If I miss a spot with thermal paste, does it matter?

[Mateo_2]

I just built a new pc. I used a kraken x61 cooler, a core i7, and a gtx 1080p gpu. When i start up a game like cs go it overheats to 100 degrees celsius. I dont know what to do the only thing i can think thats causing it is a small spot i missed when i was applying the thermal paste.

 

[Crumpet 1]

..You might have put too much thermal paste on if you're worried about missing a spot.

 

[t53186]

Either the thermal compound or the cooler not in firm contact with the cpu.

 

[Danra]

Make sure you use the proper TIM, proper amount of TIM and make sure the heatsink is properly attached to the CPU lid.

You did not mention what thermal compound you used.

I have been overclocking for over 20 years and have tried many TIMs [I will not go into the pros and cons of each at this time] and I have been using GELID GC-EXTREME for the past few years - it works very well.

After cleaning the old thermal compound [TIM] off of the CPU and heatsink [you can use a paper towel to remove most of it, followed by 91%+ alcohol and coffee filters [they leave no particles like paper towels do].

On the CPU lid use a thin line using an X pattern. Some people like the 5 [small] dot method, I use the X pattern as it covers the entire CPU, actually both formats do - just do not apply too much. You want to cover the CPU lid with no, or almost zero, spillover outside the lid. Too much TIM can cause overheating. [I have used metal based TIM and you definitely do not want any spillover with that, you can kill your CPU and/or motherboard.]

If you still have a problem, turn the fans on 100% and check for a temp drop, you may need to adjust fan speed in the motherboard BIOS or a hard wire work around. I have used the latter in the past. My current, personal, motherboard permits changing the CPU fan speed in BIOS [Gigabyte GA-Z270X-UD5].

If all of that fails to drop temperatures I suspect a faulty pump or not enough liquid [air pocket]. Faulty pumps can simply be a factory defect or improper factory installation procedures [the latter depends upon the manufacturer and what pump is being used].