spilled sweet an sour sauce on my laptop :|

[Clareel]

okay I know, you shouldn't have any type of liquid near you laptop but I did and I spilled it.

I the screen went blank almost straight away and it wouldn't shut down so I took the battery out and put it upside down (open). I have no idea what the best thing to do in this situation is but I panicked.

Anyway, is there any hope of the laptop being fixed or should I start looking into getting a new one.

Thanks!

 

[Sleinous]

I think first you will need to leave it off for a few days to dry, yes in teh upside down open position. Next youre gonna have to open the whole thing up and start cleaning each part manually. Hopefully most of it is caught in the keyboard.

 

[pengipete]

That sauce is quite thick so it's unlikely to have spread too far into the inards - that's the good news. The bad news is that it's made of sugar - making it sticky - and vinegar - making it quite a strong acid so you need to remove it as soon as possible - before the acid does any irreversible damage. As Sleinous says, most of the liquid will have been stopped by the keyboard - actually by the rubber membrane under the keys - so fingers' crossed.

Dismantling a laptop is more complicated than it would be for a desktop. In particular, after removing the right screws you can't just pull the thing apart as there will be fairly delicate flat cables and very small wires running between the base and the keyboard, speakers etc that you need to disconnect. If you're not 100% familiar with how to do this, it's best left to a professional. If you want to do it yourself, get a bottle of 100% alcohol and a load of Q-tips plus some lint-free cloths.

If the innards are okay - most likely situation is that you'll only have a small amount of liquid in there - and the keyboard and membrane are thick with gunk, you can CAREFULLY wash those using warm, soapy water as long as the keys don't use metal springs. Just make sure that they are completely dry - leave them overnight in a warm place. Worst case scenario there is that you have to buy a complete keyboard assembly but that's a hell of a lot cheaper than a laptop.

Here's the really good news (touch wood)...

You can often remove the keyboard and membrane without dismantling the whole laptop - which I recommend doing first if only to get a better idea of the extent of the liquid's intrusion. Quite often, the keyboard is just clipped in and held with a single screw from behind so you can remove it without opening the case. Look underneath the laptop and see if there is a screw (or two) near the middle of the base that are maked "keyboard" or similar. If so, remove those and then turn the laptop face up with the screen open. Very carefully, use a very thin, wide piece of plastic (or metal at a push) - it needs to be thinner than a credit card (the sort of stiff, thin plastic used on those impossible to open packets you buy small items in. You need to slide it under the plastic plate that's beneath the keys - not under the keys themselves. If you are lucky, you'll hear a slight click and the edge of the keyboard will lift slightly away from the palmrest; if it does, work around the edge of the keyboard until all of the little clips are released. Once it is free, very carefull raise the keyboard by no more than a centimetre as there will be a very small ribbon cable connecting it to the base. You'll have to look to see where it connects and there will be a small plastic clip - usually white - with a tiny flap where the ribbon inserts. Lift that flap - very gently - and the ribbon will pull out. Depending on the design of the laptop, there may also be some fine wires connecting the speakers and/or lights - you'll have to unplug them too. Don't try to pull them out by the wires - they'll break way from the plug - either use needle pliers or your fingernails on the plug itslef. You will then have the keyboard assembly in your hand and can do what you need to clean or replace it. Reassambly is a matter of reconnecting the ribbon cable and any wires (tricky at first so use good lighting and be patient - a freestanding magnifying glass may be useful) and then seating the keyboard into place. Press around the edges with your fingers and/or ball of your thumb until you hear the clicks as it fits into the clips. After that, just put the screw(s) back in and you're done.