Computer help

[Maximvs]

I overclocked my comp a few months back. After a while, my graphic card had some trouble. I uncloaked everything. The problem still persists. I decided to open my computer to have a look. It turns out, my graphic card has a substance covering a good part of it, it's very similar to tar. I believe it formed by the dust and the heat generated by the overclocked processor, then dripped on the graphic card.

I tapped some of it off, but I gotta ask, how can I clean it off completely? How does one clean tar off a graphic card? lol... thanks in advance.

[AlwaysSummer Day]

Iirc nail polish remover will work but I wouldn't recommend it. You are in a very precarious situation. I would check core temps and make sure the fan is running well. An air hose will clean superficial debris but scrubbing "tar" with acetone might break it.

[Aspect of Sorrow]

scrubbing "tar" with acetone might break it.

[Maximvs]

Euh, break the tar or the graphic card? lol.

[kellendril]

Foam or cotton swabs wetted with rubbing alcohol are safe for use on computer components. Foam is best. Take the card out and carefully swab it clean.

[kellendril]

Oh, and whatever you do, DO NOT use a vacuum cleaner inside your computer case. Static electricity basically pours off of the nozzle.

[Aspect of Sorrow]

Oh, and whatever you do, DO NOT use a vacuum cleaner inside your computer case. Static electricity basically pours off of the nozzle.

Not to mention fans are DC connected. They will generate back fed electricity into the board when spun even when the system's off.

[kellendril]

Oh, also..while we are at it..make sure you touch a metal part of the case before you touch the motherboard or anything else with a circuit inside..unplug the power cord too..

Of course, this assumed you don't already know all of this. If you do, disregard helpful comments!

[Touri]

After a while, my graphic card had some trouble. I uncloaked everything. The problem still persists.

Hello Maximvs,

it sound to me like your graphic card is already damaged. I supose you have small pixel on the monitor. You can try to clean it, but probably it will get worse with time.

You can use Compressed air spray, ideal to eliminate dust from television, cameras, keyboards, computers, machines of precision.

It loooks like that.

Kind regards

Touri

[Flasmix]

Tar?... ...

If it helps, I would suspect it to be melted thermal paste that may have dripped off the overclocked CPU.

If that's the case, you can safely remove it with regular 90% or 100% isopropyl alcohol and not damage anything (further, I am unaware if damage is already in place). If my suspicions are true, you will need to re-apply some thermal paste to your CPU. Thermal Paste/Grease is supposed to melt but I'm thinking too much may have been applied originally or the CPU reached too high of a temperature and it was low quality paste.

Can you double check with the location of your CPU vs. the drip location on the Graphics Card?

[AlwaysSummer Day]

Rubbing alcohal might remove burned thermal paste but it isn't going to impress tar much. Hopefully that is indeed the issue.

[kellendril]

Tar indicates a burnt resin of some sort..how would that get in a computer case?

[Maximvs]

No it wasn't the termal paste, I'm pretty sure it was the dust stuck in my large heat distributor of my cpu that melted and dripped down when I overclocked it, which got it to pretty high temperature levels.

As above poster said, compressed air cans help. Do it before any overclocking lol. It covered about half of my card and was about 1 milimeter thick. I'm surprised the card still works at all. >.> Then again, I hear you can dump a whole computer in oil np.