Thermal COmpund wears out?

[olgraybeard]

Someone told my brother you have to replace the CPU thermal compound (specifically stated arctic silver 5). I did a quick search of the forum but did not find anything relevant.

One, have never heard anything like this and two, I find it rather hard to believe. Could anyone comment on this please?

 

[Shadow703793]

You SHOULD replace the thermal paste every once in a while ( I recommend every year). I usually do it about every 6-12 months. I have seen thermal paste burn out on really old CPUs from the K6 era.

 

[Evilonigiri]

You SHOULD replace the thermal paste every once in a while ( I recommend every year). I usually do it about every 60-12 months. I have seen thermal paste burn out on really old CPUs from the K6 era.

Nice. :lol:

I agree with him, every 6-12month is good.

 

[turboflame]

I didn't know that

What about thermal pads, like the ones on the stock heatsinks?

 

[Shadow703793]

Nice. :lol:

I agree with him, every 6-12month is good.

Sorry my bad. Meant 6 months.

 

[Shadow703793]

I didn't know that

What about thermal pads, like the ones on the stock heatsinks?

Same applies to thermal pads. I personally recommend against using thermal pads unless absolutely neccesery.

 

[Guest]

I disagree - though it really depends on what type of thermal paste you use and how hard you are on your computer. I've built PC's that I have disassembled after 3 years of service and the thermal paste looked and felt like it did when it was first applied. The purpose of the thermal paste is to fill the gaps between the metal heatsink and the processor. It doesn't need to be greasy to work. It just has to plug the holes.

If your running your computer 24/7 with a heat box cpu (Pentium 4/D) then you might consider re-applying your thermal paste every year if the temperatures are high; and I mean HIGH. Most all your thermal pastes have heat tolerances up to a certain point at which when that point is reached, it starts to cook/burn.

I just decomissioned a P4 3.4GHz system being run 9AM-5PM Monday-Friday for just about 4 years straight and the Arctic Silver that I used was still slightly tacky to the touch. Most thermal paste has a life expectancy of 3 years from my own personal experiences.

 

[Guest]

I didn't know that

What about thermal pads, like the ones on the stock heatsinks?

I usually remove the thermal pads and/or thermal paste on stock coolers because it is generally not that good of quality compared to Shin-Etsu/MX-1/AS5. The old P4 stock cooler pads would burn after about 2 or 3 years - go figure... Intel retail processors have a 3 year warranty... After that they didn't really care if your processor burned to a crisp or not.

 

[ZOldDude]

Unless you have beat the hell out of your case thier is no need to replace the TIM unless your temp monitor show a reason for it.

I do clean my cases when the CPU temp goes up 2C over normal.
I first use a pipe cleaner and then a 1" natural fiber paint brush to clean befor useing a can of air.
One can of air should last 15-20 cleanings this way.

I have found that the cheap $1 pac of silicon TIM works as well as the highest priced stuff. The trick is to -clean- both the CPU and HS with Actone and then 100% Alcohol first and use as -little- TIM as possibal.
A $1 pac of the cheap stuff does 8-10 CPU installs when done correctly!
Never use TP or paper towels to rub the CPU/HS...use a coffee filter as it will not leave microfibers behind.
Use plastic wrap on your finger....-never- touch the CPU/HS contact areas without it.

For a dirrections/video on how to do a -correct- install search:
http://www.diy-street.com/forum/index.php