This wikiHow provides a comprehensive guide on how to safely clean the inside and outside of a laptop computer. It emphasizes the importance of regular cleaning to keep your computer running smoothly and looking new. The process involves turning off the laptop, disconnecting it from power, wiping any liquid from it, opening it wide, and placing it facedown on a towel. If possible, remove the battery and internal hardware and dry them with a microfiber cloth. Allow the laptop to air dry for at least 24 hours before reassembly.
Dust and debris can slow down a computer’s performance and cause issues such as clogging fans and components. To clean the inside of a desktop PC, follow these steps: turn the laptop upside down, place it on a towel or microfiber cloth, and let the water drain out. Allow at least 24 hours for the computer to fully air dry for best results. Do not place the device in rice.
To dry naturally, prop the machine up away from surfaces so that air can circulate in and around the entire unit. Dry with light heat and use a fan to help evaporate water from hidden areas. Store the laptop in a dry, warm place, such as a dehumidifier, and leave it there for 24-48 hours. Open the laptop as best you can by opening it.
The best way to clean the inside of a laptop is to put it in a sealed container with silica gel packets, as they are more effective. Keep the blow dryer or compressed air moving, and the minimum recommended drying time is one hour. Start by drying the outside of the laptop using a lint-free fabric or absorbent towel. Pat-drying certain areas with a paper towel is recommended, but be careful not to push water further into the device. If using a cloth, remove all residual moisture by drawing it away from internal circuitry. If using a blow dryer, carefully dry the inside of the laptop.
In summary, this wikiHow provides a comprehensive guide on how to safely clean the inside and outside of a laptop computer to maximize its lifespan.
📹 How To Dry Out Wet Electronics
Trying to save your phone or laptop from an unfortunate spill? Here’s what to do. Squarespace link: Visit …
How long does it take for a computer to dry out?
To maintain a laptop’s performance, it’s recommended to let it dry for at least 24 hours, with two days being optimal. Store the computer in a warm, dry place, using a dehumidifier or fan for quicker drying. If you’re tech-savvy, you can wash the motherboard to remove residue and prevent oxidation. However, a special ultrasonic bath and liquid are required, and it’s usually cheaper to bring the motherboard to a qualified repair shop for cleaning.
How do I get moisture out of my laptop?
To remove moisture from a laptop, place it in a container filled with desiccants or uncooked rice for at least 24-48 hours. After drying, inspect the laptop for any remaining moisture and reattach the battery if it appears dry. Turn on the laptop and check for signs of malfunction, such as screen, keyboard, and trackpad functionality. Listen for unusual sounds and watch for error messages or irregular behavior.
If the laptop doesn’t power on or exhibits problems, consult a professional technician for a thorough inspection and potentially repair or clean the damaged components. Attempting to open and repair the laptop without proper expertise can lead to further damage.
Is a laptop ruined if it gets wet?
Water and electricity don’t mix well, so contact between them can cause a short circuit, potentially frying your computer’s internal components. Shut down your laptop immediately and don’t turn it back on until you dry it out. Detachable elements, such as the battery, RAM, CD/DVD drive, keyboard, mouse, and power cord, should be removed quickly to prevent permanent damage. The battery is the most important removable element, and if wet, remove it and dry it off.
If your laptop has a CD/DVD drive, remove it and dry it off. If possible, remove the keyboard and mouse and dry them off. If possible, unplug the power cord and dry it off. This will help prevent further damage to your computer.
How to dry out a wet computer?
To facilitate the drainage of excess liquid, invert the laptop. Should the use of a blow dryer be necessary, it is recommended that the keyboard and removed components be dried on the coolest setting. It is recommended that the laptop be permitted to air-dry in an inverted position for a minimum of one hour, with a minimum of 24 hours being preferable.
How do I get moisture out of my computer?
To remove moisture from your device, use a desiccant or vacuum. Desiccants absorb water, such as silica gel, rice, or oatmeal, and can be placed in a sealed bag or container for at least 24 hours. Moisture and humidity can cause serious problems for computer hardware, especially ports and connectors. Water can short-circuit components, cause permanent damage, and leave behind corrosion, rust, or dust that interferes with signal and performance. This article aims to help deal with moisture and humidity issues and prevent them from occurring. Experts who contribute quality contributions will have a chance to be featured.
Does putting a wet laptop in rice work?
To clean your laptop, turn it upside down, place it on a towel or microfiber cloth, and let the water drain out. Allow at least 24 hours for the computer to air dry fully. Avoid placing your device in rice, as it can cause more problems. Avoid using a hairdryer or leaving it in the sun, as too much heat can damage the machine. Before turning your laptop back on, have a professional clean it and check for water damage. Asurion® trademarks and logos are the property of Asurion, LLC, while all other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
How do you fix a waterlogged computer?
Liquid damage is a common issue that can occur easily, often caused by spilling water on a computer. To prevent this, follow these six steps: turn off the computer, unplug any accessories, invert the affected area, sop up extra liquid, open the case to allow the computer to dry, and if the laptop doesn’t work, call experts. Computers are more valuable and complex than cell phones, making them more susceptible to catastrophic water damage. To prevent this, follow these steps and ensure your computer is dry before attempting to use it.
Should I use a hairdryer to dry my laptop?
Many people believe that using a hair dryer to dry a laptop after water enters is a myth. However, this method can spread water distribution, increasing the number of damaged parts. To prevent water from entering the laptop, pour water into a thermos bottle with a tightly closed lid, ensuring no leakage. Drinking water can make you feel at ease, and it is important to avoid using a hair dryer to dry the laptop.
Is it OK to use hair dryer on PC?
Avoid using a vacuum cleaner or hair dryer to clean your PC fan as it may cause static buildup and discharge into sensitive electronics. Never disassemble the hard drive or power supply, as this could void their warranties and cause serious harm. Turn off and unplug the computer completely. Use compressed air, cotton swabs, cosmetic pads, a clean microfiber cloth, a screwdriver, and isopropyl alcohol to clean the fan and surrounding areas. Focus on the fan and surrounding areas, setting out tools in advance.
Gently open the computer case and identify the fan’s location. Start by cleaning the blades with a cotton swab and isopropyl alcohol, then spin the fan to ensure easy rotation. Remember to set out all tools in advance and avoid using a vacuum cleaner or hair dryer to clean your PC fan.
Can moisture damage a computer?
It is of paramount importance to regulate humidity levels in a manner that is conducive to the prevention of corrosion and failure of computer components, as well as the prevention of electrostatic buildup. It is incumbent upon companies and businesses to ensure that their dedicated computer rooms maintain adequate humidity levels to prevent critical damage. Furthermore, commercial humidifiers can be advantageous in data centers.
What happens if your PC gets wet?
Moisture exposure can cause short circuits in wet components, causing issues for motherboards, connectors, and hard drives. If a spill is suspected, turn off your computer immediately to prevent permanent damage. Common signs of liquid damage include unresponsive keys or trackpads, discoloration or corrosion around connectors and motherboard, and erratic behavior. If water drops into trackpad edges, water droplets can cause erratic behavior.
Additionally, discoloration outside or inside the computer can indicate moisture issues. A visual inspection can help identify any white or green residue, which is typically a sign of liquid inside the computer.
📹 HOW TO DRY WET COMPUTER
10 things to do if your computer gets wet 1. Power it off immediately unplug it from the wall as well 2. Turn the laptop over,upside …
Wash with steam distilled water before alcohol. Water is a much better solvant of polarized molocules than alcohol. Then displace with alcohol. Its not the water that does the damage, it is the minerals in the water that does the damage. Shorting is not the only concern. Minerals in tap water, as well as other beverages, can also be caustic to the traces on the PCB if they are allowed to remain on the board.
I have an analogy for exactly this. Roughly one and a half years ago, I spilled water on my laptop. I was stupid and decided to try turning it on after wiping the outside. It worked… For a bit. Then I saw it BSOD. I thought it was done for and let it stay for nearly a year. Then a year later, I decided to try it again. It works without complaints nowadays. Patience is key.
My Dad and Brother both are in the Industrial Automation sector. I’ve actually had to physically wash pc boards with sunlight dishwashing soap and/or Handy Andy. Though some components on the boards I have to wash carefully and not soak. Also you have to be careful as some white markings on some boards if soaked too long actually come off when you then use a paint brush or tooth brush when scrubing. Then wash off good and proper with clean water. Then once drip dried, I stick them into a normal oven and put it on till the light comes on and the heat is just hot enough that it is a bit hot to touch the board and components, but not too hot to melt anything. Then leaving it in the oven for a minimum of at least 3 hours. If you have thermerfan in the oven even better. Then the boards are usually reassembled into their boxes or taken to be placed back in the machines on the factory floor. It may sound a bit nuts. But it works and in some cases it is the only way we can save some of the boards or drives. Industrial things can get quite messy. When you have to use a screwdriver to dig out the fans to get them to work. You know things are bad. I’ve done my fair share of digging things out.
One day I spilled a water bottle directly on the keyboard of my gigabyte sabre 15 laptop. I thought everything was lost. I shutdowned it as fast as possible, it rebooted (I mistyped the power button), I shutdowned it again, turned it over, removed the battery and made it dry for 1 day surrounded by rice grain. Two days after, it rebooted without any problem, still working more than 1 year after. I think they conceived the keyboard so that water has a very hard time reaching the motherboard.
Dropped a cup of water on my laptop a year ago and left it on like an idiot which lead it to shorting out. I then took out the motherboard and all the other pcb’s, left it in rice for a week then I submerged the laptop in a basin of Isopropyl Alchohol for an hour, let it evaporate (3 hours) and my laptop was as good as new, although good do with an upgrade now 🙂 So top notch advice Linus.
I have a camera that went through the wash. When we found it after the load, we basically just set it aside and forgot about it for a bit thinking it was dead, but after a day or 2 when we found the sd card and battery in folds the washer and charged it, lo and behold it worked. This happened 4-6 years ago and I still have the camera to this day. The quality isn’t great, but probably because it is an older compact camera (roughly the size of a credit card and 1/4 inch thick). But boy oh boy, it is tough. I have taken it camping and gotten dirt in it, and it still works fine. I’ve taken it apart quite a few times (I got zapped my the capacitor once (DON’T EVER TRY THAT), but I was more cautious the future attempts and wore nonconductive gloves). But it is one tough camera, and I still use it to this day…
I spilled a cup of coffee with cream/sugar on my laptop and power went out and wouldn’t start back up. I did what our IT folks did when I did this at work. I disconnecte power, wiped it dry on outside as much as possible, then placed it under a fan overnight – and prayed. Worked the next day. I learned that you must ensure that it is completely dry before trying to restart or components could be damaged.
I hope this works. My parents opened the windows at my room because of the heat. But later that night it stormed and rained. A couple hours later i went t o bed and saw that my leptop was very very wet. I screamed as a little girl MOM DAD COME NOW. Firstly i wanted to set it on rice. Meanwhile my dad was looking at it i found this article and we opened evry screw and blow with the hairdryer on cool mode. Now i am letting it rest for the night. Plz pray for me.
I do electronic repair for a living and what he says in this article is sooo good. Let me add that you should ALWAYS back up any important information because none of this is a guarantee to fix. Also, the salt in salt water can completely corrode the internals of a phone in just a matter of hours unless it is completely cleaned out with alcohol.
I had an iPhone 6s that got dropped in a full sink, I dried it as best as I could but like the reckless idiot that I am, I kept it on and plugged it in when I got home to see if it was still alive. For the next 10 days it was completely bricked, then once I plugged it in just to check if there was any life left in it, it powered up like nothing ever happened. That thing still works to this day, over a full year later.
I noticed this article a few days ago. I didn’t click on it because I thought I didn’t need to spend the time perusal it. It’s now a few days later and I just spilled some water on my gaming mouse. I think I got all the water out but I’ll take the advice of waiting at least 24 hours before I plug it in again. This article is the best you’ve done in recent memory. Thanks for making it, Linus.
I have a Samsung Galaxy S4 that i accidentally left in my swim trunks while i was in my pool for >30 mins and once I noticed I had it in my pocket i completely dismembered it (easy for me since I have done many repairs on that model) and dunked everything in Isopropyl alcohol for a good while and used soft toothbrush to hopefully get rid of the chlorine deposits on anything and let everything dry for 24hrs. Needless to say it didn’t so I got a brand new Galaxy S7 just few days after it came out about a month rolls by, I had kept the assembled phone in a bag tucked away, I just randomly thought to see if it would work AND IT DID and it worked perfectly not a single thing was wrong. #GodBlessSamsung
I dropped a Samsung focus flash in the lake, fortunately it bounced on a rock and the battery self ejected and stayed on land. Opened the phone up when I got home, dried it by cloth a little and ran the hair drier on low at it for a good while checking the temps once in a while. No troubles what so ever.
I spilled maruchan soup (instant noodles) on my keyboard once. I immediately plugged it off, took all the keys out and submerged them on an isopropyl alcohol bath. Would’ve done the same with the keyboard itself but I didn’t have the appropriate screwdriver to open it, so I just poured the same alcohol on every tiny hole it had. After drying the keys and the outside of the keyboard, I poured a whole 1Kg of rice on my keyboard and left it there for almost 2 days. After that, I put the keys in place, plugged it in and it worked, I’m still using it.
Depending on the parts that got wet, I’ve used WD40 to displace the water (it’s in the product name). The oil left behind isn’t conductive but you may run into problems (oil collects dirt, oil dribbles out and greases up your fingers, etc). I haven’t had it damage any plastic yet. Doesn’t work on some things (you really can’t saturate the platters on a hard drive and still expect it to work, and the heat seal on an LCD panel will probably de-glue itself) but doesn’t seem to hurt electro-mechanial switches.
I’ve spilled coffee on an old keyboard. After drying it normally, it was fine until some keys started to stick after several weeks probably because of the sugar in the coffee. So I opened it and took a cotton swab and isopropyl alcohol and cleaned it completly (the plastic parts, not the circuit board). And now it doesn’t work at all. Cleaned up an old keyboard that was functioning perfectly the same way and now it doesn’t work anymore either. I now doubt that isopropyl alcohol is a good idea.
Last month I spilled dip spit on my logitech g11 keyboard and 10 keys stopped working including the space bar & backspace. I repaired the traces on the flexible plastic circuit board using a ball point pen with conductive ink and it works just fine now though I did have to wash it out with my garden hose.
I have this small Acer laptop, a good glass of (strawberry) milk fell on it, placed it in tent mode, let it dry for 48 hours, tested. still works! it was a close call. but the touchpad broke down..and it smelled like strawberry’s.. a year later, a glass of water fell on it. it immediately shut down for the worst.. tent mode, 48 hours, aaand nothing… doesn’t turn on anymore… So i took it apart, ddin’t really find anything to clean (the milk didn’t go in deep enough it seemed and the water was gone). so i packed it in it’s box and placed it away. a month later i decided to give it another go. And it turned on again! with a lot of noise coming from the HDD, replaced it for a much-needed SSD and the thing is totally back to normal, and even faster! 😀 also, the touchpad miraculously started working like a pro again 😀 So i guess i want to say, never give up! have patience and try again later! it might actually work. (the SSD would go in my main PC if the laptop failed so it wasn’t a risk anyways in this case)
I spilled glass of cola on my laptop, so I removed battery, keyboard keys and buttom shield, put it in front of a fan with medium warm air flow for like 5 hours and it’s working now. But even after 5 hours some upper parts were still wet. I recommend you to dry yor laptop as long as possible if you have time fot that! Good luck!
I spilled coffee into my pc sitting near my desk. Turned it off and wiped it all up got a few drops on the GPU Most of it was the CD drive somehow. Had to go to work in 15 mins to so it was a rush job i ended proping it against a corner so the rest drained into a corner avoiding the electrical parts and waited about 3 days to turn it on. Nothing was damaged 🙂
Should have done an actual test of various devices for various lengths of time. Hearing it is one thing, seeing it and demonstrating it is another. And don’t tell me that’s a waste of money or time, I literally just watched y’all delid a $1000 CPU! Like holy freaking crap, that takes some balls! (And money) 😂
Well, I have an HP a 2020 model and I was putting on a sweater.. I HAD A Bottle of Milk right beside it (THOUGHT IT WOULD BE OKAY) BUT THEN MY ARM HIT THE BOTTLE AND THEN THE MILK HIT MY KEYBOARD AND MY COMPUTER STOPPED WORKING! SO I DRIED IT OUT IT DID TURN BACK ON FOR THE FIRST TIME BUT THEN LATER AS I TRIED TO USE IT THE SCREEN IS JUST TOTAL BLACK…. does that mean my computer is just forever gone now? EDIT: BECAUSE THE HP IS A 2020 design I CANNOT GET TO THE BATTERY THERE IS NO WAY HOW TO
The short circuiting most times does not cause permanent damage. What does however is the corrosion that happens as a result of the traces being exposed to ionized water. If it was fresh water, a rinse/scrub with isopropyl alcohol and then a few minutes with airflow to evaporate should be fine. If it was coffee/juice/etc, rinse with distilled water first and then do it with alcohol and air dry. The quicker this can be done, the better. Also heat isn’t a good idea as it speeds up the chemical reaction that causes corrosion. Also keep alcohol away from speakers/microphones, they don’t like it too much.
Spilled chocolate milk on my Corsair K70 once. Instantly turned off my PC and disconnected the keyboard, then wiped down as much as I could. Then shook off any other bits then put above a radiator that was warm enough but not boiling hot. Within 24-36 hours it was operational again. Granted the RGB lights to it were glitching our but over the span of a month or so, they fixed by themselves oddly enough (likely because I turned off the rgb lights since it was annoying) and it now works as if nothing happened.
I was trying to fix a stuck F12 key on my old Toshiba 2060CDS using alcohol, and while I did get the button out and it no longer sticks, no matter what I do, the laptop still thinks F12 is being held when it is turned on for some reason, which makes it think I’m trying to update its BIOS when I turn it on.
only about a year ago i spilt coffee onto my Corsair CS550M PSU, which in turn tripped the RCD for the entire house. having unplugged the psu from the mains and reset the fusebox (consumer unit in americaland) i proceded to wipe up any residue liquid left in the PSU. having cleared what i could see, i reconnected it into my pc and flicked the switch on the PSU, and what do you know, the darn RCD tripped again!!! this time i took it apart and left it out to dry over night, woke up put it all together and the pc booted up without tripping the RCD. Thankfully the motherboard also tripped its surge protection and protected my pc from any damage. and even today right now its still going strong and not had a problem
2 weeks ago, I did a water test on my fucking new ThinkPad P52s, and after drying it, the laptop seemed to be broken (unknown musical tone, smell of smoke, etc.). I left it for a day, and it still works! Sort of 🙁 (the laptop refuses to shut down, the keyboard occasionally presses the “\” button, and it won’t sleep when the lid is closed; finally, the Nvidia GPU is extremely laggy when playing games, despite the fact that it was running smoothly prior to the water test).
I had my switched ON gaming cpu half submerged in water.. Due to my neighbours kid pouring a jug full! Aah kids! Dried it out completely using ink blotting paper, vodka, isopropyl alchohol and hot hair dryer for 7 hrs.. Completely dismantled the Gpu covers, heat sinks, took apart the corsair hx750… 5 yrs up and she’s still up and running..
soo, I spilled like an ounce of water on my predator helios 300 laptop and I started freaking out like a mf. I uhhh… turned it off for a good 30 minutes and tried to dry the surface with a towel and flipped it upside down to let the excess water trickle down. I think it’s okay now… however, I’ll check the internal components tomorrow smh I’m so stupid
My laptop died for few days and it’s working again, some keys are stuck and won’t stop typing .. It was a coke and ash mix, had no ashtray around and filled a plastic cup with coke, to use as a ashtray. And accidentally my hand hits the cup and it’s all over the keyboard I have not opened it don’t have tools . Any suggestions?
can anyone help me? an hour ago i poured coffee on my NEW wireless mouse…then used it (i cleaned the mouse with a towel) it would work a bit then it went crazy moving around without me touching it then i disconnected it and just left it there any tips? my mom bought it 2 days and im sure she will kill me if she finds out i literally broke my mouse it costed 8 dollars im so dead help
i spilled soda on my k65 rgb keyboard and do not use water to rinse it off i tried that with my k95 and it officially killed it you don’t have to use alcohol you can use sterilized water its used to sterilize wounds in the hospital but i use it in my water cooling loop due to my country not offering much other choice and it rinsed my k65 rgb keyboard back to life with it thankfully i only had it for 2 weeks when i spilled on it and it works perfectly now 6 months after
Thanks a lot. After spilling some diet coke on my mechanical keyboard, some keys bugged a lot (like enter would be” lkjeafnaeknf^$” or the likes). I opened my keyboard and there was some coke hither and thither plus the board was really disgusting with lumps of driedish coke onto it. I carefully swabbed the liquid with q tips and voilà, a fully functioning keyboard! That’s a 100 quid saved! ♥
Me perusal this after spill coconut milk all over my gf’s surface laptop, and after seeing ifixit rated it the least repairable device, I just clean the keyboard then ask her to finish the essay on it. Besides, PREY that her laptop could survive as she finished the essay by midnight, then tear it apart.
not to long ago my house got flooded, thanks to our unreliable roof. My laptop (witch I am using at this very moment) was submerged in almost 30CM of water over night. All that got damaged was my keyboard since I have the tendency to take out the battery every time there is rain. my keyboard broke because of my stupidity in switching it on only 3 hours after I attempted to dry it out
After a canoe tour gone capsize, I put all our wet phones in an electric oven, turned it on its lowest setting, left the door ajar a few inches and gave it a few hours. The temperature building up inside was about 60-70°C, which is well in the comfort zone of most electronics. Of course, we had opened up all port coverings and removed all removable parts, aaaand… we were able to save 2 out of 3 mobiles. The broken one was fortunately an age-old Nokia brick, so I had an excuse for purchasing a new toy. All’s well that ends swell…
God damnit Linus. Why did you tell people to put their device in rice or silica. Corrosion does not evaporate. Drying a device and it working means the damage wasn’t severe enough to damage anything. You would have the same luck just laying it open on a counter for a day or so. Have your device opened and cleaned asap. When it’s still wet. Letting it dry only increases the chances of corrosion. I have a MUCH MUCH HIGHER chance of repair if the device is still wet. Also there are many great small businesses that do board level repair for all kinds of devices out there. So get on Google and find someone who can help you.
Advice from a chemistry student: After disassembly, multiple washings with distilled water can be a good idea to clean of water-soluble junk, without introducing anymore impurities. Once that is done one washing with isopropanol is recommended, since it will evaporate very quickly, but as it messes with adhesives it should be done quickly and only with a small amount (50mL or so for a phone). Acetone would do the same job, but is a little more aggressive than isoprop and you usually don’t get very pure acetone as a normal person (idk about the US; and no – nailpolish remover isn’t a good idea).
I spilt some water on my macbook trackpad, and it was triple-clicking every time I touched it, so I tried the rice method. It ended up working: after a day of submersion in rice, the trackpad seems to be back to normal, but a lot of rice got in through the fan ports. I slapped the macbook silly, so I think all the rice came out, but that’s something to be careful of in the future.
I use the isopropyl alcohol sonic bath and silicate combined with warm heat and air flow in my shop for nearly all board related wet repairs… And in my 30 years in the industry have only had a few items not recoverable (referring to the non-idiots that take out the batteries; don’t plug them in, or otherwise didn’t find them at the bottom of a pool or lake, left by someone else weeks, months or years before).
Techquickie: Hi, Linus, I am new to your space. I have a piece of electronics that did get some salt water in it. There’s no doubt that I am going to have to take your suggestion and use some alcohol on it. What percentage of alcohol do I need for this, and what type of alcohol would be best suited to the job? I have rubbing alcohol on hand, which is only 50% isopropyl alcohol. Would that even be an appropriate solvent? Once that’s done, and has had a little bit of time to elaborate, I have a food dehydration unit that I’m thinking I might have to use at its lowest temperature to get the moisture out of the tiny places that I have no hope of reaching. I need to know what the safe range of temperature for gently dehydrating the water out of the components would be. Can you please help me with this information as well? I sure appreciate your help. Thanks for the useful article! 🙂
You forgot to mention removing all power sources including power cords/batteries. Where water damage is concerned we recommend our customers hard reset the device after power has been removed to drain all capacitors of power before commencing in any cleanup / dry out measures. Additionally if it still has water in it when it gets to our shop we disassemble it immediately and use an air compressor to blow out as much of the water droplets as possible to prevent corrosion and oxidization on the PCB.