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When to replace thermal compound?

GER_T4IGA
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My idle temps seem OK but my load temps are almost rising every day.

Used my PC normaly for about 2 years now.

To be fair it is extarordinary hot hear this summer.

My load temps on my GPU jumped from (when I bought it) ~58°C (100% load and 100% Fan speed)

to (now) ~70°C (100% load and 100% Fan speed). Is it bad? Ambiwnts are (if I have to guess ~5°C higher than normally - so it is about ~25°C).

I will have a closer look at my CPU but I can for sure say ti has risen in the past time as well. Don't have specific numbers though.

Yes my case is vented correctly with 140mm intake and 140mm exhaust. Should I go 2 for intake though? (Fractal Design Define R4).

Any ideas about anything?

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/334934-unofficial-ltt-beginners-guide/ (by Minibois) and a few things that will make our community interaction more pleasent:
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If I were you I would do some sprin cleaning.  Take your system apart clean everything up. put new thermal past on and g from there.

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I'd have to agree with manikyath. If you haven't cleaned out your PC in the 2 years you've had it you'll want to do that. Personally I do a complete teardown of my PC's every 4-5 months. I take off heatsinks and shrouds, blow all the dust out, and reapply all my thermal pastes. Good luck!

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My idle temps seem OK but my load temps are almost rising every day.

Used my PC normaly for about 2 years now.

To be fair it is extarordinary hot hear this summer.

My load temps on my GPU jumped from (when I bought it) ~58°C (100% load and 100% Fan speed)

to (now) ~70°C (100% load and 100% Fan speed). Is it bad? Ambiwnts are (if I have to guess ~5°C higher than normally - so it is about ~25°C).

I will have a closer look at my CPU but I can for sure say ti has risen in the past time as well. Don't have specific numbers though.

Yes my case is vented correctly with 140mm intake and 140mm exhaust. Should I go 2 for intake though? (Fractal Design Define R4).

Any ideas about anything?

Most GPU's are safe to about 90C. Most CPU's are safe to 70+C. As mentioned before, check the dust. Make sure you hold the fans though! Don't wanna kill the ball bearings~

GIGABYTE Z97MX-G5 | 16GB DDR3 | I5 4690k @ 4.4ghz | 1TB SSHD, 500GB HDD, 128GB SSD | GTX 1070 8GB | Corsair Graphite 230 | EVGA 650W | Hyper 212 EVO

 

Cinebench R15: 636(all cores), 127FPS

 

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My idle temps seem OK but my load temps are almost rising every day.

Used my PC normaly for about 2 years now.

To be fair it is extarordinary hot hear this summer.

My load temps on my GPU jumped from (when I bought it) ~58°C (100% load and 100% Fan speed)

to (now) ~70°C (100% load and 100% Fan speed). Is it bad? Ambiwnts are (if I have to guess ~5°C higher than normally - so it is about ~25°C).

I will have a closer look at my CPU but I can for sure say ti has risen in the past time as well. Don't have specific numbers though.

Yes my case is vented correctly with 140mm intake and 140mm exhaust. Should I go 2 for intake though? (Fractal Design Define R4).

Any ideas about anything?

Well, it's probably not a bad idea to replace your thermal paste. That stuff is pretty cheap and on some cards the pre-applied thermal paste might not be that great.

For example by second Gigabyte G1 Gaming had pretty bad thermal paste. I replaced it and it lowered the temps by around 4 - 6°C, which  is definitly not bad for a quick thermal paste change.

But you might want to have a look at your dust situation first. There might just be a lot of dust in your front filters or in the GPU fins, which could cause the temperatures to rise.

Also if you only have one 140mm fan as an intake in the front, then I'd recomment to get another one, just to get a little more air into the case.

 

 

 

 

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When you say 'rising every day' :L I'm hoping that's a exaggeration or you're measuring in very small units. If this is the exact! same unit as it was 2 years ago then adding more fans isn't really going to solve the deeper issue here.

 

As others have stated 100% clean out your system, but also take a look at the programs you have installed, maybe something is putting strain on the CPU and heating things up accordingly.

 

It's also very difficult to tell if this fluctuation is considered normal due to not having any ambient temperature data i.e you say its hot at the moment... Maybe when you took temperatures two years ago it was cold?

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I'd have to agree with manikyath. If you haven't cleaned out your PC in the 2 years you've had it you'll want to do that. Personally I do a complete teardown of my PC's every 4-5 months. I take off heatsinks and shrouds, blow all the dust out, and reapply all my thermal pastes. Good luck!

why???? 

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why???? 

My house tends to be very dusty, so in my case I would clean out my computer at about 5 month intervals. From the dust that I cleaned out each time I saw a drop in temps of about 8-9 degrees celsius. And when you take off a heatsink from  a card or CPU you have to reapply thermal paste. :)

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Only time you should need to replace thermal paste is when you remove the cooler. Other then that, leave it as it. And others have already posted, dust the PC. I do that at least once a year. 6 Months would be better but Im lazy lol.

PC Audio Setup = Beyerdynamic DT 770 pro 80 ohm and Sennheiser pc37x (also for xbox) hooked up to Schiit Fulla 3

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hows the dust going on? i feel like this is a dust issue, not a paste issue.

I've had a look at it. it is not pretty but also not bad, some dust in the fins ans some on the fans but only a visual little bit. I have an intake filter.

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/334934-unofficial-ltt-beginners-guide/ (by Minibois) and a few things that will make our community interaction more pleasent:
1. FOLLOW your own topics                                                                                2.Try to QUOTE people so we can read through things easier
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Most GPU's are safe to about 90C. Most CPU's are safe to 70+C. As mentioned before, check the dust. Make sure you hold the fans though! Don't wanna kill the ball bearings~

How would I kill the bearings?? Just didn't get it, sry.

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/334934-unofficial-ltt-beginners-guide/ (by Minibois) and a few things that will make our community interaction more pleasent:
1. FOLLOW your own topics                                                                                2.Try to QUOTE people so we can read through things easier
3.Use PCPARTPICKER.COM - easy and most importantly approved here        4.Mark your topics SOLVED if they are                                Don't change a running system

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http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352020 you have this case?, if you do you should have more than just 2 fans, blow the dust out of your entire rig.

Why should I have more fans? 2x 140mm seems pretty fine to me. I could maybe add another 120mm but I don't yet se any reason. therefore I am asking for some reasons right here and now.

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/334934-unofficial-ltt-beginners-guide/ (by Minibois) and a few things that will make our community interaction more pleasent:
1. FOLLOW your own topics                                                                                2.Try to QUOTE people so we can read through things easier
3.Use PCPARTPICKER.COM - easy and most importantly approved here        4.Mark your topics SOLVED if they are                                Don't change a running system

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When you say 'rising every day' :L I'm hoping that's a exaggeration or you're measuring in very small units. If this is the exact! same unit as it was 2 years ago then adding more fans isn't really going to solve the deeper issue here.

 

As others have stated 100% clean out your system, but also take a look at the programs you have installed, maybe something is putting strain on the CPU and heating things up accordingly.

 

It's also very difficult to tell if this fluctuation is considered normal due to not having any ambient temperature data i.e you say its hot at the moment... Maybe when you took temperatures two years ago it was cold?

Of course "every day" is an exaggeration it is more like per month ~1°C (evaluated by feeling).

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/334934-unofficial-ltt-beginners-guide/ (by Minibois) and a few things that will make our community interaction more pleasent:
1. FOLLOW your own topics                                                                                2.Try to QUOTE people so we can read through things easier
3.Use PCPARTPICKER.COM - easy and most importantly approved here        4.Mark your topics SOLVED if they are                                Don't change a running system

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Why should I have more fans? 2x 140mm seems pretty fine to me. I could maybe add another 120mm but I don't yet se any reason. therefore I am asking for some reasons right here and now.

you just said that your gpu is running hot, the temp inside your case affects temps of your gpu also, if you have better air flow moving cold air in and hot air out, naturally your gpu temps would be lower,

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-snip-

 

-snip-

 

-snip-

 

-snip-

What thermal paste can you reccommend. Do I need different ones for my CPU adn GPU?

Is one "pack" enough" for both?(quantitively)

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/334934-unofficial-ltt-beginners-guide/ (by Minibois) and a few things that will make our community interaction more pleasent:
1. FOLLOW your own topics                                                                                2.Try to QUOTE people so we can read through things easier
3.Use PCPARTPICKER.COM - easy and most importantly approved here        4.Mark your topics SOLVED if they are                                Don't change a running system

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What thermal paste can you reccommend. Do I need different ones for my CPU adn GPU?

Is one "pack" enough" for both?(quantitively)

I use Arctic MX-4 which a lot of people say works better for GPUs than most of the other thermal pastes. I don't know if that's true, but it's definitly a good thermal paste for your GPU and CPU.

It comes in a 20g package which is enough for maybe 50-100* processing units I would guess.

*Can not tell for sure. It's definitly enough for a few systems.

 

 

 

 

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What thermal paste can you reccommend. Do I need different ones for my CPU adn GPU?

Is one "pack" enough" for both?(quantitively)

Arctic MX-4 really is a great paste (as mentioned above ^) and if i remember correctly it is an arcylic based thermal compound. What this means is that while your initial temps after applying MX-4 will be good the paste will cure over time, harden, and become more effective at transferring heat. What this translates to is a drop of temperature of I think 4-5 degrees lower than initial application temperature as the paste cures. As far as the paste being enough goes? Undoubtedly it will be enough, you hardly need to use any of this stuff when you put it on a CPU or GPU.

 

The on thing I would advise you to do is to make sure you clean the actual chip surface off completely for the best performance of the new paste :)

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What thermal paste can you reccommend. Do I need different ones for my CPU adn GPU?

Is one "pack" enough" for both?(quantitively)

MX-4, PK-1, PK-2, STG2, NT-H1, Thermal Grizzly Hydronaut and Kryonaut, any of those will do a fine job, not a tangible difference between them, just get whatever is the cheapest. There will be a lot left over, for example a 3.5 gram STG2 tube i have has been used at least 10 times and there is still some left. Be sure to buy isopropyl alcohol at least 70% for cleaning the old thermal paste and use a microfiber cloth or a coffee filter to clean it. Watch a couple of tutorials online, it's really not hard at all.

System

  • CPU
    I7-4790K @ 4,7GHz
  • Motherboard
    Asus MAXIMUS Formula VI
  • RAM
    Kingston HyperX FURY 16GB Kit (2x8GB) 1866MHz
  • GPU
    MSI GTX 1070 Gaming X
  • Case
    Cooler Master Cosmos SE
  • Storage
    Samsung 840 EVO 500GB+WD Green 3TB
  • PSU
    EVGA SuperNOVA 850G2 80PLUS Gold Certified
  • Display(s)
    ASUS PB277Q 27" WQHD 2560x1440 75Hz 1ms
  • Cooling
    Corsair H105 with AP121s and Phanteks fans
  • Keyboard
    Logitech G610 Orion
  • Mouse
    E-3lue E-Blue Mazer II 2500 DPI Blue LED 2.4GHz Wireless Optical Gaming Mouse
  • Sound
    Audio-Technica ATH-M20x
  • Operating System
    Windows 10
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Why should I have more fans? 2x 140mm seems pretty fine to me. I could maybe add another 120mm but I don't yet se any reason. therefore I am asking for some reasons right here and now.

The Define R4 is a great case but since it's optimized for silence, the airflow, particularly front, is restricted, so i would have at least 2 140mm fans intaking from the front, and maybe one on the bottom or side (depending on your specific case and assuming you don't wanna remove the modu vents) and the single exhaust in the rear. Right now, you probably have slightly negative air pressure, since the rear fan has no restriction while the front one has a lot, to compensate for that, easiest way is to add a third and even a fourth fan. It will also provide a lot more airflow, keeping your components, particularly GPU, cooler.

System

  • CPU
    I7-4790K @ 4,7GHz
  • Motherboard
    Asus MAXIMUS Formula VI
  • RAM
    Kingston HyperX FURY 16GB Kit (2x8GB) 1866MHz
  • GPU
    MSI GTX 1070 Gaming X
  • Case
    Cooler Master Cosmos SE
  • Storage
    Samsung 840 EVO 500GB+WD Green 3TB
  • PSU
    EVGA SuperNOVA 850G2 80PLUS Gold Certified
  • Display(s)
    ASUS PB277Q 27" WQHD 2560x1440 75Hz 1ms
  • Cooling
    Corsair H105 with AP121s and Phanteks fans
  • Keyboard
    Logitech G610 Orion
  • Mouse
    E-3lue E-Blue Mazer II 2500 DPI Blue LED 2.4GHz Wireless Optical Gaming Mouse
  • Sound
    Audio-Technica ATH-M20x
  • Operating System
    Windows 10
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How would I kill the bearings?? Just didn't get it, sry.

 

Well, when you blast air at the fans and they spin really really fast, you make the fans spin at a speed far exceeding what they were designed for. This causes the bearings to overheat / damage themselves. Most fans usually top off at 2000-3000ish RPM. When you apply a large blast of air (Like canned air), it's really easy to get the fans spinning faster than that. It's just really good practice to hold the fans down or remove them while cleaning.

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How would I kill the bearings?? Just didn't get it, sry.

It can over-spin them for what the ball bearings are meant to be able to do and damage the casing that holds them, making it not work properly after that.

GIGABYTE Z97MX-G5 | 16GB DDR3 | I5 4690k @ 4.4ghz | 1TB SSHD, 500GB HDD, 128GB SSD | GTX 1070 8GB | Corsair Graphite 230 | EVGA 650W | Hyper 212 EVO

 

Cinebench R15: 636(all cores), 127FPS

 

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Well, when you blast air at the fans and they spin really really fast, you make the fans spin at a speed far exceeding what they were designed for. This causes the bearings to overheat / damage themselves. Most fans usually top off at 2000-3000ish RPM. When you apply a large blast of air (Like canned air), it's really easy to get the fans spinning faster than that. It's just really good practice to hold the fans down or remove them while cleaning.

It can over-spin them for what the ball bearings are meant to be able to do and damage the casing that holds them, making it not work properly after that.

K thx. I would never have been so careless. Thanks for explaining what you mean though.

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/334934-unofficial-ltt-beginners-guide/ (by Minibois) and a few things that will make our community interaction more pleasent:
1. FOLLOW your own topics                                                                                2.Try to QUOTE people so we can read through things easier
3.Use PCPARTPICKER.COM - easy and most importantly approved here        4.Mark your topics SOLVED if they are                                Don't change a running system

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