GPU fans spinning at very high speeds to cool down for 3 - 4 seconds before spinning quietly again

[StormClaw]

Hello!

 

A few months ago, during gaming my GPU started to whirr loudly like a vacuum cleaner  for a few seconds before spinning normally again.

I observed the gpu's temperatures and they seemed to be always steadily rising. Once it reaches over 85C+ (usually around 87C -88C) the GPU fans spin loudly only to cool the gpu down to about 80C~ before continuing the cycle all over again.

I originally assumed it was because of the bad airflow and dust buildup, but 2 days ago, after blowing the dust out of the GPU and switching to a new case (Phantex XT Pro Ultra) the GPU temps still gradually increase under load until the fans spin loudly again. I have tried upgrading drivers and tweaking graphics settings but to no avail. 

Any tips? I've read around here that 80 - under 90 temps during medium to intense gaming is fine, but is there a way to stop the gpu fans from going loud every 30 seconds or so?

Specs:

[YoungBlade]

You can use an application like Afterburner or Fan Control to set up a custom fan curve that's more optimal. However, that behavior sounds unusual.

 

Have you ever done a repaste on that graphics card? 4-5 years is a pretty typical time for thermal paste to start drying out.

[KidKid]

13 minutes ago, StormClaw said:

Hello!

 

A few months ago, during gaming my GPU started to whirr loudly like a vacuum cleaner  for a few seconds before spinning normally again.

I observed the gpu's temperatures and they seemed to be always steadily rising. Once it reaches over 85C+ (usually around 87C -88C) the GPU fans spin loudly only to cool the gpu down to about 80C~ before continuing the cycle all over again.

I originally assumed it was because of the bad airflow and dust buildup, but 2 days ago, after blowing the dust out of the GPU and switching to a new case (Phantex XT Pro Ultra) the GPU temps still gradually increase under load until the fans spin loudly again. I have tried upgrading drivers and tweaking graphics settings but to no avail. 

Any tips? I've read around here that 80 - under 90 temps during medium to intense gaming is fine, but is there a way to stop the gpu fans from going loud every 30 seconds or so?

Specs:

Did you overclock the GPU? Did you ever re-apply the GPU thermal paste? I think it's time to apply new thermal paste, since this sounds like an issue that gradually gets worse, and didn't just start all of a sudden (which is a good thing).

[StormClaw]

2 minutes ago, YoungBlade said:

You can use an application like Afterburner or Fan Control to set up a custom fan curve that's more optimal. However, that behavior sounds unusual.

 

Have you ever done a repaste on that graphics card? 4-5 years is a pretty typical time for thermal paste to start drying out.

I haven't tried a repaste yet and i currently don't have any thermal paste at hand at the moment. Though a nearby store that has some opens again tomorrow. So i could give that a try

[StormClaw]

6 minutes ago, KidKid said:

Did you overclock the GPU? Did you ever re-apply the GPU thermal paste, or take the GPU apart?

I haven't touched Overclocking currently, and i haven't tried re-applying the gpu thermal paste yet

[KidKid]

6 minutes ago, StormClaw said:

I haven't touched Overclocking currently, and i haven't tried re-applying the gpu thermal paste yet

How old is your GPU?

[StormClaw]

1 minute ago, KidKid said:

How old is your GPU?

I got it with a prebuildt, originally being a HP Omen 25L around 4 years ago in 2021

[KidKid]

Just now, StormClaw said:

I got it with a prebuildt, originally being a HP Omen 25L around 4 years ago in 2021

Yeah, it's probably time to redo the thermal paste.

[StormClaw]

25 minutes ago, KidKid said:

Yeah, it's probably time to redo the thermal paste.

Alright thank you. I'll get some thermal paste tomorrow and update you on if it works or not

[StormClaw]

21 hours ago, KidKid said:

Yeah, it's probably time to redo the thermal paste.

Hello again!

 

I opened my gpu to re-paste it. Once it was opened i noticed these old thermal pads. They seem old and some are ripped.

 

Can these be changed to thermal paste? Or are thermal pads required? 

 

(It's a HP rtx 3070 that was included with the HP Omen 25L)

[KidKid]

59 minutes ago, StormClaw said:

Hello again!

 

I opened my gpu to re-paste it. Once it was opened i noticed these old thermal pads. They seem old and some are ripped.

 

Can these be changed to thermal paste? Or are thermal pads required? 

 

(It's a HP rtx 3070 that was included with the HP Omen 25L)

Either will do

[StormClaw]

1 hour ago, KidKid said:

Either will do

I carefully removed the old thermal pads and applied some thermal paste to where each one was. After screwing the gpu back together i tested out some games i knew had the mentioned issue of the fans, and the GPU fans didn't whirr loudly to cool down anymore, so thank you very much for the help! 

 

The highest temps i saw were around 86C~ ish with Mortal kombat 11

And STEEP peaked at around 91C~

 

Would you reccomend getting some New thermal pads where the old ones used to be? If not, could that lead to issues of overheating later down the line? 

[KidKid]

3 hours ago, StormClaw said:

I carefully removed the old thermal pads and applied some thermal paste to where each one was. After screwing the gpu back together i tested out some games i knew had the mentioned issue of the fans, and the GPU fans didn't whirr loudly to cool down anymore, so thank you very much for the help! 

 

The highest temps i saw were around 86C~ ish with Mortal kombat 11

And STEEP peaked at around 91C~

 

Would you reccomend getting some New thermal pads where the old ones used to be? If not, could that lead to issues of overheating later down the line? 

Yes, it looks like you removed the VRAM's thermal pads. You may want to put thermal paste there as well, if you have leftover. Those temps are acceptable but seem a bit high.

[StormClaw]

9 minutes ago, KidKid said:

Yes, it looks like you removed the VRAM's thermal pads. You may want to put thermal paste there as well, if you have leftover. Those temps are acceptable but seem a bit high.

While the gpu temps are usable but still high, i am still a little worried. I ordered some new thermal pads to replace the old ripped ones that fit the GPU. I can update you on the performance once i've installed them 

[KidKid]

2 hours ago, StormClaw said:

While the gpu temps are usable but still high, i am still a little worried. I ordered some new thermal pads to replace the old ripped ones that fit the GPU. I can update you on the performance once i've installed them 

Yes, good. Thermal pads are easy, because you know you put the right amount.

 

So you're replacing your new thermal paste with the new thermal pads?

[StormClaw]

8 hours ago, KidKid said:

Yes, good. Thermal pads are easy, because you know you put the right amount.

 

So you're replacing your new thermal paste with the new thermal pads?

Well yes, atleast over the VRAM chips where the old ones were

[KidKid]

1 hour ago, StormClaw said:

Well yes, atleast over the VRAM chips where the old ones were

Good!

[KidKid]

13 hours ago, StormClaw said:

While the gpu temps are usable but still high, i am still a little worried. I ordered some new thermal pads to replace the old ripped ones that fit the GPU. I can update you on the performance once i've installed them 

Do you have Afterburner or Fan control? That way you can set the fans speed slightly higher - but not whirring high - just to keep the GPU a bit cooler.

[StormClaw]

10 minutes ago, KidKid said:

Do you have Afterburner or Fan control? That way you can set the fans speed slightly higher - but not whirring high - just to keep the GPU a bit cooler.

I have Afterburner installed, i'll try experimenting with some fan speeds

[StormClaw]

On 6/22/2025 at 2:38 PM, KidKid said:

Do you have Afterburner or Fan control? That way you can set the fans speed slightly higher - but not whirring high - just to keep the GPU a bit cooler.

Hello, It's me again. 

 

The thermal pads finally arrived today. I placed the thermal pads over the VRAM chips and screwed the GPU back together. Once i got my pc running again i noticed my idle temps were a little higher than they were before i installed the thermal pads, But i didn't think much of it. I went to boot up STEEP to test the thermals, and in the loading screen i heard the same Loud whirr from before i did anything with the GPU. I tried to look past it, thinking that it might have just been one time, But after loading in the game the loud whirring didn't stop, i lost signal to my monitor before i shut off my computer

 

What do i do? 

[YoungBlade]

Are those thermal pads the same thickness as the previous ones? If they are thicker, they might be preventing the cooler from making proper contact.

[KidKid]

10 minutes ago, StormClaw said:

Hello, It's me again. 

 

The thermal pads finally arrived today. I placed the thermal pads over the VRAM chips and screwed the GPU back together. Once i got my pc running again i noticed my idle temps were a little higher than they were before i installed the thermal pads, But i didn't think much of it. I went to boot up STEEP to test the thermals, and in the loading screen i heard the same Loud whirr from before i did anything with the GPU. I tried to look past it, thinking that it might have just been one time, But after loading in the game the loud whirring didn't stop, i lost signal to my monitor before i shut off my computer

 

What do i do? 

Did you put enough thermal paste on the GPU die?

[StormClaw]

Just now, YoungBlade said:

Are those thermal pads the same thickness as the previous ones? If they are thicker, they might be preventing the cooler from making proper contact.

Did some research and measured the old ones that was on it. They both said 2 mm so that's what i ordered

[StormClaw]

Just now, KidKid said:

Did you put enough thermal paste on the GPU die?

I added a tiny blob more atop what was shown in the image, but it might not have been enough in that case. I could take it out and apply a bit more

[KidKid]

38 minutes ago, StormClaw said:

I added a tiny blob more atop what was shown in the image, but it might not have been enough in that case. I could take it out and apply a bit more

Try that! Tell me what happens.