why does thermal paste last so long?
Posted by Autistic-monkey0101@reddit | buildapc | View on Reddit | 115 comments
yes, its advised to change your thermal paste after a year or few, or if you have temp problems. but i havent changed mine in 3 years, other people i talk to havent done it in 5+ years, i wouldve thought it wouldve crackled up by that time but i guess not. (and dont worry i did end up chamging mine)
DirectorNegative7281@reddit
Thermal paste will degrade on Any direct die application like a laptop or gpu, the rate at which it pumps out really depends on heat cycles and max temp, so no paste only lasts long on desktop cpus, most often lasting the entire service life of that pc, on laptops and gpus however some might fail within days or weeks of application if the chip isnt even and contact pressure is low.
Fridarey@reddit
I've built systems since the 90s and never once changed thermal paste
fc_dean@reddit
Thermal pastes last virtually forever. They "advise" it so that people buy more.
J3ditb@reddit
can you explain whats the difference between the different pastes? why would i buy high end paste if i can just use to one coming with my cooler? i really dont understand it.
fc_dean@reddit
Those high-end thermal pastes tend to use a different formula and are indeed superior although not by much. The ones that come pre-applied with coolers are run-of-the-mill pastes unless specified.
Some people are more than willing to pay over-the-top for seemingly premium stuff.
J3ditb@reddit
but what makes it better. is it just better in conducting heat?
XWasTheProblem@reddit
In general, yeah.
But the difference between a 'normal' and premium one is really minor for most practical uses
goodnames679@reddit
The difference between the cheapest garbage and ‘normal’ (something like mx6) is notable
The difference between that ‘normal’ paste and the nicest ones is minimal. Unless you’re buying a CPU that’s an absolute bitch to cool or you’re an extreme overclocker, there’s no reason to shell out for it.
kaio-kenx2@reddit
Even if youre an extreme overclocker it just doesnt make that difference. Better to buy a bigger heatsink and invest in airflow.
Depending on cpu delid will be much better or direct die if possible. Even replacing to liquid metal its not really worth it.
Everlovin@reddit
2-3 degrees if I remember correctly.
__fez@reddit
at very high temps mind you
we're talking like 80+ C to really notice the difference
KetoSaiba@reddit
They use slightly different chemical makeups. Think like how cars can use various types of oil. Same concept. Some people will swear by the pennzoil ultra platinum whatever compared to valvoline generic or w/e.
brianly@reddit
The key point is that all these products have to be safe to handle and have a shelf life. The audience is normal people so the products will trend towards the same thing.
With thermal paste it is similar. Now, imagine you didn’t have to worry about safety. A world of new possibilities for better performance could open up. I’m simplifying but there are a range of factors which can include manufacturing yields which mean products end up being a much of a muchness. There is never only one at play.
Low_Hope5560@reddit
If you really wanna get into it, check out some comparisons on Igor'slab. It should also be noted that there is almost a direct tradeoff between performance and ease of use, ie, the spreadibility of the paste. The most conductive thermal pastes are really hard to spread.
But yeah essentially more conductive pastes have more metal oxides in it. The grind and composition of those particles also plays a role.
Hetstaine@reddit
That goes for any hobby. Premium v run of the mill.
Large-Television-238@reddit
like better 1c with cost 50 bucks vs 500 bucks
Carnildo@reddit
I don't know what the spread's like now, but the last time I paid serious attention to thermal pastes, premium silver-based paste had about three times the thermal conductivity of "generic white gunk" paste. These days, most coolers that come with paste come with paste somewhere in the mid-to-premium range.
malastare-@reddit
Was that back in the 2000s?
Around 2002, Arctic Silver 5 had a weird religious following declaring that it was so vastly better than everything else. Testing showed that it was only somewhat better than Ceramique (an aluminum ceramic-based paste) from the same manufacturer. Measurable, yes, but not enough to make a huge difference in temperatures. Even then, a good application and pressure had more impact than paste composition. There was more separation if you went down to silicone grease, but no one was shipping that with coolers anymore.
In short, even in 2002, the thermal conductivity spread wasn't very big, at least not in its ability to create useful results.
By 2008, AC5 was being outperformed by pretty much every mainstream paste being manufactured.
groveborn@reddit
It doesn't matter, though. Your CPU is designed around the same thermal package as the rest. It only produces so much heat at one time.
Being able to move more isn't relevant if there isn't more to move.
nuked24@reddit
It absolutely can matter, especially with modern chips. Crappy white silicone paste was fine in the mid 2000s and early 2010s, because you were going to push 60-100w max through a socket. Now we have only slightly larger chips pulling upwards of 200w, that same garbage paste is not going to cut it.
I have a part time job at a repair/recycling place, I've run into this with prebuilt manufacturers like Cyberpower and iBuyPower using the most god awful pastes paired with a barely adequate cooler on something like a 12th gen i7 that will sit there and thermal throttle because the paste is incapable of transferring heat well enough. Paste swap to something decent fixes it.
groveborn@reddit
i7-12700k is 120w envelope. Most Ryzens (including Ryzen 9) is sitting a little lower, often as low as 65 watts. Your statement might true in very limited cases, but the fan and heatsink matter far more than anything you put under it.
That's not to say it doesn't matter AT ALL. Silicone paste is good enough for something like 80% of everything YOU can buy. There will be edge cases, especially if we're talking low airflow or specialized equipment that just can't move much air for whatever reason.
In a regular household PC, even one for heavy gaming with the best of the best CPU/GPU mix, you'll get nominal differences between interfaces.
Source: I manufacture PCs. I test literally hundreds of PCs under load per day. The servers I manufacture definitely don't use white silicone paste, but nobody pays for the super high end stuff. We most often use whatever comes on the stock coolers. Some of these machines are pulling 3k+ watts.
All studies agree on this one. Bet you pay for premium gas, doncha? I bet you do.
RecalcitrantBeagle@reddit
When you say 120W envelope, are you referring to TDP? I'm assuming you are if you're referencing 65W for Ryzen. Because it can absolutely pull more than that under all-core workloads, TDP is just a manufacturer label at this point to put things into heat classes instead of actually informing how much power they pull.
groveborn@reddit
That's the dissipation envelope. They're usually pulling far less power, can pull quite a lot more for a short period.
The stock cooler is "enough" for them. Upgrading the cooler matters more than the thermal medium. There's a whole Youtube channel on this. A guy tries different mediums to see if they're any good at it. Like, bubble gum, toothpaste, etc. The point of the thermal compound is to create a greater mechanical bond with the metals. It's not about physically transmitting the heat itself. A chemical that evens out the peaks and valleys in the microscopic aspects of the metal is more important than what it's made out of - you know, so long as it also doesn't catch fire, leak out into the socket, or evaporate.
5HITCOMBO@reddit
If you get the peerless assassin or phantom spirit coolers they come with thermalright tf7 which is a very good paste. In general it won't make a huge difference unless the paste you get is defective or absolute trash but this is my recommendation to everyone to get as the performance is great, the price is cheap, and the paste is really good. Less failure points than AIOs in some cases less than a fourth of the price.
AlextheGoose@reddit
I use the peerless assassin with a 9800x3d and it doesn’t go over 80c when benchmarking. Gaming temps are like 50-60c it’s an amazing cooler
Reasonable-Papaya843@reddit
ID-cooling Frost x45 for paste
Or
Fujipoly thermal pad (17W/mk)
Or if you’re brave and know what you’re doing
Alphacool Eisfrost Extreme Liquid Metal
youreblockingmyshot@reddit
Different compositions. Premiums conduct heat better by their chemical composition (metals and additives) and particle size / variance. Der8auer on YouTube does a walk through and explanation of their thermal paste, how it’s made, what makes a good paste on YouTube.
imthe5thking@reddit
The surfaces of the CPU’s IHS and the cold plate of the cooler can never be perfectly smooth. There’s microscopic peaks and valleys, and that’s where thermal paste comes in. It fills all those peaks and valleys for better thermal transfer from the IHS to the cold plate.
But thermal paste also has microscopic solid chunks in it as part of the formula, and the “premium” paste has smaller chunks, and maybe a slightly different formula to get those smaller chunks, so that more paste can squeeze into the smaller nooks and crannies that regular paste can’t.
There’s a Gamer’s Nexus video of him visiting the Thermal Grizzly factory and the owner of Thermal Grizzly showed him what goes into making the paste and the difference between TG’s less expensive paste and their “premium” paste.
Unicorn_puke@reddit
I've experienced it first hand but you can literally watch tons of cpu / gpu repaste videos and see the immediate change in thermals. Laptops can drastically change temp and in turn performance from simply replacing old paste and thermal pads.
I look at it like a best before date. After a year or few depending on paste and usage it will break down. That isn't always immediate thermal throttling and performance loss, but it does mean temperatures higher than what it previously was. To most this doesn't matter, but overclocking or just high sustained work loads will make a huge difference even at 5⁰ higher if you're already pushing thermal limits.
IM_OK_AMA@reddit
In most applications the improvement in thermals doesn't result in a performance change. You have to already be running at the limit of your cooler (otherwise just running the fan a bit faster will keep your temps low), so you usually only see performance gains in old laptops and game consoles.
the_lamou@reddit
It does not last anywhere near forever. Even the cheap long shelf-life stuff that comes from the factory will have massive performance degradation after about 5 years, and will be completely useless within a year or two of that. There's anti-corporatism, and then there's paranoid misinformation.
Because really, you think companies that sell millions of dollars in enterprise server and industrial equipment give a flying fuck about you and your $15 tube of thermal paste? Get a grip. And seriously, stop spreading misinformation. Not everyone can afford to replace a computer after their last one burns out from overheating.
Source: Owned and ran a chain of electronic repair shops about a decade back, have done literally tens of thousands of repastes.
AM27C256@reddit
I strongly doubt that. Degradation, yes. But "completely useless" I won't believe without further data. I assume even dried-out paste to still perform much better than no paste at all.
the_lamou@reddit
You would be very very incorrect. The point of TIM is to fill in all of the little imperfections and air pockets that would exist if the cold plate of a cooler was directly pressed against the IHS. When thermal paste dries it, it loses the ability to flow into those tiny crevasses and in fact makes even more air pockets. That absolutely kills cooling ability. There's plenty of tests out there — go check out Igor's Lab, they used to have a really good set of tests on old TIM.
AM27C256@reddit
Assuming the flowing into imperfections part is correct, shouldn't that have happened when it was applied and still fresh? Why would it need to flow any further once after having been in place for years?
Zer_@reddit
So, if you're running a 7th Gen i7 or something from that era there's a chance the thermal paste used under the IHS is dried out by now, since Intel was notorious for cheating out on it.
I recently had my 8086k (7800k) delidded since it ran fairly hot all it's life and the Thermal Compound under the IHS was a powder by this point, which explained my terrible temps. This is after 8 or so years of usage mind you, and I doubt a CPU that runs cooler will have that issue.
G0rdy92@reddit
My last rig lasted about 10yrs, never changed the original paste I put on/ anything at all and it worked fine, it was just old and I upgraded, but mechanically it was fine, so 100% agree it’s BS
goldswimmerb@reddit
Depends, old pastes can, and do dry out depending on what the composition is and how hot they are run at
ILSATS@reddit
Are you sure? If you replace your gpu paste after 4-5 years, you'll most likely see good improvement in temps
alexaudio10@reddit
If this is the case, change the brand of thermal paste immediately.
GDog507@reddit
Not entirely true. Thermal paste can dry out if the device is pushed to its limits over a span of multiple years. I've had it happen to me twice and I've had to replace the thermal paste on both occasions. One replacement was successful, the other device was too far gone for a simple repaste to fix.
s1lentlasagna@reddit
It can dry out sometimes, I think running at high temps constantly can make it dry faster
chaddledee@reddit
It drying isn't always a bad thing though. Solids are generally better conductors than liquids when the liquid can't convect (i.e. thick paste sandwiched between two slabs of copper). The paste dries out so slowly that evaporative cooling would be absolutely negligible, orders of magnitude less than heat loss to the heat sink. After drying out there should be less of a gap between the two thermal interfaces too, so thermal transfer might even improve, provided the thermal paste doesn't crack and end up with air gaps.
GDog507@reddit
I've only ever had problems with dried out thermal paste. In fact, I decided to use some of my leftover thermal paste to repaste my old Xbox 360 that was pretty much unusable because of the errors. Repasting it completely fixed everything and I couldn't get it to overheat when testing it.
Beautiful-Control161@reddit
I have the same thermal paste 10 years later.. Thats about to change because I'm upgrading today
Tastybaldeagle@reddit
It's not like an oil change where it's super necessary. If a computer is over a decade old...it doesn't hurt to reapply and it'll probably help a little. But you don't need to reapply every three years unless you're having a known thermal problem
KillEvilThings@reddit
By having good pressure and contact on the mating surface you reduce the surface area exposure to air and thus preserve a sealed interface.
tup1tsa_1337@reddit
You got a good CPU then. I'm running noctua dh14 and get 90 degrees almost immediately when running benchmarks.
Another explanation would be that you're running it full blast (like 100% RPM) which is just stupid
KillEvilThings@reddit
When your CPU is at full max wattage, why ISN'T your cooler at 100%? Proactive cooling preserves the lifespan of equipment, has it run with more performance.
My CPU cooler doesn't hit 100% until it reaches temperatures it flat out does not reach under regular usage. Absolute mindfuck people will just let their CPUs reach TJmax, even if they're "designed for it" you're literally just throwing money away if you let your CPUs thermal throttle.
jrr123456@reddit
No cooler is "whisper quiet" at 100% they all all extremely loud.
I've got a 360 aio on a 9800X3D, under full 100% it'll hit 85C because i keep my fan profiles silent.
I don't care what temperature my CPU runs at, i just want my system to barely be above background noise.
Nobody is throwing away performance letting the chips hit 95C, that's what they are supposed to do, previous generations would drop clocks at lower temperatures, AMD extended the temperature range to allow the chips to safely boost higher and extract the max out if every cooling solution
AirSKiller@reddit
If I enable PBO on my 9950X it will pull something crazy like 250W and absolutely reach 95 C, it’s just what modern CPUs do; that’s with a 420mm AIO too.
I’ve manually set a PBO limit of 80 C though, still allows the stock 200W to be pulled under full load but also allowing higher short term boosting to 220W or so.
TurbodToilet@reddit
This might be mind blowing for you but a lot of modern CPU’s will run as hot as possible unless you set a strict thermal limit. You can look up the 7000 series AMD chips. They all push to 95C even with the fattest CPU coolers possible.
RTXEnabledViera@reddit
The recent chips are supposed to run hot though.
My brand new 9800X3D reaches 93° easily when running a stress test and I'm pretty sure my liquid cooler is mounted and working just fine.
aresfiend@reddit
If you have PBO and XFR enabled it's absolutely normal under load. It's designed to take advantage of the whole thermal ceiling.
IllustriousSuit5979@reddit
whats a good rule of thumb frequency to change it? what price considered cheap vs premium?
OGigachaod@reddit
I've only ever replaced thermal paste once, and it was on a 1660ti that was running hot, replaced paste and temps dropped by 10C, I've never had to replace paste on a CPU.
Borkboiii@reddit
The lifespan of most thermal paste is relative to the temps they're exposed to. I've also experienced this myself, had paste rated for 3 years last 10 years at a constant 30°C in my server, and paste rated for 8 years last 4 years in a gaming pc.
DazzlingPassage5204@reddit
Ive had a 4690k for almost 10 years with the same paste. Running the same temps. It really is , so you buy more.
DisastrousPromise367@reddit
Gonna blow your mind. I know computers on medical equipment that never gets changed out in the life of the machine. 20+ year old equipment.
Diedead666@reddit
Probably low powered even for their time plus they should be putting reliable stuff in medical equipment. I personally never re done past in 24 years of gaming. I used to overclock CPU really hard they would last 4 to 5 years. It's normally the high volts that kills chips when overclocking. I can see laptops needing it more often with how hot they run with not much breathing room cooking the past over time
DisastrousPromise367@reddit
Yeah you’d be surprised on off the shelf stuff in the PCs of medical equipment. But you’re right, overclocking would wear them down faster for sure. It just seems older stuff doesn’t go bad as fast too. Those older PS’s can definitely take a beating lol
Diedead666@reddit
Well now everything it's mostly push to their limit to the point that manually overclocking them dosnt help much. I'm not surprised seeing how some newer cpus where burning up. I don't expect newer stuff to last as long as the older parts with the automatic turbo aka overclocking enabled.
DisastrousPromise367@reddit
For sure. Hard to sell you a new one every couple years if it’s working like a champ still lol
Diedead666@reddit
they used to claim that cpus should last minimum of 10 years, we shall see, i bet alot of them 13/14 intels dont if used regularly.
CrimsonBolt33@reddit
Those don't always use standard thermal.paste though and likely have different methods of cooling all together.
Just look at PTM7950...It's a phase change material meant for industrial uses like LED lights and other long term applications...Also happens to be the best choice for laptops (a d lasts longer than normal thermal paste).
Eighthday@reddit
I’ve had 4 PC’s, 7-10years on each. Never once replaced any thermal paste.
VenditatioDelendaEst@reddit
Oil and solid filler with low thermal expansion coefficient, so it doesn't pump out.
Low vapor pressure oil, so it doesn't dry out.
Minimal exposed surface (just a tiny gap around the edge), further slows dry out.
Most people don't load their CPUs up very often or for very long.
t90fan@reddit
why would it not?
it's not
NoVast9273@reddit
cuz you don't xD
troymisti1@reddit
Meanwhile the stuff some manufacturers use can degrade and crust up a few short years later, it's weird.
SkyMasterARC@reddit
Because the main ingredients of thermal paste, silicone and some sort of metal oxide, are really stable and don't degrade unless you're a really heavy user.
PrestigiousBad7125@reddit
My original pc is almost 14 years old now. Still working but recently It's get turned off automatically. I assume it could be due to overheating. So paste change needed.
kodaxmax@reddit
it's mostly chemically inert metal and silicone. It's doesn't react to other materials, it doesn't rust or decay and it doesn't change state without signficant outside influence.
It's a bit like asking why a metal pole lasts so long or a boulder.
elonelon@reddit
why ? coz it's a fooking "grease" with some grain of metal, so yeah will survive forever. I had 10gram MX4 sing 2019, still okay for daily use.
acewing905@reddit
When I got my current CPU in early 2022, I realized that I forgot to buy a new tube of thermal paste. Found an old (already opened and used once) bundled cooler master tube that was over 5 years old by that point. I figured I'll just use that and replace later if temps got bad. Over 3 more years have passed since then and temps did not get bad. (I do brush dust off the fins and wipe the fan blades at least once a year but the cooler has not been taken off the CPU)
FlyingWrench70@reddit
I have a machine from 2011 as my router, and a server from 2013. Neither has had the thermal paste replaced, they both have low temperatures in the 30's.
ParkerPetrov@reddit
i've never changed thermal paste unless i was doing something that requires the removal of the heatsink. then i clean off the old thermal paste and reapply. Otherwise I've never seen a need too. Even on PC's i've built for people that they used for nearly a decade.
ButterscotchNo3984@reddit
I've had the same thermal paste since initial install on a 4790k from 2014 and a 4670 from 2013. Absolutely no issues with temperature.
Sannyboy45@reddit
same here with a 4770K from 2013 lol
Sannyboy45@reddit
I’ve had like standard/basic thermal paste on my i7 4770K for 12 years now lol never changed it, never had overheating issues with the CPU either.
Flubfruit@reddit
I change mine roughly every year. But it's part of a system wide cleaning. I take everything out clean fans, fins, ports etc. The paste always looks fine but since I have all the parts out and more importantly dust getting everywhere, it only makes sense to put on fresh paste.
Realize12@reddit
Buy a blower for like $20-30, why would you need to take everything apart. Unless you are doing it for fun.
I got a no-name 500w air duster and it's so powerful that I'm scared to use it at full speed for my PC lol.
Aznsupaman@reddit
Thermal paste lasts forever unless you disturb it by removing the heatsink you should never need to change it.
MrMunday@reddit
i really dont think you need to change it every X years. i basically just have the after burner temperate gauge on all the time. over the years if i start noticing significant temp change (or fan noise), then ill change it.
if you use termal paste from good brands, 5 years is never going to be an issue. and if it pushes on to 10 years then you'll want a new system anyways.
my current system is 5 years old and imma push it to 10. will get a new system then and de-dust and repaste the old one, including the GPU.
veritron@reddit
I've only seen one case where the thermal paste was actually worth reapplying and that was an amd laptop that had been ridden particularly hard. Most of the time the amount of paste is fine even on the CPUs I see having thermal issues. It's still worth checking because it's an easy thing to check.
Examinator2@reddit
I'm at 12 years and 36 C.
OrganTrafficker900@reddit
What? This is insane as my laptop cpu was cooking itself alive but when i changed the thermal paste without cleaning the fans the temps dropped immensely
QuixOmega@reddit
Sounds like the initial application was bad, rather than the paste "wearing out".
Brick_Lab@reddit
My reaction to this thread: " I fuckin knew it!!"
alexaudio10@reddit
He has a lot of preconceived notions about thermal paste. I work in a computer store, and you have no idea how many times I get called to say that the PC isn't working properly and that it's probably the thermal paste. This is never the case. Unless you need to remove the heatsink, you don't need to change it. You'll probably extend the life of the PC and change the thermal paste.You'll gain a few degrees, but if you really want to improve your temperatures, this is far from the first thing to look at.
_steve_rogers_@reddit
After a year? I have never in my life changed thermal paste unless buying something used, because I don’t trust the previous owner applied it correctly
Plenty-Industries@reddit
Your average thermal paste has a life of roughly 5-7 years of being effective at thermal transfer. The longer its in use, the more it dries out and less effective at thermal transfer.
more premium pastes have 7-9 year life.
You can stretch thermal paste life for a bit longer than that depending on the normal operating temp. So you dont HAVE to replace thermal paste just because of age. But you do have to replace it if you separate your cooler from the CPU/GPU.
Unless you ACTUALLY have a temp issue, you dont need to touch it at all.
Darkren1@reddit
Or you just never change it, temps are fine people obsess over every degree.
UnCommonSense99@reddit
In our extended family we have 3 Haswell PCs (high spec i5 and i7s) all are still on the original oem thermal paste
Maybe you should ask why people would make thermal paste that doesn't last...
Liam2349@reddit
Some of them do set like glue so you have to watch out - but NT-H1 has still been wet after about 5 years.
RedBoxSquare@reddit
They don't necessarily go bad in a vacuum (e.g. inside the tube they well you). But are two things that may damage them when you apply them in the real world. 1 is contact with air. Much like tooth paste and clay, if you just leave them expose to open air for a few hours they will become dry. In a correctly applied scenario, thermal paste is compressed into a thin sheet, protected by the outside layer, the inside do not become exposed to air. 2 is pump out. As all material expand and contract due to temperature variations, it may squeeze out the paste over time. Different paste react differently to temperature differences.
There are many different ways to measure thermal quality. Thermal conductivity after fresh application is not the only way to measure it. Kryonaut is excellent right after application, but they do require a reapplication every 12 months because it is more prone to pump out which leads to a sharp decrease of thermal conductivity over time in a non controlled environment. Duronaut by comparison is much more long lasting.
MrKrueger666@reddit
Once it's on, there's no need to go change it unless you run into issues. Especially the better brands will stay good for far longer than the computer will work.
Unless there are issues or there is a reason to take the cooler off, I never replace thermalpaste that I applied myself.
Factory applied goo may go dry in some cases, but realistically, that's covered under 'if there are issues'.
Naerven@reddit
I've typically been able to use the stock thermal paste that comes with a cooler for longer than I'll keep a computer. I've had a 10 year old system still running fine. Yes you can get premium paste, but if you do expect to reapply every 1-2 years as it dries out faster than the cheaper pastes. It does help keep your CPU a handful of degrees cooler however.
My honest advice to most people is to leave your thermal paste alone so long as it's working. Every time you remove the CPU cooler there is a chance of some odd catastrophic failure. Essentially speaking if it's not broken don't try to fix it.
dsinsti@reddit
KISS is definitely the way to go. If it ain't broken... I know of many more people who have fucked up their PC's 'cleaning, mantaining or just messing out of boredom' than leaving them do the job if they work properly.
untraiined@reddit
if you left an air gap or way for dust to get in it would eventually calcify, but with the way it is setup unless you really fuck up there is no issue just leaving it there for a while.
Sweaty_Block9848@reddit
My paste and cooler were placed upon my CPU in 2014. Still runs fine, never even thought about cleaning it or repasting. Never gets hot. Like another poster said, I'm gonna guess their recommendations is to sell more paste. Unless you have a temperature anomaly compared to similar processor and cooler I would go through the trouble.
0wlGod@reddit
many factors are important
1)type of paste 2)what cpu, how many watt 3) ambient temperature 4) how much you use the pc 5) paste application ecc ecc
Accomplished_Emu_658@reddit
Because it literally just helps improve contact. You don’t need to change it unless you take it off or have temp issues. The people that change it constantly are just crazy.
SunPsychological1147@reddit
My friend had a 2018-19 pc without ever changing the paste, it was barely there and completely dry.
themcsame@reddit
When I temporarily retired my 4690k, after about 9 years, the paste was as gooey as the day it went on.
If your paste dries up, it's shit paste you shouldn't use again.
SunPsychological1147@reddit
I have no idea what was used, I just saw the aftermath
Elitefuture@reddit
Decent to good thermal paste lasts until you replace the whole pc.
Only the really cheapo paste that laptops and prebuilts needs to be replaced after a few years.
Significant_Writer_9@reddit
I used some paste nearly 30 years old on a very modern PC and the temps were fine.
I did replace it with some new paste when I changed the cooler, and I have a tube left I will test in another decade.
I've never personally had any paste go bad.
syunz@reddit
It dries out, so over the long term performance will worsen. If you ever opened old systems you'll see that the thermal paste will flake off, but this will be after 10 - 15+ years. Even then it'll still work but just worse.
Package_Objective@reddit
Depends on a huge amount of factors. For example I bought a mined on rtx 3080 a few years ago. It was maybe mined on for a year straight maybe 18 months. That thermal paste needed to be changed as soon as I got it. Also I has an rx 480 that I did a repaste on like 3 years ago. By that point the paste was over 5 years old with regular gaming usage and it was definitely time.
Niwrats@reddit
it is simply not advised to change the paste after a year or few.
wrsage@reddit
I tried supposedly very good chinese thermal paste called "GD****" and they were awful. I mean they didn't last more than year. So personally long lasting quality matter more than temporary temperature drop. Now I got some good one and it's been 2 year without any detoriation.
raresteakplease@reddit
My PC that I just retired lasted 13 years on the same artic silver thermal paste, when it started blue screening from heat (2 weeks before retirement) I opened her up, found that it might not have been the paste but the cpu cooler was slowly loosening, it unscrewed a bit too easily. The paste was still paste, I repasted and the blue screens stopped.
Autistic-monkey0101@reddit (OP)
well for reference, i got a 10400 with a weird server looking cooler, its supposed to be really shit but i am maxing out at 83°C or once or twice spiked to 89°C during like 3 hours of 100% load
_therealERNESTO_@reddit
In my experience it gets worse and worse with each year passing but it stays functional for a very very long time, you don't really need to change it very often unless the cooler is barely enough for the CPU/GPU.
sysadminbj@reddit
Not sure I’ve ever heard the time constraint on thermal paste. Sounds like paste manufacturers trying to inflate sales by marketing thermal paste with an expiration date. I’m right there with the heat issues though. I wouldn’t touch the processor unless you are having issues.