What is better to lubricate the cooler: grease or oil

Sooner or later, even the quietest computer begins to make loud and unpleasant noise. This is a clear sign that it's time to lubricate the cooler. So how and what is the best way to do this? Use special or regular lubricant, machine oil, WD-40.

What kind of lubricant to lubricate the cooler

The first thing you need to decide is the type of lubricant. A PC fan has its own technical characteristics, and not every lubricant can cope well with the task assigned to it.

Silicone Grease. It is the optimal choice for servicing coolers. Silicone grease has a consistency thick enough to remain in the bearing for a long time, and does not affect the fan speed.

WD-40. This product copes well with dirt, and with its help you can start even a cooler that has stopped due to dust. It can also be used as a lubricant, but be aware that it is not as long lasting or effective as silicone options.

Litol and Solidol. Such materials are not intended for use in high-speed rotating mechanisms; they are very viscous and reduce the efficiency of cooling systems. Based on this, Litol and grease are not recommended for lubricating computer coolers.

Graphite grease. Separately, it is necessary to highlight lubricants containing graphite: the use of such solutions in computers is highly not recommended.Firstly, these lubricants are electrically conductive, and the contact of graphite particles with electronic components can damage them. Secondly, they are designed for large mechanisms and have a very high viscosity, which negatively affects the performance and service life of the cooler.

What kind of oil can be used to lubricate a computer fan?

In addition to special lubricants, it is permissible to use various oils as lubricants.

Machine. This is a good option; it will optimally lubricate the moving elements and eliminate unpleasant noise from the cooler. It is recommended to use oils of medium viscosity, for example SAE 10W30.

Oil for sewing machines or electric shavers. If you don’t have special lubricant or machine oil on hand, then this option is quite acceptable.

Vegetable. This is the worst thing you can think of to lubricate a cooler. Due to their properties, such oils do not remain on the surface, like machine oils, but dry out, coke and become very sticky, which contributes to the accumulation of dust and, as a result, failure of the cooler.

How to lubricate a computer cooler

Before you begin any work on your computer, you must make sure that all its components are turned off and not connected to the electrical outlet.

Advice
You should also make sure that there are no warranty seals on the case: if they are broken, the warranty will be void.

Instructions:

1. Remove the back cover of the system unit and disconnect the cooler. It is usually secured with screws or a special quick-release fastener.
2. Using a utility knife, remove the sticker from the back side.
3. Carefully remove the protective plug from the center of the cooler and lubricate the axle.
4. Reassemble the fan and install it back into the case.

If there is no hole under the sticker, then most likely it is a non-separable hydrodynamic cooler; it is positioned as maintenance-free. In this case, try to carefully drill a small hole in the center or use a hot needle to make a small hole and pour lubricant into it.

CPU cooler

CPU cooler, be it boxed or from a third-party manufacturer, such as Zalman or Cooler Master, always have a specific mounting method, especially for processors Intel And Amd These mounts are different.

Maintenance of such cooling systems is practically no different from conventional coolers, but has its own small specifics, in particular, you need thermal paste:

1. After disconnecting the wires, you need to detach the cooler from the motherboard.
2. Remove the heatsink from the processor very carefully; it will resist a little due to the thermal paste.
3. After dismantling the cooler, you need to use a dry cotton pad to clean the base of the radiator and the processor from the old thermal paste. There is no need to remove the processor from the motherboard for this!
4. After disconnecting the fan from the radiator, lubricate it in the manner described above.
5. Reconnect the radiator and fan.
6. Spread a small amount of thermal paste in a thin layer over the surface of the processor; a plastic card is very suitable for this.
7. Carefully place the cooler on the processor, secure it with a standard mount and connect it to the motherboard.

Cooler on video card

Almost all video cards are air-cooled, from the old one GeForce GTS 450 Gainward until new Nvidia RTX 2060 have a similar design of the cooling system, which also needs to be serviced periodically.

As with the processor, you will need thermal paste for this:

1. After unscrewing the retaining screws and unfastening the wires, remove the video card from the motherboard.
2. Unscrew the screws holding the fan. They are usually located around the perimeter of the board.
3. Unscrew the radiator screws and remove it.
4. Clean the video chip and heatsink from thermal paste.
5. Apply fresh thermal paste to the video chip using the same technology as for the processor.
6. Assemble the video card and connect it.

power unit

Oddly enough, the power supply cooler almost never makes noise. But when the room is very dusty or the device is old, extraneous sounds begin to appear.

Unlike others, the cooler on some power supplies can be lubricated without disassembling it:

1. It is necessary to inspect the power supply cooler for the sticker.
2. If it is on the side of the protective grill, then use a syringe with a needle to pierce it and introduce lubricant into the cooler.

However, to service most power supplies you need to disassemble them:

1. Disconnect all wires and unscrew the screws holding the power supply in the case.
2. Unscrew the four screws on the power supply cover located around the perimeter.
3. Carefully remove the cover (if you use excessive force, you may damage the fan power cable).
4. Lubricate the cooler.
5. Reassemble the power supply and install it back into the case.

Laptops and game consoles

If your laptop or console starts to make noise, it is strongly recommended not to carry out maintenance at home. The risk of damaging something due to insufficient qualifications is very high. It is better to contact a service center, and if the warranty has already expired, then many private workshops are willing to take on servicing such laptops as ASUS, HP, Acer Aspire And Lenovo, they can also be contacted for service on PS3, PS4 or Xbox.

The magazine purity-en.htgetrid.com reminds that absolute silence during computer operation can only be achieved by replacing all cooling elements with massive radiators, which are ineffective in modern systems.

Also, do not forget that hard drives make a lot of noise when operating, and if silence is a priority, then they should be replaced with SSD drives. And in order to reduce noise, it is recommended to use closed cases with noise-absorbing inserts and carry out maintenance on the main cooler at least a couple of times a year, clean it of dust and lint, and lubricate it. The procedure will significantly reduce the load on other cooling devices, and you will have to change the thermal paste somewhat less frequently.