Spilled Coffee on Laptop

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Spilled Coffee on Laptop

I am such a dope. I was studying and I picked up my starbucks cup and my iced coffee, which was really diluted because I had had it for a while, well it slipped out of my hand and spilled all over my laptop. I cleaned it up as soon as possible and the circle thingy started spinning, so I shut it down, I then took the battery out and everything. I usually dont have liquids so close to my computer, I was clearly not thinking last night. What should I do, I am afraid its broken forever!

Macbook2,1, Mac OS X (10.5.5), Intel Core 2 Duo

Posted on May 20, 2009 3:37 PM

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Answer 1

May 20, 2009 3:47 PM in response to AtlantaAngel

i had sort of the same encounter yesterday, i spilt mountain dew on my keyboard and alot of the keys are sticking around the shift key

im wondering how to take off the keys so i can clean under them to get rid of the stickiness..

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Answer 2

AtlantaAngel Author

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May 20, 2009 3:57 PM in response to macbook1990

I bought my macbook in 2008. I see online they give detailed instructions for dismantling the machine and cleaning it. I know I cant spare 800 bucks for it to be repaired because when I cut it on I only get a gray screen.

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Answer 3

AKA1ex

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May 20, 2009 5:34 PM in response to AtlantaAngel

get some alcohol and soke your laptop on it
it wont hurt your laptop because it will evaporate and it will do the same for the coffe plus it will clean it

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Answer 4

AtlantaAngel Author

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May 20, 2009 7:34 PM in response to AKA1ex

You mean like soak the entire laptop in alcohol?

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Answer 5

Geekdad

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20 points

May 20, 2009 9:04 PM in response to AtlantaAngel

Yeah...It sounds weird but it is supposed to work. I would recommend removing the battery first. The alcohol will remove the soda and evaporate fast. Hope that helps...

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Answer 6

AtlantaAngel Author

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May 21, 2009 6:14 PM in response to Geekdad

I am terrified to soak it in alcohol. I did open it and I saw some dried coffee in there :/

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Answer 7

Lyssa

Level 8

41,327 points

May 21, 2009 8:34 PM in response to AtlantaAngel

Considering that a warranty doesn't cover liquid damage anyway, and you have the machine opened, my suggestion is to use some distilled water to rinse the parts inside. Don't use it on the hard drive or the optical drive.

Some alcohols are OK for using on a computer, and others aren't. Distilled water won't do any more harm to the computer.

Rinse it thoroughly--if you see sticky spots, you may want to use a small brush to gently try to remove the residue--and let it dry for at least 3 days. Check all the parts for wet spots before you reassemble the computer, and wait longer (up to a week) if you think it's necessary.

Once you have the computer put back together, make sure you leave the battery off. Connect the MagSafe adapter and start up the computer. This way, if it behaves oddly, you can just pull the plug.

Best of luck~

~Lyssa

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Answer 8

May 21, 2009 9:45 PM in response to AtlantaAngel

*DO NOT SOAK YOUR LAPTOP IN ALCOHOL!!!!*

If any liquid gets in it immediately turn it off and unplug the adaptor if connected. If you're quick you may prevent the logic board from shorting out and being destroyed when it otherwise would.

The laptop needs to be opened and verified absolutely dry (if plain water) before restarting, and professionally cleaned if anything other than water was spilled.

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Answer 9

AtlantaAngel Author

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May 23, 2009 9:39 PM in response to xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxy

Oh I have not soaked it in alcohol, lol. I will either make an appointment at the apple store or either find a repair shop to take a look at it. I removed the hard drive and I saw sticky spots in it, I did not remove any screws. The side where the hard drive is is where I spilled a lot of my coffee drink. I kind of think its the logic board since I only get a white screen. I did not have the common sense to unplug it quickly, I probably did it 3-5 mins later, boy I am such a dope!

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