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How long does Artic Silver last?
- Thread starter DW82
- Start date
It's supposed to last a while, but the compound separates after a few years inside the bottle. Have you had it in the fridge? If not, I would just splurge for a new one. It's only 5 or 10 bucks for peace of mind.
I was looking into this myself actually (my bottle of as5 was about 3-4 years old), and I found a huge round-up of new thermal pastes with benchmarks and reviews. You can also look into those, and maybe try something new.
The ones that stood out for me were the IC Diamond (actual diamond powder in it for thermal absorption), and the OCZ freeze. I almost jumped for the diamond paste, but it's not readily available with the rest of my orders from major online shops (newegg, zipzoom, etc). I've also read that it is very, very hard to spread on your cpu. I'll be ordering OCZ Freeze with the rest of my build from newegg, seeing as it spreads very easily and posts nearly the same results.
Thermal Compound Round-Up (33 of em!)
Thermal Round-Up 2 (Different site)
I was looking into this myself actually (my bottle of as5 was about 3-4 years old), and I found a huge round-up of new thermal pastes with benchmarks and reviews. You can also look into those, and maybe try something new.
The ones that stood out for me were the IC Diamond (actual diamond powder in it for thermal absorption), and the OCZ freeze. I almost jumped for the diamond paste, but it's not readily available with the rest of my orders from major online shops (newegg, zipzoom, etc). I've also read that it is very, very hard to spread on your cpu. I'll be ordering OCZ Freeze with the rest of my build from newegg, seeing as it spreads very easily and posts nearly the same results.
Thermal Compound Round-Up (33 of em!)
Thermal Round-Up 2 (Different site)
It's supposed to last at least a few years, but it separates after a few years. Have you had it in the fridge? If not, I would just splurge for a new bottle. It's only 5 or 10 bucks for peace of mind.
I was looking into this myself actually (my bottle of as5 was about 3-4 years old), and I found a huge round-up of new thermal pastes with benchmarks and reviews. You can also look into those, and maybe try something new.
The ones that stood out for me were the IC Diamond (actual diamond powder in it for thermal absorption), and the OCZ freeze. I almost jumped for the diamond paste, but it's not readily available with the rest of my orders from major online shops (newegg, zipzoom, etc). I've also read that it is very, very hard to spread on your cpu. I'll be ordering OCZ Freeze with the rest of my build from newegg, seeing as it spreads very easily and posts similar results.
Thermal Compound Round-Up (33 of em!)
Thermal Round-Up 2 (Different site)
I was looking into this myself actually (my bottle of as5 was about 3-4 years old), and I found a huge round-up of new thermal pastes with benchmarks and reviews. You can also look into those, and maybe try something new.
The ones that stood out for me were the IC Diamond (actual diamond powder in it for thermal absorption), and the OCZ freeze. I almost jumped for the diamond paste, but it's not readily available with the rest of my orders from major online shops (newegg, zipzoom, etc). I've also read that it is very, very hard to spread on your cpu. I'll be ordering OCZ Freeze with the rest of my build from newegg, seeing as it spreads very easily and posts similar results.
Thermal Compound Round-Up (33 of em!)
Thermal Round-Up 2 (Different site)
Menelmarar
Supreme [H]ardness
- Joined
- Feb 15, 2001
- Messages
- 5,472
If I was getting a new thermal compound, I'd have to look up that liquid metal one. I found that real interesting. Did the performance ever live up to expectations?
Thanks for the replies guys. Its been a box the last few years. I will probably have to get another tube. I'm just really anxious to build my PC. The parts should be arriving today. Anyone knows if the OEM 8400 or the Zalman9500 comes with thermal paste? I was hoping the Zalman would but I don't see it listed on Newegg as part of the descriptions.
If I was getting a new thermal compound, I'd have to look up that liquid metal one. I found that real interesting. Did the performance ever live up to expectations?
I believe it still remains one of the best out there, but has a few significant issues.
1. It is conductive, so you wouldn't want to splash that over any of the parts in your system. (I believe all of the tested compounds were non-conductive)
2. It eats away at certain metals such as aluminum.
3. It costs a little more than most compounds ($13 - $20 per bottle)
I have a tube of AS5 from about 3 years ago that I originally used on my desktop.
about a month ago, my desktop CPU temp was reading in the high eighties so I disassembled the motherboard and applied a layer (so long warranty). It made a difference (mid - high 70's when running two instances of FAH). Still, I'd probably get a new tube.
I still have my tube around only because I don't know how I should really dispose of it.
about a month ago, my desktop CPU temp was reading in the high eighties so I disassembled the motherboard and applied a layer (so long warranty). It made a difference (mid - high 70's when running two instances of FAH). Still, I'd probably get a new tube.
I still have my tube around only because I don't know how I should really dispose of it.