Thermal Paste

[CrimsonChaos]

Ok so, here I am, sitting here like a noob. I am reading various posts about how important Thermal Paste is -- Arctic Silver, seems to be the most popular brand.

Can you screw anything up by applying and/or removing the Thermal Paste incorrectly? Are there any general warnings you can give a noob like me -- i.e. things to definitely DO or NOT DO when applying/removing the paste?

Thanks!

 

[dukdukgoos]

Don't put too much. Usually people say an amount about the size of a grain of rice.

 

[JustAnAverageGuy]

mechBgon has a newbie friendly guide located HERE

If you're rebuilding that P4T533-C system, the P4 link is HERE

Summary:

DO:

Use a small amount
Clean up the old stuff with isopropyl alcohol
Make it as thin as possible.

DO NOT:

Use too much

the Video I promised you. You'll need divx to play it though.

 

[Dr X]

Dont be too concerned - it's pretty hard to screw this up. Using too much isnt that big of a concern at all - in fact it's likely to make very little difference, if any. I saw a test once where different types of thermal pastes, aswell as 'other' products were tested - there was very little between them (as in 1 - 3 deg at most). As long as there is some sort of thermal interface, you'll be fine.

 

[CrimsonChaos]

Ok guess I'll buy some tomorrow and give it a shot -- thanks again guys.

 

[ericlala]

before I slap the HS on, I usually put some thermal paste on it (VERY little) and just rub it around using plastic wrap. I then whip it off with some mc D tissue. I think this make sures all the microscopic grooves on the HS is filled just before the contact layer.

 

[Dr X]

http://www.dansdata.com/goop.htm

 

[theMan]

just make sure you clean al the old stuff off with some kind of solvent like alcohol, fingernail polish remover, etc. then just follow the instructions here

 

[Chode Messiah]

exactly, I use an exact-o blade at an angle where it can't scrape the cpu. A small bead, like a grain of rice is perfect. Use Arctic Silver 5, it's the best.