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Hot take: thermal paste reapplication is overhyped for most people
I keep seeing posts about changing thermal paste every 6 months to keep temps down. I built my gaming rig in 2019, never touched the paste, and it still runs below 80C under load. Unless you're overclocking or your PC is from 2010, that tube of Arctic Silver is a waste of $8. Has anyone else just left theirs alone and been fine?
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diana_black222mo ago
The whole "change it every 6 months" crowd acts like their CPU will melt if they skip a year. My brother's work PC still has the stock paste from 2016 and it runs a database fine. The only time I repasted anything was when I swapped coolers on an old build and the dried up goo was basically dust. Even then it dropped temps by like 3 degrees. Not exactly life changing.
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matthew8642mo ago
That "dried up goo was basically dust" part is a good point, but I gotta gently push back on the 3 degree drop thing. In my experience, when paste is that crusty you're usually looking at a bigger temp difference, but it really depends on the CPU and cooler setup. Your mileage may vary, but I've seen old paste cost people 10-15 degrees on higher wattage chips, @diana_black22.
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