Questions tagged [thermal-paste]

Thermal paste is typically used between a heatsink and a high-power integrated circuit such as a CPU. It is used to ensure there is good thermal conductivity for cooling the integrated circuit.

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Is it OK to use toothpaste instead of thermal paste when fitting a CPU?

I was told many years ago to do this by someone who at the time knew more than I did. The CPU was a celeron in the Pentium 2 era. It ran cooler with the toothpaste between the chip and the heatsink ...
Richard C's user avatar
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34 votes
1 answer
7k views

What are these little rubber "condoms" that came with my thermal paste?

What are the white rubber condoms? They can be unrolled like a condom. For scale the battery is AA.
Ian Newson's user avatar
20 votes
3 answers
22k views

Does unused thermal paste get old?

I've got two small unlabeled plastic syringes with white thermal paste - these are probably 8 years old. Should I throw them out and buy new? I'll need some paste to build reassemble a mid-range ...
Torben Gundtofte-Bruun's user avatar
19 votes
4 answers
31k views

What's the proper way to remove thermal paste from a CPU?

I'm replacing the heatsink on my CPU, and want to clear the current thermal paste. What should I do?
Marcos Lara's user avatar
14 votes
3 answers
7k views

What is the gum like thing on the heat sink?

See the attached picture. What is the gum like thing? Should I replace it with thermal paste? Thanks! Update Thank you guys! I replaced it with new thermal paste and my laptop is not burning anymore!...
LWZ's user avatar
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13 votes
1 answer
3k views

Five year old unopened boxed CPU – is the stock thermal compound still good?

I have obtained an unopened, sealed, boxed CPU dating back to 2009. It’s an Intel Core 2 Duo E8600 with heatsink + thermal compound pre-applied. Is the stock thermal compound still OK to use after ...
misha256's user avatar
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11 votes
2 answers
11k views

How much thermal paste should apply to the CPU?

There a million different pages around the Internet with conflicting information on how much thermal paste to apply and how to spread it. Some say a half-bean-sized drop in the middle, others say a ...
Mircea Chirea's user avatar
9 votes
3 answers
12k views

What chemical should I use for removing thermal paste? [duplicate]

What should I use for removing thermal paste: acetone or isopropyl alcohol? Some say acetone is the best thing for the task, others say it's a no-no. Who should I believe?
Aki's user avatar
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8 votes
1 answer
9k views

What happens when too much thermal paste is used

A client of mine brought in a computer he wanted to get cleaned up, OS reinstall, and had a video card in hand he wanted me to install... no big deal. So I open up the case and see this... Wow, ...
Joe's user avatar
  • 350
8 votes
2 answers
4k views

Does heat sink compound degrade with time?

Does heat sink compound degrade with time? How long isv it recommended before I replace my CPU heat sink compound? I have a DELL Studio 17" notebook with core i7 from the lastv one and av half years ...
Lord Loh.'s user avatar
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7 votes
1 answer
3k views

How to remove 13 year old metal loaded thermal paste [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: What chemical should I use for removing thermal paste? I've got an AMD-K6 CPU which has a duff fan, the thermal paste has gone solid and won't come off with alcohol or akasa ...
Tog's user avatar
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6 votes
4 answers
30k views

What is this rubber pad under my laptop's heatsink?

I opened up my HP HDX laptop yesterday to clean it (Warranty was over 2 years ago), and to apply new thermal paste. My laptop has only 1 fan, 2 sets of fins connected to 2 copper pieces to conduct ...
Alex's user avatar
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6 votes
4 answers
17k views

Clean thermal paste from touch contact points on the underside of the CPU

I bought an used CPU (Intel "Core 2" E4700) on eBay and it came with the underside dirty with something that seems it´s thermal paste. Before I send it back, I wonder if it could it still work ...
Karolinger's user avatar
5 votes
2 answers
9k views

Thermal Paste - does it cool the heatsink more with time?

It is said that it takes 200 hours for thermal paste to actually apply itself and truly do the job... If this is the case, does it mean that my machine will gradually get cooler and cooler, the ...
studiohack's user avatar
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5 votes
2 answers
12k views

How do I correctly apply thermal paste on a laptop CPU with a small surface area?

I watched several videos on YouTube, went through a lot of overclocking forums and websites, but I am yet to find a "correct" answer to this question. Some agree with the "pea method" where you apply ...
Vinayak's user avatar
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5 votes
1 answer
440 views

What factors are relevant when buying thermal paste?

Based on the answers on this question, I'll probably go buy some new thermal paste. Unfortunately, the marketplace is flooded with spiffy-sounding products at wildly varying prices. I might just go to ...
Torben Gundtofte-Bruun's user avatar
5 votes
3 answers
836 views

Don’t engravings on a CPU defeat heatsink smoothness?

I have long seen people recommending heatsinks to be as smooth as possible for optimal thermal transfer from the CPU to the heatsink. It’s explained that the smoother it is, the more contact there is ...
Synetech's user avatar
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4 votes
3 answers
3k views

Processor Heatsink - Thermal paste application [duplicate]

Do I have to apply more thermal paste to put the processor heat sink back into the laptop? OR, do I just need to make sure that the screws are tight, and it will work? What are the problems with not ...
studiohack's user avatar
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4 votes
2 answers
255 views

Heat Transfer Paste reapplication

I am assembling this PC http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/2007/07/building-a-pc-part-i.html Of course, I'm in Geek Heaven. :D I installed the heat sink fan in the wrong direction, and now I want to ...
Raj More's user avatar
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4 votes
2 answers
638 views

Can I use old thermal paste?

I have some Arctic Silver 5 thermal paste from about 2 years ago. It looks ok, but I want to know if it's still ok to use. Does thermal paste 'go bad'? It's been in a drawer away from light.
v15's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
681 views

Thermal paste questions with iMac

I am servicing an iMac in my office and took it apart completely for cleaning and upgrades. I removed the CPU/GPU heatsink (one piece) and found a syringe of Arctic Silver MX-4 paste we had in the ...
leetbacoon's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
27k views

Can i use cleaning alcohol 90% to remove thermal paste on the cpu?

Do i need to buy Arctic Silver cleaner to clean off the thermal paste of the cpu? Can i remove it with a cleaning alcohol or even antistatic cleaner?
csandreas1's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
677 views

Thin Layer of Thermal Paste Under CPU Fan?

I recently purchased a Thermaltake CPU fan, and whenever it arrived in the mail today, I took it out of the box, and there was a thin layer of thermal paste on the underside of the CPU fan. I had ...
Ethan Waldeck's user avatar
3 votes
1 answer
2k views

Is cooler included in Intel® Boxed Intel® Core™ i7-2600 Processor? [closed]

I would like to know if cooler and thermal paste included in Intel® Boxed Intel® Core™ i7-2600 Processor? Or should I order cooler and thermal paste separately?
alwbtc's user avatar
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3 votes
2 answers
5k views

Computer GPU fan seems louder after cleaning and reapplying thermal paste

This is more of a "trying to get some information" than "oh my god, what to do" post. Yesterday, I finally had it with my computer overheating all the time and I realized I haven't changed the ...
Pankucins's user avatar
  • 185
3 votes
2 answers
2k views

Thermal Paste in a Laptop quickly loses efficiency

Some time ago, I removed the thermal pad from my CPU and applied some thermal paste instead. I also removed dust from the fan. It's a Dell Studio 1735 Laptop. The laptop got MUCH quieter and cooler. ...
LTR's user avatar
  • 211
3 votes
1 answer
349 views

How to cool my laptop?

I've a 4 year old laptop that is consistently running 60-70 degrees Celsius. I cleaned the heatsink and replaced the fan as it was previously running at 90 - 100 degrees and although it was clearly ...
fraserky's user avatar
3 votes
3 answers
745 views

Do I need to apply more thermal compund? [duplicate]

Possible Duplicate: Can I remove and put back the heatsink of my processor without reapplying thermal paste I recently remove the CPU and fan from my motherboard overnight. When I went to ...
Isaiah Bugarin's user avatar
2 votes
3 answers
3k views

Role of Anti-static wrist wrap, Applying thermal solution , cleaning if spilled , and other necessary precautions, protecting your motherboard

Hello I am a newbie in computer hardware, I am little bit confused on How much Thermal Solution is to be used. Also where to put thermal paste on the heat-sink or processor or on both? I read there ...
subanki's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
4k views

Thermal paste on stock cooler and CPU

I'm building a relatively high-end PC without any overclocking. I have a stock CPU cooler with my Intel Xeon E3-1230V. I understand the stock CPU cooler comes with thermal paste pre-applied (three ...
Jason's user avatar
  • 217
2 votes
3 answers
8k views

Does it make sense to replace the thermal paste in a new Intel i7 stock cooler?

I am about to install a new i7 Ivy Bridge CPU and I am wondering whether it would make any sense at all to replace the thermal paste that is pre-applied on the stock cooler. There are three stripes of ...
thkala's user avatar
  • 2,099
2 votes
1 answer
107 views

Safe to resume High-Performance-Computing applications immediately after new thermal paste?

I recently applied some new thermal paste to my main server, and am wondering if it is safe to immediately resume high-performance computing applications, or if I need to wait for the paste to "settle"...
bbosak's user avatar
  • 370
2 votes
2 answers
1k views

Overheating i7 920

I've got i7 920 for more than a year now, Temp without any load (1-5%): 64/65/62/66 C Temperature when system load is high easily goes up to 95C and over (then system shuts itself down) I cleaned ...
Dr. Evil's user avatar
  • 289
2 votes
1 answer
2k views

Intel 12700k - two cores overheating and thermal throttling

I have just replaced an air cooler with an Artic Freezer II 240mm AIO. Is it doing very well but under synthetic load using multi-core Cinebench R23, two cores are consistently over heating. On the ...
Steve Newton's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
242 views

Arctic Silver paste for a new laptop?

My new laptop will be delivered in a few days, somebody recommended me to apply Arctic Silver right away. Cost cutting has forced manufacturers to use very inferior thermal pastes and I will see a ...
Ashwin Singh's user avatar
2 votes
2 answers
638 views

Does Thermal Paste Function Deteriorate Over Time?

I received a iMac thats from 2011 and I am planning to refurbish it. It seems to work with an exception of that it shuts down due to overheating (too much dust and other stuff inside). I have ...
gfdsal's user avatar
  • 123
2 votes
3 answers
3k views

Reapplied thermal compound to North Bridge, computer no longer boots

I'm having trouble getting my computer to boot up. Would appreciate any help. Is my motherboard fried? The problem: Computer won't boot, won't go to POST. No beeps. Power button light does not light ...
Johnny's user avatar
  • 29
1 vote
4 answers
11k views

Alternatives for Thermal paste [closed]

I would like to know if anyone has had success using an alternative substance for thermal paste. (I heard wheel bearing grease was good) I do appreciate the warnings, but I am not worried about the ...
Aducci's user avatar
  • 259
1 vote
2 answers
690 views

Best practices for thermal paste for CPUs during maintenance

I built my PC my self with a Core i3 4130 recently. It turned out that I forgotten to apply thermal paste after a time so I "unbuilt" it and removed the CPU fan. There was a big round thing on my CPU. ...
Vinz243's user avatar
  • 83
1 vote
2 answers
511 views

Nvidia Geforce 240M GPU overheating, forcing laptop to shut down

So, I have this 9 years old Lenovo laptop, with overheating issue, though later after cleaning the fan and checking everything using some temperature reading softwares, I got to know that my GPU is ...
Shak's user avatar
  • 61
1 vote
2 answers
10k views

Can I get a heatsink to work without thermal paste, temporarily?

Believing my motherboard to be faulty, I removed the CPU and I cleaned the thermal paste off. Now it turns out that it's the PC-speaker that is faulty. I'd like to put the CPU back in its place, ...
Zachiel's user avatar
  • 250
1 vote
1 answer
573 views

Repairing the Northbridge Heatsink / Thermal Glue with Alternative Product

I was replacing a CPU fan on an old PC and had to remove the motherboard to swap out the backplate. In the process of placing the motherboard back, I was using the chipset heatsink to line up the ...
K.Dᴀᴠɪs's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
167 views

Orientation of PC during burn-in?

I heard a rumor that when you build a new PC, you are supposed to "burn" it in for about 24 hours so the thermal paste will correctly bond between the heatsink and the CPU. Assuming this is really ...
Confounded's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
833 views

Should I remove old thermal pads while changing video card?

Video card of my acer laptop has broken down and I bought a new one. The seller gave me a thermal paste to use, but the place where I am gonna insert the new card to has some termal pads from the ...
wakeup's user avatar
  • 423
1 vote
4 answers
8k views

Thermal paste was installed on my new heatsink. Does it need to get re-applied if I remove it?

I just installed a new i5 Sandy Bridge on an Asus P67 Sabertooth board. When I first turned it on, I received a Bios error stating there was a CPU overheating issue. I was able to navigate to the Bios ...
Kris's user avatar
  • 11
1 vote
2 answers
564 views

Thermo Paste less heat sink?

I have just popped the case off of a hp pavilion dv2310us to replace its motherboard. It has an integrated graphics card (which I believe is toasted), between the graphics processor and hdd (130+ deg ...
greyDrifter's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
2k views

GPU Thermal paste melting off quickly?

I have recently bought a used XFX RX 580 8 GB GPU. It’s not older than 2 years. Cannot be sure if it has been used for mining or gaming, but I got it with the gaming BIOS, which is what I use it for. ...
tobamaestro's user avatar
1 vote
3 answers
17k views

Broken pin on Intel heatsink - is it a risk?

I recently needed to remove the heatsink/fan from my H61M-HVS motherboard to reapply thermal paste to it for the first time since it was bought almost a decade ago. After removing the heatsink/fan ...
Hashim Aziz's user avatar
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1 vote
2 answers
2k views

No Thermal paste on box CPU?

I just bought a boxed i5. There was no thermal paste included. I understand that it is normally pre-applied to the stock fan in box sets. I didn’t notice that before mounting. However there was an ...
Reed -SE is a Fish on Dry Land's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
93 views

Do third party cooler's T.I.M. contain adheasive?

I'm building my first computer, and I purchased a cheap Thermaltake CL-P0503 cooler in a bundle. I was originally going to grab some high quality thermal paste, but I forgot to purchase some. My ...
Anonymous Penguin's user avatar