Surface-mounted PCBs can be repaired at home.
Motherboards of PCs have components, such as the NVIDIA graphics chip, that are surface-mounted. Surface mounting is done by covering the surface of the PCB with an even layer of solder, setting the components on the PCB and then heating it with an infrared oven or hot air gun to melt the solder. The molten solder adheres to electrical contacts on the board and the chips, and the excess solder flows off the board. The soldered electrical contacts on surface-mounted PCBs may crack or develop hairline fractures that can cause malfunctions, such as a monitor showing red lines across the screen. This can be fixed by reflowing the solder or reheating it to its melting point. When the reflowed solder cools, the electrical contact is remade and the board is fixed.
Instructions
1. Remove the NVIDIA motherboard from your PC. Take off any wires, stickers, heat sinks, fans, BIOS batteries, foam spacers and any other computer component that can be removed.
2. Use rubbing alcohol and a cotton swab to wipe the motherboard clean and remove any grease and dust that may be on the PCB. Apply an even layer of liquid flux to the board and get it in as many nooks and crannies as you can so that it flows under the NVIDIA chip on the motherboard.
3. Heat your oven to 385 degrees Fahrenheit. While the oven is heating, line a cookie tray with aluminum foil. Make six 1-inch balls out of aluminum foil. Place them on the lined cookie tray in even rows to support the motherboard. Set the motherboard with the GPU and the CPU socket facing up on the aluminum foil balls.
4. Cut a piece of aluminum foil that is 1 inch larger on all sides than the motherboard. Cut out a window for the NVIDIA chip to fit from the aluminum foil, leaving enough of the foil to cover the rest of the motherboard. Wrap the sides of the aluminum foil around the motherboard and leave the chip exposed in the window you cut out.
5. Set the cookie tray with motherboard into the oven. Open a window or turn on the kitchen ventilation fan, as heated plastic will release fumes into your home. Let the motherboard heat up for eight minutes. Turn off the oven. Open the oven door and make another ball of aluminum foil, set it between the door and the top of the oven to prop the door open. Wait 20 minutes for the motherboard to cool down.
6. Take the motherboard out of the oven. The reflowed solder will have cooled and returned to its solid state. Reinstall all of the components you removed from the motherboard, and then place the motherboard back in your computer.
Tags: aluminum foil, cookie tray, cookie tray with, electrical contacts, even layer, oven Open