HowTo: Recover from a Spill Disaster [PC/Laptop]

by Adrian How

Many of us have studies in which we work/game/chat/surf with our PCs or laptops. Often times, a cup of coffee or some other beverage is close by to accompany you. Sometimes, spill disasters occur…

Here’s a simple HowTo on recovering from a spill disaster:

1. You don’t have to read this if you already own a spill free keyboard – just bookmark Howshouse.com and wait for my next post (and if the next post tells you do to the same thing, wait for the next one)

2. Liquids are conductors and what do conductors capable of? Why, shorting the circuits of course! So the first thing you absolutely need to do is to kill the switch i.e. unplug. If it’s a laptop, take out the battery; if it’s a keyboard, unplug it from the CPU or yank the plug off the wall socket.

3. If the spill was minor, you probably could get away with wiping the keyboard down. It’d be a good idea to pry the keys around the spill area to give it a proper wipe down and ensure the keys don’t stick after the liquid dries. A clean and sterile method to cleaning your keyboard is to use alcohol swabs which are easily obtainable at your local pharmacy. Sometimes a little spillage could be a blessing in disguise as it allows you to clean out all that junk that’s gotten in between the cracks of your keys

4. If the spill requires further deep diving, it’s time to get your hands dirty and take the keyboard apart. Make sure you keep all the screws and know which screws fit where (some devices use different sized screws and putting the whole thing back together may be a very frustrating experience if you haven’t kept tab of which screws go where). Do a CSI and alcohol-swab down the entire keyboard’s innards.

5. Should you notice that the circuit board’s all soaked in that coffee/wine/other liquid – congratulations, you’ve reached the most difficult level. Unplug the circuit board and detach it from the keyboard. Use distilled water to wash down (yes, you heard right) the keyboard and leave it to dry completely before the next stage. Distilled water is preferred because tap water leaves remnants/deposits when it dries.

6. To speed up the drying process, use a fan or hair dryer. If you’re going to be completely anal about it having to be 101% dry, pack it in a bag together with some silica gel (you can get these at camera stores or from packages of new electronic items).

7. Once the components are completely dry, place all of it back together and test away! If it works, well done. If it doesn’t, then you know you’ve done your best and given it a shot but it’s really time to hit the IT store and fork out for a new keyboard. Ideas for your old keyboard? Turn it into a keyboard bag: