The couple, from Clanfield in Hampshire, visited their GP after trying for a baby for six months without success.
Initially it was thought Reed's fertility had been affected by mumps - which he had suffered with at the age of 21.
Laura Reed, a pathologist, said: 'About six months after we started trying I was getting frustrated and mentioned it to my doctor.
'You don't think it will be that hard to get pregnant. We both went back to have a chat and the doctor put Scott forward for a fertility test.'
In October 2010 the couple were referred to the andrology department of the pathology unit at Queen Alexandra Hospital in Portsmouth.
Reed said: 'Because I had the mumps I needed to get tested. We were concerned they would find something but then we wanted a baby so we had to find out.
'I didn't think about the worst-case scenario and just had to get on with it.'
Tests revealed Reed was producing a healthy amount of sperm but they had suffered heat damage.
Under the microscope it was possible to see that the tail of the sperm had coiled around the head, meaning it couldn't swim quickly to the egg.
The problem is common in chefs - who work in hot environments - but can also be caused by laptop computers.
Reed said: 'I never thought using a laptop would affect the quality of my sperm. After asking if I was a chef, the next thing was 'do you use a laptop?'
'I was using it daily and hadn't given it a second thought. It was quite shocking really.'
After that Reed made sure he placed his laptop either beside him or on a table.
Laura Reed said: 'We carried on trying and we weren't having any luck. We thought it wasn't going to happen so we started planning a trip to travel around Thailand. But then I did a test and found out I was expecting.'
