HeatSink question

[Rosiv]

Im moving my PC into a luggage bag, like i have done in the past. Should i remove the Heatsink from the pc? Its of moderate size.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

I moved it through public transportation before(Up and down stairs, in and out of buses), and it hasnt broken yet.


If i do remove it though, should i leave the thermal paste as is, and would that be ok? Or since it is cured should i reapply?

Thank you.

 

[Twinrehz]

Yes, a heatsink like that should definitely be removed from the pc during transport. While the heatsink supports are quite sturdy, you shouldn't want to take the possible risk that it could break. You should also remove other heavy peripherals that are attached to the mother board, especially graphics cards, unless you're going to transport it lying down.

Once you remove the heatsink, you have to clean the old paste away and apply new one. There are special chemicals for removing and cleaning heatsinks and cpu's, Arctic Silver's Articlean kit is what I use, and it works great. Shouldn't be too expensive.

EDIT: It's possible that the heatsink rocking back and forth during transport might cause something to break inside the mother board, which is why you ought to remove it.

 

[OneCatch]

If you lay the PC flat with the motherboard underneath then it should probably be ok for careful transportation. If there's any chance of it getting jarred around during transit I'd take the heatsink off though.

You would need to clean the paste off and re-apply.

 

[Rosiv]

Ok thanks guys i guess ill remove it and reapply thermal paste.