[W1zzard]

Introduction

How many times have you tried to get a thermal pad off a heatsink base because you want to use your own thermal paste? How many times did you try to get residues from cleaning your cooler base off? Enter: Arctic Silver ArctiClean.



ArctiClean comes in two bottles, which both have to be used on a heatsink.
There is a 60ml Kit and a bigger 240ml Kit. After all testing there we did, there is about a third gone of our 60ml kit, unless you work in a heatsink base cleaning shop, 60ml should be fine for you.

ArctiClean 1: Thermal Material Remover

This is used to emulsify thermal pads and compounds, so that they can be easily removed. This is achieved using non-toxic biodegradable solvents which are based on citrus and soy.
If I think of "solvent" I think of bad fumes, toxic, do not use in enclosed areas and do not use near fire. Not ArctiClean- it's inflammable, non hazardous and has a citrus aroma.

ArctiClean 2: Thermal Surface Purifier

After all thermal material remains are removed using ArctiClean 1, you have to clean the surface of all residue using ArctiClean 2. ArctiClean 2 also contains corrosion inhibitors.

Testing

The first test I did, was to taste a few drops it. At first, there is not much of taste, after a few seconds, a taste like lemon peel comes up and stays for quite some time, even if you drink something.
I can only confirm what ArcticSilver writes in the Instructions "Do not put ArctiClean products in your mouth." - It's not worth it.

Intel Pentium 3 Heatsink

This aged heatsink base will be used to test how well ArctiClean can dissolve a thermal pad.


This is the heatsink as I found it in my junk, dust wiped off with a cloth.


Add a good amount of ArctiClean 1. Actually not that much is needed, but this was the first test I did, so I wanted to be sure.


After 30 seconds, the dissolved pad can be wiped off really easy.


After an application of ArctiClean 2, the heatsink base is really shiny and clean.

Now you think, that this thermal pad is easy to get off. That is not the case. Let's try the other side, without ArctiClean.


First we tried with pure water. Absolutely no go.


When using dish washing fluid nothing changes.


Next we used some more brutal methods. With a knife the thermal pad could be scraped off.


This is the best result I could achieve with a knife and other cleaning fluids. Please note that the base is very scratched now. If the scratches were where the CPU makes contact with the heatsink, thermal transfer would certainly be considerably reduced.


We used ArctiClean 1 in the same spot, the results speak for themselves.


This is the final heatsink base after cleaning with ArcticClean.

1U Socket 478 Copper Heatsink

This is the heatsink base as I received it from an Ebay seller.


After ArctiClean 1, with ArctiClean 2 applied.


After ArctiClean 2.

Intel Pentium 4 Socket 775 CPU

The CPU was brand new, the original Intel cooler was put on it once, then removed. To clean we used ArctiClean.


After ArctiClean 1.


After ArctiClean 2. The CPU looks exactly like it looked when it came out of the box. The darker parts were already visible on the unused CPU.

ATI X800 GPU Cooler

Original, with ATI Thermal Paste.


After cleaning with ArctiClean 1.


After cleaning with ArtiClean 2.

ATI R420 GPU

After removing the cooler.


After cleaning with ArctiClean 1.


After cleaning with ArtiClean 2.

ArcticCooling ATI Silencer 4

Thermal pasted wiped away with a cloth.


Add ArctiClean.


After ArctiClean 1 & 2. Please note that the cleaned area actually looks cleaner than the surrounding area which is like it came out of the factory.

Northbridge Cooler

I pulled this cooler off a dead Dell P4 motherboard.


If you look close, you can see that the pad uses some kind of mesh.


First, I used ArtiClean only on the right side. As you can see it removed a good amount of the pad, but not all. Just apply ArctiClean again, this time on the whole pad.


Looks like we're getting there.


After three applications of ArctiClean 1 and one application of ArctiClean 2, the heatsink looks like this. Impressive.

Burn-In Test

After all these great results, I wanted to find out where the limits of ArctiClean are.


I took this slab of copper and put different thermal paste on it.
From left to right: Silicone paste, Arctic Silver Ceramique, Arctic Silver 3.

Now the copper was "burnt-in" at 250°C for about an hour.


Even after using ArctiClean, which does a great job at getting the dried thermal paste off, the oxidation on the copper is still there.
Arctic Silver does not say that ArctiClean can remove oxidation, so this result is fine, I still had to try.


After lapping with 400 grit sandpaper, all oxidation is gone - because some copper is gone. Now is an ideal time to apply ArctiClean 2 to prevent new corrosion to form.

Value and Conclusion

	The 60ml Kit of ArctiClean is sold for about $6.
	Gets any thermal pad off Cleans with the power of lemon! Non-hazardous Prevents oxidation
	Not that useful for one-time users.
9.0	Cleaning heatsinks has never been so much fun. If you are regularly cleaning heatsinks you MUST get this product. It will save you so much trouble when swapping coolers. The low price also makes it an ideal filler item to get above a certain order amount. If you are only changing heatsinks once, think twice before buying it, there might be other ways to clean your heatsink. On the other hand, a kit could certainly be shared among friends.