MacBook Pro Unibody (first gen)- keyboard issues

[Asuriyan]

Hello all,

I have inherited a late 2008 Unibody MBP 15" with some keyboard problems. According to my friend (the previous owner), a small amount of wine spilled on it. The computer powers on and runs fine, but the backlight is barely visible in the right and left sides of the keyboard (only the middle is illuminated) and several keys including Backspace, Esc, F3 and F5 do not work. I am able to see some sticky residue but it is under the plastic liner beneath the key and I can't really clean it without dismantling the whole thing. The computer doesn't display any other issues, and it's in generally decent shape, leading me to believe the motherboard was undamaged by the spill (the only reason I'm considering repairing a machine this old with this type of damage, honestly).

Does anyone have any experience with this type of repair? Is it feasible to clean it with isopropyl and a swab, or is it best just to replace the entire keyboard? Since the computer has to be dismantled from the bottom up, it's quite an involved process and I'd like to know what I'm getting into.

 

[Astroboy907]

Hello all,

I have inherited a late 2008 Unibody MBP 15" with some keyboard problems. According to my friend (the previous owner), a small amount of wine spilled on it. The computer powers on and runs fine, but the backlight is barely visible in the right and left sides of the keyboard (only the middle is illuminated) and several keys including Backspace, Esc, F3 and F5 do not work. I am able to see some sticky residue but it is under the plastic liner beneath the key and I can't really clean it without dismantling the whole thing. The computer doesn't display any other issues, and it's in generally decent shape, leading me to believe the motherboard was undamaged by the spill (the only reason I'm considering repairing a machine this old with this type of damage, honestly).

Does anyone have any experience with this type of repair? Is it feasible to clean it with isopropyl and a swab, or is it best just to replace the entire keyboard? Since the computer has to be dismantled from the bottom up, it's quite an involved process and I'd like to know what I'm getting into.

You might be able to pop the keys of carefully (google how to do that), and then clean it from there, but you will probably have to strip it down and either clean the keyboard and backlight sheets or replace the entire keyboard.

 

[Asuriyan]

You might be able to pop the keys of carefully (google how to do that), and then clean it from there, but you will probably have to strip it down and either clean the keyboard and backlight sheets or replace the entire keyboard.

I've taken off the offending keys and the brackets holding them in place. The residue is under a membrane which I assume to be the backlight sheet you reference. Either way I'm looking at taking the whole thing apart to be able to get to it.

That leads me to another question. Is there a difference between the keyboards in the 2008 and 2009 and on models? This one differs from the later unibody models in that the battery compartment was user-accessible, so it's not identical, but if the part matches then I'll deal. I only ask because the majority of the keyboards available specify that they are for 2009 and newer, and the 2008 model only seems to be available with the complete top case with trackpad (which is more than I really wanted to put into this).

Also odd: the computer wakes from sleep after a few seconds whether the lid is open or closed. Related to the keyboard issue, I'm certain.