My daughter spilled an entire latte on her laptop 2 weeks ago. It is completely dry but most of the keys stick or aren’t working so I can’t sign in to see if anything else works. What can I do? And or is it worth paying someone to fix it like a Best Buy or something?
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Hi,
The impurities in the coffee causes corrosion and provides circuit paths for the electricity which were not in the laptop’s operating design and could damage the components. The corrosion starts immediately and is ongoing until it is completely cleaned away
First do not try to charge or to turn on your laptop and then remove the battery as soon as possible from the laptop to minimize any further damage.
Then you need to dis-assemble the rest of the laptop and clean all the affected parts using Isopropyl Alcohol 99%+ (available at electronics parts stores) to remove all traces of corrosion and liquids. If possible do not use "rubbing alcohol" as in some cases this is only 70% IPA or less, can contain additives and is not as effective. If you do have to use it check the label to verify the amount of IPA. The higher the percentage of IPA the better
Here is a link that describes the process. Electronics Water Damage
As always with electronics, especially surface mounted pcb be gentle when handling and especially when brushing away the corrosion. You do not want to remove any components from the board. Remove any shields that may be covering some components as the liquid may have got in under there as well. The ends of any flex cables and their connectors need to be cleaned also.
Hopefully after you have done all this the laptop might possibly work correctly again.
Here is the maintenance and service guide for the laptop taken from this webpage which will help you to dis-assemble the laptop so that it can be cleaned
If this process seems too daunting, take your laptop to a reputable, professional laptop repair service, experienced in liquid damage repair and ask for a quote for a repair. If you decide to do this, do it sooner than later.
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2 Comments
First of all you could try buy isopropyl alcohol and pour it on the buttons that stick to release them and somewhat clean them.
If you are adventurous enough, you can take the laptop apart and change the keyboard on it.
by honakrisi
Hi @honakrisi
It may be better to disconnect the battery first before pouring IPA onto the keys, buttons etc as even IPA99%+ conducts electricity when it is wet and it may seep through to the motherboard etc.
It is good to use because when it has evaporated it leaves no conductive residues, unlike some other cleaners.
Cheers
by jayeff