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Using case fans to replace damaged gpu fan

VoltySquirrel
By VoltySquirrel
in Graphics Cards
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I was upgrading my computer today and in the process I dropped my Asus GTX 970 . For whatever reason, this has caused the fan in the GPU to get stuck and click when trying to spin the blower. I've taken the whole card apart down to the fan. I can't see any damage on the fan that could even cause a problem. Now, I've done a lot of research in the time since this happened, and replacing the fan with a replacement part is not viable in the short term since the only parts are in China. Also not viable in the short term is buying a new GPU for obvious and infuriating reasons. The system runs "fine" as is, but I've done zero testing, it simply managed to be good enough to last through the Windows install. The only realistic option I have is the Jerry rig some sort of solution. I have 4 different case fans of varying brands and sizes that I'm not using, from a never used 140mm Noctua to whatever came with my NZXT S340. I found the LTT video where they tested removing the shrouds from a GPU and strapping a case fan to it. The Titan X they tested has a similar blower style fan to the one in my 970. Is there any theoretical way for me to improve upon their technique?

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If it helps matters, I found a picture of the GPU without its shroud. I'd take pictures myself but I'm at work, currently.

4b070a72_IMAG0012.jpg

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it looks like the heatsink fins are open on the top, so if you have space below the card I don't see why you couldn't put an appropriately-sized fan on it. Just make sure to get one with good static pressure if possible.

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Gigabyte G1 GA-970-SLI ~ FX 8320 @ 3.3Ghz, 1212mV ~ 16GB DDR3 ~ Radeon 570 4GB ~ 512GB NVMe ~ 2x 1TB HGST 7200RPM

 

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19 minutes ago, Natty Ice said:

it looks like the heatsink fins are open on the top, so if you have space below the card I don't see why you couldn't put an appropriately-sized fan on it. Just make sure to get one with good static pressure if possible.

I have an old GTX 550 TI with a Noctua 92mm fan on it. It ran shockingly quiet, and cool. It was only slightly thicker than a two slot cooler. It's in a box, the 2GB of RAM on it means it's not really useful for... Anything anymore, except maybe browsing and video stuff.

"Don't fall down the hole!" ~James, 2022

 

"If you have a monitor, look at that monitor with your eyeballs." ~ Jake, 2022

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15 minutes ago, VoltySquirrel said:

I've done a lot of research in the time since this happened, and replacing the fan with a replacement part is not viable in the short term since the only parts are in China.

You could get the fan or whole cooler form something else, you could even upgrade your heat sink, it just needs to be something that works.

Gaming With a 4:3 CRT

System specs below

 

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5700X with a Noctua NH-U9S cooler 
Motherboard: Gigabyte B450 Aorus M (Because it was cheap)
RAM: 32GB (4 x 8GB) Corsair Vengance LPX 3200Mhz CL16
GPU: EVGA GTX 980 Ti SC Blower Card
HDD: 7200RPM TOSHIBA DT01ACA100 1TB, External HDD: 5400RPM 2TB WD My Passport
SSD: 1tb Samsung 970 evo m.2 nvme
PSU: Corsair CX650M
Displays: ViewSonic VA2012WB LCD 1680x1050p @ 75Hz
Gateway VX920 CRT: 1920x1440@65Hz, 1600x1200@75Hz, 1200x900@100Hz, 960x720@125Hz
Gateway VX900 CRT: 1920x1440@64Hz, 1600x1200@75Hz, 1200x900@100Hz, 960x720@120Hz (Can be pushed to 175Hz)
 
Keyboard: Thermaltake eSPORTS MEKA PRO with Cherry MX Red switches
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If I were to strap the fan directly to the GPU heat sink, I would want it to blow air towards it, not away from it, yeah? (Please operate on the assumption I don't know what I'm doing because I don't.

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1 hour ago, VoltySquirrel said:

If I were to strap the fan directly to the GPU heat sink, I would want it to blow air towards it, not away from it, yeah? (Please operate on the assumption I don't know what I'm doing because I don't.

Yeah fan blowing air into the heatsink.

Powerspec 1530 (Clevo PB50DF2) ~ i7 10875H ~ RTX 2070 Super 115W ~ 32GB DDR4 ~ 2x 1TB NVMe ~ 2TB 5400RPM ~ 1080P 240hz matte IPS

 

Gigabyte G1 GA-970-SLI ~ FX 8320 @ 3.3Ghz, 1212mV ~ 16GB DDR3 ~ Radeon 570 4GB ~ 512GB NVMe ~ 2x 1TB HGST 7200RPM

 

Xtras ~ Dell 22" 1680x1050 matte IPS monitor ~ Logi M705 mouse ~ PowerA Fusion Pro Xbox One controller ~ Sony XB950N1 headphones ~ Epson V700 film scanner

 

Streaming Setup ~ OBS Studio with AMF encoding ~ iVCam bridged to LG G6 ~ Focusrite Scarlett Solo interface ~ TONOR condenser cardioid mic

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My GPU fans seized and i replaced them with 2x 120mm case fans, I have better temps than when i first got the card.

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Okay so this is what I Frankensteined together. I don't really have a way to secure the one corner, other than maybe trying some twine connected from the screw hole on the fan to the bracket, but I don't know if it's necessarily a good idea to take something as flammable as twine and putting it anywhere near a GPU.

20210321_001706.jpg

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I guess the main concern I have is that the PCB is bending slightly where I attached the zip ties...

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I took some advice from a friend and redid the zip-ties, choosing to instead chain ties together to relieve stress on the PCB. 568653585_48nAtCTB.jpglarge.thumb.jpg.a382bb692fc93681348a6f659d137124.jpg

463544449_eijO_I52.jpglarge.thumb.jpg.99f6fdfbb4c1bf96ba1b702138983ab3.jpg

After that I plugged it in, figured out which fan it was in AI Suite's fan tuner, and configured it to always be at at least 50% fan speed, before quickly ramping up to 75% and ultimately 100%. This was moreso out of paranoia and desperately not wanting this thing to overheat and die. I did some quick testing in CS:GO, which were very promising, which encouraged me to give it a true stress test. I found a spot in Doom Eternal that pinged the GPU to near 100% utilization and let it idle for over half an hour. In that entire time, it didn't go above 81 degrees. Cherry on top: I didn't even notice the fan going full tilt.

image.png.aafe9f620adbbca8b0c4f40e2d62c011.png

Insanely happy I was able to keep this thing on it's last legs. I'm still gonna buy the replacement fan, mostly out of piece of mind, but I feel relatively safe actually using this card for extended periods of time again. Thank you for the help. I appreciate it.

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