All PS5 models will require professional maintenance – repairer claims
Liquid metal is the PS5’s fatal flaw, and this repairer thinks all PS5 consoles will need professional maintenance
Sony was aggressive when building its PlayStation 5 console. It pushed for higher clock speeds than the Xbox Series X and used a unique power management system to push performance forward. This push for performance forced Sony to take cooling equally seriously. Sony used a liquid-metal thermal interface material (TIM) instead of a standard thermal paste for the PS5, and that’s proving problematic for gamers. All PS5 models may require professional maintenance due to a design flaw.
A PS5 repairer called “modyfikatorcasper” has stated that “All PS5 consoles—regardless of model—will eventually require professional maintenance!” This was after repairing a PS5 Slim (CFI-2016) model that was less than 1.5 years old. This PS5 has oxidised liquid metal remnants, which ruined the liquid metal’s thermal properties. This meant that the console needed repairs to function, as the system would quickly overheat and shut down.
modyfikatorcasper believes that all PS5 models will eventually have this flaw. That means that all PS5 consoles will require professional maintenance. This applies to consoles places on their sides or in a vertical orientation.
All PS5 consoles—regardless of model—will eventually require professional maintenance!
PS5 MYTH BUSTED! 🤯
A PS5 SLIM (CFI-2016) console, which is less than 1.5 years old and has been standing VERTICALLY since purchase, is in for service and has the same problem!
Visible on the APU core are dried out and oxidized Liquid Metal (LM) remnants! The LM has formed a… pic.twitter.com/COD7L57lMl— modyfikatorcasper (@Modyfikator89) December 9, 2025
PS5 Pro and the newest PS5 model have major cooling changes to address this flaw
Starting with the PlayStation 5 Pro (PS5 Pro), Sony has redesigned its cooling solution to prevent liquid-metal-related issues. Deeper grooves/ridges are intended to prevent leaks and dry spots in Sony’s liquid-metal TIM. It remains to be seen if this new design will fully address the PlayStation 5’s liquid metal woes.
Recently, Sony has quietly upgraded its CFI-2100/2200 and CFI-2116 Slim PS5 models with this new cooling plate design. Clearly, Sony is taking its liquid metal cooling flaw seriously. That said, it remains to be seen if Sony’s new cooling design is enough to mitigate this issue.
Liquid metal isn’t an easy material to work with, so this flaw will, typically, require a professional repair. Recent reports have claimed that liquid metal-related issues are becoming more widespread amongst PS5 users. This makes sense given how old most PS5 consoles are. The PlayStation 5 launched five years ago, which means that there are a lot of older consoles that are starting to experience issues.
You can join the discussion about Sony’s liquid-metal flaws on the OC3D Forums.
