As we’ve just mentioned, GPUs can run an exceedingly long time before you’ll need to replace the thermal paste, which is fantastic.
The reason being, graphics cards are a little trickier to disassemble, so it would be a nightmare if we had to constantly open them up to reach the GPU baseplate. What’s more, there are plenty of fragile components within a graphics card, such as fan power plugs, and our persistent meddling would eventually cause damage of some kind.
That said, there are some instances when replacing your GPUs thermal paste is definitely worthwhile.
If you’ve noticed a steady increase in your GPU’s thermals for seemingly no reason, there's a good chance there’s an issue with the current thermal paste. If you’ve been using it for over five years, it may have dried up and cracked, causing rifts between the heat spreader and the GPU baseplate. Unless you’re planning on upgrading your GPU, this scenario calls for some new thermal paste.