Applied too much thermal paste

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aqwe11

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Oct 1, 2014
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Hello
I had to disassemble and reassemble all my pc components and now it won't post.
I think the problem might be is my mistake of applying too much thermal paste on the cpu. It spilled to the sides, so I tried to wipe it off and also removed the cpu from its socket.... well, some paste got on the socket holes and some between the cpu pins... I tried to wipe it all off but I guess a tiny amount remained between the pines and some inside the socket which I couldn't remove completely.
So you think it is the paste fault or it is some time else? What can I do?
It turnes on, all fans of all parts are spinning but I guess it won't post as I see nothing on the screen and no lights turn on at the keyboard.
When I press the reset button I see that it resets.
Tried battery off and cmos clearing, also tried to reinstall the cpu again and checked all the cables...
Do you think I ruined the mb or the cpu?
Specs:
afx 8530
m5a 99x Evo
3memory sticks of crucial ballistix 1600mhz
HD 7850 2gb sapphire
corsair rm650
Thank you!
 
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aqwe11

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Oct 1, 2014
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Well I wiped off all I could, there was just a tiny bit in couple of wholes, but there wasn't any paste to connect between the wholes... so I don't know..
 
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gondo

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Apr 20, 2004
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The paste is not conductive. Thermal paste is designed not to conduct electricity, even the silver compounds.

It could be just too much gunk in the holes, so the pins arn't making good contact.

In the future just put a drop on top of the CPU while holding the CPU in your hand form the sides. Take a razor blade and scrape/squeegee the paste around to put a thin layer over the surface. Add a bit more if required. It will be less than a paper thin layer and no more. Once the heatsink gets squuezed on it'll spread the compound to fill any voids.

Heatsinks are so well machined nowadays less compound is more effective than too much. You only need a that minute amount to fill any possible voids if they exist. The rest is direct metal on metal contact.
 
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itmoba

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Aug 14, 2015
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At this point, you're basically screwed. You've ruined the socket and thus need a new motherboard. True, you can clean it up more, but you're taking a really big risk.

Essentially, the pins may have become bent whilst trying to plug the sucker into the socket. If the pins aren't bent, then the CPU is still salvageable -- simply use isopropyl alcohol (anything between 70% and 91% is fine) to clean the CPU. Please do not half-ass the procedure or rush things. Take your time, as the last thing you want to do is damage the CPU. As for the motherboard, you need to buy a new one. Should you choose to not replace the motherboard, be very aware that a short or fire could occur. It's best to err on the side of caution, but that's me.
 
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aqwe11

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Oct 1, 2014
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Thanks, so basically before putting the cpu back did cleaned slowly with a needle between the pins and what ever was on the socket holls. The pins are not bent as I didn't force the cpu in. I am starting wondering maybe it is something else that causes it not to boot.
I guess I have no choice than bringing it to a lab to see what is wrong with it and I need to replace the mb or what ever is screwed.
Thanks all for the help!
 
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gondo

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Take the motherboard out of the case. Put it on the cardboard box....no static bags please they conduct electricity and some people are stupid enough to use them thinking it's better.

Put the box next to your case so you can get the power cables form the power supply to plug into the motherboard. Install the video card, CPU, RAM and try booting. What this does is get the system going outside of the case so the motherboard is not screwed down. I've had situations where people scraped the motherboard copper traces with a slipped screwdriver, or the flexed the board and cracked it. I also saw people use different height studs on the case and cranked down on the screws to hold the motherboard and flexed it. Another time the motherboard was touching the back of the case and shorted.

Taking it out of the case eliminates any possibility of anything and makes it easy to troubleshoot.
 
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gondo

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Actually when I do a build the first thing I do is assemble the board with CPU, RAM on a non conductive surface. Take 1 minute to boot it up and ensure it's functioning. Then I insert in the case. Having the CPU and heatsink on the board gives you a handle to gently insert the board in the case without scraping it against the studs. If it doesn't boot after inserting it in the case at least I know it was working 5 minutes ago. This saves the trouble of having to remove everything if something doesn't work.

 
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glenbrockwell88

Aug 6, 2018
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Good effort, I've wrecked a computer this way. I made a complete "dogs dinner" of my job. Turned my pc into scrap, yeah never even knew what a cpu looked like but it's there. Story doesn't end there, I bent like pins on the cpu because I didn't realise there is a special lever on the motherboard to actually release the cpu. Nowadays I don't unscrew that fan. Expensive lesson learnt.
 
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