Liquid Spills
Ok, you were just sitting there reading the latest news, enjoying your favorite beverage, and the phone rings, startled, you reach for the portable and your sleeve catches the edge of your drink. Over it goes and into your laptop keyboard! Your stomach sinks, what do I do now??!!
Stop! Do not pass go, do not collect $200!
What to do in case of a spill
Unplug the Laptop and if possible, remove the battery. Don't put off action. The presence of electric current accelerates the corrosion that damages the circuit board. All liquids, except distilled mineral free water WILL short circuit and corrode electronics.
Dry your Mac. Put a towel down on the table and turn the computer over so that the keyboard is on the towel and the screen hangs down from the tabletop. This will allow as much liquid as possible to exit. Do NOT use a hairdryer to speed up the process as heat can do additional damage.
Do NOT put the Laptop in a bag with rice as the grains only get into vents, slots and places they should not be!
Do NOT power your Mac back on to see if it survived!
I will refer you to a company that specializes in Liquid Spills. Logic Board repair is typically price in the $250 to $425 range depending on model, and they offer a 90 day warranty!
What Next?
Your Mac is rarely beyond salvage. Often there's damage to the logic board, but occasionally is limited to a charging circuit. However, the machine does need to be disassembled, repaired, cleaned and tested.
Often, data on your drive is a primary concern. Hopefully, you do a regular backup and have all your data on an external drive. If you have no backup, all is not lost. Storage devices often survive spills. If your Mac is an older model I can remove your drive and attempt data recovery.
How do they do the repair?
The company I refer you to offers true electronic component-level repair of your computer. They repair any damage to the circuit board itself, blown chips, corroded etches and missing or damaged pads. These devices are truly tiny, some the size of a grain of sand. These steps are performed using a high-powered microscope and specialized soldering equipment. Once the board tests ok, it will go through an Ultrasonic cleaning process. After reassembly, it is tested through a burn-in process to make sure it's fully repaired.
