Thermal Paste Question...

[tickleonthetum]

Well, I'm still slowly refining my upgrade plans but I'm a bit stumped on the subject of Thermal Paste.

I read up what I could on the Net and from what I understand, most of them have to be reapplied once a year. Except for Arctic Cooling MX-2. Is this correct? Ideally I would like to avoid having to reapply it every year if possible as I'm disabled and find it a bit tricky.

For reference here's the upgrade plan that is relevant:

Intel i7 920 OC to 3.3-3.6 (more if feel confident)
Asus P6T Deluxe V2
ThermalRight Ultra 120 Extreme 1366RT Kit
2nd ThermalRight HS fan & Holder (Push/Pull)
Current Case has 120mm exhaust fan next to CPU, hoping to get a Coolermaster RC-1100 V2 Cosmos S next year.

So what do you think my best option would be?

[LuckyNV]

It isn't necessary to reapply the paste, I would just go for MX-2 and not worry about it. I use it and its easy to apply.
You don't need to spread it manually either (people will debate this, but it really does not make a notable difference)

[0iD]

Meh, I've never had to re-apply thermal paste every year, be it Arctic Silver, Ceramiq or whatever, with no noticeable performance loss.

[TAKTAK]

Meh, I've never had to re-apply thermal paste every year, be it Arctic Silver, Ceramiq or whatever, with no noticeable performance loss.

^^ this

Once the paste has cured, it's cured...
It doesn't really deteriorate, you only need to change it if you remove the heatsink.

[Georgy291]

its not something that doesn much good anyway,

thermal paste is only used to fill gaps

the heat transfere between metal and metal is much better than metal paste then metal. its just cpu and heatsink arent perfectly flat so you need some, but the less off it there is the better


(source : my dad is a electronic engeneer and always keeps telling me not to apply more than a tiny drop off it)

[JordanWillis]

It is not neccessary to replace it one every year aslong as you get a reputable brand such as AS5 or Chill factor 2. These pastes are designed to last years without being reapplied. I remember reading on one of them that it only neede to be replaced once every 8 years.

[tickleonthetum]

Thanks for all the advice folks. It helps a lot.