How to judge your notebook needs to replace the thermal conductivity gel?

As the use time increases, the notebook computer has frequent frequency reduction, overheating shutdown or continuous high fan speed under high load, which may indicate that the performance of the thermal interface material is declining, and the thermal gel should be replaced.

When do 1. need to replace the thermal gel?

1. There is obvious overheating phenomenon: CPU or GPU temperature exceeds 90 ℃ for a long time in normal use, even if there is no improvement after cleaning;

2. Performance degradation: frequent Caton and frequency reduction in high-load tasks such as games and video rendering;

3. Abnormal fan: The fan runs at high speed for a long time, and the noise increases significantly;

Long service life: the notebook has been used for more than 3 to 5 years, especially in the long-term operation under high temperature environment;

5. The machine has been disassembled by itself but the heat-conducting material has not been replaced: the old glue may have been cracked or the contact is poor.

Note: Modern notebooks use thermal grease or pre-cured gel, similar to traditional desktop computers. After long-term use, organic matter volatilization or interfacial separation will lead to increased thermal resistance.

2. Replacement Procedure

1. Power off: completely turn off the notebook, unplug the power, remove the battery (if removable);

2. Disassemble the shell: use a special screwdriver to disassemble the back cover and pay attention to the cable connection;

3. Disassemble the heat dissipation module: carefully remove the fixing screws, disconnect the fan power cord, and remove the heat sink;

4. Clean up the old glue: use anhydrous alcohol and dust-free cloth to completely remove the residual colloid on the surface of CPU and GPU;

5. Apply new thermal conductive gel: take appropriate amount of thermal conductive gel (recommended thermal conductivity 4.0~6.0 W/m · K), and apply it evenly by spot coating or cross method;

6. Reinstallation: Restore the heat dissipation module and the shell according to the disassembly sequence to ensure that the screws are fastened;

7. Boot test: After entering the system, run the pressure test software (such as AIDA64 and FurMark) to monitor whether the temperature returns to normal.

3. common problems and precautions

1. Must it be replaced?

If the temperature is normal and there is no performance problem, no active replacement is required. Thermal conductive gel longer life, non-wearing parts.

2. choose thermal gel or silicone grease?

It is recommended to use high reliability thermal conductivity gel, which does not crack, does not leak oil, long-term stability is better than ordinary silicone grease.

3. How to control the amount of smearing?

A small amount is enough, too much will cause spillage pollution surrounding components, general pea size or fine thread-like smear.

Replacing the thermal gel is an effective means to improve the heat dissipation performance of the notebook, and is suitable for aging or high load use scenarios. Although the operation is not complicated, it is necessary to carefully disassemble and assemble, select appropriate materials, and standardize the construction. If you are not sure about the operation process, it is recommended to be handled by professional maintenance personnel to avoid hardware damage.