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    what is this reflective foil on my video card / GPU

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by hauhau, Jul 6, 2014.

  1. hauhau

    hauhau Newbie

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    hello, can anyone tell me what the reflective foil on my GPU is and if I can replace it with something else ? I've googled it for the past hour with no results except some mentions of thermal tape and whatnot, not sure if that's it...In any case the card in the pictures is fried and I've ordered a new one, only the new one does not have this foil on it so I'm sort of worried...

    pictures of GPU front and back

    :confused:
     
    hauhau, Jul 6, 2014
    #1
  2. radji

    radji Farewell, Solenya...

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    Its just adhesive backed foil. It's adhered to the thermal pads to help radiate excess heat from the underlying circuitry. Personally, I would leave it off, but you can search for tin foil tape and it will show you what your looking for. Just be sure to get the thinnest tape available and to cut it exact so there is no chance of it contacting any of the circuitry.
     
    radji, Jul 6, 2014
    #2
  3. MrDJ

    MrDJ Notebook Nobel Laureate

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    its there for a reason. what laptop is it. if its a high end gaming laptop then leave it be.
    this was discussed a few years ago and some did remove it, and their temperatures shot through the roof.
     
    MrDJ, Jul 7, 2014
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  4. hauhau

    hauhau Newbie

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    thanks, I'm thinking I might remove it from the dead card and apply it to the new one since it would save me a lot of hassle of searching for the right tape and cutting it, is there any safe glue I could use to keep it in place ? I tried peeling off a corner of the foil and it's not sticking down anymore....

    edit_would it be a bad idea if I used this:

    http://www.frozencpu.com/products/2...ive_Pad_-_15mm_x_15mm_x_05mm_12097.html#blank

    and then cut some tin foil and stick it on top? I've noticed the one on the card is also 2 layers...
     
    hauhau, Jul 7, 2014
    #4
  5. Krane

    Krane Notebook Prophet

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    To conduct heat. Aluminum is good, cooper is better.
     
    Krane, Jul 7, 2014
    #5