Redditor Revives Dead Radeon GPU By Baking It Like A Lasagna
In a move that would surely run afoul of food safety protocols and get a restaurant in hot water, a user on Reddit claims to have revived a broken Radeon graphics card by baking in the oven. The recipe for the unusual but apparently effective fix called for a bake time of 12 minutes at 370°F without any garnishments, though in the thread, the user notes, "It could've used some butter" when someone asked if it tasted good. Go ahead and add this one to the list of unconventional fixes for GPU issues.
The user doesn't go into a ton of detail, but does say they were trying to fix the dead GPU for a friend to no avail. that is, until they tried baking it in the oven.
"I was doing everything I could think of, including cleaning any minor corrosion, checking for missing capacitors, and using my multimeter to trace any shorts. Nothing worked, so I decided to try baking it since it was dead anyway.
370°F for 12 minutes and voila, we're back in business," Reddit user AF_Newb wrote.
The only side effect observed (so far) is that the there is a small bulge in the GPU caused by the thermal putty on the back of the memory modules expanding from the heat. Perhaps they should have baked it at 325°F for 10 minutes instead.
It should go without saying, don't try this at home, not unless you're all out of options and are willing to accept the consequences. Even then, be aware that baking electronic devices can release toxic fumes and create a mess, among other potential pitfalls, such as the risk of melting critical parts.
Despite the dangers, this is not the first time that Reddit has been home to tales of bringing a dead GPU back to life by sticking it in the oven. Five years ago, a user posted a similar experience with a GeForce 8800 GTX. Also as a last resort, the user said they stripped the graphics card and baked it at 199 (presumably Celsius, which works out to 390°F) in a pre-heated fan oven, also for 12 minutes.
The secret behind the recipe madness is that heating up a non-functioning graphics card can melt cracked solder joints. It's essentially a low-rent and potentially high-risk way to re-solder, and if that ends up being the culprit for a non-functioning graphics card, it could bring the card back to life as it did for the broken Radeon GPU.
Protip: If attempting this (and we strongly caution against it), consider investing in cheap countertop/toaster oven that is used for unusual repairs only, and do it outside. Just make sure it's big enough to fit a graphics card.
Top Image Source: Reddit (AF_Newb)
