Definition: Reflow and reballing are the two main techniques used to repair failed solder joints on a GPU chip or other BGA (Ball Grid Array) component. Both involve heat — but they differ in approach and permanence.
What Is Reflow?
Reflow uses a hot air rework station to heat the existing solder balls beneath a chip to their melting point, causing them to reflow (remelt and re-bond). The chip is not removed from the board. Reflow is faster and cheaper, and works well when the solder joints have cracked or lifted slightly due to thermal stress. It’s a temporary-to-medium-term fix — if the underlying cause is heat fatigue, the fault may return.
What Is Reballing?
Reballing is a more involved repair. The chip is fully removed from the board using a hot air station, the old solder is stripped from both the chip and the PCB pads, and a new array of solder balls is applied using a BGA stencil. The chip is then precisely repositioned and reflowed back onto the board under controlled temperature. Reballing produces a fresh, clean solder joint — it’s the more permanent repair and is preferred where reflow has already been attempted or where VRAM chips are failing.
When Are These Repairs Used?
- GPU no display — black screen on boot despite the desktop powering on; often caused by a cracked solder joint on the GPU core or VRAM
- GPU artifacting — pixel corruption, colour blocks, or distorted textures; typically VRAM solder joint failure
- GPU not detected — card missing from Device Manager or BIOS after a crash or heat event
- Post-overheat failure — GPU that worked then died after sustained high temperatures
Reflow / Reballing Cost at BreakFixNow
GPU reflow and reballing starts from $120 at BreakFixNow Singapore. The final price depends on the GPU model, fault severity, and whether reflow or full reballing is required. Diagnosis is free — we assess the card first and advise which approach is appropriate before any work begins.
See the full Graphics Card Repair Singapore page for complete pricing, or the Desktop PC Repair Singapore page for broader desktop fault diagnosis.