Spilled soda on macbook, have a question

[fiuhpants]

So, on sunday, I spilled maybe an ounce or 2 of Pepsi on my macbook. it was open, and the liquid was on the bottom left corner, and only got on a few keys (up to caps lock and the c key)

i wiped off the soda, and it shut off, and stupid me, tried to turn it back on (that, did not work..)

i then removed the battery and turned it upside down to dry in front of a fan
and waited..

well, 3 days later (last night)
i put the battery back in and it turned on!

everything is working fine, as far as i can tell.
the only thing wrong is the some keys are a little sticky..

my question is...
is my macbook still at risk, if the soda got inside?

all help appreciated!

 

[miles01110]

Yes. Who knows what the chemicals in Pepsi will do to the materials on a PCB, if it reached that far.

 

[MacDawg]

my question is...
is my macbook still at risk, if the soda got inside?

Yes, it is possible that symptoms will not appear until later
The liquid in question is corrosive and may cause damage down the road

Woof, Woof - Dawg

 

[fiuhpants]

if i open it up, and clean the inside with alcohol..
will that help any at all?

 

[optophobia]

I advise the following.

1 - Use a sippy cup in the future when drinking and using your computer.
2 - Drink Coke, it tastes better than Pepsi

 

[5DollaFootlong]

I advise the following.

1 - Use a sippy cup in the future when drinking and using your computer.
2 - Drink Coke, it tastes better than Pepsi

+1 for coke .

to the op, if you are feeling adventurous and have experience taking apart your computer, disassemble it and wipe with rubbing alcohol. Dry it, then reassemble your computer. personally i wouldn't do it, but that's just because i am a noob.

 

[NewMacbookPlz]

if i open it up, and clean the inside with alcohol..
will that help any at all?

It can, although it exposes you to the risk of damaging something else during disassembly/reassembly.

I'd do it though, get all the sugary crud out from the circuitry and keyboard tray.

 

[MacDawg]

Just don't expect your warranty or Apple Care to be good any more

Woof, Woof - Dawg

 

[bozz2006]

I believe that distilled water is what's typically used for such things.

 

[no.1 Apple Fan]

I advise the following.
2 - Drink Coke, it tastes better than Pepsi

Yes, totally

As for your problem, I would suggest that you take the MacBook to an Apple store and have them check it out. Is it still in the warranty?

 

[NewMacbookPlz]

Yes, totally

As for your problem, I would suggest that you take the MacBook to an Apple store and have them check it out. Is it still in the warranty?

If you do this, expect to pay big $$$ for a fix.

The warranty is null and void given the liquid spill.

 

[u49aa2]

If you are going to disassemble it make sure to take details pictures of each part you take out, just in case you forget something.

 

[l.a.rossmann]

https://forums.macrumors.com/showthread.php?p=8040416#post8040416

a) Rubbing alcohol already puts you behind the curve. Use 99% or don't bother. Search eBay. I like ultrasonic cleaners like the ones for jewelry, howeverm if you are patient, 99% alcohol works great, with a fresh, hard toothbrush. Do not brush back and forth, brush from the center of a particular location outwards.

b) Stop plugging it in. Each time you do you potentially screw up something else.

c) Do not just clean. It is not the cleaning that is important, but rather, the drying. You can keep the board next to the window or let it dry for weeks and it can still be screwed up. However, half an hour next to a drying tool that does not apply heat to the board will get the job done. It was once I realized this that I had a 100% success rate on the water damage stuff.

If you do not have access to professional tools for part C, a household dehumidifier will work in a pinch. After you're done going through the board with a fine but strong brush & 99% alcohol, hang the board in front of the dehumidifier's intake. Change the side facing the intake once an hour. Do this for about six hours. If you feel the air moving into the dehumidifier from outside the dehumidifier - if you can drop a paper in front of it and watch it get sucked onto the dehumidifier, it will most likely work.

Do the drying right after you have done the brushing, with the board still a bit damp from the alcohol.

Each step is important, the more you deviate from this the lesser the chance it'll work again.

Lastly, let this be a lesson that buying broken under the impression of fixing it and having a cheap macbook is a bad, bad idea!

Read that, and

For the love of god, don't use rubbing alcohol

Put the knowledge I gained from my own lengthy & costly experimentation to work for you. I'm no genius, but my method has netted me a 100% success rate on machines other techs have gone so far as to replace mosfets on prior to giving it a proper cleaning & drying. Give me a call if you have any questions on taking the thing apart, if you haven't removed your logic board ever, it can be a pain in the ass. You must remove the whole thin and the heatsink too - clean everything as I instructed in the aforementioned link, or the journey into your machine will be a waste of time.