Stock Heatsinks and the Thermal Grease they Come With

[Splinter7700]

I recently bough an intel E1400 for a computer I'm building for one of my parents.
I'm wondering how safe it is to use the stock heatsink (There won't be any overclocking going on) and more importantly, if the small patch of thermal grease that comes on the heatsink is safe to use.
There is this intricately arranged little gray patch of it on the bottom of the heatsink. I'm assuming that it's safe to just spread it around then and stick the heatsink on, but I wanted to check first. Better safe than sorry.

Thanks for the help!

 

[dragonsprayer]

you use that for testing never use stock for long term

now there are a few examples that do not follow that rule, if you do extensive research such as stock zerotherm paste

regardless use this rule:

artic silver is very resilient and very reliable <this stuff is like playdoe
mx-2 is good but can delaminate <this is a huge shipping issue or long term issue

and that diamond based stuff might just be the best! <look it up youself!

as far as the liquid metal or same in patches = toss it!

artic is, has, and will be the paste to go too for reliablity!

 

[g3force]

I recently bough an intel E1400 for a computer I'm building for one of my parents.
I'm wondering how safe it is to use the stock heatsink (There won't be any overclocking going on) and more importantly, if the small patch of thermal grease that comes on the heatsink is safe to use.
There is this intricately arranged little gray patch of it on the bottom of the heatsink. I'm assuming that it's safe to just spread it around then and stick the heatsink on, but I wanted to check first. Better safe than sorry.

Thanks for the help!

Your supposed to attach the heatsink without spreading the thermal paste around. Heat and pressure will eventually spread it evenly on the chip.

 

[Splinter7700]

Yeah dragon I planned on upgrading it in the future, and can anyone verify what g3force said? (Not that I don't trust you, but it seems a little odd to me.)

 

[g3force]

you use that for testing never use stock for long term

now there are a few examples that do not follow that rule, if you do extensive research such as stock zerotherm paste

regardless use this rule:

artic silver is very resilient and very reliable <this stuff is like playdoe
mx-2 is good but can delaminate <this is a huge shipping issue or long term issue

and that diamond based stuff might just be the best! <look it up youself!

as far as the liquid metal or same in patches = toss it!

artic is, has, and will be the paste to go too for reliablity!

I don't think maximum thermal conductivity is really the OP's intentions. He merely asked about the stock Intel heatsink paste

 

[geofelt]

Yeah dragon I planned on upgrading it in the future, and can anyone verify what g3force said? (Not that I don't trust you, but it seems a little odd to me.)

g3force speaks the truth.
The three grey strips are therml material, and will spread out when the cpu heats up.
The stock cooler is ok if you won't be overclocking. The fan can spin up under load, making it noisy.

Push pin coolers can be tricky to install.
A bad installation can lead to higher temperatures, and even cpu throttling.
With the pc powered down, gently rock the cooler to see if it is on solid, or if it wobbles a bit.
Push pin coolers are best installed while the motherboard is outside of the case.
You need to be able to look at the back of the board to verify that
all 4 pins are completely through and locked.
Play with the pins on the cooler first, so you can see exactly how they work.
Read the instructions that came with your retail cpu.
When pushing down on the pins, do a diagonal pair first.
If you don't, it is hard to get the last pin in.
Don't forget to clean the parts and reapply fresh thermal compound every time.
Don't try to reuse the TIM.
Rubbing alcohol is OK as a cleaner.
I use a paper coffee filter to clean with because it is lint free.
Any name brand TIM should be OK(as-5, Mx-2, etc.)
When applying the TIM, don't use too much, because it can act as an insulator.
Don't apply too little, either, because it won't spread and fill the microscopic
imperfections in the surfaces. A dollop about the size of a grain
of rice should be about right.

 

[AKM880]

g3force means when applying the thermal compound do NOT use a card of your finger to spread it. Just drip a pea sized amount on the CPU and then reattach the HSF. After the HSF is installed the pressure from the mounting clips should spread the thermal grease around enough to cool it adaquately

 

[AKM880]

PS. I use OCZ Freeze thermal compound. Its cheap and it cools great. On my P4 I don't get over 55C+ on load.

 

[cjl]

The Intel stock HSF is fine if you don't overclock. As said before, just attach it - don't worry about spreading the paste. The pressure will spread it enough.

 

[jsc]

Pushpins: ignore Intel's instructions. They say to install the motherboard first, then CPU and HSF. Install the HSF with the motherboard outside the case. Easier to check for proper installation. While you are at it, install the memory at the same time.