TIL I've been replacing thermal paste wrong for 5+ years

Used to just blob it on and hope for the best. Last week a customer brought in a gaming rig with temps hitting 95c under load. I repasted it using the thin spread method and dropped it to 70c. Does anyone else do the pea method or are you team spread?

3 comments

3 Comments

iris_stone282mo ago

Jesus, the pea method is just asking for uneven coverage. I've been doing the thin spread for years and never had a single issue with temps above 80c under load on any build. If you're getting better results with a blob you need better mounting pressure or a better cooler.

beth_butler752mo ago

Honestly, I've got to push back on that, @iris_stone28. My last build ran 5c cooler with a rice-sized blob in the middle compared to when I tried spreading it thin, and that's with a solid mount and a decent AIO.

anthonykim12d ago

My buddy actually tested this with an infrared camera. He put a pea size blob on one chip and spread manually on another identical chip under the same cooler. The pea method left a noticeable air pocket near one corner every time. The spread was flat and even across the whole surface. Mounting pressure can't fix that if the paste just doesn't flow right from the center. You'd need a perfect dead-nuts mount to make up for it, which most people don't have. So I'm team thin spread for consistency.