Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

theshua

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 27, 2007
4
0
Earlier this evening I spilled a full glass of Guinness on my macbook keyboard. Other than drinking and computing, I now know from reading these forums turning it on was not the right move, but I did. I cleaned it off and then I turned it on and it worked at first, but I have an X over the battery indicator. It will work when the power adapter is plugged in but will not start on its only the battery and not connected. When it is on it seems the only problem is that it isnt recognizing the battery, and the spacebar is sticking. I cleaned the keyboard off with a very lightly wet paper towel and have it drying in front of a fan... other than that is there any advice anyone can give me? for cleaning the keyboard? Is the fact it was working with the power cord a sign the computers fine, just the batterys gone? What should I do from here?
 

SMM

macrumors 65816
Sep 22, 2006
1,334
0
Tiger Mountain - WA State
You should be reprimanded for having liquids near your computer and flogged for wasting the Guinness. (sorry, could not resist).

If you have the wherewithal, and patience, to disassemble and clean your machine, do that. It is a laborious, tedious task indeed. You cannot short-cut the cleaning, especially if this was a major spill. Take it all apart and individually clean every bit of it.

If you cannot convince yourself that this is your best solution, call around, get a quote for someone else to do it. The amount they quote will often inspire you to re-evaluate the first option. You also must consider that you will quite possibly do a much better job than the pissed-off tech who was given this job.
 

theshua

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 27, 2007
4
0
other than cleaning it for the stickiness does anyone see any other problems or advice
 

xappeal

macrumors regular
Dec 9, 2005
106
0
Brisbane - Australia
A built in pint holder...... a better idea than a optical drive on the bottom of a laptop....

Just my thought

Oh and i once spilt coke all through my G4 iBook, a bit of careful removal and it all worked fine, as long as it didn't get into the HD or Optical drive it might be alright with a bit of luck
 

theshua

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 27, 2007
4
0
update:
After a night of drying I woke up to a somewhat sticky space bar which after clicking a few times went completely away...
Still had x over battery and assumed i was gonna have to replace that, but then i clicked the battery indicator to see what it said and it said :47 to full (it was charging the battery!) when i clicked off i no longer had the x but now had the charging icon... from this point what should i do? run the battery down? just continue working like theres no problem and hope for this same luck??

ALSO! Light on magsafe is red while charging, and it is charging, i cant remember if thats normal?
 

steve_hill4

macrumors 68000
May 15, 2005
1,856
0
NG9, England
update:
After a night of drying I woke up to a somewhat sticky space bar which after clicking a few times went completely away...
Still had x over battery and assumed i was gonna have to replace that, but then i clicked the battery indicator to see what it said and it said :47 to full (it was charging the battery!) when i clicked off i no longer had the x but now had the charging icon... from this point what should i do? run the battery down? just continue working like theres no problem and hope for this same luck??

ALSO! Light on magsafe is red while charging, and it is charging, i cant remember if thats normal?

That's normal, and you seem to have gotten away with it. I'd let it charge, drain it down, try to dry down and remove any remaining stickiness with wet wipes and paper towels and then recharge battery. If any further problems, it's insurance time.
 

smueboy

macrumors 6502a
Oct 30, 2006
778
1
Oz
Sounds like you were lucky, and all may be ok. You could calibrate the battery (it's a good sign that it's charging - red is normal charging light).



The answer to that my friend is obvious: Have another Guinness...

... AWAY from the the computer. :)
 

zen.state

macrumors 68020
Mar 13, 2005
2,181
8
why do I hear so many stories of people spilling liquids on apple laptops???

are people really that clueless? no.. I think its that you don't really have respect for your hardware and in turn do careless things around it.

no matter how much or how little money you have or how old or new the hardware.. ALL COMPUTERS DESERVE RESPECT AND PROPER CARE!
 

shu82

macrumors 6502a
Jan 10, 2007
697
4
Rocket City, AL
If it weren't for drinking I would not spend so much time on these forums. Yes there is a line of beers right next to my mini and my powerbook. Alas, I am a very careful drinker. The reason I switched back to start with was a long blackout night where I woke up in the morning and my dell would not work anymore. After smelling the puddle next and surrounding the damn thing. I remembered something. My bathroom is to the left and not to the right. The hard drives were still OK so I just sad ###k it, I hated that computer anyway. I believe it was subliminal, so I doubt that would happen to my macs.
 

shu82

macrumors 6502a
Jan 10, 2007
697
4
Rocket City, AL
Yes I had a dell,(Parents gift), yes I pissed on it and fried the mobo. This is now I believe every dell should end its life. Just pray for your mac. Wait 3 days before even thinking about powering up.
 

quackattack

macrumors 6502a
Aug 13, 2004
571
0
Boise, ID
Hopefully you got lucky... I feel like I should tell you that even if things seem fine, accidents like this with electronics can sometimes cause slow corrosion inside. I have seen it many times with digital cameras that have been submerged. If you start having problems in the next few months, this may be the reason. Things inside can start to corrode and create problems.

Finally, as much as I feel your pain, and hope things work out... I have to say the title to this thread had me laughing hysterically, thanks ;) .
 

theshua

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 27, 2007
4
0
Alright everyone, sorry its in the wrong forum, call me a noob or something (damn got me), i was just in that state of OMGness (yea i said it) one would be in after having this happen... as for drinking around the computer, i learned my lesson (why do people even comment on that? Like Im gonna say OOOOOH I SHOULDNT have spilled the liquid on it, got it.).. Thanks for everyones help, everythings working perfectly now, I got REAL lucky. For that Ill drink another guinness...
 

shu82

macrumors 6502a
Jan 10, 2007
697
4
Rocket City, AL
Cheers!! But I still would let it sit just, in case it is working itself down into the innards. Powered electronics + liquid = short = blown logic board
 

amd4me

macrumors 6502
Nov 19, 2006
364
0
When I saw your thread title I spat coffee all over my Dell lappie.
It instantly reminded me of the Guiness commercial when that dude gets a sunburn BRILLIANT!
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.