Help please; where is heat sink on Z1?

Sorry, but I had to start a new thread to focus attention on the advice I received in this thread . I have the Z12 open, but even with schematics courtesy of Computer Cowboy, I can't find the heat sink to determine if it has come loose or bent in order to repair, as suggested in that thread.

The only video I could find, http://vimeo.com/28217054 , makes it look like more hardware dissembly/reassembly than I am willing/able to endeavor. Is there any other way to get to the heat sink to see if it has been damaged/separated, causing my gpu to lose all thermostatic control?

Sorry for the urgent plea, but everything is apart on my desk and I am rather clueless what to mess with. Thought it would be obvious, but it's not.

Thanks very much.

 

I don't have a pic or schematic but it's the only huge copper thing on the motherboard. The fan is attached to it.

 

Thanks, but how do I get the fan off to reach the heat sink? is that video the only way?

 

I'm watching the vid now, I can't fast forward so it's gonna be a few.

 

No sweat. ur a lifesaver!

 

Vid looks accurate. Yes the heatsink is on the underside of the mainboard. You're half way there, what do you have to lose?

 

Many more things to undo than I have before. Tell me again what I am looking for once I get it open?

 

Really the video looks like perfect instructions. The guy did it in 11 minutes I'd stick around to support you further but I gotta run. You do have thermal compound handy, right? You can remove the heatsink without thoroughly cleaning the old compound from both the fan and chips and reapplying a very small amount of compound the each chip before reassembling.

 

you can see at the end of the video there are 2 chips. the one on the heatsink under the left side (left in video) with the screws is the cpu. The one on the right is the GPU. You MAY be able to spot where the copper heatsink has lifted from the GPU. Once you remove the heatsink you will like spot dry, caked, burned thermal compound on the GPU. Again, clean, reapply grease, reassemble.

 

Thanks, just one more question. The vid cut out just before he did anyting to the heat sink. Can you tell me in 15 words or less, just what am I looking for and what do I want to do with it?

 

got it. posts crossed in the wire, lol. Thanks!

 

No problem. Remember, this whole project is about thermal compound so don't shortcut that part or you'll be doing it over. Take lots of pictures so if you can't figure where something went or how a wire was routed you'll have a point of reference. Good luck, you can do it!

 

Many thanks for the suport - actual and moral My biggest fear is putting it all back together, lol. It's late tonight, so I will re-attempt tomorrow. Thanks for sticking by. It's so much more gratifying to do it yourself, but so expensive if you screw it up, lol.

 

Well, how'd it go?

 

At the moment, couldn't be worse, I'm afraid.

I had it half apart last night, decided to put it together (cat in house) and now, I can't even get it to boot up in stamina without the fan revving up and the machine shutting down before it completes booting. Once this problem began, it would always rev high during bootup (on stamina) but managed to get fully booted before shutting itself down, and then would go back to maintaining perfect temp control as long as I stayed on stamina. My thought is that I got in far enough to break the seal between the cpu/IGP and the heat sink, so now everything zooms up.

Two choices:

1) Go back in and do it all right - perhaps with a buddy standing by or,
2) put a service call into Square Trade, through whom i have a full wtty including ADH

Could I have literally broken something such that re-pasting would not cure the problem?

Thanks for checking in.

 

^Bummer.

No you didn't break anything. Did you clean all the old paste? Did you apply NEW thermal compound to everything?

 

I think a slow and careful rebuild is needed. Its deffo the heatsink causing the issues.

Good luck, and keep us informed.

C.

 

Remember, once you remove the heatsink you MUST remove and replace all the paste. Each chip just gets about drop of pasted in the middle (think 2-3 grains of cooked rice) and the pressure of installing the heatsink will cause it to spread. If you removed the heatsink and did not replace the thermal compound, it won't work.

 

Guys,
Much as it pains me to whimp out - especially with all the support you're giving me - this task is a little beyond my "wheel house" and I have to have major surgery at the Mayo Clinic in two weeks so....

Sending the unit to Square Trade (have ADH wtty) to fix or pay back original price. I've had only good experiences with them in past - quality service and/or fairly quick to DOA it and cut check. They commit a 5 day fix-or-pay policy.

I really want to learn how to do this, but it is proving too time consuming right now.

Thanks again for all your help. I will still keep you posted as what occurs.