It's not a bad idea. A lot of dust can accumulate in a laptop, especially in the fan and the heat fins, impairing their cooling performance. The thermal paste tends to dry out over time and become less effective.
CMOS batteries last a surprisingly long time, it seems. I recently disassembled a friend's 10-year-old Inspiron to clean it and apply fresh thermal paste, and the CMOS battery was still working. I replaced it, as it was likely close to dying, and you should replace yours since it's a good opportunity when you have the laptop open.
You'll need to completely remove the old thermal paste before applying fresh. I can give more information if you need it. For new thermal paste, Arctic MX-4 is a good choice. It's non-metallic (unlike Arctic Silver and many others), so if you accidently get a bit on another component, it won't be a disaster.
Whenever touching internal components, wear a grounded wrist strap, also called anti-static wrist strap, ESD wrist strap, or ground bracelet. I know many people do such work without this, but it's a cheap and sensible precaution.
Get yourself a grounding strap, as I explained in my previous post. You'll need fine screwdrivers, plastic pry tools (spudgers/scribes), maybe tweezers or small magnet to remove loosened screws that you cant get out of the receptacle. Local computer stores, Amazon and AliExpress sell small kits of tools specifically for computer disassembly.
Keep organized. As you remove screws, make sure you know where they go since not all are the same size. I use trays from chocolate boxes that have many small compartments, to organize my screws. I put a piece of tape in each with a number, and I write that number on a piece of paper noting where those screws or parts came from.
Follow the disassembly and reassembly steps in Dell's Service Manual: https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-us/product-support/product/xps-15-9550-laptop/docs Look on YouTube for videos showing disassembly of your model. But, be cautious with them, as some use steps or methods that are not appropriate. Use the videos to add to your understanding of what to do, but follow the steps in Dell's manual.
When removing old thermal compound, be careful not to let any bits fall onto board or components. If it's metallic, those stray bits could cause problems later.
Many recommend coffee filters for cleaning, but many types of coffee filters have varying amounts of lint. Ideally, you want a lint-free material, such as microfiber cloth.
As I wrote earlier, Arctic MX-4 would be a good thermal compound choice for a beginner, as it's non-metallic. For your processor, Arctic recommends vertical line application: http://www.arcticsilver.com/intel_application_method.html#
Read that manual thoroughly and watch many videos to get comfortable and informed about what you need to do. It's not rocket science, but you do need to be careful and take your time. Good luck.
Laptops should be cleaned of dust and dirt but you should not do anything with the integrated parts on the motherboard. See the service manual here- XPS 15 Service Manual (dell.com) for how to replace the coin cell battery.
Yours is a 6th Generation Intel Core processor. As I said earlier, for your processor, Arctic recommends vertical line application. (First section, 3rd - 11th generation processors.)
Depending upon how dirty the inside of the fan is, you may be able to clean it just with a can of compressed air and a brush, or you may want to disassemble it. The old Inspiron I recently opened had so much dirt and fluff in the fan and heat fins that it was best to disassemble the fan, thoroughly clean it and then reassemble it and seal the joints exactly as it was from the factory.
I opened it up, and see a mix of paste and thermal pads? Should I replace the pads? If so, does it have to be pads, or can it be paste?
On the inside of the bottom of the laptop where my nvme ssd resides, there is this pad. Is this a thermal thing, and does it have to be replaced as well?
Yes, given the age of the laptop, thermal pads should be changed as well as fresh thermal compound (as I described in my earlier post). You need to get the correct thickness of pads. If you don't have a caliper or micrometer to measure, perhaps show the assembly to a good computer repair shop and they may be able to tell you what thicknesses you need.
filbert
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1.8K Posts
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August 25th, 2022 06:00
It's not a bad idea. A lot of dust can accumulate in a laptop, especially in the fan and the heat fins, impairing their cooling performance. The thermal paste tends to dry out over time and become less effective.
CMOS batteries last a surprisingly long time, it seems. I recently disassembled a friend's 10-year-old Inspiron to clean it and apply fresh thermal paste, and the CMOS battery was still working. I replaced it, as it was likely close to dying, and you should replace yours since it's a good opportunity when you have the laptop open.
You'll need to completely remove the old thermal paste before applying fresh. I can give more information if you need it. For new thermal paste, Arctic MX-4 is a good choice. It's non-metallic (unlike Arctic Silver and many others), so if you accidently get a bit on another component, it won't be a disaster.
Whenever touching internal components, wear a grounded wrist strap, also called anti-static wrist strap, ESD wrist strap, or ground bracelet. I know many people do such work without this, but it's a cheap and sensible precaution.
droidus91
1 Rookie
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99 Posts
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August 25th, 2022 06:00
More information would be helpful, thank you!
filbert
4 Operator
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1.8K Posts
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August 25th, 2022 07:00
Get yourself a grounding strap, as I explained in my previous post. You'll need fine screwdrivers, plastic pry tools (spudgers/scribes), maybe tweezers or small magnet to remove loosened screws that you cant get out of the receptacle. Local computer stores, Amazon and AliExpress sell small kits of tools specifically for computer disassembly.
Keep organized. As you remove screws, make sure you know where they go since not all are the same size. I use trays from chocolate boxes that have many small compartments, to organize my screws. I put a piece of tape in each with a number, and I write that number on a piece of paper noting where those screws or parts came from.
Follow the disassembly and reassembly steps in Dell's Service Manual:
https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-us/product-support/product/xps-15-9550-laptop/docs
Look on YouTube for videos showing disassembly of your model. But, be cautious with them, as some use steps or methods that are not appropriate. Use the videos to add to your understanding of what to do, but follow the steps in Dell's manual.
To clean off old thermal compound, Arctic makes an excellent product. For Canadian $10 I got a package containing a bottle of ArctiClean 1 and a bottle of ArctiClean 2, enough to do several computers. ArctiClean 1 emulsifies old paste. ArctiClean 2 purifies the surface, removing any cleaner residue.
http://www.arcticsilver.com/PDF/appinstruct/ac/ins_arcticlean.pdf
https://www.overclockers.com/arcticlean-review/
https://www.techpowerup.com/review/arctic-silver-arcticlean/2.html
To remove old thermal compound, you could instead use high-purity (over 90%) isopropyl alcohol. But, ArctiClean's kit works so well and is inexpensive, so go with that.
When removing old thermal compound, be careful not to let any bits fall onto board or components. If it's metallic, those stray bits could cause problems later.
Many recommend coffee filters for cleaning, but many types of coffee filters have varying amounts of lint. Ideally, you want a lint-free material, such as microfiber cloth.
As I wrote earlier, Arctic MX-4 would be a good thermal compound choice for a beginner, as it's non-metallic. For your processor, Arctic recommends vertical line application:
http://www.arcticsilver.com/intel_application_method.html#
Read that manual thoroughly and watch many videos to get comfortable and informed about what you need to do. It's not rocket science, but you do need to be careful and take your time. Good luck.
Mary G
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20.1K Posts
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August 25th, 2022 07:00
Laptops should be cleaned of dust and dirt but you should not do anything with the integrated parts on the motherboard. See the service manual here- XPS 15 Service Manual (dell.com) for how to replace the coin cell battery.
filbert
4 Operator
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1.8K Posts
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August 25th, 2022 07:00
Yours is a 6th Generation Intel Core processor. As I said earlier, for your processor, Arctic recommends vertical line application. (First section, 3rd - 11th generation processors.)
Depending upon how dirty the inside of the fan is, you may be able to clean it just with a can of compressed air and a brush, or you may want to disassemble it. The old Inspiron I recently opened had so much dirt and fluff in the fan and heat fins that it was best to disassemble the fan, thoroughly clean it and then reassemble it and seal the joints exactly as it was from the factory.
droidus91
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99 Posts
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August 25th, 2022 07:00
So my laptop has this processor: Intel(R) Core(T M) i7-6700HQ
From the http://www.arcticsilver.com/intel_application_method.html# website you shared with me, I am not sure which one my processor falls under. I've attached an image; is it one of the highlighted selections?
droidus91
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99 Posts
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September 9th, 2022 09:00
I opened it up, and see a mix of paste and thermal pads? Should I replace the pads? If so, does it have to be pads, or can it be paste?
On the inside of the bottom of the laptop where my nvme ssd resides, there is this pad. Is this a thermal thing, and does it have to be replaced as well?
droidus91
1 Rookie
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99 Posts
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September 14th, 2022 07:00
* bump *
filbert
4 Operator
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1.8K Posts
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October 5th, 2022 08:00
Yes, given the age of the laptop, thermal pads should be changed as well as fresh thermal compound (as I described in my earlier post). You need to get the correct thickness of pads. If you don't have a caliper or micrometer to measure, perhaps show the assembly to a good computer repair shop and they may be able to tell you what thicknesses you need.