How dangerous is mining for your GPU?

[jmfg187]

   I was looking at a thread in the marketplace where the poster wants to buy cards that are not working or have problems etc.

Code:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=101624.220

 It has page after page of people with fried cards, this makes me wonder if mining does some damage to them that gaming does not? If anyone has an idea about this please discuss because I am wanting to build a rig for LTC or NVC but if I am gonna be frying cards all the time it may be more expensive than I thought. Thanks in advance!
James

[bowen151]

Running anything that has moving parts will fail eventually due to obvious reasons.

Gamers = a few hours intensive gpu usage
Miners  = 24/7 intensive GPU usage

Mining usually will take up 99% of your GPU's processing power and this generates heat as a result of drawing more power from the PSU, thats why you need to run your fans at around 60%+

some people have different theorys and prefered settings regarding fans but if you run a fan 24/7 on even a low speed then what will happen? It will need maintenance as it begins to wear down over constant use.

Fried cards = overclocked/overvolted and mined to death, GPU's running too hot for too long, you name it, its just like any other computer component, it can and will fail.

[jmfg187]

I do understand what your saying but I can mine at an 18 intensity on my 6970s and they don't break 80C, I suppose if a fan suddenly died you would be totally screwed but most of the cards I have had started clicking or something to let you know the fan was going bad. I am wondering if a lot of people don't care and just run their cards at 100C all the time or something.

[l008com]

I would think that with adequate cooling, your GPU should be fine. Just replace a fan if it dies, don't ignore it.
I would imagine that in the Mac world, it can be a bit more complicated, since Apple sometimes lets things run a little hot, so they can run a little quieter. SMCFanControl is your friend, in this case.

[Malawi]

I do understand what your saying but I can mine at an 18 intensity on my 6970s and they don't break 80C, I suppose if a fan suddenly died you would be totally screwed but most of the cards I have had started clicking or something to let you know the fan was going bad. I am wondering if a lot of people don't care and just run their cards at 100C all the time or something.

With time a small percentage of cards are bound to fail. With many cards spread among many miners some are bound to fail.
If a card is overclocked to give max output, the chance that it fails gets bigger.

Also there is the cooling thing, if a fan is failing, the card should stop by itself due to high temp, but then it fires up again as soon as it's cold enough. This is a sure way to destroy any electronic equipment, as they don't take well to much changes in temperature.

A mining card that is run at a pretty stable and not too high temp should live the longest. (Even longer than a gaming card that sees a bit of use.)

[MrBudgens]

Keep your GPU fans clean and you shouldn't have a problem.  My GPU fan got clogged with dust to the point that it stopped turning and the PC started to fail all the time.  The case fans were louder so I never noticed the change in sound.  The lesson is to check actively that you don't have dust buildup.

[Nitmeare]

  I was looking at a thread in the marketplace where the poster wants to buy cards that are not working or have problems etc.

Code:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=101624.220

 It has page after page of people with fried cards, this makes me wonder if mining does some damage to them that gaming does not? If anyone has an idea about this please discuss because I am wanting to build a rig for LTC or NVC but if I am gonna be frying cards all the time it may be more expensive than I thought. Thanks in advance!
James

If you use your GPUs processing Unit at 100%, it will become very hot and may fail. Just use only 50-70% of your GPUs capacity for mining, this way it will not consume that much energy and will not become that hot so it may have a longer lifetime. Most miners can be configured to use GPU with less agression to prevent overheating/hardware damage.

[C_J]

Short answer... As dangerous as your ignorance is.

You can theoretically mine at 10% of your GPU's capability for decades without an issue.

Though then again, I can't even get a single client to function beyond running imaginary blocks so why listen to me?

[erk]

Some cards get really hot others don't, I have a HD5770 from Sapphire that wants to run at 85C. Where an nVidia gts450 is happy at 65C. Both have MSI afterburner auto controlling the fans.

[Rikai]

The damage is usually from insufficient cooling, as is the case with most computer issues. I have four large fans (two mounted directly over my video cards) to help facilitate cooling. On top of this, if I am mining for an extended period of time, I run a temperature monitoring program on my computer, and open the case and place a box fan against it. Not the best idea, but I have had no failure as of yet

[achilles78]

Some cards get really hot others don't, I have a HD5770 from Sapphire that wants to run at 85C. Where an nVidia gts450 is happy at 65C. Both have MSI afterburner auto controlling the fans.

my   Sapphire HD5770's temperature reaches 85C

[SimonQ]

As others have said, the main damage comes from the moving parts (fans) breaking down with constant use, but also high heat can cause premature failure of integrated circuits and connections.  In the end, heat is the enemy.

Two things you can do to prolong the life of your cards:

• Don't overclock!
• Don't even run them at 100%.  Run at 80% or 60% or whatever.  This allows the fans to run slower too.
• Add additional external cooling: fans, air conditioner, etc.

Happy mining!

[blackbox]

  I was looking at a thread in the marketplace where the poster wants to buy cards that are not working or have problems etc.

Code:

https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=101624.220

 It has page after page of people with fried cards, this makes me wonder if mining does some damage to them that gaming does not? If anyone has an idea about this please discuss because I am wanting to build a rig for LTC or NVC but if I am gonna be frying cards all the time it may be more expensive than I thought. Thanks in advance!
James

It shouldn't damage them.

Even if it did, If you think bitcoin will take off, the profit you eventually make will outweigh the price of a new card.

I wouldn't worry about it

[pipensa]

You can come to russia, this is very cold, your computer will feel nice there!

[Wesly]

I have 2 AMD 6870 cards OC to 980Mhz that had been running 24/7 for a whole year without any issue.

[blackbox]

I have 2 AMD 6870 cards OC to 980Mhz that had been running 24/7 for a whole year without any issue.

but do you play games with them and are they still ok, no artifacts?

[spurs32]

 

[Qdentica]

Use proper cooling!!! The better the cooling, the longer your Graphics Card will last.

[ft73]

Tried with my Nvidia Quadro, temps are fine, but mhash are low

[TeqnoHaxor]

One of my customers cooked their graphics card recently mining for Bitcoins. Keeping your chassis free of dust and debris is a big help, also make sure you have sufficient ventilation to remove hot air - consider installing side exhaust fans as many graphics card coolers simply push air outwards towards to the side panel.

Also make sure you have a power supply capable of delivering your graphics cards power requirements - peak power is not acceptable. Use the table on the side of your PSU to check the current rating (amperage) of your +12V, then multiply by the efficiency rating. For example, 25A on a 80PLUS Bronze certified is 25 x 0.8 = 20A sustained.

Expect 24 months life out of modern graphics cards, the RAM will almost certainly fail before the GPU does, giving colorful visual artifacting in games etc.