Mac + Coffee = Weird experience..

[Laksorama]

Hi guys.

So i spilled coffee in macbook pro 13" a few weeks back, after the spill i opened my macbook, took out all parts down to the keyboard and wiped everything with paper cloth..

Now the mac perfomance is the same as before the accident.
But the weird thing is all "Dark Black" is replaced by a matrix green like color, and the intensity of this "effect" depends on the Gamma & Contrast settings. The screen also shows a light duplicate of its self like 2 inches below the original, but this is almost unnoticeable.

Beside the on-screen problems, i am unable to turn my screen brightness(LED) all the way up, the screen starts to flicker around 3 bars from max, and is all black on the second 2, this also somehow is affected by my Gamma & Contrast settings on the mac..

Now all this led me to the conclusion that the Logicboard/Graphic-chip is broke.'
Im just thinking there is a possibility its something else, since the graphic perfomance is still the same.

Maybe anybody here has any ideas to what i could try.

Thanks for reading,
have a nice evening.
Leon

 

[Summersify]

Maybe keep your beverages away from your laptop next time?

Seriously though, if you're annoyed by it, Apple could swap it out for a new whole display bit, although I bet that would cost an arm and a leg...

Jack

 

[maflynn]

Now all this led me to the conclusion that the Logicboard/Graphic-chip is broke.
...
Maybe anybody here has any ideas to what i could try.

That's a safe assumption. The board shorted out to a degree, I mean to a degree in so far that it still boots but not all the components on the logic board are working as they should.

your only option is to replace the logic board, either yourself or apple. Either way its a pricey proposition.

 

[bdodds1985]

run it through the dishwasher. don't use the heat to dry it inside the dishwasher, just let it dry for 24 hours. double check it before you reinstall everything then turn it on and you should be good to go. seriously.

I am not sure if applecare covers liquid damage but that would be your'e best option. just take it to apple and let them fix it. IF the dishwasher option fails of course

 

[JacaByte]

I would never put anything electronic in a dishwasher, no matter how many success stories about the procedure are floating around.

What I might try would be putting the logicboard in a tub of warm, distilled water (rinsed out with distilled water beforehand to get rid of dust) and letting it sit for a while. If stuff that was on the logicboard (such as coffee) starts dissolving into the distilled water let it sit for longer, then take the logicboard out and repeat the process with another batch of distilled water.

After the logicboard is done with its distilled water bath, let it dry for several days; you want the logicboard to be completely dry before you reapply power. Do not attempt to speed the drying process with a blowdryer or similar device, though if you live in a humid climate a desiccant such as silica gel can be sealed in a (static free) bag with the logicboard to help dry the logicboard.

This is all assuming the MBP is no longer covered under AppleCare, of course.

 

[GGJstudios]

So i spilled coffee in macbook pro 13" a few weeks back

That should be added to this list:
Mac OS X: Why your Mac might not sleep or stay in sleep mode

That makes an app like Caffeine redundant!

 

[bdodds1985]

i would never put anything electronic in a dishwasher, no matter how many success stories about the procedure are floating around.

What i might try would be putting the logicboard in a tub of warm, distilled water (rinsed out with distilled water beforehand to get rid of dust) and letting it sit for a while. If stuff that was on the logicboard (such as coffee) starts dissolving into the distilled water let it sit for longer, then take the logicboard out and repeat the process with another batch of distilled water.

After the logicboard is done with its distilled water bath, let it dry for several days; you want the logicboard to be completely dry before you reapply power. Do not attempt to speed the drying process with a blowdryer or similar device, though if you live in a humid climate a desiccant such as silica gel can be sealed in a (static free) bag with the logicboard to help dry the logicboard.

This is all assuming the mbp is no longer covered under applecare, of course.

are you kidding me?

The only reason why you can put a KEYBOARD in the dishwasher is because the contacts are too far away for minerals in the water to bridge them. never, under any circumstances, submerge any electronics in water. even in distilled water with zero conductivity it will absorb carbon dioxide QUICKLY and become conductive and leave deposits on surfaces.

come on, the dishwasher thing was not meant to be taken serious. I wonder sometimes...

 

[sweetbrat]

are you kidding me?

The only reason why you can put a KEYBOARD in the dishwasher is because the contacts are too far away for minerals in the water to bridge them. never, under any circumstances, submerge any electronics in water. even in distilled water with zero conductivity it will absorb carbon dioxide QUICKLY and become conductive and leave deposits on surfaces.

come on, the dishwasher thing was not meant to be taken serious. I wonder sometimes...

You knew it wasn't meant to be serious, but some others might not. People also wouldn't seriously think about dunking their iPhone in alcohol after it's been exposed to water to fix it, or putting part of their computer in an oven to try to fix it. And yet those bits of advice are given out on these forums fairly often. People looking for help might not know which are real suggestions and which are jokes. If you're going to joke about it, you might want to be more obvious next time

 

[bdodds1985]

You knew it wasn't meant to be serious, but some others might not. People also wouldn't seriously think about dunking their iPhone in alcohol after it's been exposed to water to fix it, or putting part of their computer in an oven to try to fix it. And yet those bits of advice are given out on these forums fairly often. People looking for help might not know which are real suggestions and which are jokes. If you're going to joke about it, you might want to be more obvious next time

I guess common sense is not common after all.

 

[squeakr]

You knew it wasn't meant to be serious, but some others might not. People also wouldn't seriously think about dunking their iPhone in alcohol after it's been exposed to water to fix it, or putting part of their computer in an oven to try to fix it. And yet those bits of advice are given out on these forums fairly often. People looking for help might not know which are real suggestions and which are jokes. If you're going to joke about it, you might want to be more obvious next time

Actually as a tech in the semiconductor industry for over 14 years and military for 5 years, I have used the distilled water scrub (not submersion) with a soft bristle brush and then followed with an IPA (semi grade which is like 4 9's purity) flush followed by a takeout oven bake for a few hours to repair several electronic boards with great success. I realize this is not necessarily the best way, but when you have a $1 million dollar piece of equipment down that has no spare parts (as everything is a custom build) and a 2 month lead time for a replacement, you do what you can.

I have also successfully repaired home circuit boards the same way (phones, monitors, and stereos), as when an electrolytic capacitor explodes the residue left behind is very caustic to the board and conductive to the circuits, so one needs to get it up someway? If you have a more reliable way I am open to suggestions. I have been doing this for over 10 years with great success.

 

[ixodes]

run it through the dishwasher. don't use the heat to dry it inside the dishwasher, just let it dry for 24 hours. double check it before you reinstall everything then turn it on and you should be good to go.

What brand of dishwasher soap is best?

 

[rockyroad55]

What brand of dishwasher soap is best?

I prefer Dial.

 

[bdodds1985]

Actually as a tech in the semiconductor industry for over 14 years and military for 5 years, I have used the distilled water scrub (not submersion) with a soft bristle brush and then followed with an IPA (semi grade which is like 4 9's purity) flush followed by a takeout oven bake for a few hours to repair several electronic boards with great success. I realize this is not necessarily the best way, but when you have a $1 million dollar piece of equipment down that has no spare parts (as everything is a custom build) and a 2 month lead time for a replacement, you do what you can.

I have also successfully repaired home circuit boards the same way (phones, monitors, and stereos), as when an electrolytic capacitor explodes the residue left behind is very caustic to the board and conductive to the circuits, so one needs to get it up someway? If you have a more reliable way I am open to suggestions. I have been doing this for over 10 years with great success.

If that works for you then keep doing it, but it's not something I would suggest to the average coffee spiller.

I think I got this whole topic a little off track with my jokes but in all seriousness I would not try using any water on any boards stored in an cased enclosure, however I do not have the experience or luxury of working on million dollar pieces of equipment other than those that are not mission critical. Is there some kind of tutorial the OP could use to get some visuals and decide if it is a task he/she can handle? Or just for my knowledge and well being, I would like to see this done.

and I like a light scented lemon dial. good for sanitizing.

 

[squeakr]

it's not something I would suggest to the average coffee spiller.
Is there some kind of tutorial the OP could use to get some visuals and decide if it is a task he/she can handle? Or just for my knowledge and well being, I would like to see this done.

i agree that it is not recommended for the average user. I stated my background credentials (no longer work in that field to attest to my training, and not as a bragging point) to show that it is a viable solution in the correctly trained hands. The people that clean boards will also use these techniques at times, as sometimes there are no other ways to get around it. With the proper tools available it can be done. I am also trained in micro/min repair as well and have an entire specialized soldering station at home to repair board level repair. Full submersion is not recommended, but controlled usage can be fine.

I know of no tutorials regarding this, as generally specialized environments and tools are necessary (in those environments we have special ovens for baking out water, as it is highly destructive in high vacuum applications).

To remain on topic, when I have to clean boards at home outside of those environments, I suggest utilizing IPA (Isopropyl Alcohol, the highest purity that can be obtained is recommended) to clean and scrub the affected areas with a soft bristle brush, as this will remove the buildup, dry and displace the water and other liquids remaining behind (the main attributes of IPA), and IPA leaves no residue and isn't conductive. Also due to the vapor points of IPA it will evaporate quickly leaving the area dry and clean.

 

[JacaByte]

<snip>

You have no clue what you are talking about. Submersing unpowered electronics in distilled water is not a death sentence. I also have no idea where carbon dioxide comes into play here. (Carbon dioxide manifests itself as carbonic acid when dissolved in water, which can be harmful to electronics, yes, but distilled water is unlikely to contain any carbonic acid) What kind of credentials do you bring to the table? I'm studying electrical engineering, and while I've never tried a distilled water bath on logicboards, the process works well with more robust boards. (e.g. small/medium scale integration logic circuits of a non-computational nature)