Thermal paste replacement

FL630

FL630

FL630

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Hertfordshire
My laptop (Dell XPS 17 l702x) has started to get very hot over the last few months so I stopped being lazy this evening and took it to bits to clean the fan and heatsink of 3 years of dust and grime.

I've not done this before and need to replace the thermal paste as it's no longer pasty or even actually existent.

The problem is the CPU (right) and GPU (top left) are not really things I've played around with and before. I'm confused what is part of the heatsink and what is part of the CPU/GPU.

The CPU has a grey rectangle held on fairly firmly with what looks like mess of thermal paste. Is this just a plate to attach the processor to the heatsink? Do I pull this off and re-paste it back on? If so, what is the best method?

Same applies for the graphics chip up in the top left.

In the image below, the large metal plate in the centre-bottom-left is the heatsink, with copper "rods" going to the radiator.

2014-12-15%2019.04.06.jpg


Before I make an expencive mistake, can someone tell me what's the best way to go about this?

Thanks.
 
Great thanks for the response RJC. Is the grey crap around the edges just "leaked" paste?

And just to confirm, the heatsink has some rubbery pads that rest on the black chips that sit on the left of this image and in the centre. Are these to stop the transfer of heat and do not need replaced? They are in good condition.
 
They are thermal pads keeps these for the chips around the cpu and Gpu, as these are in good condition then you might as well keep them.

The gray stuff is old thermal paste.

:)
 
The white spongy pads are likely thermal tape; they're to cool the VRAM using the large heatsink. You should be fine to re-use them since VRAM doesn't need huge amounts of cooling in the first place.

The excess grey stuff is all paste, and it looks like they used WAY too much. Put some cleaner on it like RJC linked and leave it for a while to soften up, then carefully wipe it away. I usually use one of those small clothes for cleaning glasses.

If you go for AS5 be aware that it's conductive, and splurging it all over the tiny caps near the die like the stock paste could result in a short. You want to apply a thin layer to the die only (large square bit in the middle). It should not be so much that it squeezes out over the sides like in the pictures above.
 
IMO dont use AS5 as mentioned its conductive and well just not worth the risk if your not 100% sure what your doing. Use either MX or i really really like the Diamond stuff
 
AS5 has had it's day and there are better options such as MX-4 and Gelid Extreme at a reasonable price. Both are non conductive unlike AS5. Clean all the old stuff off with IPA or similar after first cleaning the excess (and there's a lot of it) off with some kitchen roll.
 
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