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Macbook Air Mid 2013 The computer randomly freezes (sometimes 3 min, sometimes 1h) but only when the battery is installed. No problems when battery is removed. I had assumed my battery was not good and purchased a new one. To my surprise the issues persists. I already reinstalled the OS and ran Apple Hardware Diagnostics. I also tried different types of resets. I noticed that when the battery is installed the computer heats up right when I start it (70 Celsius) and the cools down. I assumed it could be a heat sink problem and thermal paste had to be reapplied but I am discarding this option now. What could it be guys? Only feezes and shuts down when on battery and I am using a new battery now.
At this point given the systems age cleaning and applying a fresh coat of thermal paste is not a bad idea. As far as the heat sink this might be your problem. I’ve been using a FLIR camera to visualize the heart transfer as the liquid inside can leak out so it’s not effective any more. If you have a friend with one or even visit your library they may have one to loan out. You could give that a try otherwise before I just used a good lab scale to weigh them (a spare) as the one that was heaver was the good one. As for thermal paste I use ArticSilver and I use the cleaner as well Arctic Silver ArctiCleanArctiClean] and heres a good guide how to apply it How to Apply Thermal Paste
