My Apple AirPort Extreme + Time Capsule Wi-Fi Base Station started giving overheating warnings the other day (forgot to take screenshots of the AirPort Utility app indicating the overheating warnings), and after some searching on iFixit and another search for tools, I tried to fix the problem (with an opportunity to get the kids away from the screens).
The Hotak 32 Piece Mobile Phone Repair Tools Set (minus the extension bar, missing)
The Torx 8 and 10 driver heads, along with the prying bars and extension bars were essential
True enough, the problem was that the fan has become stuck, and I proceeded to add some lubricating oil to the fan mechanism. I also noted a huge amount of dust near the vents and overall insides. Other than nicking the base here and there from prying open the casing I managed to fix it (along with the LED indicator which probably didn’t work because of the dust inside). Hopefully it’ll add a few more years to a device that has been reliable enough for at least the past maybe 6 years I guess, making it a reliable simple automatic backup option for my family’s laptops and an archiver of the contents of my late father’s black plastic MacBook (which in general still works).
If you own a fanned electronic device, knowing how to open and fix dust and air-fow related issues is probably a good skill to have to add years to a device from preventing overheating issues.
And true to their reputation, Apple devices are truly difficult to repair. I had to dismantle almost the whole device to gain access to the fan.