Is too much thermal grease harmful?

[ddave]

I searched for this but didn't find any info so I thought I'd ask you folks.

I used the thremal grease that came with the thremaltake HSF combo. Some grease spilled over the dye onto the wafer. I was wondering if this would be a cause for concern. I assume it should not be harmful since the grease should not be conductive. I don't plan to OC if that makes any difference.

Thanks for you input!

 

[SanDiegoPaul]

I assume it should not be harmful since the grease should not be conductive

=======

Well, for some reason *some* of that stuff is conductive. Remember when using that stuff, that the area you're trying to fill with the grease is a thickness measures in thousandths of an inch. Just apply a small amount and smoothe it with a razor blade. That's all it takes.

I have a tube that I bought years ago ... and after building maybe fifty PC's or so, you can hardly tell I've squeezed the tube at all. And I have used some of it on video cards that I put fans on when building overclockers. So it sure doesnt' take much

Paul

 

[ST4RCUTTER]

The thermal grease that comes with the HSF is a non-conductive zinc-oxide/silicone as you've already guessed. A high quality thermal grease like Arctic Silver II uses 72-82% actually silver and will only conduct if used in extremely thin layers with high levels of compression. AS should be kept away from traces and contacts however as it does have a slight capacitance which may affect those electrical circuits it comes into contact with.

 

[RayZor]

Actually, too much CAN reduce the thermal conductivity between the die and the heatsink, too much grease can act as an insulator, defeating the main purpose of the grease. As far as electrical conductivity goes I don't think you have to worry, the grease's dielectric properties prevent this.
Most say:


<< Using thermal grease:
Apply a very thin layer ( paper thin ) evenly on the center of the heatsink with your finger. Make sure the coverage of the thermal grease on the heatsink will cover fully the surface of the die of the CPU before installation >>



Check out this site

Hope some of this helps

Ray

 

[ddave]

Thanks for your input guys.
This was really bugging me because I was afraid the excess thermal grease that may have spilled over would short something or mess something up.