Thermal Paste removal alternatives?

EJay88

Honorable
Jan 25, 2014
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10,510
I want to remove the thermal paste on my CPU but I don't have any access to isopropyl alcohol right now. I was wondering if any of these would work: Clorox wipes, hand sanitizer, or mouthwash.
Thanks.
 
Solution
Rule of thumb for me is that I only use one of 3 things to remove thermal paste.

1) Isopropyl alcohol
2) Thermal paste removal liquids (various brands, pick one)
3) Nothing at all, just keep wiping with a dry surface (tissue, cotton swab, qtip)

I won't use anything else.
Rule of thumb for me is that I only use one of 3 things to remove thermal paste.

1) Isopropyl alcohol
2) Thermal paste removal liquids (various brands, pick one)
3) Nothing at all, just keep wiping with a dry surface (tissue, cotton swab, qtip)

I won't use anything else.
 
Solution
Well it doesn't work "just as well" with a dry cloth. You have to do a lot more rubbing and put more "elbow" into it when you just use a dry tissue. Technically, without using a liquid of some sort you may leave very small amounts of paste on the surface but this isn't anything to be concerned with. It depends on the surface itself. You can usually get it all off of the cpu/die but you'll notice a little remaining on the heatsink surface if you look close enough. Point is, don't worry about it... dry tissue is fine if you don't have alcohol you'll just do more rubbing to get it off. 😉
 


Somewhat correct. Pure nail polish remover is acetone. Acetone is used for many different types of applications where you want to clean a surface without leaving residue. Acetone will eat up certain types of plastics so you want to be super careful if you use acetone - not to touch non-metal surfaces. I've never personally used acetone to clean up thermal paste though.

 


Can I use like handsanitizer to clean my cpu?