Potency loss of Arctic Silver 5

[ahxnguyen]

I just bought a CPU cooler (Cooler Master Hyper 212), a tube of thermal grease included. 18 months ago I bought a tube of AS5 for my AMD X2 4800.By that time AS5 was rated as the best thermal grease.
Is 18-month old AS5 better than the throw-in Cooler Master grease for a Q6600?
Thanks for your input.

 

[Idontcare]

According to the artic silver guys the AS5 can seperate over time while in the tube.

In fact they recommend you store the tube cap-down to whatever seperation does occur will only increase the concentration of the articsilver particles at the tip of the tube from which you will be dispensing it. (they also recommend storing it in the fridge!)

I have used AS5 which was >1 year old and I certainly did not store it in any special way. It came out just fine and worked just fine.

Basically just keep an eye out for anything weird that might ooze out from the tube (like clear liquid or something really really runny and not pasty) and you will be fine.

 

[Quiksilver]

Even if it does separate you could put it onto a small tray and mix them back together.

 

[DerwenArtos12]

I would prop it against something tip down for atleast an hour just before you're about to use it just to be safe. I know here in AZ the summer heat can get it to seperate in about a year, even inside.

 

[Zepper]

Actually AS claimed AS5 doesn't separate, but it does otherwise it's not supposed to go bad. Stir it up gently with a VERY clean stirrer as you don't want junk in your TIM...

.bh.

 

[ahxnguyen]

Originally posted by: Zepper
Actually AS claimed AS5 doesn't separate, but it does otherwise it's not supposed to go bad. Stir it up gently with a VERY clean stirrer as you don't want junk in your TIM...

.bh.

Thank all of you for input.

 

[Idontcare]

Originally posted by: Zepper
Actually AS claimed AS5 doesn't separate, but it does otherwise it's not supposed to go bad. Stir it up gently with a VERY clean stirrer as you don't want junk in your TIM...

.bh.

That is incorrect (the part I bolded in your post).

I kindly suggest you read Artic Silver's own publicly available documentation.

Here's a a quote from it (bolded emphasis is mine):

5) Storage of Arctic Silver 5
To keep Arctic Silver 5 fresh for future applications, always replace the cap on the syringe after each use.
The syringe should be stored tip down so that any separation between the particles and suspension fluid will be at the back end of the syringe.
Like any mix of particles that are many times heavier than the suspension fluid, there will be some separation in the compound over time when stored in the original syringe.
Because all thermal compounds eventually experience some separation in storage, storing in a cool place like a refrigerator will also lessen the separation over time.
However, this does not affect the performance of the un-separated or remixed compound.

http://www.arcticsilver.com/pd...s5_intel_quad_wcap.pdf

 

[Thor86]

Even if there is any seperation of fluid carrier, I doubt it would impact the performance one bit. The stuff is so tacky/thick anyway.

 

[VinDSL]

Originally posted by: Idontcare
According to the artic silver guys the AS5 can seperate over time while in the tube.

Exactly!

ALL greases do this! That's one of the reasons I prefer true thermal pastes, like MX-1...

I digress: In my job, I use anti-seize compound. It separates like crazy - gotta stir it EVERY time I use it.

The same thing applies to AS5. Empty the tube unto a clean plate, stir it around, and put it back into the tube...

End of problem!

 

[VinDSL]

Originally posted by: Zepper
Stir it up gently with a VERY clean stirrer as you don't want junk in your TIM...

Oops! I should have kept reading...

Same church, different pastor!

Stir it up - that's the important part to remember...