I Used Nail Polish Remover On CPU To Get Rid of Thermal Paste!

Shark Dentist

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Jul 2, 2014
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Is this ok? I'm absolutely freaking the hell out because my PC now reeks of the stuff! I used a slightly damp tissue and it didn't leak anywhere!
 
There's more to nail polish remover than just acetone. There is the oil that gives it a fragrance, glycerin to provide moisturizing, deionized water and even dye to give it some color. Really not recommended for removing TIM (Thermal Interface Material) because it leaves a film.

I've used pure acetone to clean the TIM off of my CPU and it doesn't leave a lingering odor.
 
You can get just about anything you want on the top of the CPU without worry. It's only a heat spreader; just a flat piece of metal that has nothing to do with the operation of the processor except for cooling. Nail polish remover, motor oil, peanut butter, whatever - as long as it comes off, you'll be fine.

I mean, I wouldn't recommend any of that, duh, but as long as it's not something electrically conductive, it's probably not going to cause any permanent damage. What you really want to watch out for is if anything slopped off the sides and went under the heat spreader/onto other components/etc.

Yes, you'll want new thermal paste. You're supposed to re-apply it every time you take off the CPU fan, and operating without any would be super dumb.


 


True, my friend benchmarked a aftermarket cooler without thermal compound on his CPU and he got up to 57 C on idle lol. Of course that was after 20 minutes sooo.. that's bad XD