Thinkpad T61 Thermal Paste Guide

EDIT: Guide link expired.

 

Nice guide. It looks pretty good after you spreaded the thermal paste, but remember less is more with thermal paste.

 

I'm sorry you did that. This forum takes thermal paste well beyond what it deserves.

I've built many computers since 486's and have never reapplied paste. It does not evaporate or go away. If your computer is still working there was enough paste to keep it cool. Besides, thermal paste can be misapplied.

DON"T put it on.

Renee

 

While it's true that, if the computer is running, there is enough thermal paste to keep the computer cool, applying better/thinner thermal paste can result in your computer running cooler. If anything, I think that it is a neat thing to do to save yourself a few degrees below the stock thermal paste. There is definitely the potential to damage the computer if done incorrectly, so please make sure you are careful and do the procedure correctly!

 

What you say is true. And as you say the correct application of thermal paste is a skill. I recommend that it be attempted only by a skilled person.
Renee

 

Sometimes to clean the heatsink you have to take it off, so in that case you should be redoing the thermal paste. You don't have to use Arctic Silver if your worried about it being conductive. If your skilled enough to remove the heatsink you should be fine redoing the thermal compond while following a simple guide.

 

Hi, Hearst555. Can you post temps before and after your new thermal paste application?

 

Sure, before I was struggling to get my system below 45 degrees celsius on idle, max load will get it around 55 degrees celsius. Probably caused from the lack of paste which I must've spreaded too thin before and a clogged up CPU fan.

Bear in mind my T61 has the Intel Graphics chip so it will be slightly cooler compared to the Nvidia Quadro models. I also don't run my system on "Maximum Performance" (I only browse online, minor art touch ups and listening to music with my T61 - don't game) but I wasn't that impressed that it was still as humid on the lower clock speeds hence for the cleanup.

After applying AS5 with a couple of stress tests (one which was left for 11 hours ) my system is currently around 35 degrees celcius...while syncing my iTunes along in the background. I haven't checked the idle temps but I think the reading compared to the 45 degrees I was getting before speaks for itself. This was using exactly the same settings on the Power Manager I used previously.

At max load with stress test on as well as some other applications in the background, it stays at a constant 38 degrees, making the T61 pleasantly quiet and cool to work with. I wasn't expecting the AS5 to break in this quick myself at this stage, I also don't have special vents or air con in my room to cheat! I added a screenshot of my normal desktop load temps.

 

38 degrees celsius? sounds a bit low.

Try using Tpfancontrol and see what the CPU temperature is.

 

Ah, seems Core Temp was a bit too optimistic in the readings! I always used Core Temp before so its a bit of a shock. Installed TPfancontrol and reports CPU at 46 degrees celsius full load compared to 39 degrees celcius on Core Temp. 7 degrees off is quite a significant sum, so based on that my previous CPU temps would be 52 degrees idle and 62 degrees on full load before AS5 was applied. The new readings would be 46 degrees full load and 42 degrees idle after AS5 (assuming Ceteris Paribus).

 

What stress test are you using for these full load test?

 

My cleaning and application of new thermal paste in my t410s didn't make a huge difference in temperatures, it runs about 3-4 deg c cooler now then it did before. It was fun for me to take the computer apart and see how well engineered this marvel is on the inside. But, I really wouldn't recommend it to anyone who doesn't feel like digging around in their laptop's interior. It was a fairly major endeavor, and like I said, only netted me about 3-4 deg c (as reported by tpfancontrol using BIOS fan settings).

 

I use Prime95 to stress test my system at full loads. I also use it for stability testing on certain components like aftermarket RAMS to make sure they’re fine too.

 

I just replaced the motherboard on a T61p and after doing so it crashed all the time - eventually I worked out it was overheating. Under any kind of CPU intensive activity it would soar to over 100C and then die. Even running a couple of programs with the max performance power setting would result in temps over 90C. Googled, found this guide, followed it, and it is now running at 50C under normal use, and the max I've been able to push it up to is 85C using prime95 or Orthos. (temps using Realtemp)

With regard to the process being difficult - the most technical thing I had ever done with a laptop prior to replacing the motherboard, and then applying thermal grease, was installing an extra stick of RAM. I didn't find the process difficult at all - the guide Hearst put up is excellent - thank you very much for that. The Lenovo service videos are also very useful for taking apart the computer the first time (provided you have a spare computer to watch them on!).

So Renee - you never need to reapply thermal paste and it is taken far too seriously - reapplying it has saved me having to replace a T61p that was still in warranty (though it I guess it isn't now I've fiddled with it myself!)(read here for backstory: http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/T61-and...our-after-motherboard-replacement/td-p/237557).
Cost of thermal paste and remover: ~$20. Time: 2 hrs.
Cost of replacement laptop ~$2000. Time: 2 or 3 days research, plus 2 or 3 days of setting it up when it arrived.

Aside from taking apart the computer, other cooling options which seem worth pursuing for notebooks are undervolting (good guide here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/har...arket-upgrades/235824-undervolting-guide.html) and CPU idle: CpuIdle - The Swiss Army Knife Of Overclocking.

 

No problem, glad to find the guide was useful to solve your problem on your T61p.

 

Followed your procedure on my T61p T7500 last night. Idle temps dropped by ~10C.

I also did some undervolting and the final results were fantastic. Idle temps dropped by ~15C and loaded temps dropped by ~20C!

Thanks for a great guide, Hearst555!

 

Glad to be of service! 15-20c is a massive drop in temperature, I struggle to get a drop of 5c myself! Your T61p must be running nice and cool now!

 

I think it's more of a case that my T61p was running too hot before!

Before the thermal paste/undervolt the cores were running at ~80-90C when at 2.2GHz under moderate load (I never tested at full load). The system would idle at ~60C at 2.2GHz.

Now, locked at 2.2GHz (post thermal paste/undervolt), the system idles at ~40-45C and fully loaded for an hour of both cores at 100% the result was ~68-72C.

I would say that's a definite improvement and well worth the effort. Thanks again for an excellent procedural guide.

EDIT: Just did a quick 15min blast and attached idle and loaded screenshots.

 

What thermal paste have you used? I'm looking for something safe and good

 

To be honest, I had a syringe of Artic Silver 2 (I think) laying in my desk so I just used that. I didn't bother to spec out anything in particular.

When I got the heat sink off, I found the standard stuff all crusted up, so I think pretty much any fresh thermal paste would have been an improvement.

 

Thank you!

 

i just replaced my thermal paste on my T400 with Artic MX-3.

I almost always have the laptop docked. When I play starcraft 2, it gets VERY hot. I've seen the cpu at 80C. It would sometimes crash because i think the gpu would overheat.

I was playing sc2 earlier and the cpu temp only went to 62C, while the radeon gpu is a few C higher. (tpfcontrol set to 64). Once I finish playing, the temps drop a lot faster than previously.

It's a great mod, cpu temp idles at 47C, gpu around the same. (tpfcontrol set to BIOS)

It probably saves battery too since the fan doesn't need to work that hard.

Thanks.

 

If I had to "replace a cpu" it wouldn't cost me anything extra because I recognize that a viable computer is an "insured" computer. I have my Lenovo insured and have recommened it here many times. However my T61P runs cool and the only paste on it is original paste.
Renee

 

Been reading this guide, and I'm definitely applying this to my newly-acquired T61 & T60. Thanks!

 

Wow... it's been a while but I didn't see this DIY before the bump. Hearst did a great job documenting this process, and with personal experience you can use this guide for most any T-series from the T60 on up.

 

"My cleaning and application of new thermal paste in my t410s didn't make a huge difference in temperatures, it runs about 3-4 deg c cooler now then it did before."

"So Renee - you never need to reapply thermal paste and it is taken far too seriously - reapplying it has saved me having to replace a T61p that was still in warranty (though it I guess it isn't now I've fiddled with it myself!)(read here for backstory"

I'm at a little bit of a disadvantage because I have much respect for Hearst. But I would say the same thing the poster did above: "You never need to change the paste". If fact given what can go wrong it's risky business. With much respect to Hearst I think the rush lap top users show to change the paste comes from a large lack of knowledge on the paste.

Renee

 

True to a certain point. If you know what you're doing, I don't see any issue. Changing thermal paste on a laptop is not a novice activity, by any means. It can be a great thing to do, if the situation calls for it. I did this to my new T60 because it was known that this machine had problems with random lockups and freezes. When I took the heatsink off, the paste was in poor condition. Now it has Arctic Silver 5 on it, and everything is clean and dandy.

I don't see anything wrong with people replacing the thermal paste on their laptops, just as long as they know what they're doing.


(Full disclosure: there was a good amount of dust in the fan vents, so this definitely contributed to the lockups. Either way, new thermal paste was the best course of action, in my opinion.)

 

The issue is whether you need it or not.

Renee

 

Thank you, great guide and much better then others I've seen online. I'm about to do a cpu swap so this will come in handy.

 

Hearst: Your step-by-step process makes this rather complicated process - a piece of cake. It motivated me to order Arctic 5. While I am waiting for it - here is a dumb Q: After I apply the paste -do I sit there wait until the paste tries up to put the system back or I simply apply paste and then right away put the system back? Thank you.

 

Once you applied the thin layer of thermal paste you can immediately reassemble the unit, no need to wait. Be aware that pastes like Arctic Silver 5 will have a "curing time" before it performs optimally which you can read about in the reminder section here.

 

Hearst: Thanks a ton for the brisk reply. I will follow your instructions carefully when I start the process this weekend. Will post an update after that.

 

Dear Hearst,
You are G-E-N-I-U-S!
The guide for thermal paste application was great.
I followed it and the completed the process on my T61.
Previously, the CPU and MoBo were reporting upwards of 58-60 C.
Immeidately after application of T paste, I am now seeing 40-43 on both CPU and MoBo. I used Speccy app by Piriform. I bought Artic Silver 5 as you recommended. Apparently, my machine was thirsty for this stuff and hence no curing time
Once again, many thanks for your help.

 

Ever since I reapplied my thermal paste on my Macbook once and saw heat dropped by 10degrees C, I want to do this again.

Will report after I try though IDK how close this is to the x220