How long does Arctic Silver last?

[bizzyd1441]

I have an E6300 at stock and my core temps have been around 50C idle, although recently with the colder weather they've dropped closer to 40C. This still seemed a little bit hot, so I recently reapplied Arctic Silver. I used the same Artic Silver when I first applied it 2 years ago. I think I put too much on last time, but this time I put a very thin line down the middle. I have an aftermarket cooler as well. Since reapplying the Artic Silver the cpu temps are hotter, about 50C idle, sometimes upper 50s when just running Firefox and stuff.

So is Arctic Silver still good to use after a couple of years? Are my cpu temps gonna drop after a couple of days? Or am I worse off now for reapplying the thermal paste?

 

[Quiksilver]

Did you mix it back together? AS separates in the tube after a while.

 

[aigomorla]

average life once installed i heard can be about 2-3 yrs, however your cpu wont last that long.

The shelf life of AS5 as long as you keep the bottle standing pointing down so the solvant doesnt go up, i heard it can last 7+ yrs.

 

[Wuzup101]

Originally posted by: aigomorla
average life once installed i heard can be about 2-3 yrs, however your cpu wont last that long.

The shelf life of AS5 as long as you keep the bottle standing pointing down so the solvant doesnt go up, i heard it can last 7+ yrs.

Hey! Some people keep their CPU's for more than 2-3 years We don't all have the need to have 5 top end systems that are upgraded bi-annually

 

[bizzyd1441]

How do I mix it back together? It seems like it would just smear everywhere.

I kept it lying horizontally on its size. Mine is in a little push tube, theres no bottle or way for me to keep it pointing down really.

 

[Quiksilver]

Originally posted by: bizzyd1441
How do I mix it back together? It seems like it would just smear everywhere.

I kept it lying horizontally on its size. Mine is in a little push tube, theres no bottle or way for me to keep it pointing down really.

Small tray and a tooth pick? I would assume you would have to empty the entire tube though.

 

[bizzyd1441]

Isn't there a period of time before the thermal paste becomes particularly effective. Like a few days or something?

 

[Quiksilver]

Yeah. It's easier to load up the system 100% for a few hours and let it cool down though. However if you put separated AS5 on, it's not going to get much better...

 

[JaBro999]

I've had a tube of AS5 for about 3 years and would use it about every 9 to 12 months. It was not until the last time I took it out about 1/2 year ago that I noticed a pronounced separation of the compound. I was not too worried, since I was just using it on a chipset heat sink, but I would probably order a new bottle if I was going to use it on a newly mounted CPU.

Does anyone know if AS Ceramique have the same seperation behavior (I've never seen/used that)?

 

[Elstumpo]

you can get AS5 in bottles? I've only evr seen tubes.

 

[JaBro999]

Sorry to be unclear - I have a tube of AS 5, not a bottle.

 

[nyker96]

you might have to remix, I think my 2 year old tube is separating as well. Shake it up first.

 

[faxon]

you can pull the pusher out of the top of the tube of AS5 and then use a toothpick or a stiring straw or something to mix it with. just make absolute sure that when you pull it out you dont have the cap on, or it will create a vacuumed seal and when you put it back in you will push out a fair sized amount of the compound, usually a lot more than you would end up using unless you were using the credit card trick to spread the paste, in which about half of it probably goes to waste lol

 

[NGX]

Originally posted by: JaBro999

Does anyone know if AS Ceramique have the same seperation behavior (I've never seen/used that)?

Yea ceramic has a very long shelf life, id say at least 5 years since mines lasted that long, its just like when i bought it. As for the OP, when you apply AS, especially AS5 you need to apply a very thin layer over the whole IHS, not a dot in the middle or a line across. Id say 0.001 of an inch is a good thickness, since you are only applying it to fill the microscopic gaps between the IHS and HSF. When I apply AS5, its for air cooling, and i notice that after a good application and secure mount it takes a few days to a week of good use to become fully seated, as the vibrations in the HSF continually help to seat itself. I only use ceramic for WC and DI/LN2.

 

[ultra laser]

As long as your computer is stable, don't worry about temps. My Core2 in my laptop idles at 55C, that is when I care enough to check the temps.

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

Originally posted by: ultra laser
As long as your computer is stable, don't worry about temps. My Core2 in my laptop idles at 55C, that is when I care enough to check the temps.

Umm, if you would like for your CPU to have a long and useful life, then you should care about temps.

55C at idle is pretty high. My laptop's C2D @ 2.0 ghz is idling at 33C. Also, when the CPU heats up, other components heat up as well.

 

[DanDaMan315]

People have said replace all thermal grease after one year. They claim the stuff never dries out, not the truth. When you take your fans off your going to notice dry thermal grease... not a good thing. Good thermal grease is really important to the life of your computer, it lowers my temps by about 10 C.

 

[Flipped Gazelle]

Originally posted by: DanDaMan315
People have said replace all thermal grease after one year. They claim the stuff never dries out, not the truth.

This sentence is stating that the same people who say to replace all thermal grease after one year also claim that the stuff never dries out. If it never dries out, then why are they saying to replace it after one year? Viscosity breakdown?

Thermal paste does not necessarily dry out after one year. There have been plenty of times I've pulled the hsf off of the cpu and found the thermal paste still wet, even after 2 years.

Originally posted by: DanDaMan315
Good thermal grease is really important to the life of your computer, it lowers my temps by about 10 C.

Then, most likely, the initial thermal paste application was not good.

 

[ibex333]

Originally posted by: aigomorla
average life once installed i heard can be about 2-3 yrs, however your cpu wont last that long.

I don't know about that... I bought my e6300 two years ago, (maybe a little more) and reapplied my old AS5 when I installed a better cooler about 5 months ago... My CPU has been running OC'd to 2.8MHz for the whole time that I owned it, and the temps have always been around 40c to 50c+, even up to 60 or so on occasion. My system has been mostly rock stable all this time, and it doesnt look like my CPU will be dying any time soon...

 

[Mac]

I upgraded my CPU, using Arctic Silver about 3-4 years ago and haven't touched it since. I OC a mobile Barton to 2300MHz. Temps have steadily increased lately and were getting up to around 120F but noticed today that there was a a lot of dust on the heatsink. A little blast of compressed air and temps have dropped to 100F. Hmmm.

Actually, the socket is brittle and deteriorating. I almost busted the mounting lugs on the CPU socket (Socket A here) when upgrading so not to eager to push my luck. The mobo is an old A7N8X deluxe. It has served me well.

 

[MustangSVT]

Originally posted by: aigomorla
average life once installed i heard can be about 2-3 yrs, however your cpu wont last that long.

The shelf life of AS5 as long as you keep the bottle standing pointing down so the solvant doesnt go up, i heard it can last 7+ yrs.

LMAO..

where do you "hear" these things? from your ass?

 

[Quiksilver]

Originally posted by: MustangSVT

Originally posted by: aigomorla
average life once installed i heard can be about 2-3 yrs, however your cpu wont last that long.

The shelf life of AS5 as long as you keep the bottle standing pointing down so the solvant doesnt go up, i heard it can last 7+ yrs.

LMAO..

where do you "hear" these things? from your ass?

Troll much?

By "cpu won't last that long" he meant your going to upgrade your cpu in 2 to 3 years. Yes, some people do make it last longer; however most enthusiasts won't.

I can't prove the last bit; but some here probably do have a tube that hasn't separated that is approaching 7 years or more.

Besides this, you shouldn't be trying to bait a anandtech mod, respected water cooling enthusiast, and an respected member of this site and others.