A simple spill can easily destroy your laptop, but taking the five steps listed below can help prevent the worst from happening. If you ever find yourself with a soggy laptop, make sure you follow them as quick as possible.
- Unplug and Power Down
Time really is of the essence if your laptop gets wet. If this happens, make sure you cut the power as soon as possible. This doesn’t mean taking the time to properly shut down your laptop; it means holding down the power button until it turns off manually, you can then quickly pull out the power cable from the side of the laptop.
- Flip It
Before you begin actually drying the laptop off, you should make sure that water doesn’t penetrate any further than necessary. If you spilt water directly onto the laptop, flip it over with the screen open and rest it upside down to ensure that water doesn’t trickle down to the bottom. If you spilt water on the table and it ran over the laptops bottom, pick it up to ensure that water doesn’t soak in.
- Take it Apart and Dry It Off
Next, take the laptop apart as much as you are comfortable with. This might just mean removing the battery, but you can also unscrew and remove the hard drive, disk drive, and other components. Dry each part individually, making sure that any residue is completely wiped away.
- Resist Turn the Laptop Back On
Your laptop is far less likely to be damaged if it isn’t receiving power when it is wet. This is what will blow out circuits and fry its most essential components. Unfortunately, many people try turning their laptop back on after just an hour or two, assuming that everything is dry enough. They’ll often hear a buzzing noise, then realise that they just made the situation a lot worse.
- Take it to a Repair Shop
Instead of turning your laptop back on, head to a computer repair shop or call your local IT support company. They will be able to take a look at each part to determine the best course of action. This is a much better option than simply taking chances.
