I'm freaking out! Dropped Coke on my laptop!

Can anyone tell me if my laptop is done?? I had my laptop on the kitchen counter working on my paper due on Friday and i went up to my room to get one of my notebooks.. and when i came back.. approx 2 mins later, i saw that my glass of coke was knocked over (thanks to my baby sister) and all over my laptop. I turned it off the second i saw it and i've been scared to turn it on!

I do have the Completecare warranty but as of right now im worried about that paper which is 35% of my grade!! Is my laptop done?? i've seen cases where with water it's safe to turn it on after a few days but what about coke!!! i need that essay ASAP!!!

Btw, it's an Inspiron E1505

 

Take out the battery and unplug it as well. That's the first thing you should do if you haven't done so.

 

Can you tell how much Coke actually got inside it?
If it's a lot, I'd try to get the info off the hard drive by attaching it to another computer.
If it's just a little, I'd try removing the keyboard to see if any Coke got past that. The sugar in the Coke can cause a problem, even after the Coke dries up.

 

I would first unplug the AC cord if you have not done that already. Also remove the battery as well.

Put it on top of a paper towel (or several) and let it dry for several hours. If you're not sure if it's completely dry, try tipping it to either side for any drips or additional liquid still left in the chassis.

You might be able to power it on afterwards but I would highly recommend you do whatever you were going to do with your school paper quickly. Ex: transfer it over to a USB flash drive and finish typing it up on another computer.

-Mike.

 

If your paper was saved then there are ways to pull the drive and get data off of it.

Odds are the drive didn't get coke on it but if the board shorted out there exists a possibility that it could have damaged the drive.

My 1720 keyboard looks kind of like a bowl. It has a lip that is curved up all around the perimeter of it and im sure it will contain spills as long as its not too much liquid. If yours is anything like that then odds are fair the worst outcome is new keyboard unless it overflowed around the edge.

I would remove all power (battery and plug) and turn it over quickly and carefully and drain the keyboard. Coke will be sticky so the keys will probably be effected after it gets dry. Then I would remove the keyboard and see if anything got underneath. If nothing shorted out then its a fair bet you can dab any liquid up and use a hairdryer (CAREFULLY DO NOT OVERHEAT PARTS) to remove any other moisture.

If it is completely dry and nothing got shorted out it may come on and work for you but the coke in the keyboard will most likely cause sticky keys.

 

Thanks for the replies, it wasn't plugged in when it happened, but i did take the battery out ASAP.. the glass was 3/4 full i'd say 1/4 to 1/2 fell on the laptop.. the hard drive seems fine, it was completely dry. at least i hope so.. the coke fell on the left side of my laptop and my hard drive is on the right side. I will take my hard drive to a friend's later on who has the same laptop as mine and see if it works

But will my laptop be fine?? I do have the CompleteCare warranty, but I can't really afford to lost my laptop at this point in time!! I have a bunch of exams coming up and papers to write!! Also if my laptop is fried, does dell take a long time to send in a replacement? should i contact them now? or see if my laptop will be fine or not

 

I would recommend you take out the HD and backup the files using an enclosure or putting it in another notebook. Coke is not only a liquid, it has sugar which crystallizes when dry, not a good thing for electronics. I would recommend sending it back for a new one ASAP.

 

Thank you for the reply

=( what a time for this to happen... why didn't i drink water instead... at least i would have had a better chance...

I'm going to my friend's right now to see if my hard drive is still working and if i can get my documents and notes off of the hard drive.

How long would you say is sufficient enough for it to be safe to turn on the laptop?

 

I second coriolis's reply, since you have the completecare warranty, I'd send it back too. Can never be too sure.

 

No question, to avoid any future problems even it its working after you dry it out, I would replace it under warranty too. Soda = bad juju on the computer.

 

I just got to my friend's house and my hard drive is fine thank God!!

Now some of you are suggesting i send it in, but what if when i do send it in and they try to power it on and it works fine, would they send back the same coke stained laptop with the sticky keys?

 

Also im on Dell's site, if they do replace it, it says they replace it with equal or better parts. I'm on their site right now looking at both the 1520 and 1525. The 1520 only comes in XP and the 1525 doesn't have a 256mb Gfx card. I have the ATI x1400 256mb. How would they replace mine? or do they have a supply of the older E1505's for cases like these?

 

They might have a refurb or refurbished parts they could use.

 

Ok good, because I use my 256mb card quite a bit. I'm a gamer =P

 

It's been almost 2 hours.. should i try powering it on now?

 

Just call tell and set up a replacement.

 

2 hours isnt enough time to dry unless you are in arizona or somewhere with extremely low humidity. Like I said earlier. A hairdryer that you keep moving and dont overheat parts can help a lot in the drying process.

 

i'm a little scared to use a hairdryer.. i might melt something.. and no.. i live in michigan.. snow and all =P

My main question is, if i send it in, and it does turn on.. what will do do? send back the unit untouched?

 

I think I would just say in the claim and in a note when RMA'ing it... I spilled whole coke in the laptop and that should be nuff said.

As far as overheating parts goes... just don't stop and leave it on one part the whole time. Fan/wave it around and just keep it moving. If the metal parts are getting hot enough to be a tad painful then turn it off, wait and try again later. If your dryer has a cold setting then just run it all day.

Alternatively you can open it and just let a fan blow at it for a few hours. I guess being in Michigan though the only fan you have is in the attic

 

Warranty, don't even bother expecting it work properly unless it didn't come in contact with any circuitry. Coke is highly acidic and will eat any traces it comes in contact with.

 

I dont think I have ever seen coke eat a circuit trace. It might do a nice job of poliching the copper but pretty much all the trace is covered by the resins of the board except where solder points are and those are filled with solder.

The bigger issue is that it can settle on a chip soldered to the board and form a sugar/goo bridge between the pins and cause a connection to be made that could short it out or make it act extremely erratically while on.

There is a better than fair shot that the computer will function when it dries out but in time with the spillage on the mainboard making connections etc... wierd things will start to happen. Erratic behavior, bluescreens for no apparent reason.

You might be able to get it working to get you through finals but definately send it off after that.

 

When the machine is dry, there is a good chance that it will function, and function without issue for several days, weeks or hours.

However... spilling any liquid onto a PCB causes longer-term issues. Exposed joints, where surface-mount items meet visible sections of PCB traces, can offer the start of corrosion due to being exposed to the air. But over time, the corrosion will spread from the visible section, and it will gradually damage the traces underneath the PCB lacquer. At this point, a repair is unlikely and the entire board will likely be scrapped.

My advice:-

1. Remove battery, hard drive, memory - anything and everything you can. If the CD-ROM is easy to remove, then do it.

2. If you can remove the keyboard without voiding your warranty, then do it. Gently apply clean kitchen towel to whatever you can on the inside.

3. Put the machine in a warm airing cupboard for 12-36 hours, with the screen open. Or, just as good, place the machine on its side, again with the screen open, and place a household fan to gently blow air onto the machine. Neither will remove the cola, but it should dry the machine out enough too allow access to data.

4. Power machine on WITHOUT the hard drive fitted. If it powers up, then power it down, re-fit the hard drive, and get your data off ASAP.

5. Progress to a different machine with your backed-up data.

6. Call Dell, and claim it on your warranty. With over 80% certainty, the cola will cause damage which will spread with time. If you're lucky it will just affect a ground plane. If not, then it'll cause an intermittent problem with the HDD controller, resulting in all data becoming scrap whilst you fail to notice it.

IMO, there is a 4-in-5 chance that you'll get the machine to power on. But there is an equal chance that the machine will not survive long-term, and it would be incredibly foolish to trust the integrity of it any longer than is absolutely necessary.

Any warranty repair, unless clearly specified elsewhere, will likely be using reconditioned parts if the laptop is more than a few weeks old. Don't be fooled by the term 'reconditioned' - it will be good, working second-hand components lifted from returned machines. There isn't a fat lot one can recondition - other than replacing the keycaps with new items and cleaning up the rubber-feet with a little alcohol.

 

hi thanks for the replies, while i was drying it, i noticed there is a small crack in the chasis behind the right hinge cover just above where the power connector is. That shouldn't be an issue when i send it back to Dell right? I still haven't called them and will probably do so monday. My laptop appears to be fine right now, it powered on, but i turned it back off as soon as i got everything copied onto my external hard drive. As many of u are saying, it will probably cause long term problems so i'd rather just send it in and resort to bringing up my old school pentium 3 from the basement and use that until this issue is resolved!

Gotta love my pentium 3 450 mhz! that's gonna be fun

 

I just stumbled across this thread

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=230012

Would they send me an M1530? there seems to be a lot of problems with them such as they dont sit flat on a table and grainy screens

 

I wouldn't count on this. It is very rare that dell makes an Inspiron to XPS exchange, and it largely depends on your configuration/system availability at the time of the service call. However, I can assure that Dell will try their best to match your exact specs. Also, if you have a model that is currently in production, they may just send you a brand new one.

 

Ya you wouldnt want that 1505 upgraded to a M1530 for free now would you?

Use your CompleteCare. Call and explain the situation. They will tell you to pull the HD and probably send you a new unit immediately.

This has been the case on a few occasions. Call and be honest. Dell CompleteCare has had nothing but success from what I have heard.

 

Well, my 1505 has a 256mb ATI x1400 and im lookin at the 1520's and the 1525's and they dont have a 256mb gfx card and they're supposed to replace it with the same specs or higher. 256mb would be teh same spec as mine and only the XPS has that so how would they do that?

 

Yea it does, but you have to look at the whole picture. They will give you equal or better parts... The x1400 is a very weak card compared to the 8600M GT and (I'm not certain exactly so this could be minorly off) closer to the 8400M at most...

 

yes but i have a 256mb gfx card so they have to replace it with another 256 mb gfx card, and they no longer have the x1400 so they cannot give me worse... and everything they have now is supposedly better since this isnt very good.

 

hmm i have a funny story to share... perhaps my experience will assist future spillers of liquids onto laptops

in the days of late summer and early fall 2007, a good friend of mine regularly lent me his laptop since my PC was dead. i am the type of individual who takes care of things, so my friend trusted me with his laptop.

on this particular day as i strolled through the local grocer i spotted a Godiva chocolate coffee drink. being a sucker for chocolate beverages, it only took me a split second to reason with its higher price tag. it looked delicious!

later that same evening, at home and gettin' my internet on via said friend's laptop, i got all of one good sip from that expensive drink before something awful happened. as i reached over to set it down and safely away from the laptop, my hand somehow totally unintentionally went... retarded. the drink plummeted heads down onto the keyboard and out went a half bottle of Godiva on said friend's year-old HP laptop. so, i:

• screamed a little, cursing the world and myself
• turned it off by holding down the power button
• removed the battery
• took it to the kitchen & held it sideways over the sink until most of the drink spilled out (please note! this laptop's CD drive was on the opposite side from both where most the liquid spilt and the side i drained it from.)
• again with the lappy held sideways and over the sink, i dumped a crapton of rubbing alcohol on the keyboard and any other hole or crack i noticed with Godiva around/in it. of course i was very careful not to get any rubbing alcohol on the LCD panel. continued dumping it in until the rubbing alcohol coming out was crystal clear for 1.5 seconds, minimum

right around this time my friend calls me. he actually asks me how his laptop was doing. i said to him something very close to "oh your laptop. umm! it's fine, why!? you never ask how your laptop is doing, haha! you're so funny."

yeeeah, um. i didn't tell him until later that evening. anyway, let's continue that list of things i did. i...:

• set the laptop down, wiping every thing down with rubbing alcohol (except the screen)
• tested the keys... some were already sticking despite using rubbing alcohol. so i did the over the sink w/ rubbing alcohol process again.
• once there weren't any liquid droplets left i set it sideways on the countertop with the same side down as was over the sink, with a few paper towels beneath.
• put the blowdryer on LOW (you can do a higher setting but keep your distance!), going over the keyboard & surrounding areas for about 10mins

i suppose it took 2 hours tops for it to totally dry up. i'm in north Texas; it was dry around the time this happened. the screen i just cleaned with paper towel + water.

in the end my friend's HP laptop was perfectly normal. no malfunctions or weird errors or noises, nothing. he didn't flip out or anything (at least not in my presence) he was just glad that i sempt to know what to do with this scenario (LOL). two or three keys--i think it was a few arrow keys plus the enter key--were kinda funky feeling but within a week they felt normal to press.

happy saving your laptop experiences!

P.S. those Godiva drinks aren't so good.

 

Or, they may just send you a refurbished E1505. I mean by all means you should get an equivalent if not better system than what you currently have. If you are lucky, then you may get an m1530. However, at the same time, you should realize that with respect to the graphics card issue, (at least from what I gather, you had an integrated 256 mb graphics) Dell can simply argue that you have the integrated graphics and thus they are only obliged to give you the equivalent of that.

You may very well get an m1530, but I am just warning you to not be dissapointed if they send you another 1505 or an equivalent inspiron.

Good Luck!

 

Lellarap wow your friend got so lucky, i only wish i got lucky like that but i didn't think to do that and my laptop was on for about a minute while the coke was on the motherboard so im pretty sure somethin happened. My screen was black when i came down, now i don't kno if this was due to my power settings or a motherboard malfunction

I woudln't be disappointed if i got another E1505 as long as it has the 256mb gfx card. if they do send me an equivalent ispiron (the current ones) i'll be very disappointed because they do not have a 256mb gfx card which is the main reason i bought this inspiron.

My configuration is:
Core 2 Duo T5500 - 1.66ghz\2mb cache\667FSB
1 gig ram (which i upgraded myself to 2 gigs of 667mhz)
256mb ATI gfx card
the high resolution screen with true life or w/e (1440x900)
Wirless A\b\g and bluetooth
120 gig HD

All of this is offered in the new inspirons execpt the graphics card which is the most important to me. The graphics card and the high resolution monitor

Anyways, if they do send me the new inspirons, can't i argue that my orignal laptop contained a better graphics card and i'm not satisfied with this one because it isn't as good?

 

You can argue it, but I don't know if you'll get anywhere.
Have you checked this thread
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=211885

He eventually managed to get an M1530 to replace his 1520 because of the video card, but it took some doing.

 

Wow!!... just read through that thread....talk about perseverance.

 

Wow interesting thread. It appears he didn't have completecare. Completecare warranty states that they MUST replace it with equal specs or better. they are not allowed to downgrade me

 

One other question I have. When i bought the laptop, i only ordered it with 1 gig of ram since i was going to get 2 gigs cheaper from somewhere else.. I dont have the original ram and when i send this back with 2 gigs, will they send the replacement with 1 gig since that was the original order? or 2 gigs since that's what it was sent back with?

 

You will get only 1 gig since thats what you purchased your system with. Since you did upgrade the RAM, that might actually become an issue. You should go through the terms and conditions of the completecare warranty again to make sure that replacing the RAM does not void your warranty.

I am not actually sure if it does or not, but if there is a clause about this, it might raise some issues with Dell.

BTW, whenever Dell replaces any system (regardless of warranty), they must always replace the system with the same or better configuration. That being said, it really ends up being at Dell's discretion as to what they consider "same" or "better".

 

I done it. Its about a 50/50 chance it will work

First with any spills DO NOT TRY TO TURN IT ON. Take it as far apart as you dare and any parts that are coated in liquid spray with electronics cleaner. Then let dry for at least two days

!! Do not use a hair dryer!! These parts are heat sensitive

 

Jetster,

You can use a hairdryer as long as your not stupid about it.

I realize we have become a society of preaching to the lowest common denominator but if your carefull (eg.. not an idiot) it is PERFECTLY legit to do.

Don't get me started on that subject though. I have 3 kids and 3 steam vaporizers and one "cool mist" type. You know why doctors tell you not to use a steam vaporizer with your young children? Because some idiots will burn their kids by putting it right next to them and it blows steam on them. DUH. Other than the word idiot that is verbatim what my kids pediatrician said and my family doctor said when I asked why.

So yes the parts are heat sensitive but DON'T LINGER with the hair dryer. The heat more than anything can help lower humidity to more rapidly dry. Thats why I recommended a "Cool shot" type hair dryer.

No offense intended. /rant off

 

In the terms and conditions I can't seem to find anything about the ram... Does anyone else know? what if i take one of my ram sticks out which would leave it at 1 gig. Will i have a better shot that way?

 

My suggestion to you would be to take the ram out and send it in without it. When they call you on it just say you took it out letting it dry out and forgot to put it in when you sent it off.

They will either ask you to send them the memory or send you the replacement anyway (yeah right). At any rate ask if you can pay for 1gb of replacement ram if they won't send you the laptop without it. Also possibly you might ask if they will send you one without ram (I doubt they will do that). Might cost you a bit but you won't have to explain that you replaced it and worry about warranty issues. Even so a little pain for your trouble will hopefully teach you not to do this again

 

That's actually a really good idea I think i'll do that! And i'll learn my lesson not to ebay off the RAM that came with my laptop after buying replacement ram!

 

Well keep in mind. Keyboard keys melt at low temps

 

Jetster, My original instructions included removing the keyboard and anything else you can. Like hard drive, CD rom, memory. Then blow in to the open chassis.

Again I apologize I didn't mean to be abrasive about it and yes things can get damaged if they get too hot.

 

interesting.. Now my laptop doesn't power on at all

 

I spilled half a cup of coffee on my E1705 a couple weeks back. I freaked! I powered it down as fast as I could, pulled the battery, and mopped up what I could. I pulled the keyboard, and none of the coffee got into the guts! I washed the keyboard under running tap water (didn't immerse it), shook it off, let it dry for an hour, reinstalled it, and everything works great!

 

Viper, good thing you got the complete care.

 

And good thing he got his homework off his hard drive before now.

 

Yup i'm very glad I got completecare. Only reason i got it was because im a university student and anything can happen there!!

Im glad i got my assignment off of there too but how come it powered on before and now it doesn't power on at all? I'm just waiting on my box to send it back to arrive then i'll be good to go

 

Thats what happend to old notebook. It would power on at first then nothing. It was the motherboard.

Sparky 1720,

No offence taken at all. This is what forums are for, learning.