Laptop's processor runs hot after replacing thermal paste.

[RobertXPS]

Hey everyone. I just opened up my Dell XPS M1710 to change thermal paste of my Intel Core 2 Duo T7400 CPU and to clean out the vents. So I did that. The computer seems to be a little quieter now, but the CPU temps remain the same @66 Celsius idle per avg. What could be the problem? Would putting on too much paste cause this? I don't think I did though. The GPU temps went down by a 5 degrees just from cleaning out the vents. I'm afraid something bad is gonna happen...

 

[EliteMKD]

maybe your heatsink is not touching the cpu correctly try with thermal pads if you see a gap between cpu and heatsink and make sure the cooper tubes are not bended.

 

[RobertXPS]

maybe your heatsink is not touching the cpu correctly try with thermal pads if you see a gap between cpu and heatsink and make sure the cooper tubes are not bended.

Well, the heatsink is screwed to the MOBO with spring assisted screws, so that too much pressure wouldn't be applied. They won't go in any deeper, so heatsink is as close to the CPU as it possibly can be. I also pushed down on it gently after applying the thermal paste, so that the pressure from the heatsink would help spread it. I'll try opening up the laptop again at some point in the near future to re-apply the thermal paste. Mainly to see how the thermal compound has spread.

The tubes are not bent.

Thanks for the reply!

 

[RobertXPS]

Anyone? The temps tend to drop after the laptop's been running for a few hours. Also, the CPU temp is higher when idling, than when I'm gaming. What is up with that?

 

[bigboss619]

Depends on what kind of thermal paste you used. Most have a "curing" period where it could seem that temps are running higher because it has to go through a few (heat) cycles of the pc being on and off.