Help with water damage on my Dell D620

Hello all,
I have water damage on my D620 and wanted advice on how to handle the problem. I have used notebookreview for lots of research before I decided on the D620. The site has been a wonderful source of information and is packed with excellent advice on laptops so I thought I would ask for more advice. I have had this computer for about 4 months. Yesterday I placed a bottle of water into my messenger bag with my laptop. Unfortunately, the bottle top was open, and water spilled onto my books and laptop. The laptop was in a Tucano neoprene sleeve, which absorbed much water, like a sponge. The inside of the sleeve was definitely damp. However, I didn't think that the notebook was directly exposed to water. The laptop was in this damp environment for about 20 minutes. When I turned on the computer, I saw abnormal diffraction of the back light. Also the computer thought I was connecting and disconnecting USB devices (i was not), as it made the sounds associated with those actions. So I turned the computer off and removed the battery and CD drive to let it dry. A day later, I turned it powered it back up and the splotches on the screen was still present.

I think my options are:
1.To allow it to dry further and hope that the screen will be back to normal.
2.To open up the screen and dry it with a towel
3.To call dell and see if they can fix it.

I really like option 1, but know that it probably doesn't work like that.
Option 2 seems scary, as I don't have any instructions and don't want to short something rendering the laptop totally useless.
Option 3 seems to be the most sensible, but I do not think spills are covered under warranty. Also I dont want to pay dell and deal with dell.

Has anyone had a similar problem and would like to share their experiences? Anyone have random advice? All help is appreciated.

Also here are pictures of the damage:

 

I take it you didn't purchase the accidental damage protection?

How long have you allowed it to dry? It doesn't look like further drying would completely solve the problem though so I personally would suggest first allowing it to dry further before resorting to option 3 since you don't want to further damage it with option 2.

 

Doesn't look like u even let it dry. Your suppose to let it dry before turning it on. There could be permanent damage, I would suggest waiting a day then call Dell.

 

Good point but still sounds like there is a chance to save.

I used to do flood restoration and there are companys that do exactly this!
Now if water seeped in which it did, if it is trapped behind a vapor barrier it will take time. The rule of thumb we were taught was physical removal is 500 times faster than evaporation. You are lucky nothing shorted, you should allow air flow in the places where water is trapped. I think it can be fixed!

 

these are the reasons I preach complete care warranties. you never think it could happen to you.

3 years of complete care... I find it hard to believe anyone will go three years without messing up once. And if you're excuse is "well, i make sure i'm really really careful", you should factor in other people as well accidentally damaging your stuff and just to have peace of mind so you don't have to be "really careful".

sorry for that long run on sentence, I'm really tired.

 

First of all, I a bottle leaked in my laptop bag with my laptop in it. I would definitely wait a few days before using it.

2nd, why would you turn on your laptop if you think it has a chance of being wet?

 

If you can open the screen to allow air flow it will accelerate the drying proccess. It all looks like the moisture is causing the problem, nothing has shorted shoul work when dry!

 

Yes, unless you open up, it won’t dry that quickly, not in a day or two.. Then again, it also depends on how far the water has gone in. Cos you can't (shouldn’t ) disassemble the LCD panel

 

I hope you have complete care on that Break My Wallet of yours too. Your going to need it.

 

other users may already replied to you with similar comments, but anway... You never power on a wet notebook or cellphone. Always let it dry completely for a few days at least (ideally on a A/C vent or ...). If it is battery connected, remove the battery immediately to prevent permanent damage by short circuit. And most importantly short circuit on Lithium Ion battery is extremely dangerous.

Try #3 to if they will cover it. If not and you purchased the notebook from credit card, try #2.5 and check the cc policy to see if they have any accident insurance.

Try #2 if you know how, that will help a lot!

Good Luck

 

If you have accidental warrenty call dell If not wait a few days without turning it on so that it can dry out

 

Lol, I agree with you FULLY..Only up to the point where you say "you should factor in other people as well accidentally damaging your stuff and just to have peace of mind so you don't have to be "really careful"

Let me say, that if "other" people accidentally damaged my stuff, they would be paying for it with cash or in teeth. End of discussion there.

 

quote "other people" can mean children, your family, your close friends, or your pets. People in those categories i would never burden them with repaying me for an accident.

 

I wouldn't either, but they would be left with so much guilt that they would want to pay. Especially the children's parents. Pets? I don't have pets, and people bringing them over? You must be kidding me.