Are slightly higher CPU temps after cleaning and re-applying thermal paste normal?

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john874

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Hi, I swapped the mobo in my laptop recently for another one identically spec'd. I know that thermal paste has a cure time but I want to be sure that what I'm observing is normal as this is my first time doing this.

First, I was wondering how well (or not well) I applied the thermal paste. Normally I'd do the grain of rice but the cpu was so tiny I felt like the only way to get a decent covering would be to spread it myself.
nX5hFg4.png


Second here are the CPU temps before and after the mobo swap and re-application
cfUDVTP.png


So are these slightly higher temps normal and can they be expected to decrease with curing time closer to what they originally were? Or will I need to reapply? I used arctic silver ceramique in case anyone was wondering.


Thank you!
 
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jaguarskx
You only need a little bit of thermal paste. The size of a small pea or grain of rice should be more then enough.

My Lenovo Y470 had an excessive amount of thermal paste. It seems Lenovo tended applied a liberal amount of thermal paste since other people with the same laptop complained about the excessive thermal paste. It took a long to time clean before applying some Arctic Silver 5 that I had laying around and it was still good. I applied about 5% of what was originally there.
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sirstinky

sirstinky

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That's difficult to say. It's possible the thermal paste that was on the original CPU was better quality. There is a "burn-in" period for thermal paste for it to reach maximum efficiency. Let it run in for several hours and check the temps again.
 
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synphul

synphul

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Just my personal opinion, it looks like way too much paste. I'm not as familiar with laptop cpu's and coolers, but if that were a desktop cpu that's a LOT of thermal paste. All it needs is a thin coating to fill in small microscopic variations between the surface of the cpu and the cooler for optimal contact. I have a feeling it's now insulating your cpu and causing the higher temps.
 
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NBSN

NBSN

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When you changed out the motherboard, are the fan settings the same? It might have changed so that the fan does not kick into higher speeds reducing the cooling until reaching a higher temperature.

That would be the first thing I would look at.

And as someone else already mentioned, the quality of the thermal paste may be different. Or even you may have gotten a bad batch this go round.
 
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john874

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May 30, 2015
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Thank you all for the quick and thorough responses.
@synphul & das_stig yeah, it was difficult to apply due to the small size, if things don't change I'll try and apply less more diligently. I will say that the amount on the larger bit was equivalent to half a grain of rice if not less.
@NBSN I couldn't say if the fan settings were the same, can't access the bios(it's a chromebook), unless there's some sort of utility I can download and use. The thermal paste is a few years old so you might be right about the actual paste being the culprit. I did indeed clean all old paste off both the cpu and heatsink with isopropyl alcohol and let it evaporate for several minutes before applying the paste.

I guess I'll let it run for a bit and keep an eye on temps for the next couple of days. If temperatures rise at all, or don't change much I'll pick up some better quality thermal compound and apply it less liberally. Any suggestions for that would be greatly appreciated as well as maybe a guide on the best way to apply thermal paste to such a small area evenly.


 
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Brooklynzfinest Tru

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Way to much thermal paste, and air bubbles. take a card and smear it out a little more until it covers the whole thing. Remember to make it then to the point you can almost see through it, that way heat can transfer.
 
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NBSN

NBSN

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If the thermal paste is from a few years ago and the laptop is newer than that. There is a chance that the formula used in the older thermal paste is not as good as the formula used in the thermal paste that came installed in the laptop.

The same thermal paste from three years ago, and being called the same thing today, may have had a formula change that made it better. And that is going with the assumption that the paste was stored in good temps and did not harden any while in the packaging.

 
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synphul

synphul

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I'd say application and the amount is a much bigger concern. Thermal pastes have been tested extensively from a variety of products from recent to several years old in terms of 'technology' and the difference is 1-3c between the vast majority. People get all worked up over the sales pitch of the nano technologies and whatever are the 'in' thing in thermal pastes and it really makes little difference if it's as4, as5, mx-4, prolimatech pk1, pk2, noctua's paste etc etc. Coollaboratories does have a thermal paste that works better than most but it's extremely expensive and difficult to work with, not what I'd recommend for the typical user. As for the rest unless it's a really second rate no name product, pick whichever color package appeals to you the most and it won't make much difference.
 
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jaguarskx

jaguarskx

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You only need a little bit of thermal paste. The size of a small pea or grain of rice should be more then enough.

My Lenovo Y470 had an excessive amount of thermal paste. It seems Lenovo tended applied a liberal amount of thermal paste since other people with the same laptop complained about the excessive thermal paste. It took a long to time clean before applying some Arctic Silver 5 that I had laying around and it was still good. I applied about 5% of what was originally there.
 
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