First heatsink install...

B

bobjones

Weaksauce
Joined
Sep 19, 2006
Messages
112
So I just installed my first heatsink...the infinity...jesus was that a bitch.

applying the thermal grease was a pain, and i'm not sure i did it correctly.
i put a little on the cpu, then used a clean razor to spread it the best i could.
it looked like i was scrapping some off in the process, so i put a little more on till i got a semi-even load across the plate.

then i did the same thing for the heatsink, mainly concentrating on the areas where it was going to come in contact with the cpu. (i cleaned it first with some rubbing alcohol and q-tips)

i installed using this guide

http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=117054

but i'm not sure if i tightened down the infinity enough / too much. the motherboard seems to be bending a little...

so how / when am in going to be able to tell if i did it correctly? am i just going to have to wait till i boot up (assuming it boots) and see if the temp is in a reasonable range?
 
It sounds like you may have been a little heavy handed with the thermal paste.
There are a million different opinions on this subject, but my opinion has always been that less is better. All thermal paste is designed to do is fill in the unfinished "grooves" in the heatsink. That's it. If you properly "lap" your heatsink, you'll need even less. When applied properly, you should hardly even notice there is anything there at all.

Just double check and make sure that you tightend everything down evenly, and not overly tight, and you should be ok...
 
It can overheat. I typically use no more than a small pea sized drop or a raindrop for my opterons and they have the massive heat spreader. It does not take alot.
 
yeah i kept reading that it doesnt take alot, so to start with i only put a little drop on.

but the more i kept spreading to get an even layer, the less and less seemed to be on the surface. i didn't think leaving open spaces was good (without and grease on it), so i just put a little dab more on.
 
Here are some instructions on applying some Arctic Silver onto a processor/heatsink. Most people I know follow some variant of these instructions (and a lot of people, myself included, use Arctic Silver) whenever they're applying thermal compound.

For me, it was trial and error: it took me six times to place the proper amount of compound on my last heatsink. (Then again, I was trying to cool down a Pentium 4 550 at the time, which may explain why it was so difficult....)
 
For me, it was trial and error: it took me six times to place the proper amount of compound on my last heatsink
Click to expand...

howd you know when you had put too much / too little?

DO NOT REMOVE THE HEATSINK FROM THE CPU TO LOOK AT THE COMPOUND ONCE YOU HAVE MOUNTED THE HEATSINK. This will introduce air into the interface layer and require a fresh application.
Click to expand...

from that link you posted

looks like i need to remount for sure...as i tried to mount with stock mounting and couldnt get all the clips on. so i took it off (after the heatsink had already touched the cpu) and mounted with some screws. i did even the grease back out...but i guess i really needed a fresh layer.
 
I used the P4 550 line as a joke, but until I did it correctly, my motheboard wouldn't let me boot properly becuase too much heat was being generated. (It's a very long story that's really not important enough to tell....) I ended up lapping my heatsink (for, I believe, the third time), applied the Arctic Silver based on the instructions, and it worked. (Sadly, I used the instructions for the first couple of times with no sucess... so I guess it was dumb luck on my part....)

Like everyone else have said, you don't really need a lot of compound... 1) the actual CPU portion is very small (why else are they measured in nanometers?), and 2) when you press down on the processor with the HSF, the weight will spread the compound out further. When you reapply the compound, let the computer run for at least 24 hours -- and use a benchmark/CPU stress tool (like Prime95) to make sure that you don't receive any errors.
 
what CPU are you installing? If its a newer CPU with an IHS (all you see is the metal plate, not the cpu core), then you don't have to spread out the as5 at all - the pressure from the heatsink will spread it for you.
 
thanks for the great links.

i reinstalled it and i feel much better about it this time (i did use WAY too much before)
 
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