Features

Replacing the heat sink on a graphics card is straightforward, and with most makes of card you will replace the fan at the same time. However, as with processors, the method varies depending on the make of the graphics card. Here we'll show you two of the more popular makes: ATI and nVidia.

Before you start, be aware that this process will invalidate your warranty, and make sure you wear an anti-static bracelet.

1 Here we have an ATI Radeon 9500 graphics card with the fan and heat sink it came with. The heat sink and fan are quite small, and the fan is whiny. We'll replace it with an Arctic Cooling unit, a much quieter heat sink that uses a large fan and a radiator. For this job you'll need a pair of needle-nose pliers and a crosshead screwdriver. The most difficult part of changing a GPU heat sink is removing the existing fan. They're sometimes attached by a clip or by small plastic pushpins that clip through holes in the graphics card itself. Hold the card by the edges to avoid damaging any of the components. On the back you'll see two little plastic studs. Push these in using needle-nose pliers, and the heat sink and fan will pop off. The cooler is often attached with thermal paste, which can make the heat sink hard to remove. It may help to run the card beforehand, as this softens any adhesive.

2 The heat sink and fan are attached with many more screws on an nVidia card. First you must remove the screws that hold the fan in place, then those securing the two heat sinks. You'll need a crosshead screwdriver with a very small head. If you don't have one, spend around £5 on an optometrist set. In picture 2 you can see the different components. The larger heat sink is turned over, showing the thermal paste underneath.

	3 Before installing the new heat sink, clean any thermal paste from the chip using TIM-Clean and a tissue. Make sure you get rid of all the residue, as the bottom of the new heat sink must make good contact with the chip to transfer heat effectively. Heat sinks often come with their own thermal paste: spread it very thinly over the chip and screw the heat sink and fan down tightly.