Running into CPU heat issues all of a sudden

[casterofdreams]

Hi all.

I don't know if it ever was asked and answered before but maybe someone can point me to the right thread or direction.

I have an Intel Core i7 950 in a system I built at the end of 2010. It is stock with the CPU fan\heat sink combo and it came with and the thermal paste on the heat sink itself. At the beginning of my PC's life the temperature would idle between 34C to 38C. On moderate to high loads it would go to maybe high 50's. Now, however, you can add 10 degrees on the low end and 30 to 40 on the high end of the numbers I've stated before.

This is embarrassing but I have to come clean if I want help: I just cleaned off the old crusted paste and added some fresh new paste for the first time. This was prompted by those high temperature numbers above. It seems that the paste hasn't done much to mitigate the heat.

So my questions: Without shelling money for a new chip or liquid cooling are there other alternatives for CPU cooling other than the stock equipment that came with the unit? Second question: After taking the right precautions/steps and the temps do not changing, is it a sign that the chip is on its way out? (The second question is tough to gauge since I can't quite put a usage time since the end of 2010. Lets say 1000 to 2000 or so hours since that time with 65% used in playing 7th Gen games via Steam.)

Very wordy I know. If you need more specs or any other information let me know. Thanks in advance guys.

[noiseredux]

You should at least have an aftermarket cooler. The CM Hyper Evo 212 is cheap and effective.

[casterofdreams]

You should at least have an aftermarket cooler. The CM Hyper Evo 212 is cheap and effective.

That is cheap. And it works out because my case is from CM. Are there other suggestions?

[MrPopo]

I'd make sure your fan is still spinning properly and the other simple solutions like that. It sounds like your cooler isn't moving heat like it used to.

[casterofdreams]

I'd make sure your fan is still spinning properly and the other simple solutions like that. It sounds like your cooler isn't moving heat like it used to.

Yeah everything is spinning as normal. Case fans, CPU fans, and card fans all work. I dust it regularly. I should try that after market cooler since it is quite cheap. I just hope the chip isn't on it's way out.

[Exhuminator]

It's true that improperly applied thermal paste can cause heat issues that magnify over time given heat induced applicant migration. Not only that, but the quality of the thermal paste itself is very important. I prefer Arctic Silver 5 personally.

[casterofdreams]

I picked up a small tube from CM. I removed and cleaned the old paste and replaced it. I spread it evenly so it would not blotch up. The embarrassing thing is I've only done this once in the 4+ years of having the rig: just this past weekend.

Lesson learned.

[irixith]

That is true, the quality of the paste and the application of the paste are very important.

You want a very, very, thin layer. Like, squeeze a little blob out, and spread it around using an old plastic credit card/guitar pick. You want the area to be completely covered, but in as thin of a layer as possible. Make sure your heatsink has no foreign material in it, and that it's properly clamped down on top of the paste/processor. Check your fan and airflow. Check all the other fans in your case to ensure each is operating correctly. You may need to re-grease one or two if they're tight and not spinning optimally.

Check your BIOS settings and see if any of the fan controls have been reset.

Check your operating system to see if there is something untoward running in the background causing your CPU to be working to the degree that it would throw your temps consistently into the 90s. It's not out of range, especially on those early i7s, but you can certainly bring that temp down. I've got a i7-2600k running at 4.4ghz with a Zalman HSF unit, and I don't think I've ever seen it crack 70.

Stock HSF units "do the job", but it's better to get a proper aftermarket HSF. I've got a whole box on my table filled with stock HSFs from client builds...every couple of months I sell all my excess bits and bobs, and then I start all over again.

[casterofdreams]

So the CM cooler came in. I also picked up that Arctic Silver thermal paste. I changed out the stock fan for the new one. While I was in there I cleaned out the whole thing, took apart the GPU and cleaned it out and reapplied some thermal paste too.

Now the temps (all Celsius): idle is still high, ranging between 40 to 47. Now on load, no more than 62. For the same massive load (GTA V) it's more than 20 degrees lower! No worries of high temps!

[noiseredux]

Awesome! Glad to be of some help.