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Can i remove thermal paste without any alcohol? How?

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  • Cooling
  • Thermal Compound
  • Processors
  • CPUs
Last response: in CPUs
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October 3, 2014 9:04:18 AM

So i really cant get alcohol or any chemicals, so is it possilbe to remove thermal paste without any these things? because im getting new mobo so ofc i need remove cooler and processor to move them to the new. Or is it bad if i dont remove it and use just the same?

More about : remove thermal paste alcohol

a b à CPUs
October 3, 2014 9:07:21 AM

Toppari said:
So i really cant get alcohol or any chemicals, so is it possilbe to remove thermal paste without any these things? because im getting new mobo so ofc i need remove cooler and processor to move them to the new. Or is it bad if i dont remove it and use just the same?


you can remove the thermal paste without alcohol but its recommended that you use alocohol .. i have done a thermal paste removal without alochol already .. if you have to do it try not to get any residue or any fragments from the whatever you use to get under the processor as it could cause damage
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October 3, 2014 9:10:37 AM

I dont have ANY money right now and i live in europe so its not fun to buy from newegg. My cpu is AMD FX-9370 btw, so can i use something like toilet paper and gently try remove much as i can from it?
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a c 250 à CPUs
October 3, 2014 9:12:22 AM

many solvents work, alcohol is just the cheapest and readily available..... about 90% is $2.50 at local supermarket or drug store. But remeber 90$ is 10% other stuff which will leave a residue

Nail polish remover works (very powerful so be careful) .... I use Indigo Extreme Cleaner...... better than anything else mentioned and 0% residue.

http://indigo-xtreme.com/page-bba.shtml

http://www.frozencpu.com/products/13256/thr-106/Indigo_...

Quote:
Indigo Xtreme Clean™ works better than other products. It possesses higher solvating power than isopropyl alcohol and emulsifying cleaners, yet leaves no residue. Unlike acetone, xylene, and toluene, Indigo Xtreme Clean is non-flammable and is safe for most surfaces.

Indigo Xtreme Clean is easy to use. Simply place a small amount on a clean, dry cloth, wipe the surface clean. One and done - no fussy two-step process. The surface will be left completely free of any thermal grease or stray material and ready to accept a superior thermal solution

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a b à CPUs
October 3, 2014 9:13:23 AM

as i said you can use the toilet paper but its not recommended .. the alcohol would be best.. just dont get anything under the processor
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October 3, 2014 9:13:55 AM

I would not use toilet paper. Anything that can leave lint behind is bad.

Use a cloth that you would use for your glasses.

Or coffee filter.

Scrub away. But rubbing alcohol is going to be the best.
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October 3, 2014 9:17:02 AM

Well well, what alcohol it needs then, mby my mom can buy it for me :p , something what can buy from supermarket etc.
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a b à CPUs
October 3, 2014 9:17:28 AM

A paper coffee filter would be much better than toilet paper.
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October 3, 2014 9:18:58 AM

90% Alcohol no less- the 70% has oils in it. Coffee Filters work great because they leave nothing behind.
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a b à CPUs
October 3, 2014 9:20:33 AM

alcohol is the best thing to use along with a material that doesnt leave behind any residue ...
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a c 250 à CPUs
October 3, 2014 9:35:37 AM

Alcohol does leave behind residue .... 90% alcohol means 10% something else ..... it's very good, but it's not the best. I used to use 99% alcohol which ran me about $16 a bottle (90% is only $2.50) and was gone quickly as other peeps in the house would use for other things ..... three teenage boys scared on acne for example :)  .... car dashboards, computer screens, KBs and mice ....etc

Indigo Extreme Cleaner is half the price for just a an ounce or so but it sits in my toolbox and nobody touches it :)  ..... I apply with foam Q-Tips covered in cheesecloth but so far the ounce is about 1/3 gone thru about 11 blocks / HSs so far....that's 6 CPUs and 4 GPUs and a MoBo Block. And on the GPUs include the VRM, VRAM etc
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October 3, 2014 11:06:31 AM

Well, i couldnt find anything from local supermarket so im kinda screwed
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a b à CPUs
October 3, 2014 11:21:52 AM

you are not screwed you will just be at risk of damaging the cpu more .. besides i think you can be careful enough to whipe off a little thermal paste .. just be careful
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a c 198 à CPUs
October 3, 2014 2:36:21 PM

JackNaylorPE said:
Alcohol does leave behind residue .... 90% alcohol means 10% something else ..... it's very good, but it's not the best. I used to use 99% alcohol which ran me about $16 a bottle (90% is only $2.50) and was gone quickly as other peeps in the house would use for other things ..... three teenage boys scared on acne for example :)  .... car dashboards, computer screens, KBs and mice ....etc

Indigo Extreme Cleaner is half the price for just a an ounce or so but it sits in my toolbox and nobody touches it :)  ..... I apply with foam Q-Tips covered in cheesecloth but so far the ounce is about 1/3 gone thru about 11 blocks / HSs so far....that's 6 CPUs and 4 GPUs and a MoBo Block. And on the GPUs include the VRM, VRAM etc


91% rubbing alcohol (EDIT: isopropyl alcohol for clarity) is manufactured by repeatedly distilling it until it cannot be distilled any further. The remaining 9% is simply distilled water. This is perfectly fine for use as a solvent on a material that is water tolerant.

Reaching concentrations above 91% is much more difficult/expensive and requires the use of chemical salts (sodium chloride can be used) to dehydrate the alcohol and remove the remaining water.
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a c 250 à CPUs
October 3, 2014 3:15:01 PM

As I said above before using the Indigo stuff I always used 99% isopropyl alcohol, it's just more expensive .... in any chemical process getting higher purity is subject to the law of diminishing returns.

http://www.amazon.com/Swan-Isopropyl-Alcohol-99-Pint/dp...

There are other impurities in it besides distilled water but even that is undesirable, DW absorbs carbon dioxide and other impurities from the air which leads to the production of carbonic acid.

Still neither 90% or 99% approaches the quality of the Indigo product, but it's a great "go to" cause it's handy. If you are doing frequent builds, the Indigo is worth the investment.
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a b à CPUs
October 3, 2014 3:58:52 PM

If you can't get alcohol use a small rag and wipe firmly but carefully. And it will take quite a while.

Don't use toilet paper or paper towels. They leave behind paper lint which is bad.

I would really try to get some Isopropyl alcohol (90% or higher) if at all possible and use Q-Tips. Treat your processor right and clean it good.
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a c 250 à CPUs
October 3, 2014 4:38:00 PM

If ya use Q tips, cover them with cheesecloth or something ... if paste is old, cotton will shred off on hard paste.
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