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GPU fan stopped working

Last response: in Graphics & Displays
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Specs:
AMD Athlon X3 425 Processor
8GB DDR3 RAM
1TB HDD
ATI Radeon HD 4650 1GB
Bestec 175W Max 268W PSU

I had this desktop for around one and a half year now from Future Shop (a retail store in Canada) and recently I noticed my GPU fan, which came along with the desktop, has stopped working. This resulted in my graphics card overheating (over 100 degrees on occasions). I'm not sure for how long the fan has stopped since I never bothered to open the case much over the past year. I uninstalled the old driver and replaced it with the most recent driver from ATI, and when I opened the AMD VISION Engine Control Center, it said that my fan is running around 85% to 100% when the fan is not even spinning. I tried to give it a spin and nothing happened. After I took the card off to clean it, it looked fine to me, though there could be dust hiding underneath the fan, which I might check later. The fan spins okay when I tried it and I'm wondering why the fan is not working when it's supposed to.

I wonder if the fan is broken or clogged, or if there's another cause. The PSU is pretty bad I know, but can that cause the fan to not spin? I think the fan failed on me recently, because otherwise the video card should be burnt out by now after over a year.

Thanks!

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It is not uncommon for a fan to fail on a graphics card, it is often possible to replace the fan with a standard fan with a bit of ingenuity or if the graphics card is under warranty to return it to its maker.

Should I bother buying a new fan, and If so, where can I get it? Do you think a local computer shop should have GPU fans ready? How much does one cost?

Also, should I replace my PSU with something better, since this one came with the package and it's stock quality?
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Normally the fans on a graphics card are of standard size but have different (custom) fittings. A good computer shop that repairs computers will have a suitable size fan for a few Ralods but you will have to use a bit of ingenuity to fit it.

Weird thing happened today, the fan began working on startup. I didn't change anything except for slightly underclocking the graphics card to 500 MHz. So does this mean that the fan is not broken?

The fan stopped working again when I ran a game (Civ4) and forced me to shutdown as the GPU quickly heated to 100 degrees celsius. The fan now won't start again. I'll try to see if I can replace the cooler.
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