Overheating laptop -> New thermal paste?

[kresso]

-Brand: HP
-Model: Pavilion dv5
-Bought From/Price: Free from Cousin
-OS: Ubuntu and Windows 7 Pro
-CPU: AMD Turion X2 2.0 GHz
-GPU: Radeon HD 3200 Graphics
-Resolution: 1280 x 800
-RAM: 3
-Usage (Gaming, Internet, Office Apps, etc…): Programing, Gaming, Internet
-Real World Battery Life (in your estimation): 1 hour or less
-Your Rating (out of 10): 2

So my laptop is keeps over heating on me all the time, even if I prop it up and give it better cooling. If I am even just using the internet it will get up to 90 pretty easy. If set the frequency to 500 MHz then I will be at about 78 and don't go above 80. I haven't tried a laptop cooling stand though. Anyways, I was wondering what people think if I were to use something like IC Diamond 24 Carat Thermal Compound on my cpu. I know that is normally held for over clockers and stuff but I am working with some pretty extreme temperatures here. Other suggestions are always welcome. Thanks.

 

[Bacterius]

Do you use your laptop on your desk? A laptop isn't actually meant to be used on your lap or on blankets.

Applying thermal paste on a laptop CPU is going to be a difficult feat, you'll need to disassemble it open to the motherboard which in itself is pretty delicate and can leave you with a paperweight. And it also technically voids your warranty (but you don't have one here).

Since you don't have a warranty I'd try to figure out where the problem comes from - it probably isn't thermal paste to be honest, it's more likely to be a fan failure, you'll be amazed how quickly your laptop heats up when the fans stop working, even under light use. Furthermore, if the thermal paste was indeed the culprit your CPU would probably have taken some heavy punishment by now and the laptop would likely be dead. Thermal paste as a fluid compensates for surface irregularity, and if it were to fail, the little CPU parts that "stick out" would quickly melt.

 

[4745454b]

I agree with Bacterius. In my experience while TIM can eventually fail, it would take YEARS for you to see the kind of failure you see. A clogged heat sink or dead fan is more likely. Open up the back of the laptop and take a look around. Clean any heatsinks you see and see if you can make sure the fans are spinning.

 

[kresso]

So my fan works. When I get to around 85 it sounds so loud that it is a distraction to other people in the room. I also always am using it on a desk, and currently I am having it propped up on a couple of sardine cans so it is about three inches off the desk which seems to help a little, but I still over heat. I will take it apart and see if the heat sinks are clogged. Thanks.

 

[4745454b]

If its that loud you may have a fan thats dying. With the cover off try looking at the fan. If it wobbles as it spins or spins noticeably slow, its probably dying. As a laptop most fans are built into the heatsink, so I'm not sure what can be done about this. Replacement unit from ebay?

 

[kresso]

Best answer selected by kresso.