Reapplying CPU Thermal Paste

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S1ght

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Hi all,

So I got my Sandy Bridge setup before the whole motherboard recall and then when I eventually picked up my replacement board. Well after I built it all up again my CPU idle and load temps have increased quite a bit and I'm trying to figure out if its the graphics card pumping out the extra heat (GTX560) to increase it or whether not reapplying the thermal paste can affect it that much.

Hardware:
Asus P8P67
Intel i5 2500k w stock cooler
Asus GTX560ti standard clocks
Coolermaster CM692 case

Temps before swap where it was still technically summer:
CPU
Idle: 28
Load: 42 (Playing Crysis 2)

After
CPU
Idle: 33-40
Load; 60+ (Playing Crysis 2)

I had to add an extra fan by the graphics card to stop it from going above 60 but now I'm just considering just replacing the thermal paste on the CPU to see if that helps. So the question to the forums on this lovely Portal 2 release day (:D) is , will it be worth it? as I have a tube of Arctic Silver paste from a while back and what is the best method to removing the old paste? I'm not entirely too sure what to ask the guys at the hardware store cause all I know is I've read high concentration of Ethanol and someone said Coffee Filters don't leave any residue :confused:

Thanks in advance,
S1ght
 
S1ght said:
Hi all,

So I got my Sandy Bridge setup before the whole motherboard recall and then when I eventually picked up my replacement board. Well after I built it all up again my CPU idle and load temps have increased quite a bit and I'm trying to figure out if its the graphics card pumping out the extra heat (GTX560) to increase it or whether not reapplying the thermal paste can affect it that much.

Hardware:
Asus P8P67
Intel i5 2500k w stock cooler
Asus GTX560ti standard clocks
Coolermaster CM692 case

Temps before swap where it was still technically summer:
CPU
Idle: 28
Load: 42 (Playing Crysis 2)

After
CPU
Idle: 33-40
Load; 60+ (Playing Crysis 2)

I had to add an extra fan by the graphics card to stop it from going above 60 but now I'm just considering just replacing the thermal paste on the CPU to see if that helps. So the question to the forums on this lovely Portal 2 release day (:D) is , will it be worth it? as I have a tube of Arctic Silver paste from a while back and what is the best method to removing the old paste? I'm not entirely too sure what to ask the guys at the hardware store cause all I know is I've read high concentration of Ethanol and someone said Coffee Filters don't leave any residue :confused:

Thanks in advance,
S1ght
Click to expand...
A small quantity of Meths on a tissue works quite well. Make sure it's clear of any residue.

Be careful with undoing the cooler over and over. It isn't too robust.
 
In the past I've just taken some dry tissues/toilet paper and rubbed 99.9% of it off that way. Worked well for me.

If the paste is applied really carp and/or the heatsink is not fastened properly you can get temps high enough to throttle your CPU. But if everything is applied properly then new paste gets you 5° at the very very most, more likely around 2°
 
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@Sight: Make VERY VERY VERY sure that the pharmacist does not give you SURGICAL SPIRITS. I thought that something was wrong when my heatsink started to smell a bit like Wicks bubblegum. Anyway it turns out that surgical spirits contains ethanol/methanol as well as Wintergreen and Castor Oil. I think that rubbing alcohol might be more suitable but you really need to check that there are no other additives. You ideally want 70% or more isopropyl alcohol.
http://dictionary.reverso.net/english-definition/surgical spirit
 
ya you can get rubbing alcohol from a pharmacist, I got a lil bottle that is 90% alcohol, works quite well with an earbud.

You should clean off the old thermal past from both the cpu and the heat sink
Apply a tiny dot in the middle of your CPU like the size of daisy gun bullet, <smaller than a pea>.
Then ensure you place the cooler over the cpu in the correct position. don't move it around to much, let it's weight spread the thermal paste..
And make sure you secure it correctly and plug in the fan :)
 
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Gotta say...I hate that intel stock cooler. First time putting it on scared the crap outta me (I've always had AMD cpu's till Sandy Bridge). Pushing that lever down felt like I was throwing the CPU again the wall. So Meth spirits won't leave any residue behind? oh, one last thing, do these thermal paste tubes ever expire or anything? cause I got this arctic silver when the 8800gt got release :p
 
nakedpeanut said:
Then ensure you place the cooler over the cpu in the correct position. don't move it around to much, let it's weight spread the thermal paste..
Click to expand...

Hmm, I always thought I'd have to spread it out on my own?
 
S1ght said:
Hmm, I always thought I'd have to spread it out on my own?
Click to expand...

No, that increases the chances of air bubbles forming, and air is extremely bad for conducting heat. Just let the heatsink sort itself out, either with its own weight, or by you the fours screws bit by bit in a zig zag sequence (after market coolers)
 
Archer said:
No, that increases the chances of air bubbles forming, and air is extremely bad for conducting heat. Just let the heatsink sort itself out, either with its own weight, or by you the fours screws bit by bit in a zig zag sequence (after market coolers)
Click to expand...

Those four screws, the arrows on them indicate which direction to turn the screws to remove the cooler.. correct? I remember getting that wrong.
 
And don't overdo it on the heat sink paste either, it looks (like a messy burger) with the goo running down the CPU...
 
Archer said:
No, that increases the chances of air bubbles forming, and air is extremely bad for conducting heat. Just let the heatsink sort itself out, either with its own weight, or by you the fours screws bit by bit in a zig zag sequence (after market coolers)
Click to expand...

I see. Thanks a lot guys. Just gotta take a trip to the chemist and get this all sorted and then I'll just disappear for a few days as Portal 2 would prob have just consumed all my free time :p
 
doobyscoo said:
Those four screws, the arrows on them indicate which direction to turn the screws to remove the cooler.. correct? I remember getting that wrong.
Click to expand...

I have no clue, never before seen these mystical arrows :confused: I unscrew them like any other screw/bolt - righty tighty, lefty loosey :p Unless you had those rather rare opposite screws that get fastened/loosened in the other direction?
 
A lint free cloth with some rubbing alchohol (90%) works well. Those little cloths that come with glasses for cleaning the lenses are pretty good.

Basically, you don't want to leave any bit of cloth-fluff behind, as this will negatively affect cooling.

And yes, an earbud for those hard to reach places ;)
 
Archer said:
I have no clue, never before seen these mystical arrows :confused: I unscrew them like any other screw/bolt - righty tighty, lefty loosey :p Unless you had those rather rare opposite screws that get fastened/loosened in the other direction?
Click to expand...

Huh? You mean the painfully obvious arrows on top of the clips, next to the screwdriver slots that stare you in the face, just begging you to find out what they mean? How could you not have seen them?

You turn them and then pull gently on the clips and they come off easily. To reinsert, just turn them the other way and press down. It's not like a screw, it's a type of clip that releases easily when turned into position, otherwise you're basically forcing it open.

There are videos on the net showing the proper way to take off the 775/1156/1155 coolers...

By the way, OP, how did you exchange your board, I want to take mine in as well, but the shop still doesn't have new stock. :mad: I've heard you can take them directly to ASUS? How does that work?
 
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TJ99 said:
Huh? You mean the painfully obvious arrows on top of the clips, next to the screwdriver slots that stare you in the face, just begging you to find out what they mean? How could you not have seen them?

You turn them and then pull gently on the clips and they come off easily. To reinsert, just turn them the other way and press down. It's not like a screw, it's a type of clip that releases easily when turned into position, otherwise you're basically forcing it open.
Click to expand...

Yeah those ones... 100% of coolers get installed and maybe 20% get removed at some time in there life, why on earth are the arrows indicating the removal direction! Makes no sense to me.
 
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