What do you think the chances that the HD is OK? We want to try to get the files off the HD. The iMac G3 is dead from the water. I was thinking of just buying another G3 and swaping in her harddrive. This is a viable option correct, her HD should be plug and play with another similar machine? I am open to any other ideas or advice to help.
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So sister in law spilled water on her iMac G3
- Thread starter bbotte
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If the water didn't reach the HD, then chances are your files are still fine. You'll need to open it up and find out. Yes, your HD should go right into another G3 and boot fine. Should work in a G4 as well.
Thank you, for the G4 info as well, I did not know that. The HD is above the logic board correct? I'm wondering if I just buy a used logic board it will work. I will get the thing today and take it apart.
Also if I get the HD out will I be able to connect it to my MBA and read it if it is OK? I will have to buy a USB 3.5 drive enclosure, but it should see the drive as an external drive right?
I wouldn't even bother with the logic board option. There are so many different things that could have fried in the G3 Imac - logic board, CRT, power supply, transformer, etc, that it wouldn't be worth the time and effort. You can probably pick up a used 600-700mhz iMac G3 for next to nothing these days, and just replace the hard drive and have no issues.
You can buy an external USB enclosure but you have to make sure its IDE/PATA and not SATA.
You can buy an external USB enclosure but you have to make sure its IDE/PATA and not SATA.
Not sure exactly where the HD is on that model, but if you take it out and put it in an enclosure, your MBA will read it as an external drive (assuming it wasn't destroyed by the water). Yea, the G4 and G3 processors are rather similar.
Well I got the machine apart, and I think it's a G4. I have the whole botom in a sealed container with rice. I also found out she didn't spill water ON the iMac. A cup spilled on the table and some water came into contact with the base. So the HD should be fine sine it is in the top of the base above the optical drive. Are there any marlins on the logic board that can tell me what model it is? It had a 256mb stick of ram on the logic board with a 512mb stick of laptop ram underneath.
Sounds like it was a G4 iMac with the display on a pole, the G3 I'd think the water would just run underneath. The G4 on the other hand has components very close to the desk...
The bottom of the G4 does have vents in it, which could allow water right up into the area where the logicboard is. However, I think it would have to be A LOT of water to get into the drive
No, not from a pic, usually.
The HDD is probably dead. Get a new one or better yet, a new Mac.
Why would it be dead, the iMac was off, just didn't power on. It was in like 1 or 2cm of water. The drive is like 3or 4 inches high in the base.
I've never opened one up, but due the the Faraday cage in there, I'd imagine the HDD was hit by the water.
If you want to spend ~$100 (just a guess), get an IDE (aka ATA) to USB enclosure and see if you can get the drive going.
Either way, I'd get a new HDD.
The HDD could have suffered from power surges with the water shorting out the logic board. That will be your bigger problem, rather than whether the HDD was physically affected by water.
There's still a very good chance your HD is fine, especially since the machine was not running at the time. If there's important information on the drive, I think spending a little money on an enclosure is worth it to see if that info can be recovered. They're not too expensive. Here's a good one for less than $50.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817146602
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817146602
