Powerbook Corrosion

[Rod Rod]

If the aluminum in the Audis would corrode, I bet Audi would be in a lotta trouble. Apple is being a bit nonchalant about their design failures.

Corrosion protection is a separate warranty from the rest of the car, and tires have their own warranty too.

Hands don't need to be sweaty to cause pitting. Any oils could do it too. Washing hands every 30 minutes or so can help. My 13-month-old Aluminum PowerBook has no pitting at all and I use it all the time. I wash my hands all the time, and anyone else who touches it has to wash their hands too.

I am not sure what that is but it is not corrosion. Aluminum corrodes to alumina Al2O3 which is white. It looks like paint coming off. Are you sure that piece isn't painted plastic? I know parts of the PB are metal but maybe the piece around the touchpad is plastic.

It's anodized aluminum alloy. The "corrosion" is most likely oxidation.

 

[Apple!Freak]

Is this "corrosion" not covered by Applecare?

 

[skubish]

Corrosion protection is a separate warranty from the rest of the car, and tires have their own warranty too.

Hands don't need to be sweaty to cause pitting. Any oils could do it too. Washing hands every 30 minutes or so can help. My 13-month-old Aluminum PowerBook has no pitting at all and I use it all the time. I wash my hands all the time, and anyone else who touches it has to wash their hands too.

It's anodized aluminum alloy. The "corrosion" is most likely oxidation.

when we are talking metals
oxidation=corrosion, one in the same

Anodizing is just a process to infuse dye into the surface of aluminum. The corrosion/oxidation would still not be black. My friend has a PB. I will have to take a closer look it could be aluminum with metallic paint + black primer.

 

[Gizmotoy]

Anodizing is just a process to infuse dye into the surface of aluminum. The corrosion/oxidation would still not be black. My friend has a PB. I will have to take a closer look it could be aluminum with metallic paint + black primer.

Yea... that's not right. Anodizing is a electolytic process by which an a layer of oxide is formed along the outer surface of the aluminum. The aluminum is used as an anode during the process, and and negatively charged oxide ions pass through an electrolyte solution and oxidize on the surface. Dyes can be added using special treatments that make the aluminum porous, but that is not the primary reason for anodization. The anodizing process makes the alumimum much more durable and resistant to scratches, etc.

Anyway, the Al PowerBooks are not painted. That ended with the TiBooks. What everyone, including me, is experiencing is the slightly acidic nature of your sweat eating through the anodization layer of the aluminum. Depending on the actual aluminum stock used to make the casings, the blackish color could either be the aluminum's natural post-anodization color (anodizing makes it darker), or dirt that has settled into the tiny pits in the metal. Apply likely uses a light silver dye (if you look close, you can see the aluminum is porous), and when the anodization is stripped, the bare aluminum is all that remains. In either case, the phenomenon in unreversable, unless you want to send your wrist-gaurds in to be stripped and re-anodized

 

[Demon Hunter]

Well, if it's the only major problem with the AlBooks, I guess it's not so bad...

iKlear has become my best friend. I'm banking on that protective finish it says it gives. I believe it too, it's great stuff. Just a squirt a day.

I also wash my hands a lot though. It's a good excuse for breaks when I'm working. Can't take any risks!!

 

[Diatribe]

Is this "corrosion" not covered by Applecare?

No, it is not.

 

[Applespider]

Hands don't need to be sweaty to cause pitting. Any oils could do it too. Washing hands every 30 minutes or so can help.

I wash my hands too - probably 10+ times a day. But having to wash your hands every 30 minutes to stop your laptop pitting really isn't a good reflection on the Al book's design!

 

[Apple!Freak]

I wash my hands too - probably 10+ times a day. But having to wash your hands every 30 minutes to stop your laptop pitting really isn't a good reflection on the Al book's design!

I wash my hands each and everytime I get on my Mac's. My PC is a different story . I end up washing my hands about 15 times per day, so hopefully I will be corrosion free on my new PB.

 

[orijinal]

why not just put a little packing tape on where you put your palms, etc?

 

[superbovine]

why not just put a little packing tape on where you put your palms, etc?

heat + glue

 

[Sedulous]

I would second the theory that the black/staining is dirt and other organic matter seeping into the anodized layer.

 

[grapes911]

Well, you can add me to the list. It started happening to my 11 month old 1.67 15-inch DDR PB. I went to the Apple store and they said they wouldn't touch it because it was only cosmetic. I said I don't care if it is cosmetic or not, I paid over $2000 for a laptop, I expect it to be able to handle my hands. They said that apple considers this my fault because I sweat. I'm really pissed. This is the first issue I've had, but it still annoys me.

Has anyone had any luck complaining to Apple? I'm just wondering if it is worth my time to call them.

 

[plinkoman]

i don't have this problem yet (well, my pb is only 4 months old), but i probably wont because 95% of the time i am using it at my desk with my apple keyboard + mighty mouse, and a radtech screen saver thing over the powerbooks keys.

i did however come across a solution for this problem. check here:
http://www.marware.com/cgi-bin/WebObjects/Marware.woa/5/wa/selectedCategory?catalogCatID=181&wosid=QM74xtR2Rq3gTetbonIwPg
it has pads that go over the palm rests, and look alot better then a pda screen protector imo.

 

[Halsey12]

I am not sure what that is but it is not corrosion. Aluminum corrodes to alumina Al2O3 which is white. It looks like paint coming off. Are you sure that piece isn't painted plastic? I know parts of the PB are metal but maybe the piece around the touchpad is plastic.

It is aluminum for sure, and on my corroded area, the specks are deep. DEEP. Lots of little specks and few big spots, and the big ones are holes that are almost 1mm deep and 1/16th of an inch in diameter. You can feel them obviously when you run your finger over them. So if corrosion isn't the correct term, what is aluminum getting holes worn into it called?

I eventually put a sticker over mine.

 

[matticus008]

AppleCare doesn't cover this and it shouldn't. It's highly unlikely that the computer would develop a serious enough level of corrosion to affect the function or structural integrity within the machine's usable lifetime.

It's a simple case of upkeep. Instead of washing your hands 30 times a day, just cleaning the PowerBook every few days (or even weekly) would effectively stop this deterioration. Of course I'm not advocating for people to stop washing their hands completely--it's just that even clean hands sweat, and the damage is caused by prolonged exposure. It would have been helpful if Apple mentioned regular cleaning in the manual (who knows, maybe they did).

It's like expensive cookware--poor maintenance will let cast iron rust, and lots of people don't know not to make acidic sauces, marinades, etc. with metal bowls or spoons.

 

[grapes911]

just cleaning the PowerBook every few days (or even weekly) would effectively stop this deterioration.

I clean it twice a week. The finish still comes off. This has nothing to do with poor maintenance. IMO, Apple didn't take into consideration that some people sweat more than others, especially when touching a hot powerbook.

 

[matticus008]

I clean it twice a week. The finish still comes off. This has nothing to do with poor maintenance. IMO, Apple didn't take into consideration that some people sweat more than others, especially when touching a hot powerbook.

What do you use to clean it? I think it's likely that Apple conducted no research on things like sweating, instead relying on other research or market experience (there are tons of aluminum products used on a daily basis). They chose an aluminum enclosure and this is just a consequence of the material--there's no finish, per se, at all.

You can see this in lots of other products. The Logitech MX mouse line's silver paint wears down over time (sweat and/or moisture and the physical motions of use), and you can see the fine textured surface of keyboards from almost every manufacturer become smooth and glossy on the space bar in normal usage. Etching effects from the dishwasher dull glasses and plates. I've seen lots of Dells with shiny, discolored patches on the palmrests. What I mean is that there's only so much you can do to out-design physical wear.

 

[grapes911]

What do you use to clean it?

Sometimes I use water, sometimes I used alcohol-free LCD wipes.

I think it's likely that Apple conducted no research on things like sweating,

I believe that.

What I mean is that there's only so much you can do to out-design physical wear.

I agree. But knowing that, I consider this wear and tear. Wear and tear should be covered by AppleCare and not considered my fault.

 

[matticus008]

Sometimes I use water, sometimes I used alcohol-free LCD wipes.

I agree. But knowing that, I consider this wear and tear. Wear and tear should be covered by AppleCare and not considered my fault.

Well I can't disagree that I'd love AppleCare to cover wear and tear but it would just raise the fee by way too much to be practical.

You can use a diluted vinegar solution or something like 409 or an aluminum-safe Lysol to remove oils and chemicals (don't spray directly onto the computer). Water won't really clean the surface and doesn't do anything to help with the pitting problem.

 

[jihad the movie]

I got sick and tired of everybody having 12" PBs on my campus so I just put two vinyl stickers over the palm rest to make mine stand out. Yeah yeah yeah, it's an Apple and a work of art, but they're tasteful, I like them, and they protect my machine from corrosion.

 

[tjwett]

i just ordered up that protector from marware. well worth it for me. i have really sweaty hands most of the time (yeah i know, gross) and my palm rests have started pitting after just a few months. same happened to my Rev A 12" PB. this time around i'd like to stop it before it gets bad as it will make a huge difference when i want to sell this thing eventually.

 

[plinkoman]

i just ordered up that protector from marware. well worth it for me. i have really sweaty hands most of the time (yeah i know, gross) and my palm rests have started pitting after just a few months. same happened to my Rev A 12" PB. this time around i'd like to stop it before it gets bad as it will make a huge difference when i want to sell this thing eventually.

post a review once you get it, i am interested to hear how nice looks and feels.

 

[tjwett]

post a review once you get it, i am interested to hear how nice looks and feels.

will do. in the past i was turned off by these kinds of accessories as i tried some of those leather keyboard covers on my old TiBook and it wound up doing more harm than good. but with my cycle of selling machines after 1 year of use it would be best to keep them in good shape. i probably won't use the keyboard cover as it's not really needed in the AlBooks and i don't trust anything in that tight spot. but the palm rests need some protection for sure. an alternative that a friend of mine uses is the screen protector stickers for a PDA. slaps one on each side. they peel off without doing any damage or leaving glue.

 

[5300cs]

I have a rev A 17" that I just got back from repair. I use it everyday at work, and I just a few minutes ago noticed tiny black dots on the palm rest.

Yipee, it seems my PB has this problem, too. As if the TiBook paint fiasco wasn't enough, now this happens.

Guess it's off to the Apple Store today to see if they have any palm rest covers ...

 

[saveone]

Hmmm.... Aluminum...

So... I'm just thinking out loud here. No one else seems to be curious about this, so I'll just ask. If aluminum is being rubbed off of our laptops because it's heating our hands, just where is that aluminum going?

I think that Alzheimer's disease is linked to aluminum deposits in a person's blood. I'm not a doctor, but am I the only who's even just a bit worried?

P.S. The spot on my keyboard is about the size of a golf-ball.