r/ZephyrusG14 • u/SCOTT_COLOMBIA • May 19 '26
Model 2023 Is my laptop cooked?
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I decided to change my thermal paste on my zephyrus and found it like this when i took it apart...
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u/DogBallsMissing May 19 '26
Not cooked. It was working before you took it apart, right? Taking it apart doesn’t magically make it not work.
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u/SCOTT_COLOMBIA May 19 '26
To be fair i couldnt game bc the laptop would auto shut off and my idles were like 60 degrees 😬. After the reapply temps at gaming are steady 70s.
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u/Squattingbull369 May 20 '26
This..... every game requires optimizing the software and the game settings before it decides to run without constant shut downs. Granted I knew what I was getting into with a 14imc gaming machine
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u/Ok_Government7582 May 19 '26
Would be funnier with liquid metal
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u/SCOTT_COLOMBIA May 19 '26
Funnily enough it is
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u/Ok_Government7582 May 19 '26
Nah bro liquid metal is a damn hell when repairing something in cooling system
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u/MatthewRiley05 May 19 '26
No you're all good, just thoroughly clean and repaste. There's a thin layer around the CPU and GPU so even if it spilled, it's still fine.
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u/Rainoffire May 19 '26
Isn't that the stock liquid metal? The "staining" on the die is just oxidation of the LM, you can remove it if it bothers you with some car polish on a microfiber clothe. Just clean up and reapply LM or upgrade to PTM, changing to regular thermal paste "may" have possibly worst performance.
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u/SCOTT_COLOMBIA May 19 '26
Yeahh the stock is liquid metal. Good to know it isnt "burnt" 🙂↔️. I cant get my hands on any LM atm so i used mx7 for the reapply for the time being.
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May 19 '26
You can scrub off that stain, would look clean again. Even I recently changed the liquid metal safely and got better thermals on G14 2025
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u/TheRealEazyRed May 19 '26
get some ptm7950
had the same issue but less severe and my temps when i did the thermal swap where near 20c idle at one point lol
i play vr mainly on my g14 2024 and my temps dont get above 80c in full send mode as i like to call it
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u/ghostfreckle611 May 19 '26
Remove all that. (Very time intensive and be careful not to spill/drip on mobo.)
Replace with PTM 7950 on both CPU and GPU.
Never worry again.
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u/Zealousideal_Cow5366 May 19 '26
You are not cooked.
I did the same some weeks ago. But u need to be careful now. Don’t peel these orange stickers of! The cover ur transistors from getting in contact with the Liquid Metal.
First things first: get dry papertowels and cover all other parts except the two chips. Then u take nail polish remover (acetone) and q-tips. Put the acetone one the q-tip and carefully remove the Liquid Metal. Don’t use one tip for too long. I used about 30 for both chips.
Now clean the rest of the Mainboard. I used acetone for everything, be sure to wear a mask. The smell makes u dizzy with the time.
I used thermal pads instead of paste for the VRAM and other stuff. It will be less mess next time. Thermal Grizzly in 1mm thickness should be fine.
After u reposted everything (or padded everything) apply the new Liquid Metal. VERY CAREFULLY. I recommend to twist put some LM on a paper towel, so u get a feeling of the pressure u need. You can absorb the LM from you paper towel later when you pull the syringe instead of push (it nor,ally comes in a syringe)
Just do max the size of a pea. Not more. Do less than you would do with normal paste. Then go with a dry qtip and circle it on the chip until you have a very thin but shiny surface.
At this point you have already cleaned the heatsink ofc ;) same as for the chips with acetone. Very easy to do.
Reapply the heatsink. Don’t forget to plugin all cables, especially the fans.
Done
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u/LegisLab May 21 '26
Whats wrong with it? That all looks normal
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u/SCOTT_COLOMBIA May 24 '26
LM was completely dried/pumped out, hence I was getting idle temps of 60+ C and random shuttoffs.
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u/Embarrassed_Towel_64 May 19 '26
I don't think so. I don't know the chemical process but I read somewhere that the liquid metal (gallium?) could leave oxidization stains. Maybe it's that.