Actions to take to “save” the laptop when it gets wet

If one day, your laptop accidentally gets wet or dirty due to any reason. That’s not desirable and you need to fix the problem right away so you can “save” your laptop with the ways that Tnhelearning.edu.vn will suggest shortly.

Filtered water is the least harmful liquid, while sugary drinks and alcohol and beer will be extremely dangerous for your laptop. In general, you must minimize liquid damage by drying as soon as possible.

The important thing you must do when your laptop gets wet is to immediately turn off the laptop , unplug the power cord and remove the battery . You don’t have to Shut down, you have to press (and hold) the power button to turn off the “hot”.

Then follow these steps:

Emergency handling

Step 1: Immediately remove the removable parts. Remove the mouse, USB drive, removable devices, and all other cables.

Step 2: Wipe the outside of the laptop. Open the laptop fully, hold the laptop with the screen and keyboard facing down, then wipe all wet surfaces with a face cloth or the best absorbent cloths.

After the machine has dried, you have 2 ways to solve the problem:

• The first way: You can bring the device to the repair shop. If your machine is still under warranty and the store where you bought it has warranty support even in case of water damage, you can bring your laptop in for service.
• The second way: Remove the machine and fix it yourself. Note that disassembling your laptop may void your product’s warranty. You also need to be very careful when disassembling your laptop, but a quick self-repair can increase your laptop’s survivability.

Dismantling Instructions

This is the most difficult step in the repair process. You need to take the laptop apart to see how much damage it is.

You must remove the battery as soon as water spills on the laptop. Next, you have to disassemble the keyboard -> screen bezel -> hard drive and optical drive -> RAM -> and finally the motherboard. If you have a disassembly manual, refer to it. If not, follow these steps:

Step 1: Find a screwdriver and a thin butter knife or another small, flat, thick tool. You need to use a screwdriver to unscrew the screws and use a cutter to pry and remove the case.

Step 2: Remove the screws that hold the keyboard part to the body. Many models will allow you to disassemble the keyboard and body easily. Care should be taken to avoid damaging or breaking the wires in hard-to-see locations.

Step 3: Remove the cover and use the cutter to gently pry. If the cover cannot be removed, you need to check to see if there are any unscrewed screws. If the cover has a cable plugged into the body, remove the cable.

Step 4: Remove the keyboard gently, avoiding breaking or damaging the cable. Normally, the cable connecting the keyboard to the body will have a lever to remove it.

Step 5: After removing the keyboard, you need to observe whether the motherboard is wet or not. If the motherboard is not wet, you do not need to remove it.

If the motherboard gets wet, you will have to disassemble the motherboard. First, you wear gloves and an antistatic ring to avoid causing electrical impulses that can damage components. Then, disconnect the cables that connect the components on the motherboard. Remove the screws and disconnect the cable that attaches the motherboard to the power board.

Dry the components

Step 1: Check the components you just disassembled to see if there are any wet or worn out parts.

Step 2: Mix alcohol and distilled water in a ratio of 50:50 and then use the softest absorbent cloth to wipe or scrub the stains.

If the liquid that you spilled on the laptop is not filtered water, you need to use a cotton swab dipped in 99 degrees of isopropyl alcohol (alcohol that evaporates quickly and does not damage the machine) to clean the stains.

If you find a part corroded by the liquid you spilled, dip a toothbrush in alcohol, then scrub away any traces of the caustic.

Note that you do not use mineral water or filtered water to mix with alcohol because those types of water contain minerals that can stick to components and cause electric shock later.

Step 3: You can use a can of compressed air to spray on the cleaned part to make the alcohol evaporate faster.

Once you’re done, you’ll need to leave the components out to dry for 2 to 3 days. You can turn on the fan to make the component dry faster. Never use a hair dryer to avoid static electricity.

Machine assembly

After you have dried all the components, you need to put the machine back on to see if it “saved” the machine successfully. If not, your only option is to bring the device to a laptop repair center.

However, even if the laptop is working properly, chances are the keyboard has been damaged and needs to be replaced. You can search for keyboard components for your type (for 1-2 million dong) and replace it at the store or replace it yourself at home.

If you want to try to “save” the keyboard, you can wash it with warm water and soap. Then, dry the keyboard for at least 1 week before reinstalling.

The case of the laptop is not removable

Ultrabooks and MacBook Airs cannot be disassembled easily. In this case, your only option is to bring the device to a service center.

However, before bringing the machine to repair, the first thing you need to do is still turn the device upside down and dry the surface with absorbent towels. Then place the device on a completely dry surface.

Your best option is to put the machine in the rice container because the rice is so hygroscopic that it can absorb all the water that has entered the inside of the machine. Use a large bag of rice and place both the machine and the rice in a large, dry room. Take care not to let rice get into the slot and the machine board.

You can also use a fan to make it dry faster while you wait for it to go to the store.

After you have given first aid to the machine in the above way, you should bring the device to the service center to promptly fix this headache problem.

Waterproof for laptops from the beginning

There are many products that can help you protect your laptop from liquids, the most popular of which are silicone keyboard covers.

You can also purchase skins for both the top and bottom of the body, as well as a screen protector. Waterproof laptop bags are also a perfect choice when going in the rain.

But note that you need to avoid letting the silicone cover block the heat sink vents, use scissors to cut the heat sink openings for the machine.

Tnhelearning.edu.vn hopes the above suggestions will help you solve the problem of your laptop getting wet and minimize the possibility of the device being damaged by water.