# can i use thermal paste on vrm?



## MightEMatt

I think there are usually thermal pads on them, but I cant imagine non-conductive paste hurting them, assuming you don't over do it. Although you might want to wait for a couple more responses since I have no experience doing it.


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## ImmortalKenny

No. Use thermal pads or thermal tape instead. In order for paste to be effective, you'd have to use a lot of it and over time the paste won't keep the gap filled anyways.


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## adridu59

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *ImmortalKenny*
> 
> No. Use thermal pads or thermal tape instead.


Why exactly?

I have thermal paste all-over my video cards VRMs.


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## ImmortalKenny

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *adridu59*
> 
> Why exactly?
> I have thermal paste all-over my video cards VRMs.


I guess it _could_ work in some situations. If the heatsink is making constant pressure on the VRM, thermal paste could work. If there's a gap, you'll definitely want to use a thermal pad.

OP really didn't write a descriptive post so who knows what he's talking about...


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## Metalcrack

Akaska tape http://www.sidewindercomputers.com/akthadtaak80.html or similar product if the gap is small/non-existant, or pads if there is a gap.

Make sure TIM is noon-conductive as that stuff is going to get everywhere. Also make sure is stays fairly solid (i.e. doesn't get runny). I'm sure some of the really cheap stuff may do that.


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## adridu59

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *ImmortalKenny*
> 
> I guess it _could_ work in some situations. If the heatsink is making constant pressure on the VRM, thermal paste could work. If there's a gap, you'll definitely want to use a thermal pad.


Yeah in my case it makes enough pressure I guess.


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## omgzombie

here is picture hope it helps..


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## PCCstudent

I used the thermal tape on my gpu's vrm's.The tape and the individual heatsinks came assembled that way.I changed out a cpu from a Dell PC from 2001.Instead of thermal paste the entire heatsink surface was covered by a square of thermal tape.This was my first introduction into the odd ways Dell does things at times.Dell at times does things different but I cannot say they did things poorly,in fact some differences were quite clever.


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## Nemesis158

I had to use some on my 7970 since the old pads disintegrated and i didnt have any pads to replace them with. i wont be keeping it there forever though, but im waiting till i can find a full set for the 7970 (vram pads are just about toast as well)


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## omgzombie

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Nemesis158*
> 
> I had to use some on my 7970 since the old pads disintegrated and i didnt have any pads to replace them with. i wont be keeping it there forever though, but im waiting till i can find a full set for the 7970 (vram pads are just about toast as well)


how did you use it? i mean did you rub it all over the vrm or just placed a blob on the top part?


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## adridu59

Personally I put a small blob on each VRM. Make sure you don't use conductive or capacitive paste (ie. Arctic Silver 5).


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## omgzombie

how to know if a paste is conductive and or capacative?i have a cheap thermal paste..white coloured


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## tsm106

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *omgzombie*
> 
> how to know if a paste is conductive and or capacative?i have a cheap thermal paste..white coloured


There are no conductive TIMs. Think about that for a second, conductive = fried components. That would be pretty failboat for a TIM. There however are some capacitive TIMs like AS5. Take care not to get it on components.


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## Cakewalk_S

I used regular ceramique/non conductive paste then mixed it with epoxy, quick setting in 5 minutes, mixed it good, probably a 2:1 paste to epoxy mix and called it a day. Works great on my graphics card VRM's and voltage regulator. I'd imagine over time the epoxy will wear off so I can resell it in a few years... But the heat transfer is great! Good 10C lower


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## adridu59

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *tsm106*
> 
> There are no conductive TIMs. Think about that for a second, conductive = fried components. That would be pretty failboat for a TIM. There however are some capacitive TIMs like AS5. Take care not to get it on components.


Right, I did read about conductive awhile ago in a thread and didn't even think about it.


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## omgzombie

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Cakewalk_S*
> 
> I used regular ceramique/non conductive paste then mixed it with epoxy, quick setting in 5 minutes, mixed it good, probably a 2:1 paste to epoxy mix and called it a day. Works great on my graphics card VRM's and voltage regulator. I'd imagine over time the epoxy will wear off so I can resell it in a few years... But the heat transfer is great! Good 10C lower


now what is epoxy?never heard the name before?cant i just use the thermal paste on the vrms?i have infact applied a bit .infact the pic that i have in the first i have applied it if u look closely u will see the vrm are white-ish


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## DuckieHo

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *tsm106*
> 
> There are no conductive TIMs. Think about that for a second, conductive = fried components. That would be pretty failboat for a TIM. There however are some capacitive TIMs like AS5. Take care not to get it on components.


There are conductive TIMs. i.e. Coollaboratory Liquid Ultra http://www.coollaboratory.com/en/products/liquid-ultra/









AS5's capacitance is quite low.... I wouldn't worry about direct application on the resin coat of transistors.

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *omgzombie*
> 
> here is picture hope it helps..


Are you planning to mount a heatsinks to the VRMs? If so, how will the HS be secured? I don't see any screw holes.... If you plan to use thermal glue/epoxy, that's a different story.

If not, TIM alone will lower thermal conductivity and increase temperatures.


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## tsm106

I left out the engineered metal TIMs. If you got that on other stuff, I'd assume you have other worries at large then just conductive issues.


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## just_nuke_em

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *DuckieHo*
> 
> Are you planning to mount a heatsinks to the VRMs? If so, how will the HS be secured? I don't see any screw holes.... If you plan to use thermal glue/epoxy, that's a different story.
> If not, TIM alone will lower thermal conductivity and increase temperatures.


First thing I thought of when I saw the pic. You need a heatsink first before TIM becomes usable


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## omgzombie

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *just_nuke_em*
> 
> First thing I thought of when I saw the pic. You need a heatsink first before TIM becomes usable


heat sink for vrm??could you post me a link?and so for now i should not just use the thermal paste on my vrm then right?


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## adridu59

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *omgzombie*
> 
> heat sink for vrm??could you post me a link?and so for now i should not just use the thermal paste on my vrm then right?


You can but it will have practically no effect. Cooling needs heatsink+airflow.


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## EvoBeardy

MOS-C10 are recommended heatsinks for the VRM's, even VRAM heatsinks like Swiftech's will do. They have double-sided thermal tape already pre-attached (though I use Sekisui).

You should really only use thermal paste on area's like between CPU/GPU die's/IHS and a fixed heatsink (clamped, bolted etc.), unless you use one with a fixing compound like Ceramique.
As stated, you need a heatsink ontop of whatever thermal interface you use, to dissipate the heat regardless.

I'm curious as to why exactly you're looking at adding cooling to your Mobo's VRM's, are you overclocking and/or overvolting your CPU? Are you concerned about their current heat output?
What Motherboard and CPU do you have?


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## DuckieHo

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *omgzombie*
> 
> heat sink for vrm??could you post me a link?and so for now i should not just use the thermal paste on my vrm then right?


Just thermal paste on a component will *increase* temperatures.

The point of TIM is to fill gaps between a heat load and a heat dispersing device. Ultimately, the heat is generally dispersed into the air. By applying TIM and no heatsink, you are just insulating the head load device from dispersing into the air.


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## omgzombie

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *EvoBeardy*
> 
> MOS-C10 are recommended heatsinks for the VRM's, even VRAM heatsinks like Swiftech's will do. They have double-sided thermal tape already pre-attached (though I use Sekisui).
> You should really only use thermal paste on area's like between CPU/GPU die's/IHS and a fixed heatsink (clamped, bolted etc.), unless you use one with a fixing compound like Ceramique.
> As stated, you need a heatsink ontop of whatever thermal interface you use, to dissipate the heat regardless.
> I'm curious as to why exactly you're looking at adding cooling to your Mobo's VRM's, are you overclocking and/or overvolting your CPU? Are you concerned about their current heat output?
> What Motherboard and CPU do you have?


phenom ii 560 and mobo gigabyte ga 78-lmt-s2pt.i have unlocked the third core and currently looking forward to overclock it by 300mhz


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## omgzombie

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *DuckieHo*
> 
> Just thermal paste on a component will *increase* temperatures.
> The point of TIM is to fill gaps between a heat load and a heat dispersing device. Ultimately, the heat is generally dispersed into the air. By applying TIM and no heatsink, you are just insulating the head load device from dispersing into the air.


Quote:


> Originally Posted by *DuckieHo*
> 
> Just thermal paste on a component will *increase* temperatures.
> The point of TIM is to fill gaps between a heat load and a heat dispersing device. Ultimately, the heat is generally dispersed into the air. By applying TIM and no heatsink, you are just insulating the head load device from dispersing into the air.


okay..thanks a lot..gained some knowledge today







by the way what would you recommend the cabinet fan which is placed just above the heatsink to be?input or output?


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## PCCstudent

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *omgzombie*
> 
> okay..thanks a lot..gained some knowledge today
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> by the way what would you recommend the cabinet fan which is placed just above the heatsink to be?input or output?


If I managed to get a 120mm fan close to the top/front of the case (like one bay down) and this fan is an intake (in the front of the case),I would make the one on the back exhaust,agumented with an exhaust on the top of the case.This setup would aid whatever hot air wanted to rise on its own and complete the front to back airflow scheme you designed by placing a intake fan at the front of the case and an exhaust at the rear.

In an open air case (like a test station) I get air blowing over these VRM's in any direction possible.Watercoolers sometimes forget to maintain airflow over these VRM's


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## Mygaffer

I have experimented with thermal paste on top of things like ram or vrm's that have thermal pads as the primary heat transfer medium. I have found that using a little bit will not raise temps but that it won't really lower them in any meaningful way either.
Probably best to stick to the pads unless your pads are falling apart a little bit. If they are falling apart a lot you need to replace them.


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## Usernamexists

My suggestion would be double sided thermal tape. Most non conductive thermal paste are capacitive. If you ever do go to overclocked they can mess with the vrm enough to cause you issues.
Wouldn't type it, if I hadn't seen it.


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## Timbo-42

Have any of you, ever used Arctic Alumina for sticking heat sinks on vrm? I have been using it with great success for years. Thermal pads wear out, and thermal paste doesn't stick very well, especially when gravity is a factor. Arctic Alumina transfers heat very well, is non conductive, and bonds solid as a rock. The only two issues with using it, is that the bond is so strong it is permanent, and will destroy mosfets, when you attempt to remove the heat sinks. Also, when you mix it, you have to mix small amounts, and move fast, because it will be set in three to five minutes.


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## Nick the Slick

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Timbo-42*
> 
> Have any of you, ever used Arctic Alumina for sticking heat sinks on vrm? I have been using it with great success for years. Thermal pads wear out, and thermal paste doesn't stick very well, especially when gravity is a factor. Arctic Alumina transfers heat very well, is non conductive, and bonds solid as a rock. The only two issues with using it, is that the bond is so strong it is permanent, and will destroy mosfets, when you attempt to remove the heat sinks. Also, when you mix it, you have to mix small amounts, and move fast, because it will be set in three to five minutes.


Yes I used it quite successfully to put heatsinks on my ASUS M4A87TD EVO VRMs. Helped me squeeze another ~200MHz out of my 1090t when I had gotten temp limited. Popped heatsinks on the VRMs and it dropped the socket (and CPU) temps enough to bump it up. Didn't care about it being permanent because I never intend to remove the heatsinks


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## Timbo-42

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *Nick the Slick*
> 
> Yes I used it quite successfully to put heatsinks on my ASUS M4A87TD EVO VRMs. Helped me squeeze another ~200MHz out of my 1090t when I had gotten temp limited. Popped heatsinks on the VRMs and it dropped the socket (and CPU) temps enough to bump it up. Didn't care about it being permanent because I never intend to remove the heatsinks


I am waiting on some right now, for that very reason. I have a Asus M5A97 LE R2.0, that I'm gonna try to get something out of. I know the board is very limited by it's power phase, but I figured some heat sinks, and a fan on the vrm couldn't hurt.


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## DesertRat

I have used Artic Silver Ceramique and Ceramique 2 for years in substitution of thermal pads on VRMs and RAM. Though, I don't recommend it if you can get thermal pads since it's a mess the next time you have to re-mount your cooler.

Not all thermal paste is safe to use this way, AS C has a couple somewhat unique properties.

A. It's 100% non-conductive, and non-capacitive.
B. It's viscosity and physical properties cause it not to migrate or thin once "globbed" in place.

Downsides? It's a mess when it comes time to disassemble, and you end up using a lot. I've never done or seen any testing ASC vs. Thermal Pads, so I can't claim it to work better or worse thermally. I will say that it's hard to get an even "glob" across the entire VRM or RAM chip, which could lead to hot spots.


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## 8051

Quote:


> Originally Posted by *omgzombie*
> 
> here is picture hope it helps..


Wow, I haven't seen unsinked VRM's in a while -- not since my Gigabyte UD3LR fried its VRM's.


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