[SOLVED] Soda spill dead GPU question

[JustinEropa]

Left my pc on as I went to grab something to eat, dog knocked soda into pc while I was gone, pc was off when I returned. Motherboard was covered in soda and I tried to clean everything off but it didn't work when I setup a test bench. Gpu looked untouched with only a couple drops on the backplate. Fast forward to today I bought a new motherboard and the pc doesn't boot with graphics card in but without it, it boots up, also plugged in my old gpu and got it to post just fine. Nothing happens with the new one no sign of life anywhere when it is plugged in. Is there any way that the card isn't dead or is it just a write off, its a shame if that was the case as its a very new card that I paid more than I would like to admit for it. The card is a Radeon 6600xt.

 

[DSzymborski]

Left my pc on as I went to grab something to eat, dog knocked soda into pc while I was gone, pc was off when I returned. Motherboard was covered in soda and I tried to clean everything off but it didn't work when I setup a test bench. Gpu looked untouched with only a couple drops on the backplate. Fast forward to today I bought a new motherboard and the pc doesn't boot with graphics card in but without it, it boots up, also plugged in my old gpu and got it to post just fine. Nothing happens with the new one no sign of life anywhere when it is plugged in. Is there any way that the card isn't dead or is it just a write off, its a shame if that was the case as its a very new card that I paid more than I would like to admit for it. The card is a Radeon 6600xt.

Given your description of the behavior, I would be extremely surprised if this GPU ever functioned again. You can take it apart and make sure that it's clean and dry and try again, but after that, there's no much really to do.

 

[JustinEropa]

Given your description of the behavior, I would be extremely surprised if this GPU ever functioned again. You can take it apart and make sure that it's clean and dry and try again, but after that, there's no much really to do.

I cleaned the outside as much as I could I’ll try to take it apart and thoroughly clean it tomorrow and I’ll update here

 

[JustinEropa]

Took apart gpu and cleaned it still nothing. I assume this card is dead is there anyway to fix it by bringing it to a repair shop or is it a write off?

 

[DSzymborski]

Took apart gpu and cleaned it still nothing. I assume this card is dead is there anyway to fix it by bringing it to a repair shop or is it a write off?

I'd be very surprised if it was anything but salvage. Most likely it results in you paying them for their time and still not having a GPU.

Best thing to do is list it on eBay as not working due to a liquid spill and get some money back from someone who wants to harvest some of its components or roll the dice and fix it themselves. It's likely far more valuable to someone else than it is currently to you.

 

[cryoburner]

Took apart gpu and cleaned it still nothing. I assume this card is dead is there anyway to fix it by bringing it to a repair shop or is it a write off?

Was there visible residue from the spilled drink under the cooler? And how did you attempt to clean it? You may want to try washing the card with 90% or higher isopropyl alcohol. You can wipe it on soiled areas with something like a q-tip while being careful not to break anything off, though pouring the alcohol over it or even soaking the board in a container for some minutes might be worth considering if the initial spot clean doesn't get it working. You probably don't want to soak it for too long as that can potentially damage some plastics and things though.

You should also probably make sure the card has a good day or so to dry afterward before attempting to reinstall and test it. Isopropyl dries fast, though some moisture might potentially remain under chips and other components for longer. Powering up the card while not totally dry could result in an electrical short that may damage the card, or just temporarily prevent it from starting, depending on what gets shorted. And of course, the card could already be damaged from the initial spill, but further cleaning might be worth a try, as a bottle of high-percentage isopropyl alcohol should be readily available in places like grocery and drug stores for a few dollars or so.

As for selling the card as/is for parts or repair, clearly marked as a card failed due to liquid damage, you could try that, though you might not get much for it. Then again, I see some broken cards selling for surprisingly high prices in the current market, so who knows.