Liquid Metal on a 1080ti Founders Edition

[BanthaFodder23]

Hi - first post here so be kind!

I'm looking at experimenting with liquid metal in my PC, the only justification is that I don't really have much else to do other than tinker in lockdown (I'm in the UK) and it seemed like a pretty low cost (unless I brick something) thing to play around with.

 

Of the components I can replace the TIM on, my GPU is the one I care about bricking the least as I've been eyeing an upgrade - its also where I get the most thermal throttling, I can get between a 5/10 FPS boost (and a lot more stability) in some games by cranking the fans up to max using afterburner if I'm willing to deal with the sound.

 

The problem is; there is plenty of advice around saying you shouldn't do it, but I've found nothing reliable from people who have done it and what the results are.

 

Can anyone with any experience of this weigh in? My main concern is what the material on the GPU heat-sink is and that its not Aluminium (I'm aware of the chemistry around electrolysis and what happens to liquid metal applications over time).

 

I'm running:

-GTX 1080 ti Founders (No OC)

-Intel 8700k, OC'd to 4.88 mhz (with a beefy air cooler, no issues or throttling here)

-120hz, 3440 x 1400 monitor

 

NB. I'm aware this isn't the most sensible project, nor are the potential for gains that high. If anything this is practice for other projects I have in mind further down the line.

[Fasauceome]

There are some very high quality non-metal pastes that you could use to still boost your cooling performance.

[Windows9]

It is really difficult to apply and a lot can go wrong. I suggest to stick with thermal paste

[BanthaFodder23]

Thanks for the responses both

 

As I said, I'm 100% aware this sensible in terms of benefit and there is a lot can go wrong - the main appeal of this is the the challenge and to practice for other projects, so I'm not going to be easily dissuaded.

 

I'm mainly looking to see if anyone who's actually done it ran into any problems I could avoid, specifically around the heat-sink materials on my GPU.

 

@Fasauceome Out of interest, are there any specific pastes would you recommend more than others?

[Fasauceome]

5 minutes ago, BanthaFodder23 said:

Out of interest, are there any specific pastes would you recommend more than others?

Thermal grizzly kryonaut is pretty great for GPUs

[TheDankKoosh]

My advice would be a couple layers of clear nail polish on the SMDS surrounding the die, I believe that the cold plate should be copper so no worries for that, just make sure to completely avoid liquid metal contact with the aluminum on your heatsink as corrosion is nearly instant with most compounds. Gains will probably be in the 5 to 10c range since it's already a bare die on a mediocre cooler. Could be worse if your die or cold plate are concave/convex enough.

[ShadowChaser]

1 hour ago, BanthaFodder23 said:

Thanks for the responses both

 

As I said, I'm 100% aware this sensible in terms of benefit and there is a lot can go wrong - the main appeal of this is the the challenge and to practice for other projects, so I'm not going to be easily dissuaded.

 

I'm mainly looking to see if anyone who's actually done it ran into any problems I could avoid, specifically around the heat-sink materials on my GPU.

 

@Fasauceome Out of interest, are there any specific pastes would you recommend more than others?

Not the same but on the laptop side I've LMed CPUs and GPUs without much issue. The longest running LMed machine is now coming on 3 years and showing no signs of degradation. The main issue is to coat surrounding smds and be sure the clean both surfaces very, very, very well. For me, I lapped the heat sink coldplate before applying liquid metal as regardless of the TIM being used, less is always better. Make sure that your coldplate is something that does not get destroyed by liquid metal so it you're using copper or anything nickel plated you will be fine. Also, you will need far less than you think you will. Even after many applications I still tend to overshoot and have to deal with the clean up. Also don't expect too much of a drop in temp/boost in performance. You'll get something, of course, just not anything mind blowing. Good luck with your project!