In 21st century life, laptops are a part of daily life in the office and at home. Spilling something on your keyboard, whether it's a glass of water, a hot cup of tea, or a whiskey and ginger ale, can seem like a nightmare scenario. And truly, if the spill is bad and you are unfortunate, this could spell end of days for your keyboard.
But that doesn't have to be the case; if you act quickly, you might be able to avoid the computer repairs shop altogether. So here is what you need to do if a spillage has occurred.
1. Turn your laptop off. First of all, you need to turn your computer off to be able to work with it safely. Everybody knows that liquid and electricity are not friends to each other, so it's best to turn the power off as soon as you can. If the battery is detachable, you should take that out too.
2. Blot the excess liquid. If you spilled something on your living room carpet, what is the first thing you would do? You would blot the excess liquid gently so as not to damage the carpet. Well, your keyboard is delicate too and you should take exactly the same approach with it. Blot up the excess liquid with an absorbent cloth while being gentle with the keys.
3. Turn your laptop upside down. It might feel unintuitive to turn your laptop upside down and give it a rattle, but actually this can be really useful for removing the liquid you couldn't remove with blotting, and that is deeper down in the keyboard circuitry. This is something that you have to be very gentle about because your laptop is a delicate machine and any shaking motion that is too forceful could play havoc with the internal circuit board.
4. Leave it for a few days. Everybody is attached to their laptop computers, but if you can give your laptop the opportunity to rest for a few days, it is far more likely to emerge from a spill in working order. Keep the power off for three days, no matter how difficult you think it might be.
Alternatively, if you really can't wait, you might consider purchasing a can of compressed air and using that to dry out the keyboard.
If, after three days, your keyboard is not working, it is advisable to take your machine to a computer repairs shop like Tresami Computer Engineering. The professionals there will be able to look into the circuitry of your keyboard, to determine the fault, and to assess if your laptop can be saved or if it needs to be replaced.
Share
