Removed heatsink from cpu to clean dust. Do I need new thermal paste, and if so, how? Newbie here...

[AlAthans]

Hi guys,

I was cleaning dust out of my old 2008 vintage Dell desktop to try to cure a constantly full speed fan. Heatsink fins were clogged with dust, I could see through the fan blades. I removed some screws thinking just the fan would come off, giving me access to clean the heatsink fins. But, the while heatsink came off of the cpu.

I need to clean off the thermal grease and reapply some, right?

If so:

Can I clean the cpu gently in-place while still attached to the mother board?

In what fashion do I apply the paste to the cpu? It is an intel core 2 duo.

The most I've ever done to a computer is add some ram and 2nd hard drive. I'm a newbie at this kind of thing...was just trying to clean the dust out of it. So I want to make sure I get this right. Thanks for any help, I appreciate it! I did look up some info but as a new wanted some guidance specific to my cpu to be sure I get this right.

Added some links to pix. Sorry, couldn't figure out how to embed the Flickr photo in a post via my phone (desktop in question is only computer in the family)

https://m.flickr.com/photos/c750_olympus/33541008425/?xajax=1

https://m.flickr.com/photos/c750_olympus/33500021876/?xajax=1

 

[lakimens]

Yes, you shouldn't remove the CPU. Use alcohol that is over 70%, I use 96% and some towel or toilet paper.
You apply a small dot in the center, it's called the "pea" method, when you press down with the heatsink it will spread.

 

[Chugalug_]

Yep, that's it in a nutshell.
Also yes you can clean it in the motherboard, make sure you use the cloth over the bottle tipped upside down in your hand method if that makes sense.
Get a can of pressurized air and bring it outside for a dust off.

 

[thx1138v2]

You need to clean both the CPU and the heat sink with high % alcohol but don't go crazy looking for it. You can usually get 91% at the grocery or drug store. It's also best to use lint free cloth or paper. Coffee filters work OK.

Keep in mind that the thermal paste is just there to fill the micro pores of the cpu lid and the heatsink so you don't need a lot. And you definitely do NOT want to get any in the socket. That's why it's best to leave the cpu in the socket.

Since it's your first time,look for some videos on the web. You'll find a boat load of them.

The cpu probably needed new thermal paste at this point so it's probably a benefit that you took the heat sink off.

While you've got the box open you should clean everything, including the back side of the motherboard. You may have to remove it to get to the back side. Dust can collect static electricity and can be death to electronic circuits so clean up the whole machine while you're at it. And remove and re-seat all the connectors and cards.

 

[AlAthans]

Thanks guys! Yep, I'll dab the alcohol on a cloth, from videos I saw it appears that it will come right off.

Hopefully this does indeed cure my always full blast fan issue too! The cpu case and the heatsink were FULL of dust. My particular desktop was known for a overactive fan too...but I read on the web of a bios update that solved it. It didn't for me. However we lost power today for a while and when it came back, I noticed the pc was silent for a while before it got loud again. So, that led meto think it was in fact just heat building up, so I decided to open it and find that dusty mess! Hopefully a little more RAM and I can be using the PC for a little while longer!

 

[AlAthans]

Thanks, everyone, I have some confidence to do this now.

If this also really does cure the loud fan, I'm thinking 6 or 8gb of ram and a new windows os install and I think my family can get some more life out of this 9 year old machine...just used for surfing the web, etc.

 

[AlAthans]

One more question ... not sure if this requires a new thread.

While I'm at it should I just get a new fan/heatsink? I have a core 2 duo e6550. I just would search based on that or does motherboard also matter? I ask because when the whole cooler came off when I unscrewed it, I then snapped the fan off from the heatsink to clean it. It snapped back in, but the plastic seems to have stretched just enough to let the fan hosting wiggle a bit if I push on it. I guess I'll see when I run the system if it rattles...I'll be doing the thermal paste tomorrow.