Thermal paste is a must-have for anyone who builds PCs. It’s a necessary evil that helps your CPU and GPU maintain stable temperatures. If you buy new thermal paste with your video card or computer, you should be good to go. But if you’ve used the stock thermal paste from the previous graphics card, or if you’re upgrading from an older graphics card with substandard thermal paste, it might need some cleaning up. Thankfully, cleaning up old thermal paste isn’t difficult; there are just a few steps involved in the process. Read on to learn how to remove the old thermal paste from your video card and clean it up before applying new thermal paste!
How To Remove Old Thermal Paste
- Remove the video card from your computer. This is easiest if you have a tool that can remove the screws from the back of your PC without unplugging or removing anything else. If you don’t have one, you can remove the card by unscrewing it from its mounting plate.
- Use a pencil eraser to clean up any residue on the old thermal paste. Use care when you do this, as the thermal paste is still very hot! Don’t use too much pressure; just gently rub away any residue with an eraser tip to remove it.
- Mix the new thermal paste in a small dish with water and spread it out over your CPU and GPU heat sinks with a small brush or applicator sponge. Let it dry for 30 seconds, then re-apply in a thin layer over each heat sink. Be careful not to put too much on; too much paste can cause your video card to overheat and damage itself! Let this dry for another 30 seconds before installing your video card back into its case or mount plate.
- Reinstall your video card into its case or mounting plate, and plug in all of its cables (but leave them unplugged from power). You’re now ready to reinstall Windows 10 and start using your computer again!
What Is Thermal Paste?
Thermal paste is a substance that is applied between a computer’s CPU and GPU and an air cooler or water cooling radiator. This substance helps to transfer the heat more efficiently and prevents the CPU or GPU from overheating. Thermal paste was used in the older generations of computers but is now a standard when building a computer. The thermal paste is a necessity because if it isn’t there, the graphics card or CPU will heat and then cool down heating and cooling down repeatedly which will cause the card to break down over time. This substance is made of a variety of different compounds, such as metals, ceramics, or graphite. They have a very thin consistency when compared to other compounds and are applied between the CPU and GPU and between the cooler and the CPU or GPU. This is done by the user by placing a small amount of the substance on the CPU and GPU and then applying the cooler to it. The compound is then heated so that it can “melt” and create a strong bond between the computer parts.
How To Clean Thermal Paste From Video Card
- Take the back off your video card and remove the old thermal paste.
- Put some rubbing alcohol on a clean cloth and wipe the old thermal paste off of the video card.
- Clean up any residue with a pencil eraser or makeup sponge. Use care when you do this, as the thermal paste is still very hot! Don’t use too much pressure; just gently rub away any residue with an eraser tip to remove it. You can use your fingers if you need to.
- Mix some new thermal paste in a small dish with water and spread it out over your video card heat sink with a small brush or applicator sponge. Let this dry for 30 seconds, then re-apply in a thin layer over each heat sink. Be careful not to put too much on; too much paste can cause your video card to overheat and damage itself! Let this dry for another 30 seconds before installing your video card back into its case or mount plate.
- Reinstall your video card into its case or mounting plate, and plug in all of its cables (but leave them unplugged from power). You’re now ready to reinstall Windows 10 and start using your computer again!
Benefits Of Using Thermal Paste
- It protects your computer components from damage and helps them stay cool.
- It is an effective way to keep your CPU or GPU cool and running at peak performance for a longer time.
- It ensures that the heat generated by the computer does not transfer to the outside of the computer case.
- It decreases fan noise and increases the reliability of the cooling system through a superior thermal conductivity between the CPU and GPU.
- The thermal paste also acts as a cushion between different components mounted on the heat sink, which reduces vibration, thus increasing cooling efficiency due to lower air friction and better heat dissipation from one component to another.
- Thermal paste is non-conductive and therefore does not interfere with other electronic devices mounted on the same heat sink, such as fans or VRAM chips.
- Thermal paste provides an efficient thermal interface between two dissimilar materials (like plastic vs metal) by creating a barrier that prevents direct contact between these materials, thus ensuring an efficient transfer of heat generated by one component to another without voiding any warranty or causing any damage to any component in its path (for example damaged fan blades).
- Thermal paste is an effective way to maintain your computer components and keep them running at peak performance for a longer time.
- Thermal paste is non-conductive and therefore does not interfere with other electronic devices mounted on the same heat sink, such as fans or VRAM chips.
- Thermal paste provides an efficient thermal interface between two dissimilar materials (like plastic vs metal).
Best Thermal Paste For Your CPU?
Arctic Silver Thermal Paste
Arctic Silver Thermal Paste is a non-conductive thermal compound that is used to reduce the heat transfer between two dissimilar metals. This helps to increase the overall cooling effectiveness of a computer, especially during heavy CPU and GPU usage.
Arctic Cooling MX-4 Thermal Paste
Arctic Cooling MX-4 Thermal Paste is a non-conductive thermal compound that is used to reduce the heat transfer between two dissimilar metals. This helps to increase the overall cooling effectiveness of a computer, especially during heavy CPU and GPU usage.
Arctic Thermal Compound
Arctic Thermal Compound is a high-quality thermal compound that helps to reduce the heat transfer between two dissimilar metals by creating an airtight barrier. This helps to increase the overall cooling effectiveness of a computer, especially during heavy CPU and GPU usage.
Conclusion
Once you’ve removed the old thermal paste from the video card, you should clean it up using isopropyl alcohol and a clean rag. You’ll then want to apply new thermal paste to the GPU and CPU using the instructions above. Once you’ve cleaned up the old thermal paste, applied new thermal paste, and placed the video card back in your computer, you should see an immediate difference in your computer’s performance.
FAQs
What type of thermal paste should I use?
You’ll want to use a high-quality thermal compound that’s designed for computer components. This includes a compound that is compatible with the video card you have and is made specifically for computer components, such as CPU and GPU heatsinks. The best part about this type of thermal paste is that it has a higher melting point than most other types of thermal paste, so it will last longer than other types of thermal paste.
Do I need to keep the old thermal paste around?
Yes, you do! Some people like to keep their old thermal paste around in case they need to apply new or additional amounts of thermal paste in the future. This can be useful if your system overheats and needs additional cooling, or if you simply want to reapply more heat-transferring properties onto your component parts.
How long will the new thermal paste last?
The new thermal paste that you apply to your video card and CPU should last around six months before you’ll need to reapply it. However, the best way to determine how long your new thermal paste will last is to wait and see how your system performs with it for a few months.
