"Wanted Thread" Servicing a Friends PC. (More Info Below).

Shanemeister93 · 8 May 2014 at 20:20

I will be servicing a friends child's PC.

I was wondering should I replace the thermal compound?

Even though the PC is not suffering any over heating issues, should I replace the thermal compound as well as using compressed air to remove dust as it is well overdue a service and as a matter of good practice or is this unnecessary?

I already have a can of compressed air but I will need to get some thermal compound if I do need to replace it.

any advice welcome.

Cheers,
Shane

Luke_Bowman · 8 May 2014 at 20:26

If you feel confident replacing the thermal compound with a better one then I say go ahead, just be wary that if it does break then your friend may pin it on you...

murah · 8 May 2014 at 20:26

no need if it's not over-heating just getting all the dust out will be fine.

Purgatory · 8 May 2014 at 20:27

It really depends how old the PC is if you need to replace the TIM on the CPU, it also depends what type of TIM was originally used, if it's a Dell like PC or store PC then yes I would replace the TIM and give the heatsinks and fans a good clean out and the interior of the system of course motherboards and any add-on cards.

When I go do friends PCs or family PCs I give them the once over really and have my tool kit ready for all things like TIM and compressed air and a nice paint brush to clear the dust.

Shanemeister93 · 8 May 2014 at 20:29

In response yo Luke Bowman: I am competent in changing thermal compound as do this on mine every so often when upgrading the cpu cooler. thank you both for your advice greatly appreciated.

darael · 8 May 2014 at 20:51

Myself I wouldn't bother unless the machine was suffering from overheating issues. A good blast out with a brush and compressed air will do more good than replacing the thermal compound.

If you can, while you've got the fan off the heatsink to clean it out, put a very small drop of oil on the fan bearing - usually found under a rubber plug, beneath a sticker. You can tell whether the bearing is accessible or not, as the sticker should feel spongy when pressed on - this is the rubber plug underneath.

If the machine is suffering severe dust issues, then it might be worth checking for dust on the voltage regulators surrounding the CPU.