I accidentally touched the heat spreader on my CPU, and I'm wondering what the best way is to clean it. I've heard that you should use 99% isopropyl alcohol before applying thermal paste. Is it safe to use, and do I really need to clean it if it's just a bit of fingerprint smudge?
1 Answer
Yeah, it's pretty common to use isopropyl alcohol on the heat spreader, even if you just touched it. But hey, unless your fingers were super dirty, you might not even need to wipe it down. Just slap on the thermal paste and you're probably good to go!
A *true* gamer's fingers are ALWAYS covered in Cheeto dust. Why wouldn't they be? It's the primary source of nutrients for us.