Thermal paste on CPU contacts

[koperan]

4 days ago i was cleaning old paste of my CPU and by accident got some(ARCTIC MX-4) on the bottom. I cleaned it off with a dry cloth till it looked nice and shiny. The pc is running fine as of right now but I was just wondering if I should take it out and maybe use some alcohol to clean it off better? Avoid problems in the future? High temps? Low performance? frying it? Or leave it if it's running fine?

Thank you

 

[jimthenagual]

One thing I'm not clear on from your post, is WHERE the paste has gone. You said 'on the bottom'. If that means on the other side of the CPU itself, then it's no concern really. Should wipe off nice and simple. But I'm going to answer your question assuming you got some on the motherboard in the CPU socket itself.

One piece of luck on your side, you picked paste that isn't electrically conductive. That doesn't mean you're in the clear, but it's good news for sure.

As for whether or not to clean it out, tough call. If it was a conductive type, you'd have no choice. Personally though, I would use some alcohol and try and clean it as best as possible. I'd probably submerge the motherboard in alchohol. But a warning, you are at high risk of bending pins in the socket if you try and wipe it. So many people destroy their motherboard this way, so please take that warning seriously.

 

[Rdslw]

MX home page:
"It does not contain any metallic particles so electical conductivity would not be an issue. Unlike silver and copper compound, it ensures that contact with any electrical pins would not result in damage of any sort."
If you cleaned it should be fine. small particles of this will not affect anything. a bit more could cut off one of pins, and that will be bad.

 

[koperan]

One thing I'm not clear on from your post, is WHERE the paste has gone. You said 'on the bottom'. If that means on the other side of the CPU itself, then it's no concern really. Should wipe off nice and simple. But I'm going to answer your question assuming you got some on the motherboard in the CPU socket itself.

One piece of luck on your side, you picked paste that isn't electrically conductive. That doesn't mean you're in the clear, but it's good news for sure.

As for whether or not to clean it out, tough call. If it was a conductive type, you'd have no choice. Personally though, I would use some alcohol and try and clean it as best as possible, but a warning, you are at high risk of bending pins in the socket. So many people destroy their motherboard this way, so please take that warning seriously.

It's on the other side of the cpu not on MB socket...so I'm in the clear thank you!

 

[jimthenagual]

Yeah, if it's simply on the other side of the CPU, and it's not conductive, you're good to go! Wipe up (well, with alcohol like you did) and game on!