CPU very hot after reapplying thermal paste and I have no idea why

[Peika]

I just reapplied thermal paste and my CPU is idling on 80+ degrees (it kept getting hotter). The fan is spinning. I cleaned both the sink and CPU properly with arcticlean thermal remover and purifier and coffee filters and put a good amount of new MX-4 on top. I just don't understand what went wrong.

[xdeathshot20]

possible that you are not making good contact with the cpu, basically your mount aint that good.  Take off the cooler and see if the paste spread out over the cpu and that will tell you how good of a mounting job you did

[Guest]

possibly the mounting pressure or position

[Peika]

1 minute ago, xdeathshot20 said:

possible that you are not making good contact with the cpu, basically your mount aint that good.  Take off the cooler and see if the paste spread out over the cpu and that will tell you how good of a mounting job you did

Also if it's good should I reapply again?

[Guest]

what cooler and mounting type are you using?

In my experience it's not how tight the mounting pressure is rather how even it is at each corner or side.

Just do your best to get the pressure even.

Don't over tighten, you don't want to break anything.

 

Also, bear in mind the curing process which basically means new paste needs to go through a heating and cooling cycle to reach its peak performance. If you are basing your measurements immediately after applying you might want to wait a while.

That being said, 80c at idle seems like a mounting issue to me.

 

source: https://www.gamersnexus.net/guides/2137-thermalpaste-types-conductivity-and-more

[Stahlmann]

 

1 minute ago, Shabba said:

In my experience it's not how tight the mounting pressure is rather how even it is at each corner or side.

Just do your best to get the pressure even.

Don't over tighten, you don't want to break anything.

There has to be a certain pressure to make proper contact. Most cooler's screws are made specifically to bottom out when you have enough pressure.

[Peika]

So I turned off my pc and pressed the cooler a bit harder onto the board and now the temps are half as high, so I guess it's solved fortunately

[Guest]

1 minute ago, Stahlmann said:

 

There has to be a certain pressure to make proper contact. Most cooler's screws are made specifically to bottom out when you have enough pressure.

agreed, it needs to be tight but its still possible to break stuff if you keep trying to tighten