Graphics card Fan stopped working :S

[neutral666]

Hey, So I have a Radeon HD4870 512MB DVI HDTV HDCP video card. I noticed yesterday that the fan on it wasnt really spinning, it just kind of spun once and stopped, struggled and tried again ect. Until eventually it stopped spinning all together. Then my PC would shut off by itself Im guessing from the card overheating since when I touched the graphics card it was burning hot. I took my card out and tried taking the fan apart to see if there was anything i could fix. There was a considerable amount of dust in it but not more than should be expected. I managed to get the fan off but the big metal grill type thing wont come off even after i screwed it, is that normal ?
Anyway anyone have any idea what is wrong with it or how I can fix it ? The card should still be under guarentee but my computer store is far away so until i get my ass out there anyone have any ideas how to fix this or anything ?

 

[Twist86]

Sounds like you either need to buy a new fan..or go to the store and RMA it.


I never had a 4870 BUT I hear the back bar is a pain to remove.

 

[kookooshortman55]

It might be better to try and get an aftermarket cooler, if you can manage to get the stock heatink off. I heard the stock cooler sounds like a hairdryer. Being a stickler for noise, I would definitely go with a different cooler. It would also be less trouble, not having to mail things back and forth.

 

[neutral666]

It might be better to try and get an aftermarket cooler, if you can manage to get the stock heatink off. I heard the stock cooler sounds like a hairdryer. Being a stickler for noise, I would definitely go with a different cooler. It would also be less trouble, not having to mail things back and forth.

Thanks for the reply. What do you mean by an aftermarket cooler ?
And dyou know if all heatsinks are removable ? I've never tried taking one off so I have no idea. But that thing seemed glued tight as hell to the card or something. I have no idea how to go about taking it off.

 

[kookooshortman55]

An aftermarket cooler is a cooler that you can buy individually, separate from the video card. I couple good brands that come to mind are Zalman, Thermaltake, Thermalright, and Arctic Cooling.

As for the cooler, just remove all the screws and then remove the cooler. It took me a fair amount of force to get the cooler off, because of the sticky RAM thermal pads and the thermal paste.