to work effectively. The brighter side of this is that most of the time when your modem is overheating it doesn’t always mean that it is permanently damaged in such a way that you need to replace it.

FAQs

What should be the normal operating temperatures of my modem?

The standard operating temperatures of your modem is 0-40 °C. Anything beyond this will cause your modem to overheat.

How can I know if my modem is overheating?

When your modem begins to overheat you will notice connectivity issues such as dropped internet connections without any kind of warning. Also, you can notice your network go on for some time and then it goes off for a while right after regularly.