If you have ever spilt water, coffee, beer or any other liquid on your MacBook you know it can be extremely stressful.
The best thing you can do if immediately bring your MacBook to a repair shop. Make sure you DO NOT charge the MacBook if it has been exposed to liquid, as adding electricity to it can cause a short or other damage. If you are able to disconnect the battery you should always do this as soon as you can. A water damaged MacBook is in its most repairable condition when arrives with it never having any power to it after the liquid damage.
Below is a photo of a water damaged MacBook that has been badly corroded. In this particular instance we were able to fully repair this MacBook laptop.
There is a high likelihood we can repair your MacBook once it has been exposed to liquid but if the MacBook cannot be repaired, we DO NOT charge for our time. If we are successful in repairing your MacBook the cost will be determined on what is damaged and what needs to be repaired/replaced. The diagnosis is free at Cell Clinic. We always get you to approve the cost before going ahead with the work. Let us know if you just want us to recover the data of your MacBook instead of fixing it.
There are a few steps we take with water damaged Macbooks which we are going to share below:
How to repair a water damaged MacBook.
Step 1- Remove all power to the MacBook.
*If you have never disassembled a Macbook, a good source for instructions can be found at www.ifixit.com
You’re going to want to remove the screws from the bottom of the macbook to reveal the motherboard and battery. From there, you will see a cable with a connector that looks like the one below.
Once you have the battery out, you are now free to remove the screw that are holding the motherboard to the rest of the MacBook. Once again, if you have never done this please refer to www.ifixit.com for disassembly instructions.
Step 2- Clean the motherboard
To clean the motherboard you will need warm water and soap. Preferably an ultrasonic would clean the best but if you do not have one, regular dish soap and warm water will work. To clean the motherboard, use a tooth brush and clean and brush all the components. Make sure to clean the other components besides the board as well. Rinse the motherboard off with fresh clean water and make sure all the soap is removed.
Step 3- Dry and heat the motherboard
You will want to to completely dry the motherboard before connecting it any power. The best way to make sure all water is off the motherboard is to heat it with a heating gun for about 30 seconds. Its a good idea to keep the heat-gun at least 3 cm away from the motherboard and do not hold heat in one spot for long. Once you have heated the motherboard and it has cooled down, you can then reassemble the MacBook and connect it to power. If everything works yay, you are done! If not, proceed to step 4.
Step 4- Troubleshooting
If your initial clean of the Motherboard doesn't work you can try repeating steps 1-3. If you are like most people you will not have the tools or knowhow to trouble shoot areas of the motherboard and replace the components as required. At this stage you will need to consult a professional.
Cell Clinic does offer this level of repairs required to fix your MacBook or retrieve the data. If we are unable to, we do not charge. We accept any mail in's from anywhere in Canada. Simply reach out to hello@cellclinic.ca
