P4 +Heatsink... Reusable?

[E3000]

Hey yo peeps,

The other day i went to take my P4 chip and Heatsink/Fan off my Motherboard and the whole lot came off together (CPU was stuck to the Heatsink). Does anyone know if its safe to carefully pull the chip off? ...I mean, if i do this, will i be able to use the CPU again without having to get some of that Gel stuff to put on the CPU? It got stuck cos of the heat so i wanna know if that same thermal material can be used again (because the CPU obviously cant be installed onto the Motherboard whilst stuck to the Heatsink).

 

[yaethom]

I don't see how you pulled the CPU and Fan out in the first place.
Assuming you have a P4 with an adequate heatsink, the heat sink will most likely make it impossible for you to release the holding lever for the CPU.

Unless you tore the CPU and heatsink out of its own socket (which is plausible... but hard to do)
Something sounds wrong here...... maybe its just me.

 

[Mavrick007]

I first thought that it sounds funny cause all you have to do is pull off the hsf and put new thermal paste onto it and reinstall.. but after thinking about it, I'm also wondering how you could have taken off the cpu and fan without taking the hsf off the chip first cause the handle for the socket would be obstructed (unless it's a hsf that flares out and gets larger going from the bottom to the top then it might be possible to take the whole thing out without taking off the hsf first).

As long as the socket and the pins on the P4 cpu aren't damaged, then you should be able to safely remove the hsf from the P4 but you have to reapply new paste before installing again.

 

[GrumpyMan]

It would be impossible to do (remmoval of the heatsink and chip together) unless the lever used to hold the cpu in wasn't flipped in the correct position in the first place after install. Unless like the other members suggested it was ripped out, for lack of a better term.

 

[Wingznut]

Actually, it is very possible... When you use the thermal pad that comes with the heatsink.

When it gets hot, the pad melts to the cpu, creating a bond. Although I've never used the pad, this isn't the first time I've heard of this happening.

 

[Mavrick007]

Originally posted by: Wingznut PEZ
Actually, it is very possible... When you use the thermal pad that comes with the heatsink.

When it gets hot, the pad melts to the cpu, creating a bond. Although I've never used the pad, this isn't the first time I've heard of this happening.

It's possible to fuse the hsf with the cpu, but getting them off the mobo together is a different story cause of the lever on the ziff socket.

 

[Wingznut]

E3000 isn't the first person to circumvent the lever... Link

 

[WarCon]

I have done it with a waterblock and AS3 on a P4 (Both the heatspreader and waterblock were lapped and I had a very thin coat that was obviously making a great connection). It can happen and the melt-on process of the thermal pads can make it all the more likely to happen.

Did freak me out the first time and it did bend a couple of those tiny pins.

 

[E3000]

But yo,
It's still stuck on... whats the best way to take it off?
Also, where can i get more thermal paste?

 

[meefmah]

The same thing happened to a friends' rig. I grabbed the processor, gave it a twist and it came off. If that doesn't work, maybe some heat? If all else fails, you could put a shear load on the spreader with a putty knife or maybe try and wedge a razor blade between the spreader and sink. Good luck! Crosses fingers

PS: You can get the ubiquitous Arctic Silver III(thermal paste) @ newegg.com.

 

[EdipisReks]

just pull the damn thing off. use a razor blade between the chip and the hsf, if you have to. cpus are that fragile, you know.

 

[FishTankX]

Epidis reeks means they aren't that fragile. not are.

Anyways, CPU's are, as he said, very hardy. I've dropped my P4 10 feet without a problem. (long story) and still worked like a charm. Those heat spreaders are like crash guards. Just make sure you don't screw up and bend pins, and you'll be OK.

As for reusing the thermal compound, if you manage to get the P4 back into the socket with the heatsink still on it, without breaking the bond, then you technically could..

I would just reccomend getting arctic silver 3 from new egg, it'll extend the lifespan of your processor by a few years..