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MacBook Pro + Cold Tea... help

DJMastaWes

DJMastaWes

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Jan 14, 2006
1,243
1
Montreal, Quebec
So, I had a cold cup of tea from a few hours ago near my computer, and I reached over, and knocked over the glass all over the top of my macbook pro (top as in; keyboard, track pad ect). As soon as this happened, I picked it up, shut it down, turned it upside down and dried all visible tea.

i then turned it on, and everything worked fine, but then after 10 minutes of use, the "t" key didn't work. so i restarted it, which is where everything when downhill. when I started it, a Firewire logo came on, and moved like a Microsoft screen saver. i got it to start by holding the "c" key. once I got it to start, about 10-15 other keys stopped working. Since then I've left it off (the last 4-5 hours maybe).


Another problem: I tried taking out a key, but I can't seem to get it to snap back in.

any advice would be great.

PS. I've had the MBP since February.

EDIT: Also, some keys (such as the g) will tyep "ggggggg" isntead of "g".
 
CashGap

CashGap

macrumors 6502
Sep 15, 2007
412
-1
Music City, USA
I will preface this by saying that the outlook is not great, and that others may have superior advice.

I see three possible types of problems.

Type I - DAMAGE caused by shorted circuits when the electronics were powered and wet. Can't help with those.

Type II - MALFUNCTIONS caused by circuits that are currently shorted with small amounts of liquid. I may be able to help with those.

Type III - MALFUNCTIONS caused by circuits that become shorted by the tea/sugar residue that may remain after all the liquid is gone. I can't help with those.

Fortunately, my solution for Type II problems is cheap, easy, and won't make things worse.

1. Get a GOOD zip-lock bag that will hold your MBP plus a lot more. Could be a challenge, I've had great success drying out two Blackberries and a Braun razor, but they fit in smaller bags.

2. Place the MBP in the bag along with a large quantity of dissicant. Since you probably don't have dissicant, use uncooked rice... an entire box if necessary.

3. Squeeze out as much air as you can and seal the bag.

4. Wait 48 hours. The rice will have absorbed quite a bit of the remaining water and you MAY have cured your Type II problems.

Good luck. I defer to superior solutions eventually offered.

Another angle is to buy ProCare if you don't have it, go to the Genius Bar and humbly fess up. "I spilled something on it, it doesn't work". You may catch someone on a day of superior customer service. And don't lie... not sure if that would be CMD 8 or CMD 9, but it would be wrong.
 
ecks618

ecks618

macrumors 6502
Jun 1, 2006
397
0
NYC
You shouldnt have turned it on so soon. I think any damage that has happened would probably be permanent. CashGap gives good options for what you could do now, but for the future always keep it off until your 100% sure it is dry. Also take out the battery immediately
 
Dustman

Dustman

macrumors 65816
Apr 17, 2007
1,381
238
DJMastaWes said:
how much do you think repairs would cost?
Click to expand...

a LOT if it got down to the logic board. if it is the logic board and apple wont replace it free, go to either ebay and buy one or just buy a new MBP. I'd also go with the rice theory too ofcourse for whoever said that.
 
DJMastaWes

DJMastaWes

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Jan 14, 2006
1,243
1
Montreal, Quebec
Dustman said:
a LOT if it got down to the logic board. if it is the logic board and apple wont replace it free, go to either ebay and buy one or just buy a new MBP. I'd also go with the rice theory too ofcourse for whoever said that.
Click to expand...

a new mbp?!? I spent $3000. Surly it can't cost $3000 for repairs.

How bad can the damage be? I used it for 30 minutes after I spilt the tea.
Also, i didn't put sugar or water in the tea. It was just water with a tea bag in it.

I flipped it upside down for a bit after I spilt it.
 
ecks618

ecks618

macrumors 6502
Jun 1, 2006
397
0
NYC
DJMastaWes said:
a new mbp?!? I spent $3000. Surly it can't cost $3000 for repairs.

How bad can the damage be? I used it for 30 minutes after I spilt the tea.
Also, i didn't put sugar or water in the tea. It was just water with a tea bag in it.

I flipped it upside down for a bit after I spilt it.
Click to expand...

I recently inquired about just the metal casing on the bottom and they quoted me for $400 with labor. I also had my screen replaced under warrently and the bill was $850 with labor, so year, the prices are CRAZY and the cost of parts can sometimes double and triple the original price of an item.

Also water alone damages the computer but not much, but tea does. Many types of tea contain sugar and tea stains and will stay on the parts even if the water dries. Tea is also acidic I believe(its been a while since I took chem) and acidic liquids can mess up electronics.

A helpful link:
http://www.wikihow.com/Save-a-Laptop-from-Liquid-Damage
 
taylorwilsdon

taylorwilsdon

macrumors 68000
Nov 16, 2006
1,868
12
New York City
You started it up, ack. That is the nail in the coffin. You needed to rubbing alcohol that mofo. Take it to a professional, get a prognosis and take said prognosis with a grain of salt. They might BS you to fix it unnecessarily but it will give you an idea of what you're into.
 
suneohair

suneohair

macrumors 68020
Aug 27, 2006
2,136
0
Just a note on the firewire logo. That is completely normal assuming your T key was stuck. What that does is put it in target disk mode. So it isn't a strange malfunction.
 
DJMastaWes

DJMastaWes

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Jan 14, 2006
1,243
1
Montreal, Quebec
What would that firewire symbol mean on the start up?
should I try and start it in 24 hours from now?

can anyone give me any words of hope?

EDIT: never mind @ the firewire.
 
J

jvencius

macrumors regular
Jun 28, 2007
138
0
ecks618 said:
Tea is also acidic I believe(its been a while since I took chem) and acidic liquids can mess up electronics.
Click to expand...

Probably the most commmon acid in tea is tannic acid, although there are other acids (dending on what type of tea, how long it's been exposed to air, etc...) along with varying ions that won't do electronics any good at all. I just finished the year of Gen.Chem and I'm in O-Chem now so finally there's a subject on this board that I genuinely know a little about.:eek::D:D:D
 
DJMastaWes

DJMastaWes

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Jan 14, 2006
1,243
1
Montreal, Quebec
Good news guys! MacBook Pro works, great. My only problem now, is putting back in my "k" key that I took out.

Here are pics of the key and it's parts.

picture1lc3.png


picture2qm4.png


picture3ga4.png


any help would be great guys.
 
D

Dave10492

macrumors member
Sep 14, 2007
65
0
Sydney, Australia
Those key assemblies are an absolute bi*ch to put back together. I had to do the same thing when one of the keys on my dell went bust. One word of advice. DON'T PUSH TOO HARD. If you do, the little lugs on the side that fit into the holes on the other piece will snap off, and your assembly will be screwed. These instructions (http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=88106) seem to be what you're after, have a look at the pictures and see what you can do. You should be ok, just take your time.

P.S. If anyone is able to teach me how to embed links on macrumours, your help would be much appreciated. I'm used to using <a href="http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=88106">this code</a> on Whirlpool forums, but it doesn't seem to work here. What do you guys use?
 
R

rosh325

macrumors regular
Jul 13, 2007
169
0
In the ether
Assuming the OP's problem was just with the keyboard, would plugging in an external keyboard bypass his "stuck key" behavior (target mode for example). Just curious.

Congrats on beating the odds. A testament to :apple: engineering? Or can it be a new advertising slogan for your tea brand: "Won't fully kill your laptop if spilled"
 
DJMastaWes

DJMastaWes

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Jan 14, 2006
1,243
1
Montreal, Quebec
okay, one of the little pegs broke off.

Will an apple store be able to fix this? is it under warranty? if not, how much will it cost? and can it just be done in store?
 
D

Dave10492

macrumors member
Sep 14, 2007
65
0
Sydney, Australia
DJMastaWes said:
okay, one of the little pegs broke off.

Will an apple store be able to fix this? is it under warranty? if not, how much will it cost? and can it just be done in store?
Click to expand...

Told you to be careful, didn't I! I'd take it into an apple store and see what they can do. The part would be worth about 5c, but I'm not sure if they stock them/whether they'd just give you one. If that fails, you can get them off ebay (http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Dell-D500-D6...yZ116287QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem) for about $5-10 delivered.

Can someone please teach me how to do the embedded link thing, posting long links looks really bad.
 
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