I made contact with a ram stick on a gold plate...
I made contact with a ram stick on a gold plate...
Hello. It seems a bit odd, but today I was cleaning my PC after installing the RTX 3090 and a new motherboard. I accidentally touched the GSKILL Trident Z 3600 MHz RAM sticks on the bottom where the gold is. Later, I watched a YouTube video warning not to touch RAM sticks on the bottom. Do my sticks now look damaged? I only have a way to check by testing them—if I put them in and they work, my PC will show 32 GB RAM. Will that affect speed? Or should I just clean them properly? I’m really considering replacing them if they slow things down. This is definitely a confusing question, but thanks!
It should still function; the advice is mainly to lower the chance of losing it due to static, and this must occur at certain areas for the device to fail.
They advise avoiding contact with the gold connectors since they serve as links between the RAM and motherboard. Your skin tends to be oily, which might transfer onto these points and disrupt their function. If the RAM operates correctly, it's okay. For extra assurance, you can lightly wipe them with alcohol.
It's mostly a suggestion because the oils on your fingers might impact the connection. Just wipe the contacts with isopropyl alcohol and that should work. From what I've seen, using too much oil from your skin or eating Cheetos while working on your computer can actually lead to problems.
I've worked with RAM modules where the gold contacts are visible, and they function properly even now (though I always wash my hands beforehand to prevent any contamination). If you're concerned, I recommend using an alcohol pad to clean them and allow them to dry completely until the residue disappears.