Macbook Pro - Water damage, but it still worked when on battery!

[Napbree]

Hey,

I have a dilemma for you guys, and i would love to hear your advice.

Basically, I have the 2009 macbook pro, but as I was sitting on the table outside, someone knocked over a cup of water, and it went inside the vent of my MBP. I didn't realise for a few seconds, but when i did the first thing that I did was lift the laptop off the table and wipe the underneath (not realising that it had just flooded in through the vent at the back).

At this point, it was still working, however I turned it off as soon as I new the liquid was inside the laptop, took the case off and put it on the aga to dry out, I left it for a fair few hours, and then tried turning it back on and to my surprise it did, and everything loaded as normal.

However when the battery died, I tried plugging it in, and it did not work.

This is where I come to my conclusion, I took it to the apple store, and they gave me some ******** (I think) about the whole thing having water damage, and it would cost around 900 pounds to fix (along with the HDD + display), and it wouldn't be worth it.

Now, I think it is the ac/dc converter for the laptop, what does everyone else think? Also, would it make a difference for turning on the laptop if there was no battery present?

That's pretty much it!

P.S It's the intel 2.8ghz spec, the one just before the i5 version came out.

 

[Macsavvytech]

This is where I come to my conclusion, I took it to the apple store, and they gave me some ******** (I think) about the whole thing having water damage, and it would cost around 900 pounds to fix (along with the HDD + display), and it wouldn't be worth it.

Ahhh, I wonder when they will realise we dont need to be given some ********
Anyway I am not really sure, hope someone can help you.

 

[NutsNGum]

Do you have a reseller or alternative electronics repair guy nearby? You could take it for a second opinion!

 

[bozz2006]

I wonder if the Magsafe board got wet/fried. If you're even mildly proficient inside a computer this is an easy replacement to do. You can buy the part from ifixit and then follow ifixit's repair guide to do the repair.

 

[cluthz]

First of all, when did this happen?

The first thing you should do with water accidents is to leave the device off for a minimum of 3 days.

 

[squeakr]

First of all, when did this happen?

The first thing you should do with water accidents is to leave the device off for a minimum of 3 days.

I beg to differ. This advice might be valid if you do nothing else to get the water out, but if you do other things, the time frame can vary (it also depends on the environment as well, as water will evaporate in warmer weather quicker than cold weather and humidity levels makes a difference also).

 

[r3vo714]

I beg to differ. This advice might be valid if you do nothing else to get the water out, but if you do other things, the time frame can vary (it also depends on the environment as well, as water will evaporate in warmer weather quicker than cold weather and humidity levels makes a difference also).

At least 24 - 48 hours.

Great article on saving your laptop from water damage!

http://www.wikihow.com/Save-a-Laptop-from-Liquid-Damage

 

[squeakr]

At least 24 - 48 hours.

Great article on saving your laptop from water damage!

http://www.wikihow.com/Save-a-Laptop-from-Liquid-Damage

I agree more with the 24-48, but not 3 days. The article is good, but it is best if you can get high purity alcohol and rinse with it, as it will displace water within the smaller cracks and crevices. Forced air is also a good way to dry out the boards as opposed to heated air from hair dryers and such (and I would suggest using it after the IPA rinse. I wouldn't recommend fully rinsing with water as it will saturate the devices and can cause issues. I also don't recommend using tap water (although the article says it is fine) as the ions in the tap water can leave residue behind and tap water is conductive due to the ions and minerals, which increases the chances of electrical shorting.

 

[r3vo714]

I agree more with the 24-48, but not 3 days. The article is good, but it is best if you can get high purity alcohol and rinse with it, as it will displace water within the smaller cracks and crevices. Forced air is also a good way to dry out the boards as opposed to heated air from hair dryers and such (and I would suggest using it after the IPA rinse. I wouldn't recommend fully rinsing with water as it will saturate the devices and can cause issues. I also don't recommend using tap water (although the article says it is fine) as the ions in the tap water can leave residue behind and tap water is conductive due to the ions and minerals, which increases the chances of electrical shorting.

Agree with that part, never use Tap Water...

 

[squeakr]

Also as an addition to my last post. Even removing all power sources (battery and AC power) still doesn't remove all power from the board, as there are capacitors on the board that will still hold a charge for an amount of time without a designated power source, and these have enough stored energy to destroy components as well.

 

[Napbree]

Well it definitely wasn't 24 hours, but it only stopped working once the battery died, so I assume everything is still working because it hasn't been powered up since!

I've lost the battery so I can't try charging the battery in another MBP, and I don't know anyone else with the same model MBP. So a 100 pounds for a battery and a mag board for nothing is a lot of money to a skint student.

 

[Napbree]

bump!

 

[bozz2006]

I think you're gonna have to spend some money if you want to actually test it. What do you mean you've lost the battery? Do you still have it in your possession? Take it to a computer place and have them test it to see if it'll hold a charge.