Spilt coffee on MacBook... I know...

[elephantstone]

Apologies if this is in the wrong section but I wouldn't mind a small amount of advice. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has done this, but I've managed to spill coffee all over the keyboard section of my MacBook Pro! I've let it dry out for a couple of days and turned it on this morning.

So... the good news is that it boots up to the login screen fine. The screen works perfectly, and if I connect external peripherals I can use it. However, the entire keyboard section is now dead - the keyboard, trackpad and the touch bar which doesn't even light up. Not ideal, but I suppose given the type of incident I've had, the keyboard section is probably the 'best' bit which could have failed!

I've bought some WD40 Electrical Contact Cleaner Spray on the off chance that it might work, for a few quid it's the worth a shot, although I strongly suspect the entire section is fried and needs replacing.

My plan is to buy a working keyboard/trackpad/touch bar section off eBay and follow some guides to replace it, but I'm intrigued to hear any advice from you guys. I'd rather give it a go myself before sending to any third party repair places. Any help/advice would be much appreciated!

 

[netdudeuk]

You have next to no chance of fixing it yourself, unless you're willing to spend a lot of time and effort on it.

There are dozens of rivets holding the keyboard to the top case. DIY fixers have to drill them out and tap the holes to take screws.

There's more information online so have a look.

The liquid may have leaked onto the main board so longer term corrosion could also be a problem.

 

[chabig]

Your plan seems sound. Understand that on that model you have to replace the entire top case to get a new keyboard, Touch Bar, and trackpad. I doubt you'll be able to find that on eBay and even if you do the work inside is pretty daunting. Obviously letting Apple fix it is the safest way to go. Any of those options are going to be fairly expensive. If you don't use the machine while mobile and it's working otherwise, it's probably best to keep using it with external peripherals.

Depending on when and how you purchased it, your credit card company might offer some reimbursement for accidental damage.

 

[elephantstone]

Thanks very much both, just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing something obvious! I've found a local repair place with a very good reputation for fixing Mac products, so I may take them up if I have to.

 

[elephantstone]

Slight update, I didn't send it off. I used contact cleaner spray and left it overnight, and miraculously the keyboard, mouse and touchbar are all back! I'm typing on the MacBook Pro now.

Only issues now are sticky keys (fixable), and the taptic feedback now doesn't work on the trackpad. But I'm sure that's solvable too.