How To Decrease Your CPU Temperature [8 Methods]

You might have discovered your method right here since you’ve requested the identical query 1000’s of different readers have additionally requested us right here at PerformancePSU;

How do I decrease my CPU temperature?

As a pc person, you could be experiencing gradual efficiency or frequent crashes, which might be attributable to a excessive CPU temperature. Excessive temperatures can injury your pc parts and cut back their lifespan. Subsequently, it is very important verify your CPU temperature and hold them inside secure ranges.

This text will information you thru the steps on the right way to decrease your CPU temperature.

What Causes of Excessive CPU Temperature

Earlier than we are able to cut back our system temperatures, it’s first vital to know the causes. Excessive CPU temperatures will be attributable to quite a lot of components however usually come right down to one in all 4 potentialities, together with:

  1. Overclocking: Overclocking is the method of working the CPU at a quicker pace than the producer’s specs. Growing CPU Voltage is a major motive for the rise in temperature./li>
  2. Mud buildup: Mud buildup within the pc can block the airflow by means of your PC case inflicting your CPU temperature to extend.
  3. Inadequate cooling: The CPU might not be getting sufficient cool air or the cooler you’re utilizing may not have sufficient cooling energy, resulting in excessive temperature.
  4. Excessive ambient temperature: The temperature of the room the place your pc is positioned may have an effect on the temperature of computer systems parts, this consists of your processor.

8 Tricks to Decrease Your CPU Temperature

Decreasing your CPU temperature is just not rocket science.

Following these 8 simple steps to decrease your CPU temperature, you may get again to CPU-intensive gaming and duties very quickly in any respect.

Improve Your CPU Cooler

In case your pc has a inventory heatsink that was bundled together with your processor, then you’ll profit massively from a CPU cooler improve to assist cut back your system temperatures.

Red CPU Cooler
Iconic Zalman CPU Aircooler

There are numerous choices accessible when buying a brand new CPU cooler. Firstly, you’ve the commonest technique of CPU cooling which is Air cooling. Normally, these kinds of coolers, are massive, cumbersome and have one, two or one thing, even 4 followers hooked up. They do their job effectively for most individuals – even players.

The opposite accessible CPU cooling technique is watercooling, which, both is available in an off-the-shelf all-in-one unit or, you’ll be able to select to construct a customized watercooling loop your self.

RGB Ram
All-in-one Watercooled PC

Whichever alternative you go together with, upgrading your CPU heatsink and fan would be the finest place to begin when trying to improve your cooling effectivity and cut back your CPU temperature.

You may like: Noctua NH-D15 Efficiency CPU Cooler Assessment

Use a Latop Cooling Pad

In the event you’re a laptop computer person and don’t have a desktop PC then, your choices are restricted. Utilizing a laptop computer cooling pad equivalent to one of these will do nice to lowering your laptop computer CPU temperature.

Bora X1 Gaming Laptop Cooling Pad
Bora X1 Gaming Laptop computer Cooling Pad

These laptop computer stands include followers construct instantly into the models that assist to direct contemporary cool throughout the physique of your laptop computer serving to to scale back not simply the CPU temperature however your entire laptop computer system.

Exchange the CPU Thermal Paste

The job of CPU thermal paste is to create a great seal between your cooler and the CPU nonetheless, over time, that thermal paste can dry out lowering its cooling effectivity.

Dry CPU Thermal Compound on the Processor
Outdated CPU Thermal paste has lowered cooling effectivity

Artic Silver 5 CPU Thermal Cooling Compound or ‘AS5’ as it’s typically abbreviated, is considered one of many finest thermal pastes in your CPU or different parts and can also be composed of 99% silver. It’s the one thermal paste we use at PerformancePSU.

One other common thermal compound available on the market is Noctua’s NT-H1 Thermal Compound. Whereas the preliminary outlay is a bit more at $5.47, you get extra thermal compound within the tube than Arctic Silver 5, and it performs almost as effectively.

Applying new cpu thermal paste
Contemporary CPU Paste on a CPU – Credit score: Felix Wong

There are just a few upsides to this thermal compound. It doesn’t conduct electrical energy, not like AS5, which does (being silver-based); it doesn’t require curing, and it has low viscosity, that means it doesn’t require spreading like another well-known manufacturers.

Take away Mud Buildup

Extreme quantities of mud in any pc is usually a nightmare for cooling efficiency. Mud clogs up your followers, stopping them from effectively transferring air and the mud additionally stops your CPU heatsink fins from successfully dissipating warmth. It might sound formidable to open your PC and clear the parts, however with just a few suggestions which we are going to share now, you may get your pc case mud free very quickly.

Thick dust in a pc case

Compressed air is nice however it might get a bit costly (and it’s not nice for the atmosphere) – a greater resolution, which is my private favorite is the vacuum cleaner with a fluffy sock over the top of it. The sock serves two functions; The primary; cease the vacuum from ripping our your PC parts and the opposite is to cease any injury to your system.

I’ve been utilizing the sock over the vacuum cleaner for effectively over 20 years and it does a tremendous job.

Enhance Your PC Case Airflow

Airflow is commonly a degree some folks overlook or misunderstand. They usually assume as a result of they’ve a top-of-the-line CPU cooler churning away of their case that they’re reaching their full cooling potential, however that isn’t true.

Aircooled pc with custom aio watercooler
Credit score: Newegg

When cooling with air alone, the minimal temperature you’ll be able to obtain is decided primarily by your ambient case temperature amongst different components too, however, let’s deal with one level for a second; Your warmth sink can’t make one thing cooler than the air surrounding it aka – your system case temperature.

So, if we can’t cool our parts under the temperature inside the pc case, we have to optimise your PC case airflow.

cpu case cooling
A Good instance of PC Case air circulate

With the fan setup pictured above, We’re rising the speed at which warmth is dispelled from the case pumping chilly in from the underside and ‘sucking’ it out of the highest. Thus, we’re making a ‘tunnel’ of air that pulls warmth away out of your parts.

In case you have your PC followers arrange in a different way from the diagram above, strive switching them up and stress-testing your pc, you can be shocked how way more effectively your heatsink performs.

Enhance Cable Administration

poor pc cable management

Bettering your PC cable administration is vital for a few causes, first, it improves your pc case airflow, lowering your system’s ambient case temperature and secondly, who doesn’t love a bit good little bit of cable administration on the finish? I do.

Your ambient case temperature is basically answerable for figuring out how a lot you’ll be able to decrease your CPU temperature. By tidying up your cables and organizing them, you’ll assist enhance your case airflow in flip, reducing your CPU temperature.

Lap your CPU Heatspreader

A perfectly lapped intel CPU
A Lapped Intel CPU – Credit score: Reddit

One other option to improve your cooling capability is ‘lapping’ your warmth sink and CPU warmth conductive surfaces. By doing this, you create a smoother contact between the CPU and the heatsink.

Some folks have been identified to take away even the TIM altogether to make sure most cooling energy. Nonetheless, I don’t advocate that except you might be assured with a craft knife round high-end, delicate PC parts.

You could find a information to lapping your processor or GPU warmth sink on PC Authority: Atomic guide to CPU lapping

Delid your CPU

I did a video a very long time in the past the place I delidded the blogs Intel 6700K in an effort to scale back our CPU temperatures drastically that we may attempt to push for some overclocking world data – we failed however it was an awesome expertise.

Whereas this can be a very excessive and dangerous option to go about lowering your CPU temperatures and is often reserved for the fanatic or excessive overclocker, it’s a good way to excessively cut back your CPU temperatures.

As a phrase of warning; Delidding a processor is just not at all times attainable. You see, typically, producers will solder the warmth spreader onto the CPU which, when you attempt to take away it, will find yourself in a cracked CPU die and a useless chip. Make certain to do your due diligence beforehand and ensure your CPU will be determined.