does thermal paste degrade with time?

[ZaO]

I think it depends on the composition of the TIM. I know some types need time to 'cure', at which point it reaches its optimum thermal properties. I don't know about Arctic Silver, but I know the MX TIMs made by Arctic Cooling are supposed to be good for 8 years (or at least, that's what is says on the packet!).

Yeh I remember the Arctic Silver site saying it takes a few temperature cycles of heating up and cooling down for the compound to reach its full potential..

agreed, TIM is only to bridge the interstices. I applied mine with a business card drawn over the mount. can't remember the rest of the details now. It was some online tutorial thing I found at the time. Think it was something like "prepare the two surfaces using the business card scrape technique (virtually nothing left on the surface) pea sized blob in the middle of the CPU (or depending where your cores are - had a nice series of pictures for suggested blob-arrangement depending on chip architecture) and then stick that chunk of metal on top and clamp the thing shut....

Case is fully de-dusted using vacuum and air duster. Confident it isn't dust build up. Though the GPU might need a bit more love... I actually have a spare I got for SLI until I realised I'd bought the wrong motherboard (cough) so I can swap it out and see what difference that makes.

I just need a weekend when I have some time. Being married really eats your free time. Suddenly your diary is full of things you haven't planned and know nothing about. :|

Apparently you shouldn't use a hoover to clean dust from your computer. It can cause static build up and damage components, or something..

[Agent]

Apparently you shouldn't use a hoover to clean dust from your computer. It can cause static build up and damage components, or something..

It's more about knocking components off accidental rather than static. As long as your machine is grounded, that's not really too much of a concern. Not that I'm convinced by the entire vacuum = static thing. I've searched about it a few times but never found anything compelling.

[crossy]

agreed, TIM is only to bridge the interstices. I applied mine with a business card drawn over the mount. can't remember the rest of the details now. It was some online tutorial thing I found at the time. Think it was something like "prepare the two surfaces using the business card scrape technique (virtually nothing left on the surface) pea sized blob in the middle of the CPU (or depending where your cores are - had a nice series of pictures for suggested blob-arrangement depending on chip architecture) and then stick that chunk of metal on top and clamp the thing shut....

That's the "approved" way to apply AS5 - although AS say to use a credit card or similar hard plastic edge to do that pre-application priming (AS call that "tinting" btw). I just checked the AS site and hadn't realised that there appears to be three distinct ways to apply the TIM - a blob, a vertical line, or a retint. Which version you use depending on which processor is being used, i.e. blob for mainly AMD processors, line for Intel, and retint for mobile. Live and learn!

Yeh I remember the Arctic Silver site saying it takes a few temperature cycles of heating up and cooling down for the compound to reach its full potential..

AS state:

Then the compound thickens slightly over the next 50 to 200 hours of use to its final consistency designed for long-term stability.

and the application instructions seem to state that it's more likely to be 200 than 50. Oh and on the subject of separation AS say:

Arctic Silver 5 will not separate, run, migrate, or bleed.

Apparently you shouldn't use a hoover to clean dust from your computer. It can cause static build up and damage components, or something..

Yes, I got an object lesson in that from a colleague. So his story goes ... he turned off the PC and removed side plate, then went a-huntin' them thar pesky dust bunnies with his trusty vacuum - a fairly new "premium" model with a substantial amount of suction. At some point he left the crevice-nozzle equipped vacuum pointing at the bridge chip's HSF and was surprised to see the motherboard power light start to glow. This glow got brighter until there was a small, but clearly audible, pop and a puff of smoke from somewhere around the bridge. After that the PC refused to power up - something on the motherboard was apparently now "toast".

As the old cliche says ... the cheapest and least painful lessons are those that others learn.

[peterb]

It's more about knocking components off accidental rather than static. As long as your machine is grounded, that's not really too much of a concern. Not that I'm convinced by the entire vacuum = static thing. I've searched about it a few times but never found anything compelling.

I'd agree with that, and that could tie in with crossy's story above - not a static problem (not enough power to illuminate an LED) but dislodging a wire (unplug the machine first!)

There are well documented cases of explosions in premises like flour mills where the fast movement of the particles of flour builds up enough static to cause a spark which ignites the flour, and I believe the same thing can happen with fast pumping of volatile hydrocarbon fuel like petrol, unless proper grounding of pipes is in place.

Helicopters also build up static charges in flight as the rotor blades rotate in the air, and that can cause a spark when it is discharged, so the fast movement of air can cause a static build up on insulated material.

So, with regard to cleaning computers...

Yes, there is a theoretical risk, but the vacuum is unlikely to be operating for long. The computer case should be grounded, and it would be best not to let the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner touch any component.

There is also a theoretical danger of back EMF from a fan being forced to rotate by the passage of air caused by the vacuum (windmill effect) so better to try to avoid that.

That said, I vacuum the inside of my computer case without taking any precautions other than those listed above, so far without problems! (Touches wood )

[ZaO]

Yeh I was never too sure about that whole problem with vaccuming computers. I don't do it myself, just incase..

[ik9000]

well I've done it and obviously I only do it with the power OFF. The cable in, to maintain that earth, and a degree of gusto/reckless abandon that has worked so far. I try not to touch the motherboard caps etc, but wouldn't worry too much about the CPU cooler block. Blow compressed air in one side of the thing while vacuum is by the other side.

The old P4 rig I took the CPU fans right off and vacuumed that block to kingdom come. Pressed the thing right in there. Reassembled and it all worked just fine.

[ZaO]

well I've done it and obviously I only do it with the power OFF. The cable in, to maintain that earth, and a degree of gusto/reckless abandon that has worked so far. I try not to touch the motherboard caps etc, but wouldn't worry too much about the CPU cooler block. Blow compressed air in one side of the thing while vacuum is by the other side.

The old P4 rig I took the CPU fans right off and vacuumed that block to kingdom come. Pressed the thing right in there. Reassembled and it all worked just fine.

I think this situation is a bit like the anti static pad/wristband one. I always use them because it's possible to cause damage from little shocks that you may not even notice. You may even cause some damage that doesn't actually completely break a component, so it may seem ok. But really you've affected it's performance and lifespan a little. Depends how much you care about the hardware I suppose. As I buy quite decent parts, I like to be careful