I got a cheap MacBook Air that would only power on some of the time. I've noticed some corrosion where the MagSafe board attaches to the logic board.
The MacBook Air won't charge, but will start to boot and shut down again repeatedly.
Can anyone guide me in what to about it?
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Can't see much from the picture, but I trust your description. If you have corrosion around the connector it is likely a water damaged Mba and that's the reason why you got it cheap. Most probably it got shorted by the spill and some power/charging components/power rail got burnt. It will require diagnostic and component level soldering skills..are you up for the task and have the necessary tools ?
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Thanks for the answers.
I actually managed to get it running.
I seemd that two lines were shorted, and I managed to fix it by carefully scraping away the residue (or corrosion, whatever you want to call it).
There’s no sign of water damage anywhere else on the board and it seems like an odd place for water to get to without damaging anything else.
Anyway, do you think I need to apply solder to it now? I’ve left it running for a good few hours and all seems fine.
I’ve got a steady hand, but never touched anything so small and intricate before.
You are a lucky man :) However, unless properly decontaminated, liquid damaged devices may develop sooner or later other issues or might just stop working. I would recommend to follow the steps you'll find in this good guide to water damaged Macs:
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