Whirring sound on laptop

[sillymyrm]

I'm not one of those tech savvy fellows so here's my problem. I'm using an ASUS A450L laptop. Been using it for nearly a year now. I noticed that most laptops make a slightly audible whirring sound, and that's no different than mine, However, a few minutes ago the sound on my laptop is significantly louder.
Performance is still at its best (at least as far as i can observe) and neither is it overheating (nor does it even heating, just purely normal). Restarted once and it's still there. Is this a big problem?
I'm a high school student and it's nearly impossible for me to get repairs without spending my old folks' money.

On a side note, it started when I was in the middle of a game, (not when I just started the game), and it's been like that until now, unconditionally.

 

[Barty1884]

It definitely just sounds like the fan speed has increased, which would make sense if it happened in the middle of a game - things are heating up over time, so the fan needs to speed up to keep pace.

That being said, it is slightly strange that it was still the case once the laptop had been rebooted (assuming it's continuous and hasn't stopped since).

Before deeming it a hardware issue, let it run idle for a while and see if it stops - I suspect it will.

Last suggestion - it could just be dust buildup on the fan or at the vents that need to be cleared out (or the vents are blocked - if you're using a laptop on you lap for example). Make sure all vents are clear and see if that helps. Potentially invest in a can of compressed air and blow into the vents & keyboard. That would clear most of the dust.

If none of these suggestions work, it's likely a hardware issue at that point. Fingers crossed!

 

[sillymyrm]

Keeping the laptop idle somehow reduces the sound, but still audible though.
Guess I'll try to get my hands on that can of compressed air (if I could manage to find it, that is), hope I wont end up worsening the laptop's condition..

 

[Barty1884]

If Idle'ing reduces the sound, it really does sound like a dust build up (it's still having to work harder than it should have to in idle, and playing a game is exasperating the issue). Compressed air should do the job for you. Compressed air is a common tool used, and is actually even sold as a PC/Laptop accessory, so (barring some freak accident), there should be no negative impact to your laptop.

Not sure where you are in the world, but any electronics store (PC World, Currys, Staples, BestBuy), supermarket (Walmart/Asda) or online (Amazon/eBay) should have it. Can't see it setting you back more that $10 / ₤5