A laptop is a popular device in the modern market. It is purchased not only for work in the office, but also at home. Unlike a computer, it is small in size, easy to use, and mobile, which makes it easy to change location.
In terms of power and capabilities, it is not inferior or superior to its counterparts. The most vulnerable point of a laptop is laptops. They are easily damaged and difficult to repair.
Only careful handling will ensure a long service life of the equipment. In practice, this is quite difficult to do. Spilled coffee, tea or water on a device is one of the most common situations and is familiar to many.
When exposed to liquid, the laptop immediately fails. This is the first enemy of any technology that you should be wary of. What to do in this case, how to avoid serious damage, we will analyze further.
What liquid was spilled?
Before looking for solutions to the problem, it is important to determine the type of liquid that was spilled on the laptop. It directly affects the algorithm of actions.
There are two types: non-aggressive, aggressive. The first group includes water, tea without sugar . They will cause minimal damage to the equipment, and problems are unlikely to arise during operation.
As for the second group, the situation is more complicated. This includes drinks that contain salt or sugar. These substances are dangerous for the device and will lead to serious damage to it.
It is extremely difficult to restore its functionality on your own and will require the help of a specialist. Examples of such liquids are soda, beer, coffee, juices and others.
What was spilled is an important point
It is important to consider what was spilled on the keyboard.
It is important to consider that not all liquids that end up on the surface of a laptop lead to damage. According to the parameters of potential danger, they are divided into the following groups:
- Aggressive.
- Weakly aggressive.
There is a simple principle: the more salts and sugar are present in the composition, the more aggressive it is. Therefore, the first category includes running water, tea without sugar and other similar drinks.
Slightly aggressive substances in small volumes and with short-term exposure do not pose a particular danger. If resuscitation is carried out in time, the motherboard and other important components of the device will remain in good working order. As for drinks containing sugar (coffee, tea, Coca-Cola, etc.), they often cause laptop failure. And kvass, salty mineral water or wine can “kill” a laptop computer in a few minutes.
The effectiveness of future repairs will depend on the amount of liquid that gets onto the working surfaces, its composition and the duration of contact.
The first actions of a laptop user when a non-aggressive liquid is spilled in an amount of up to 20-30 ml
What the user needs to do first
The algorithm for the first steps to care for a laptop comes down to the following actions:
- You need to immediately, without any pause or hesitation, disconnect the laptop from the power supply by removing the charging unit from the device connector. When such a problem occurs, you don’t need to think about how to properly disable the operating system or check unsaved files, much less turn to thematic forums for help. The first task is to save the equipment. Text documents and other files can be recovered in most cases, but repairing a laptop that has been exposed to water for a long time is much more difficult.
- Next, you should turn off the laptop if it did not turn off on its own after contact with water or the previous step. To do this, you need to remove the battery and connected peripheral devices (drives, mouse, keyboard). You should also remove the hard drive from the drive.
- After removing the back cover, you need to turn the laptop over with the keyboard down so that the water droplets drain off. The main thing is to avoid getting moisture on the display matrix. The remaining particles should be wiped off with a napkin or soft cloth. You should let the device stand in this state with the lid open for several hours. It is better to place it on a heated windowsill and wait for the case and keyboard to dry completely. The process may take 1-2 days.
Do not try to turn on a flooded device even if proper drying has been carried out
You cannot turn on the laptop.
It is strictly forbidden to start the laptop after the initial drying. According to statistics, 80% of users who encounter such a problem make a fatal mistake by connecting an “under-dried” or insufficiently tested electronic device to the power supply. This approach is extremely dangerous, since the remaining spilled liquid can cause a short circuit and damage the system. The main task is to eliminate unpleasant consequences and minimize risks.
If the laptop is not filled with a large amount of non-aggressive liquid, and all stages of resuscitation measures are completed successfully, most likely after drying it will continue to work as before. But even at this point there are pitfalls.
A common misconception: if the device starts up after drying and works correctly, then problems will no longer arise.
However, in practice, unpleasant incidents often occur. Upon visual inspection, there may be no traces of moisture on the keyboard and case, but this does not guarantee that liquid has not managed to penetrate inside. Prolonged contact with internal components will result in serious failure. The poured composition goes the following way: keys, joints between the case and the keyboard - the motherboard. When interacting with conductive parts, the destruction process starts within a few seconds.
Some laptop manufacturers provide a special protective film under the device case. If it is absent, corrosion processes will gradually affect metal elements.
The situation is aggravated by the following factors:
- Motherboard components quickly become saturated with liquid.
- The rate of corrosion progression increases as the board heats up.
- Corrosion processes occur faster when there is a potential difference between tracks located nearby.
To avoid disastrous consequences, you need to perform a series of diagnostic actions before drying, without turning on the laptop.
How to check if there is moisture under the keyboard
How to check for moisture under the keyboard
To determine if there is moisture under the keyboard, you will need to disassemble the device. The algorithm for dismantling the case differs for different laptop models. It is important to remove the keyboard slowly and carefully after removing the small latches using a straight screwdriver.
If there is no moisture under the housing, this is good news.
To clean sticky buttons of a dismantled part, you need to use regular hot water and a detergent without abrasive particles. It takes up to 24 hours for the keyboard to dry before reinstalling it on the laptop.
If no mistakes were made at this stage, the keys will work properly for several years.
If you find traces of moisture under the keyboard case and on the motherboard, you can proceed according to the following scenarios:
- Contact professionals from the service center for help.
- Try to eliminate the unpleasant situation with your own hands.
We invite you to familiarize yourself with the algorithm of actions for self-reanimation of computer equipment.
After dismantling the case, diagnostics of the motherboard should be performed under a magnifying glass. Particular attention should be paid to blackening at solder points and plaque. If there are blackened areas, and you know how to work with a soldering station, you need to re-solder them.
For local lesions, you need to clean them with a soft toothbrush, alcohol and distilled liquid. Next, you should thoroughly dry the board. A soft eraser can be used to remove traces of oxidation on the contact elements.
Deformed and blackened areas need to be resoldered. If there is plaque on the entire surface, and local cleaning is impossible, you should try the option of global washing of the board. To do this, you need to remove all unaffected parts (coin-cell battery, chipset, Wi-Fi module, etc.), remove the remaining thermal paste and clean the interior from dust and other contaminants.
At the next stage, you need to briefly “soak” the board in a weak soap solution and carefully brush it with a toothbrush. Next, you need to rinse the part with clean hot water, heated to a temperature of 50 degrees Celsius.
When washing, it is worth considering that the internal chips and textolite love to absorb liquid. They need to be washed for 4-5 minutes, applying a detergent without abrasive particles. It is allowed to use neutral baby soap. Soap and remove the board carefully, avoiding contact with the connectors.
After washing off the soap solution, you need to inspect the board for damage. Remaining stains should be washed again. Having completed a kind of “water bath”, you need to shake the treated board, wipe it with a lint-free cloth and dry it for 24 hours.
After the specified time has passed, it remains to make sure that there are no traces of spilled liquid and install the part in its original place. The contact pads are additionally cleaned with an eraser and treated with an alcohol-containing solution.
Where to begin?
Spilled liquid on a laptop is an unpleasant situation and requires immediate action. There is no time to be upset, you need to calm down. If you quickly take the necessary measures, the problem will be successfully resolved.
Quite often and in a flooded state, it continues to function. This is deceptive and does not mean that there are no problems with the laptop.
It is important, immediately after liquid gets in, to disconnect the computer from the power supply and remove the battery.
Picture: Turning off the laptop before drying
In what cases should I take it for repairs, and can it be repaired?
Many people don't know what to do if their keyboard keys don't work and when to take it in for repairs. If the user has flooded the product with plain water, the methods discussed above can restore the device’s functionality.
The situation is more complicated when there is coffee, tea, Coca-Cola, juice and other sour/sweet/carbonated drinks inside. In this case, the likelihood of restoring the laptop is lower. Turn off the power in time, otherwise the motherboard, keyboard and other elements will be damaged.
Another situation is when a person wiped the keyboard on a laptop and it stopped working. If he filled it up before, you need to make the same recommendations as discussed above. If there was no liquid ingress, the cause may be simple mechanical damage or deterioration in the quality of the contacts on the connector.
How to drain the liquid?
Regardless of the type of liquid spilled, you must open the laptop. After which experts recommend turning the part over and leaving it for a while . It is important to secure the device so that it does not fall and become even more damaged.
A flow of fresh air and exposure to sunlight will speed up drying time. Therefore, it should be placed near the window.
The drainage time is long. It will take at least one, or even two days. It is worth noting that until the laptop is completely dry, you cannot turn it on.
Failure to comply with the requirement will worsen the condition of the laptop and lead to more complex problems and malfunctions, which are difficult and sometimes impossible to deal with.
This method of restoring the operation of equipment is budgetary. But it is only suitable if a non-aggressive liquid is spilled.
Actions to do first
Emergency assistance consists of three stages, the correctness and speed of which will directly affect the condition of the laptop. You need to start at the same moment when the liquid, regardless of its quality and texture, is spilled:
- Turn off the power to the device and remove the battery. Shutting down the system correctly to save data is not as important as preventing all contacts from short-circuiting and burning out. Contrary to popular belief, disconnecting the battery is no less important, because even after disconnecting from the mains, the power circuits in it work.
- After this, disconnect the flash drives, disks, and memory cards from the device.
- Next we act depending on the amount of spilled water or other liquid. If its volume is no more than 1-2 tablespoons, then turn the keyboard or laptop over to prevent moisture from penetrating into the central parts of the case, and then blot the surface with a paper towel. In case of a larger volume, install the device on its edge, the ventilation holes should be located at the bottom, and gently shake, removing the maximum amount of liquid.
Advice: During emergency assistance, it is strictly forbidden to turn on the device to check whether it works. You will have to come to terms with the fact that you won’t have to use it for at least 2-3 days.
Only after carrying out all these manipulations, you need to decide what to do next - try to clean and restore the device yourself or seek help from a repair shop.
Drying features
There is no point in waiting for perfect drying after draining the liquid. It will bring a positive result if the amount of drink is small. And the moisture will only be removed from the laptop, but it will remain in the user. You can dry the latter yourself using a vacuum cleaner.
To do this, you need to open the laptop and remove the back panel. Blot the inside with a napkin and vacuum the area. The power of the latter should be small.
A furniture cleaning device is perfect for these purposes. Now the equipment can be assembled, turned on and tested for functionality.
What to do if other drinks get into your laptop
Things get worse if tea, coffee, wine or other drinks get into the laptop. First you need to de-energize the device and then turn it off.
After this, you need to clean the laptop: while water can simply evaporate, coffee or other drinks will leave behind a residue. Drink stains can oxidize the contacts, and if dust collects on it, the temperature inside the laptop will rise. Eventually such changes will kill the main board or individual components.
Therefore, the laptop needs to be cleaned before drying. It’s better to entrust this to a specialist, but if this is not possible, follow the instructions:
I do not recommend doing the cleaning yourself without the supervision of an experienced engineer.
Source
How to rinse?
Flushing the device is necessary if aggressive liquid is spilled. It will help minimize the damage caused. They contain sugar and are more likely to cause the keys to stick. This will significantly affect the operation of the device.
In addition to performing the basic steps, or rather turning off, disassembling and drying the laptop, the keyboard must be unscrewed and the buttons washed under water using detergent . Then leave them to dry for 24 hours in a sunny place.
A vacuum cleaner and napkins will help speed up the process. As soon as the buttons are completely dry, the device is assembled and the quality of work is checked.
Preventive measures
If liquid containing honey, sugar or similar substances is spilled on the keyboard, then additional actions are necessary. Water evaporates completely and without a trace, but, for example, coffee and tea in any case leave a sticky substance. And here ordinary drying will not help. If you don't clean your keyboard, the keys may become stuck or break completely. Therefore, cleaning in this case is mandatory.
To remove the sticky substance, you can use an alcohol solution after disassembling the device and disconnecting all its elements.
The keyboard can only be connected after drying. It should be noted that the external input device dries faster. If we talk about a laptop, then you need to dry not only the keys, but also all the existing boards.
How to save the motherboard and what to do when the laptop does not turn on?
Moisture spreads quickly throughout the equipment. Most likely, it will get to the motherboard and cause a lot of trouble for the owner. It will cause significant damage to the part.
Especially when it comes to aggressive liquid. Moisture is removed from the board by drying. It is carried out as for a laptop with a napkin and a vacuum cleaner.
If the above manipulations are not successful, the owner will quickly understand. The equipment will not turn on. In this case, a specialist will help.
You need to take the gadget to a service center. The master has everything necessary to solve such a problem: knowledge, skills, experience and modern equipment. The likelihood that he will bring the device back to life is quite high.
How to save a laptop yourself?
— Disassemble the laptop and keyboard
Please note that this may not be easy. It is not always easy to unscrew all the screws on the bottom; often some of them can be hidden under peel-off legs and panels that are held on by the same latches, attached under the keyboard, display hinges, and so on. However, as a rule, all common laptop models have disassembly guides and videos. Go to the manufacturer's website for information, Google or YouTube. In order to reduce search time, enter “disassemble *laptop model name*”, or better yet “*laptop model* disassembly”.
Disassemble the laptop into the smallest possible components and check where the liquid managed to reach. The main thing is to remove the CMOS battery on the motherboard, as it constantly powers the board, which in the long run is enough to cause a short circuit. It is easy to find, it is quite large, round and difficult to confuse with something.
As for the keyboard itself, it will have to be disassembled and sorted separately, having previously photographed or recorded the location of the keys on the keyboard. Next, simply remove the keys with a thin screwdriver or any thin handy tool; as a rule, they can be pryed off from the bottom. Then “pull out” the pushers and spring elements. In this case, three films will remain on the keyboard substrate: two conductive, with tracks, and a dielectric separating film between them. On older keyboards, the membranes are either not glued together, or they are glued only at a few points and are quite easy to separate. However, on new ones they are often glued more securely and it will be more difficult to unstick them - here you can’t do without a hairdryer. We warn you that the gluing process requires certain skills, so it would be better to stop at this stage and hope that no water got between the films; after all, they are glued quite tightly.
Expert advice
As practice shows, it is better to prevent the situation described above than to deal with the consequences. This will take a lot of time, and if you turn to a specialist, it will cost a pretty penny.
It is possible that the device will become completely unusable. The only right decision would be to purchase a new one.
These tips will help extend the life of your equipment:
- Do not place drinks nearby;
- Do not drink liquids while working on a laptop;
- Buy a vacuum cleaner with low power. Let it always be in the house, it is possible that it will come in handy;
- Cover the keyboard with a special moisture-retaining film. Increases the level of protection of the part against liquid penetration.
If a drink is spilled on a gadget, you should immediately provide assistance. This will increase the likelihood of successfully resolving the problem.
Even after providing first aid, the laptop should be taken to a service center. Specialists will assess the level of damage caused and, if necessary, perform additional manipulations to ensure that the equipment works for a long time and with high quality.
What happens if liquid gets into your laptop?
Laptops are usually diagnosed with several problems.
A short circuit can also occur due to a couple of drops of water that “successfully” reached the board. But, as a rule, a similar problem appears if more liquid has been spilled - at least half a cup.
A short circuit will not necessarily lead to complete death of the device: usually the main board will burn, and the RAM or hard drive will almost always survive. Or maybe the fuse, which costs 200 rubles, just burns out - then it will take more time to disassemble and reassemble the laptop than to repair it.
Oxidation of contacts. This is a chemical process that begins when liquid gets on the contacts, for example, of a battery pack or at the junction of the main board and other parts. Small “growths” begin to appear on the contacts, which prevent current from passing freely between the laptop parts. The closest analogue is the appearance of rust on metal.
Contacts suffer mainly not from water, but from other liquids: for example, wine or coffee. Oxidation usually does not cause problems if the contacts are cleaned in time.
Physical damage to laptop components. We often break our laptop when we try to take it apart and dry it. Sometimes this is done to clean the contacts.
What to do if your laptop or computer keyboard is flooded?
There are often questions on the Internet, they say, the keyboard has been flooded, the keys do not work, what should I do? People mistakenly believe that the problem will not affect them, and persistently drink tea, juice, water or even beer near their PC or laptop. But according to statistics, every 50th cup ends up on the keyboard, so every drinker near the screen should know what to do and how to save the device from destruction.
