Took heatsink off video card, ok to use Arctic Silver to put it back on?

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johnnyscience

Limp Gawd
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I have an Asus nvidia card that I had to take a part to clean. This I also removed the heat sink and there is the grey thermal compound on there, seems almost hard like dried putty, but I think I should be able to clean it off with some rubbing alcohol?

Is it ok to use the Arctic Silver thermal compound for putting the heat sink back on the video card?

If so, do I need to let it dry or sit for an extended amount of time before putting the video card in my computer?

Thanks.
 
I would use some noncunductive thermal compound. As5 I beleive is conductive.
 
I believe AS Cermique is non-conductive so depends on what AS you have.
 
Seems I have Arctic Silver 5 - High Density Polysynthetic Silver Thermal Compound

It's what I used to put the heat sink back on my Intel processor

So I DON'T want to use this kind then?

What should I look for specifically that would be sold locally? Not sure if I have radio shacks around any more, but do have best buys and a few other misc stores around town that may carry it.

Rubbing alcohol should be good to remove the old thermal compound off the chip & heat sink right?

Thanks.
 
AS-5 is fine...dont glob it all over the board and you wont have any problems.
and yes, rubbing alcohol is OK to remove the old compound.
 
I've used arctic silver 5 on many video cards without issue. Always had good results.
 
Whatever is on the video card heatsink doesn't seem to want to come off with rubbing alcohol, any suggestions as to what else to use? Seems pretty stuck, even let the iso sit on it for a few minutes.
 
You will have no problems although it took me a few times reading through the OP to realize he did not mean on the back of the card. Yes AS-5 will work very well for on the GPU for a thermal compound before installing the heat sink. As mentioned above rubbing alcohol will work just fine.
 
johnnyscience said:
Whatever is on the video card heatsink doesn't seem to want to come off with rubbing alcohol, any suggestions as to what else to use? Seems pretty stuck, even let the iso sit on it for a few minutes.
Click to expand...

we are talking about the GPU heatsink correct? ..because if your talking about the memory heatsinks you may be dealing with thermal pads and not thermal compound.....

what card exactly are you working on?
 
Rubbing alcohol isn't working to remove this thermal compound, any other suggestions on what else to use to remove this?

Here's a pic:

 
Is there anything else besides that, that will work?

Is that common to be sold locally in a store or do I have to order online? (it isn't a big deal but if I can buy it locally and finish this up tomorrow, that would be preferred.)
 
The acetone seems to be working fine for the thinner areas, but the perimeter has a thick layer that squished out and seems to be problematic. I need to scrap it off first, but not sure what to use because I don't want to gouge the copper heat sink.

Do you guys think it's ok/safe to use the acetone on the chip itself to clean the thermal compound off of it?
 
Ok I used a carbon fiber knife I have to scrap off the big thick areas and was able to get it completely cleaned off.

The chip itself doesn't have big thick parts to it, actually seems like a really thin layer, I just want to make sure acetone will be ok to clean the chip off first before trying it.
 
Ok it seems to have cleaned up nicely.

Do I need to let this dry over night before trying to install it in the computer?
 
A little carb or brake cleaner sprayed on a thin rag like an old t-shirt (I prefer Texwipe poly clean room wipes as they are lint free when I use this method) and pulled tightly on a finger so you can control the area you are cleaning also works well to remove the factory applied thermal compound if you can't wait around........takes the nastiest thermal goop off quickly!!! Then carefully clean everything up with 91% or better Isopropyl Alcohol and apply your Arctic Silver.
 
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johnnyscience said:
I have an Asus nvidia card that I had to take a part to clean. This I also removed the heat sink and there is the grey thermal compound on there, seems almost hard like dried putty, but I think I should be able to clean it off with some rubbing alcohol?

Is it ok to use the Arctic Silver thermal compound for putting the heat sink back on the video card?

If so, do I need to let it dry or sit for an extended amount of time before putting the video card in my computer?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

I used to use AS5, and it worked great. I thought , maybe it does, it had a burn in time. The temps were fine though on my gtx 280's.

A lil dab will do ya.
 
johnnyscience said:
Seems I have Arctic Silver 5 - High Density Polysynthetic Silver Thermal Compound

It's what I used to put the heat sink back on my Intel processor

So I DON'T want to use this kind then?

What should I look for specifically that would be sold locally? Not sure if I have radio shacks around any more, but do have best buys and a few other misc stores around town that may carry it.

Rubbing alcohol should be good to remove the old thermal compound off the chip & heat sink right?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Once burned, twice shy.

I changed the paste on an early GeForce card.
Later testing showed lines on the screen indicating video memory failure.
On close inspection, there was a trace of AS on a few legs of a memory chip.
I could never clean it off fully or it harmed the ram chip, perhaps some of it got beneath the chip, the card was toast.

I was very careful when applying the paste but later found the lid had an almost transparent bit of paste on it.
This must have transferred to me and then onto the memory.

I dont know if it was myself that caused some to get on the lid or someone else in my house having a look at what was in the tube.
Too easy to screw up, never used it again.
If you use AS, silver based, lock it away!
 
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Pure-Citrus-Orange-Air-Freshener-7-fl-oz/15724124 spay this on it....same thing in artic cleaner bottle step one anyway
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goop off works too just make sure to get it all off degreaser is flamable...
 
some denatured alcohol will work great for cleaning, with no "drying time" since it does not contain any water at all. you can purchase this at Wal-Mart or the like, as well as at many auto parts and home improvement stores.

and yes, arctic silver 5 (the one with actual silver content in it, and is conductive) will work just fine on the GPU itself. just make sure it stays ONLY on the GPU, and does not come in contact with any of the other components. you just have to be a little more careful with conductive hs compounds.
 
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