Buying a CPU Cooler

[fadsarmy]

I always buy face down cooler. This keeps the upper half of the motherboard cool including memory.

[Dark Mantis]

This is often why memory and chipset temperatures often rise when fitting a better aftermarket cooler. The stock cooler blows a lot of air outwards from the CPU that a lot of third party coolers don't.

[mark rumsey]

Another thing to remember with coolers is they get dirty. The picture below is of my AMD Phenom II 955BE's stock cooler with the fan unclipped after just 12 months use. As you can imagine things were starting to get warm. Cleaning those fins of the fluff and dust knocked almost 5 DegC off the running temperature and allowed the fan to slow down by nearly 500rpm. So don't think fitting a huge aftermarket cooler means you can forget about CPU cooling problems. If your system runs a bit hot under load when you first build it, and it then gets clogged like this you could easily cook your CPU in a very terminal way.

[Dark Mantis]

Yes a very good point. I have seen plenty of coolers that were much more clogged with fluff and debris than that one. Sometimes it was even difficult to find the heatsink at all! 

[absic]

I run a Noctua NH-D14 on my system and have a regular routine of checking and cleaning the fins and fans of it, along with checking the filters and fans built into the PC chassis. It is amazing how much dust can be gathered in a very short space of time and it is worthwhile checking things every 3-6 months.

Just be careful what you use to clean the PC components with, especially where the motherboard is concerned and don't do what a friend of mine did, which was to stick a metal pipe from his vacuum cleaner inside the PC case to suck up the dust, with the PC running! He did get a nice clean machine but at the cost of a full rebuild.

[Dark Mantis]

I have found the simplest and safest way of cleaning out the inside of a computer is with compressed air. Forget the cans , they are next to useless. I use a commercial air compressor and that will remove every last trace of dirt and dust in next to no time with no worries about static or other damage, just don't point it directly at the fans unless you stop them from rotating first.

[cchaos]

I run a Noctua NH-D14 on my system and have a regular routine of checking and cleaning the fins and fans of it, along with checking the filters and fans built into the PC chassis. It is amazing how much dust can be gathered in a very short space of time and it is worthwhile checking things every 3-6 months.

To me it seems to depend on how much dust is floating in the air.

I too have a Cooler Master HAF 932, which going by some reviews I read when I ordered it was rather like a hoover (meaning it sucks in dust like no tomorrow). Ive had this case since August 2010 and I have yet to clean it out. In fact for the first year my desktop was at mine being used every day for at least every evening from about 5pm until I went to bed. Dust wise it looked like nothing major, with it getting introduced to a duster on the outside twice. Then it got transported over to my mates house for about 6 months. The outside needed cleaning about three times. Finally now it is back at mine and it still waiting for a major clean (which it will get when I fit a different board in it) and the stock cooler for the CPU doesnt look like it needs any cleaning. Not bad considering thats been fitted since November 2010.

As for the air compressor: yes the one where I volunteer for certainly cleans the dust out, bearing in mind that one is only a "baby one" (meaning Ive seen bigger)

[RatsAss]

I have found the simplest and safest way of cleaning out the inside of a computer is with compressed air. Forget the cans , they are next to useless. I use a commercial air compressor and that will remove every last trace of dirt and dust in next to no time with no worries about static or other damage, just don't point it directly at the fans unless you stop them from rotating first.

+1   I do the same about every 6 months or so.

The case fan filters catch most of the dust but some always finds its way in.

[Dark Mantis]

It's a shame more case manufacturers don't cover all the fan placements with proper filtration material. When I am reviewing them I often find that there are some with filters which is great and then all the rest are left open, negating the good work the filters are doing. I do think that more are now beginning to get the idea but it takes a long time to get the message accross.  I am just waiting for the new Antec 1100 case and I believe that they have finallly taken some notice of my reports along with other new improvements. Watch out soon for the review.

[Thaversonly]

After all, that the case is sorted, I go for a fee - most want watercooling in these days of silence, so that the standard spacing (15 mM) and not high-density fins. Decent pump is necessary. But then hey, I could go on and on ....

[riyadur]

With regards to liquid cooling some of the things that I have seen has put me off but then again the reviews are great. However saying this I tend to think that if one springs a leak or something happens then all that money that you have spent on computer parts are then knacked, and lets face it.

[Dark Mantis]

If it is done properly and well tested first before putting power to the computer components then it is fairly safe. It is not often that anything bursts or breaks in a drastic sort of manor.