Should I blow air onto a drowning laptop?

May 31, 2006 11:56 AM

SpillOnLaptopFilter: To blow or not to blow?

A good friend of mine had a nasty spill on her laptop. I of course told her to turn it off, disconnect the battery, let it dry out, etc. I'm going to head over there later with some silica gel and Q-Tips and try to accelerate the process, but in the course of browsing other recommendations here and on other sites, there doesn't seem to be a consensus about whether using a fan or a blow dryer is good or bad.

Some people say that using a blow dryer (not on the hottest setting) or leaving the computer in front of a fan overnight is a good technique, but other people are saying that it can blow the liquid into places it wasn't before, so it should be avoided.

Does anyone have experience with this or know of some authoritative word on the subject? I want to help her out as much as possible but I wouldn't want to make things worse.

Any other super-cool laptop-drying tips are appreciated as well. :)

posted by EnormousTalkingOnion to computers & internet (3 answers total)

We advise our users to unplug the machine, flip it over and remove the battery and then bring the machine to us.

When the machine gets to us we remove the keyboard and only then use some canned air to blow the liquid out of the keyboard. Once the keyboard is out we can also mop up any any liquid that might have made it inside the machine past the keyboard. We do this with lint free paper towels not pressurized air but any absobent material will work. A serious spill (say a whole cup of coffee) can mean a complete dismantling.

The key is to prevent liquid from shorting out the motherboard which is why we tell our users to flip the machine over. A keyboard is fairly cheap (20-40), a fried motherboard often means buying another laptop. So you don't want to blow out the keyboard while it's in the machine.

If you don't feel up to removing the keyboard I'd keep the laptop open and upside down for a few days. A slight breeze might help things along but I'd be worried a hair dryer would be to strong. Put the laptop on a bit of an angle to help reduce the amount of liquid that can pool in the hollows on the backs of the keys.

PS: sugared liquids are the worst, I almost always end up replacing a keyboard if something with sugar has been poured into it. If the key action feels sticky a good rinse (out of the laptop) with distilled or RO water can sometimes save the keyboard.
posted by Mitheral at 12:28 PM on May 31, 2006

First is get the power off the boards. The boards can take much abuse, unless current is flowing, then the short circuits can do real damage.

The drives -- hard, floppy, CD/DVD -- can't take lots of liquid, because they're mechanical.

After those issue are clear, what's next depends on the liquid. Anything not likely to leave a marked residue -- water, many diet sodas, etc, gets rinsed with warm water, then 100% Isopropyll Alcohol, and after drying, is usally Just Fine.

Anything sticky -- coffee with cream or sugar, orange juice, sugared sodas, etc., needs more work, and I use the same treatment I use for freshly soldered (and flux coated) board. First the fast rinse with warm water, then a scrub down with a brass or plastic brush and isopropyll. That moves most of the gunk off, and mobilizes the rest.

Then, the Mighty Dishwasher, with *just* a little detergent. Put the boards on the top shelf, don't put any dirty dishes in with them, and let 'em rip. You can do this by hand, but the dishwasher does very good job. Pick the lightest cycle that isn't a rinse only, and if you have a speed dry function, turn it off.

The problem with this is you have to dissassemble the computer to make sure the parts that can't handle the treatment are safe. But if you're dealing with sticky stuff, you're going to have to get the notebook apart and scrub, or the residue will attract dust and moisture, and eventually kill the part.

As to keyboards -- the vast majority can handle the dishwasher, the ones that can't would need to be replaced anyway, so definitely wash them. Look at it this way -- if the chosen action end in "or replace the keyboard", at worst, you're replacing the keyboard anyway.
posted by eriko at 12:46 PM on May 31, 2006

The specifications for replacing the keyboard are on line for most laptops, if needed. I've successfully cleaned a laptop keyboard with water, and allowed it to dry very well before replacing. Fan or hairdryer - if you use one, make sure it's at a good distance. Hairdryers have a lot of EMF and could cause trouble.
posted by theora55 at 5:39 PM on May 31, 2006