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I spilled laundry detergent on my MacBook Pro

D

detergentbookpr

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 1, 2013
5
0
was dumping clean laundry on the bed, macbook was on the bed, bottle of detergent was hidden in the basket, bottle fell onto macbook, loose cap flys off, ~2.5 cups of laundry detergent pours directly onto my macbook pro keyboard.

with the reflexes of a feral cat i immediately press right index finger firmly onto power button while simultaneously flipping macbook upside down. holding the keyboard side parallel to the floor i ran it to the kitchen sink.

then i realized i don't know what the **** to do now.

currently i have the keyboard upside down on my kitchen table with the screen hanging off at a right angle. i'm a graphic design student so this soapy piece of **** contains my livelihood. and there's detergent everywhere.

please help
 
detergentbookpr said:
was dumping clean laundry on the bed, macbook was on the bed, bottle of detergent was hidden in the basket, bottle fell onto macbook, loose cap flys off, ~2.5 cups of laundry detergent pours directly onto my macbook pro keyboard.

with the reflexes of a feral cat i immediately press right index finger firmly onto power button while simultaneously flipping macbook upside down. holding the keyboard side parallel to the floor i ran it to the kitchen sink.

then i realized i don't know what the **** to do now.

currently i have the keyboard upside down on my kitchen table with the screen hanging off at a right angle. i'm a graphic design student so this soapy piece of **** contains my livelihood. and there's detergent everywhere.

please help
Click to expand...

I think the only thing you can do is open it and start mopping it all up with a cloth or paper towel. Then pray to God that once you get it all cleaned up that it still works.

Do you have a Time Machine or other type of backup in case the laptop is toast?
 
detergentbookpr said:
was dumping clean laundry on the bed, macbook was on the bed, bottle of detergent was hidden in the basket, bottle fell onto macbook, loose cap flys off, ~2.5 cups of laundry detergent pours directly onto my macbook pro keyboard.

with the reflexes of a feral cat i immediately press right index finger firmly onto power button while simultaneously flipping macbook upside down. holding the keyboard side parallel to the floor i ran it to the kitchen sink.

then i realized i don't know what the **** to do now.

currently i have the keyboard upside down on my kitchen table with the screen hanging off at a right angle. i'm a graphic design student so this soapy piece of **** contains my livelihood. and there's detergent everywhere.

please help
Click to expand...

First off, take the bottom cover off, and unplug the battery connector going onto the logic board.
Make sure you have rinsed the detergent OUT.
You should have backed up your data for gods sake people.
Rinse the whole machine is my advice, leave it in a dry place for a few weeks not turning it on, and try turning it on in a few weeks. Leave it with the bottom cover off for better ventilation.
Kinda silly to be chucking laundry around right next to your Mac?
Also, please refrain from swearing ^.^
 
SandboxGeneral said:
I think the only thing you can do is open it and start mopping it all up with a cloth or paper towel. Then pray to God that once you get it all cleaned up that it still works.

Do you have a Time Machine or other type of backup in case the laptop is toast?
Click to expand...

I'm about to go down the street for a screwdriver now. What's the best thing to wipe it clean with? Are there any solutions or sprays I should use?

I have backups on external drives but not of everything. I'm worried that it won't be possible to recover the hard drive. I need to prepare a portfolio for internship meetings next week. Also I had all of CS5 legally installed running with a license from my previous school.

----------
lucasfer899 said:
First off, take the bottom cover off, and unplug the battery connector going onto the logic board.
Make sure you have rinsed the detergent OUT.
You should have backed up your data for gods sake people.
Rinse the whole machine is my advice, leave it in a dry place for a few weeks not turning it on, and try turning it on in a few weeks. Leave it with the bottom cover off for better ventilation.
Kinda silly to be chucking laundry around right next to your Mac?
Also, please refrain from swearing ^.^
Click to expand...

Okay so the only thing I need to unplug before rinsing it clean is the logic board power input? And then run it under water????? That sounds crazy... and most of my stuff is backed up.
 
detergentbookpr said:
I'm about to go down the street for a screwdriver now. What's the best thing to wipe it clean with? Are there any solutions or sprays I should use?

I have backups on external drives but not of everything. I'm worried that it won't be possible to recover the hard drive. I need to prepare a portfolio for internship meetings next week. Also I had all of CS5 legally installed running with a license from my previous school.
Click to expand...

I would start with paper towels to get the big globs up, unless you happen to have some lint-free cloth to use.

I don't know about any solutions or sprays, as that could compound the problem, but perhaps others here have some better clean up recommendations.
 
ahh! I didnt mean put more liquids on it!
Rinse it of all the detergent, use kitchen towels is my suggestion.
 
Like I said already, paper towels and/or lint-free cloth and get a couple of cans of compressed air to blow the detergent toward and into the towels. That's what I would start with doing.
 
SandboxGeneral said:
No way! Don't pour or rinse any liquids on it. You'll create all new problems.
Click to expand...

Something should be done to get it out. Detergent will not come out on its own

I would take out the ram, take out the hdd, take out the batt, and as many components you can and clean them individually via paper towels, compressed air,etc

I would use (not sure how effective but would seem to be better than letting detergent dry up) either mineral free water or perhaps alcohol and clean the pieces individually, then place them in a container with rice

I would then wait a good while (week plus) and put the compoennts back together and yea...hope for the best

*could be horrible advice but you do not want dried detergent on your circuits. Whatever you can do to get that taken care of, great
 
If you don't have any technical skill`s i recommend that you locate an Apple specialist and have the computer cleaned, the longer you leave it the less chance of the system working, equally if you have the skill`s go for it and crack the case open...
 
I agree with dukebound85, if you're tech savvy enough to take it apart. Break it down to as many components as you can and clean it that way.
 
detergentbookpr said:
I don't know how to do that, should I take it to the Genius Bar?
Click to expand...

Yeah you can take it to them, but expect to pay a fee to have them clean it up and do any repairs. If you're real nice, they may have sympathy on you and do it for a reduced cost or free - but don't count on it.
 
detergentbookpr said:
I'm about to go down the street for a screwdriver now. What's the best thing to wipe it clean with? Are there any solutions or sprays I should use?

I have backups on external drives but not of everything. I'm worried that it won't be possible to recover the hard drive. I need to prepare a portfolio for internship meetings next week. Also I had all of CS5 legally installed running with a license from my previous school.
rubbing alcohol
----------



Okay so the only thing I need to unplug before rinsing it clean is the logic board power input? And then run it under water????? That sounds crazy... and most of my stuff is backed up.
Click to expand...

rubbing alcohol
 
detergentbookpr said:
was dumping clean laundry on the bed, macbook was on the bed, bottle of detergent was hidden in the basket, bottle fell onto macbook, loose cap flys off, ~2.5 cups of laundry detergent pours directly onto my macbook pro keyboard.

with the reflexes of a feral cat i immediately press right index finger firmly onto power button while simultaneously flipping macbook upside down. holding the keyboard side parallel to the floor i ran it to the kitchen sink.

then i realized i don't know what the **** to do now.

currently i have the keyboard upside down on my kitchen table with the screen hanging off at a right angle. i'm a graphic design student so this soapy piece of **** contains my livelihood. and there's detergent everywhere.

please help
Click to expand...

i spilled about the same amount on my Macbook Pro, keep it upside down for 30 mins, then unscrew the bottom case and with a hair dryer, if you have one.. blow it on LOW for about 10 mins. then wait a few and try to turn it on. At first my Macbook screen was flickering then it came up and its fully working :)
 
If it's not a Retina model, get that back cover off ASAP and remove the hard drive.

That way, even if the laptop is toast, your data is ok. You could in theory buy a second hand laptop of similar specs to your current one and pop in your old drive.
 
iPhonesandMacs said:
rubbing alcohol
Click to expand...
Too much water. But 99% Isopropyl Alcohol will do the trick. You can the rinse components with it, and if you use a soft (I said soft!) brush, cleaning them should be a breeze.

n3n3Tk2.jpg

That's the beauty of isopropyl alcohol.
 
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