Uh Oh. Laptop broke?

[bikerider]

I spilt a little drink on my laptop keyboard. Now when I hit a button it types a bunch of letters. Is there anything I can do to fix it or do I have to get a new Keyboard? No more drinking around the computer.
Thanks for any help.
:Sport:

 

[DrBart2]

I am not a computer expert but I have damaged a few. Has you computer completely dried out? Sometimes after completely drying they will start working normal again. If that doesn't work then someone wiser in the ways of computers will have to help you.

 

[shaggystyle]

spills on a laptop are one of the worst things to fix, and 9 times out of 10 you'll never get it 100% fixed. About the only thing you can do is get a big bottle of rubbing alcohol and some Q-tips. Take the whole laptop apart and clean EVERYTHING thoroughly. On most laptops you can remove the keys from the keyboard with a bent paperclip, they just pop off and then snap back in place once you've cleaned them. If you are really lucky, no fluid got into the hard drive or cd/dvd drive. If you are unlucky, you may need to replace those two things. Good luck, if all else fails. Put it on ebay, even with spill damage you can usually get a couple hundred for a decent laptop (depending on specs).

Edit: This is all assuming that the drink had sugar in it (which gets really sticky). If it was just water, try putting it on a hot rock out in the sun (which you should be able to find easy enough out in texas). Usually that will cook all of the remaining water out of it without damaging any components.

Edit 2: The above directions assume you have removed the battery and unplugged the power adapter first.

 

[Hellgate]

I spilt a little drink on my laptop keyboard. Now when I hit a button it types a bunch of letters. Is there anything I can do to fix it or do I have to get a new Keyboard? No more drinking around the computer.
Thanks for any help.
:Sport:

Douse it in IPA, NOW! Hold the notebook over a trash can and spray the IPA directly onto the key board, and let it drain out. The IPA will displace the soda/coffee/juice. Then let the notebook dry completely. It SHOULD be okay.

I've dumped cans of Coke and cups of coffee on mine, done this process and the notebook worked for years afterwards.

Good luck!

 

[bikerider]

Thanks yall. I will try all the suggestions and hope for the best.

 

[DrBart2]

Douse it in IPA, NOW! Hold the notebook over a trash can and spray the IPA directly onto the key board, and let it drain out. The IPA will displace the soda/coffee/juice. Then let the notebook dry completely. It SHOULD be okay.

I've dumped cans of Coke and cups of coffee on mine, done this process and the notebook worked for years afterwards.

Good luck!

Whats IPA?

 

[shaggystyle]

IsoPropyl Alcohol (aka Rubbing Alcohol). It's great for cleaning electronics because it's nonconductive and fast drying.


....or India Pale Ale, depending on your preference

 

[bikerider]

luck me i have some here at work

 

[DrBart2]

luck me i have some here at work

How are you going to dry it out? I wouldn't do it outside today or tomorrow, the weather is supposed to be bad. Maybe a hair dryer?

 

[shaggystyle]

luck me i have some here at work

India Pale Ale.....damn, can I get a job there?

 

[bikerider]

How are you going to dry it out? I wouldn't do it outside today or tomorrow, the weather is supposed to be bad. Maybe a hair dryer?

Im thinking the hair dryer is the best bet.

 

[bikerider]

India Pale Ale.....damn, can I get a job there?

I work at a graphic design place, so we keep it in stock for our machines.

 

[Hellgate]

How are you going to dry it out? I wouldn't do it outside today or tomorrow, the weather is supposed to be bad. Maybe a hair dryer?

It will dry pretty quick on its own. The alcohol isn't really effected by humidity that much. I don't think I would use a hair drier because of ESD, electro-static discharge. ESD is the number one damager (is that a word?) of electronics. The dry and moving air could cause static on the computer. It will air dry in 15 or 20 minutes.

 

[nimzotech]

Thanks to both of you; Hellgate good tip on suggesting IPA, and DrBart2 for leading us to find out what IPA is. When a keyboard goes faulty I would use a diagnostic tool and test each keystroke. That in turn would provide me with error codes to determine whether a replacement keyboard was needed or not. Isopropyl Alcohol seems to fix the spillage.
Cheers!

 

[reiobard]

good luck with the laptop, sounds like you have plenty of help with this already

 

[Hazardous006]

if the IPA doesnt work u might have to replace the keyboard. if u need to replace it, hit me up with the make and model cuz i have crap loads of laptop parts collectin dust.

 

[Maverick]

Good tips!

Reminds me of a buddy of mine who spilled a glass of red wine on his 2 day old apple laptop... he put it under the tap at the sink and flipped it upside down for a few days to dry - it did NOT work. He was in luck as all the H2O he ran through rinced off all but a very small spec of red wine and Apple covered it under warranty giving him the benfit of the doubt...

 

[Admin]

if the IPA doesnt work u might have to replace the keyboard. if u need to replace it, hit me up with the make and model cuz i have crap loads of laptop parts collectin dust.

Any Toshiba A 10 Stuff? I need a hinge and a DVD drive

 

[DrBart2]

bikerider, did your laptop recover or is it dead?

 

[bikerider]

Well it turns out the computer is good but the keyboard is shot. I guess it could have been worse. Could have lost the whole computer. So I'm searching for a keyboard. Im going crazy with out it.
Thanks for all the help. :Sport: