Thought thermal paste was snake oil until a Dell XPS 15 came in hitting 99C on idle

Henry Scott · 2026-09-30T09:45:03.691992+00:00

Client brought it in last Tuesday, said it shut off during Zoom calls. Pulled the heatsink and the factory paste was already chalky, dried out in two years. Cleaned it with 91% iso, threw on some MX-4 I had sitting in the drawer forever, and idle dropped to 47C. Fan barely spins now. I always figured paste was a once and done thing from the factory but that stuff clearly doesn't last. Anyone got a brand they actually trust for long haul builds, or is it all the same after a couple years?

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Thought thermal paste was snake oil until a Dell XPS 15 came in hitting 99C on idle | Computer Technicians - Guest Forum