View Full Version : Thermal paste
jimnyc
01-26-2012, 01:50 PM
Just did my yearly re-application of thermal paste on my CPU. Temperature dropped nearly 10 degrees!!
That's all, just had to share! :coffee:
Mr. P
01-26-2012, 03:45 PM
What's "Thermal Paste"?
Abbey Marie
01-26-2012, 03:48 PM
What's "Thermal Paste"?
What he said...
jimnyc
01-26-2012, 04:09 PM
The CPU in any computer generates heat. That's why you see a "heat sink" and fans in your computer, to help cool them down. The heat sink is a cube like device that absorbs the heat from the CPU, and then the attached fan helps cool the heat sink. The heat transfer needs to be performing optimally in order for the heat sink to absorb as much of the heat as possible. The thermal paste is applied on top of your CPU and on the heat sink, sort of a "glue" if you can picture it better, to act as a barrier between the 2. But it's really not a barrier, but a layer of paste that helps absorb the heat in a more efficient manner from the CPU to the heat sink. And there are all different brands of the paste, and you get what you pay for. If you pay for the good stuff, it will probably help keep your CPU cooler than the cheap crap that comes with a new CPU.
Then again, I could be way off base, but the above has worked for me!!
Mr. P
01-26-2012, 04:18 PM
The CPU in any computer generates heat. That's why you see a "heat sink" and fans in your computer, to help cool them down. The heat sink is a cube like device that absorbs the heat from the CPU, and then the attached fan helps cool the heat sink. The heat transfer needs to be performing optimally in order for the heat sink to absorb as much of the heat as possible. The thermal paste is applied on top of your CPU and on the heat sink, sort of a "glue" if you can picture it better, to act as a barrier between the 2. But it's really not a barrier, but a layer of paste that helps absorb the heat in a more efficient manner from the CPU to the heat sink. And there are all different brands of the paste, and you get what you pay for. If you pay for the good stuff, it will probably help keep your CPU cooler than the cheap crap that comes with a new CPU.
Then again, I could be way off base, but the above has worked for me!!
Maybe I should rethink my toothpaste applications an look into that stuff. :laugh:
Just kiddin,
jimnyc
01-26-2012, 04:25 PM
Maybe I should rethink my toothpaste applications an look into that stuff. :laugh:
Just kiddin,
I would imagine what goes between your toothbrush and your teeth is probably even more important! But I'm afraid that while the "thermal paste" may absorb heat from your teeth, it may also make you a little uglier! LOL
Mr. P
01-26-2012, 04:31 PM
I would imagine what goes between your toothbrush and your teeth is probably even more important! But I'm afraid that while the "thermal paste" may absorb heat from your teeth, it may also make you a little uglier! LOL
Well, I meant toothpaste on my CPU NOT my teeth. Besides, I'm in BAMA now how may teeth ya think i got? Geeezzzz
fj1200
01-26-2012, 04:32 PM
Well, I meant toothpaste on my CPU NOT my teeth. Besides, I'm in BAMA now how may teeth ya think i got? Geeezzzz
Well, since you're from GA, more than your average Alabamian? :poke:
LuvRPgrl
03-25-2012, 12:50 PM
Just did my yearly re-application of thermal paste on my CPU. Temperature dropped nearly 10 degrees!!
That's all, just had to share! :coffee:
I've been fixing pc's as a semi hobby, semi business for a few ;years.
Not onlly thermal paste, but cleaning the dust from the heat sink, especially if smoking and or pets are in the house.
I just bought a toshiba PD it has a huge 18.4 h screen, isnt very old,duo core and all that.
typically sells for over $500 used on ebay
it HAD An issue, it would shut down after being on for just a few minutes. This is a laptop by the way.
I simply put thermal grease on it and havent had a problem since, Im using it right now, its a great machine, people bitch about how companies dont make laptops durable, but its m,ostly their own neglecty which leads to problems
Anton Chigurh
03-25-2012, 01:06 PM
The CPU in any computer generates heat. That's why you see a "heat sink" and fans in your computer, to help cool them down. The heat sink is a cube like device that absorbs the heat from the CPU, and then the attached fan helps cool the heat sink. The heat transfer needs to be performing optimally in order for the heat sink to absorb as much of the heat as possible. The thermal paste is applied on top of your CPU and on the heat sink, sort of a "glue" if you can picture it better, to act as a barrier between the 2. But it's really not a barrier, but a layer of paste that helps absorb the heat in a more efficient manner from the CPU to the heat sink. And there are all different brands of the paste, and you get what you pay for. If you pay for the good stuff, it will probably help keep your CPU cooler than the cheap crap that comes with a new CPU. Then again, I could be way off base, but the above has worked for me!!90% of its function is to prevent corrosion between the heat sink and the CPU. If you mounted them together dry, they would chemically destroy each other because they are not compatible. So, they came up with a paste that insulates chemically the two components, but allows efficient heat conduction and transfer as well.
LuvRPgrl
03-25-2012, 01:12 PM
90% of its function is to prevent corrosion between the heat sink and the CPU. If you mounted them together dry, they would chemically destroy each other because they are not compatible. So, they came up with a paste that insulates chemically the two components, but allows efficient heat conduction and transfer as well.
I would disagree with that. while corrosion may be a problem, its main purpose is to transfer heat to the heat sink from the cpu, corrosion wont stop a computer from working, overheating will
Anton Chigurh
03-25-2012, 06:50 PM
I would disagree with that. while corrosion may be a problem, its main purpose is to transfer heat to the heat sink from the cpu, corrosion wont stop a computer from working, overheating willThe heat would transfer nicely if they were mated dry. It's just a conductive paste, it's not a heat magnet. It doesn't accelerate the process of thermal transfer, it simply does not interfere with it. But if they were mated dry it would not take long for the chip to be destroyed by the war between dissimilar metals.
LuvRPgrl
03-25-2012, 07:07 PM
The heat would transfer nicely if they were mated dry. It's just a conductive paste, it's not a heat magnet. It doesn't accelerate the process of thermal transfer, it simply does not interfere with it. But if they were mated dry it would not take long for the chip to be destroyed by the war between dissimilar metals.
I have put pc's together with no paste, and they usually overheat.d
I have never seen corrosion on any pc '[s that I have worked on.
do you know what kind of metal the plate on the cpu is made of?
example, the laptop im using right now, I paid $/200 for it, no mally it sells for over $500 on the low end, it was ;shutting down.
I suspected I knew the reason, and as often happens, there was very little thermal grease and it was overheating. No corrosion though, and now Im enjoying my laptop with an eighteen point four inch screen as it performs flawlessly.
Anton Chigurh
03-25-2012, 07:27 PM
I have put pc's together with no paste, and they usually overheat.d I have never seen corrosion on any pc '[s that I have worked on. do you know what kind of metal the plate on the cpu is made of? example, the laptop im using right now, I paid $/200 for it, no mally it sells for over $500 on the low end, it was ;shutting down. I suspected I knew the reason, and as often happens, there was very little thermal grease and it was overheating. No corrosion though, and now Im enjoying my laptop with an eighteen point four inch screen as it performs flawlessly.It does depend on the two materials' composition and their compatibility, as to whether they quickly start attacking one another. I have been a EET for 20 years, I would never put any semiconductor in without the conductive paste. One thing it does do well, it distributes the heat evenly over the surfaces, helping get maximum heat transfer. Computer processors aren't much of a heat generator compared to something like, power transistors. They just can't tolerate any heat to speak of. This is why it is important to move what heat there is, away.
jimnyc
03-25-2012, 07:27 PM
Good definition, pretty much the same as Red, here on Wiki. Some other good tips about it on the page too.
All I know for sure, is that it's extremely important to keep your CPU cool, and thermal paste helps draw the heat away. And it's a cheap fix/enhancement.
Thermal grease (also called thermal gel, thermal compound, thermal paste, heat paste, heat sink paste, heat transfer compound, heat transfer paste (HTP) or heat sink compound) is a viscous fluid substance, originally with properties akin to grease, which increases the thermal conductivity of a thermal interface by filling microscopic air-gaps present due to the imperfectly flat and smooth surfaces of the components; the compound has far greater thermal conductivity than air (but far less than metal). In electronics, it is often used to aid a component's thermal dissipation via a heat sink.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermal_grease
gabosaurus
03-25-2012, 10:19 PM
A guy in my husband's office flips laptops as a hobby on the side. He has ads is a few periodicals offering to buy non-working laptops. Of course, this is Orange County, home to an army of spoiled rich kids. He told us once how amazed he is at kids (and some adults) who jack around with their computers and never even try to fix them. Instead, they just buy a new one.
Topic in point -- he bought an almost new Mac Air that had overheated and shut off. He bought it for $100. Repaired and cleaned it, resold it for $1200.
Anton Chigurh
03-25-2012, 10:53 PM
A guy in my husband's office flips laptops as a hobby on the side. He has ads is a few periodicals offering to buy non-working laptops. Of course, this is Orange County, home to an army of spoiled rich kids. He told us once how amazed he is at kids (and some adults) who jack around with their computers and never even try to fix them. Instead, they just buy a new one. Topic in point -- he bought an almost new Mac Air that had overheated and shut off. He bought it for $100. Repaired and cleaned it, resold it for $1200.I made some nice money backna day, buying "dead" CD players and then DVD players, junked because they quit working. Most always, it was a 50 cent o-ring which they use as a drive belt for the carriage, that was the culprit. I would buy these for a buck, put the 50 cents into them, and flip them for $15 or $20. I did it with VCRs as well, before they started becoming way cheap to just replace.
Anton Chigurh
03-25-2012, 10:56 PM
Which by the way gabo... Nice to see you using my Michelle Bachmann LOL cat image as a avatar. I created that for the sole purpose of posting in a forum board thread about her, and really glad to see it's still out there.
Shadow
03-25-2012, 11:15 PM
I made some nice money backna day, buying "dead" CD players and then DVD players, junked because they quit working. Most always, it was a 50 cent o-ring which they use as a drive belt for the carriage, that was the culprit. I would buy these for a buck, put the 50 cents into them, and flip them for $15 or $20. I did it with VCRs as well, before they started becoming way cheap to just replace.
Ooohh...probably what's wrong with my DVD player. Wonder if I can find instructions on how to fix this myself online. Thanks for the tip :)
Anton Chigurh
03-25-2012, 11:35 PM
Ooohh...probably what's wrong with my DVD player. Wonder if I can find instructions on how to fix this myself online. Thanks for the tip :)It's the easiest money I ever made.... All tax free too I might add.
Shadow
03-26-2012, 07:55 AM
It's the easiest money I ever made.... All tax free too I might add.
That's the best kind...always a good feeling when you run into these kinds of opportunities too. I did once also... while living in another state, no extra money...and then kind of by accident found a place that sold old old books (some collectors editions) for .50 a piece. Bought many while I lived there,and then turned around and sold them on Ebay...some of them for $40.00 to $ 50.00.
Not really the same as using your technical skills but still...
Where did you sell your DVD's once fixed? And where did you buy the parts to fix them? Online? My Ex used to have certain contacts for real cheap computer parts online at one time...probably for other electronics too.
Anton Chigurh
03-26-2012, 08:02 AM
That's the best kind...always a good feeling when you run into these kinds of opportunities too. I did once also... while living in another state, no extra money...and then kind of by accident found a place that sold old old books (some collectors editions) for .50 a piece. Bought many while I lived there,and then turned around and sold them on Ebay...some of them for $40.00 to $ 50.00. Not really the same as using your technical skills but still... Where did you sell your DVD's once fixed? And where did you buy the parts to fix them? Online? My Ex used to have certain contacts for real cheap computer parts online at one time...probably for other electronics too.There was a time in this country where they had this wonderful thing called Radio Shack, where they kept in stock a very wide selection of electronic parts and components - you could even get vacuum tubes tested and replaced - perchance that one might actually be able to repair radios and stuff. Today if you walk into one of those looking for a component part, all you get are dumb looks. Actually today, if you walk into one of those looking for ANYTHING, you get dumb looks. For selling the repaired CD and DVD players I had a running classified advert in the local paper. Sometimes i would even take these units back to the pawn shop I bought it from and sell it back for $20. They never got the clue that, 'hey, we could be fixing these ourselves and selling them instead of pricing them at $5 because they don't work.'
Shadow
03-26-2012, 08:32 AM
There was a time in this country where they had this wonderful thing called Radio Shack, where they kept in stock a very wide selection of electronic parts and components - you could even get vacuum tubes tested and replaced - perchance that one might actually be able to repair radios and stuff. Today if you walk into one of those looking for a component part, all you get are dumb looks. Actually today, if you walk into one of those looking for ANYTHING, you get dumb looks. For selling the repaired CD and DVD players I had a running classified advert in the local paper. Sometimes i would even take these units back to the pawn shop I bought it from and sell it back for $20. They never got the clue that, 'hey, we could be fixing these ourselves and selling them instead of pricing them at $5 because they don't work.'
Well...the Radio Shacks around here are definately smaller than they used to be....and harder to find. I went into one last Christmas just to look around. About the only thing they sell is go go gadgets for your Ipad,cell phone,laptops,Mp3 players etc. Saftey covers...chargers,headphones and not much else. They may have had netbooks and some car radios... but if they did I sure don't remember being impressed.
Lucky for you the pawn shops never got a clue....that meant extra cash in your pocket.
Anton Chigurh
03-26-2012, 08:51 AM
BUT... The blue dashboard/instrument panel lights ARE easier to read and prettier then the amber ones or the green ones.
Shadow
03-26-2012, 07:23 PM
BUT... The blue dashboard/instrument panel lights ARE easier to read and prettier then the amber ones or the green ones.
Are you stalking me?? You better not be planning on showing me your boo boo's. :evilras:
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