Aged, dried, or cracked thermal interface material (TIM)
Thermal paste degrades and turns into dry chalk after 3-5 years of thermal expansion and contraction, creating microscopic air gaps that insulate heat.
Internal desktop parts run on harmless 12V DC voltage and cannot shock you. Simply unplug the wall power cable first, then touch the unpainted metal case frame to ground static electricity.
Common Symptoms & Tells
- Gradual temperature increase of 15-20°C over several years of use
- Fans ramp to high speed within 5 seconds of opening any application
- Cooler was never repasted since original assembly 4+ years ago
Interactive Fix Checklist
0 of 5 steps completedSafety power-off and discharge
Shut down the PC, turn off the power supply rocker switch (O), and unplug the AC power cord from the wall outlet. Press the front power button once while unplugged to discharge residual capacitor energy before touching any internal components.
Remove CPU cooler carefully (twist before pulling)
Warm up the CPU with a benchmark before shutdown. Unscrew cooler and gently twist back and forth. Never pull straight up on AMD AM4 CPUs, which can yank the CPU out of the locked socket.
Dissolve dried paste using 90%+ isopropyl alcohol
Apply isopropyl alcohol with a paper towel or microfiber cloth. Clean until both the CPU IHS and cooler copper base shine mirror-clean.
Apply fresh high-performance thermal paste
Place a pea-sized drop (or an X with 4 corner dots) in the center of the heat spreader. Do not use conductive liquid metal on bare aluminum.
Torque mounting screws progressively in cross pattern
Turn screw 1 two rotations, then diagonal screw 2 two rotations, then 3 and 4, repeating until all four spring-loaded screws bottom out firmly.
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