Tea on a Motherboard. Assistance?

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Oct 30, 2010
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I'm working on an old computer, and I set my other desktop computer on the floor, on its side, with the panel off, because I was swapping parts.

I had a glass of tea on my desk and a box of cookies (homemade deliciousness) on top of my monitor.
While I'm plugging in the old computer, thanks to my usual gracefulness of movement, I bump the monitor.
The cookies fall off and knock my tea mug (partly full) onto my computer in the floor.
Of course, it's open and all the tea goes right onto the motherboard.
Such a shame to waste that good tea..

The computer was off, and completely unplugged, so if I leave it to sit and let it dry out, will it still work?
Or is it completely trashed and hopeless?
 
It can be cleaned. Use some PCB cleaner, you can get it in spray cans. You can also spray the MB down with distilled water/alcohol solution. Pat dry, air dry, compressed air, leaf blower. If it wasn't on, you should be ok.
I've actually used a garden hose, pat dry and finish with compressed air. I would let it stand for awhile before reinstalling.
 
Green tea with jasmine. I highly recommend. :D

And thanks, I'll give it a go, if it doesn't work, I'm still no worse than if I hadn't tried, right? :D
 
Yeah let it dry definitely after cleaning. The longer the better. I actually spilled water (not tea, I know) on my computer while it was on. D: But I let all the pieces dry for a couple days and everything except the video card was fine.
 
You'll be okay, just dont be too hasty. Give it plenty of time to dry out.

Was it "real" tea? As in, you steeped a teabag in hot water? If thats the case, you essentially spilled pure water on it. The sugar-laden, processed, comes pre brewed and packaged types of tea will require a more thorough clean
 
I've spilled coffee on my computer on numerous occasions and it still worked after a little cleaning. Alcohol and DISTILLED water, with a little drying time. Same way you'd clean up after soldering a board a suppose.
 
they used to soak motherboards in an alcohol water mixture to clean them. if you clean any residue off and let it dry for a week you should be good.
 
Yes, it was "real" tea. I'm a big fan of real tea. :)

Thanks, you guys are really helpful ^^

EDIT: Where is a good place to buy the cleaning solution? Is it something I can pick up at Staples or Radio Shack or Wal-Mart? Or should I look for it at a computer repair shop or online?
 
It's gonna smell pretty when the NB heats up too! Anyway I've done it to with water and after a thorough drying it was good to go. Good luck sir.
 
I agree with the above posters; disassemble the machine, wipe down every surface with isopropyl alcohol, and let dry for several days in a warm and dry part of your home.

Also, spilling Earl Grey on it helps boost overclocking performance. :)
 
I would take a full bottle of alcohol and pour it on the bare motherboard and let it sit a week or more to air dry. Better yet, put it in a bag with rice or silica packets to pull moisture out.
 
Run it through the dishwasher..let it run the whole cycle then let it sit for a few hours to make sure its dry....should be good as new when its done
 
Mop it up with an unbuttered crumpet for some real class.

I prefer sencha with ginseng (mixed with DP zero)
 
Ah, I'll pass on the DP zero.. it's just not the same. But I'll drink pretty much any green tea. And most tea is fabulous with a little honey added :)
 
I would just soak it in alcohol for a little bit, and then let it dry a long time. This is probably the cheapest cleaner you could use.
 
If you have access to a Brita, Pur, whatever water filter or water softener with ion exchange resin beads, you have the most versatile electronics cleaning solvent known to man: Deionized Water.

It's a perfect electrical insulator until it becomes contaminated. The resistance of a water sample is actually how the wash line where I work judges when the wash water has to be refreshed. The wash solution is mainly just heated DI water spray. The other stuff is for removal of fingerprints and such.

DI water flowed under a BGA will remove Mountain Dew residue. I know this first-hand.

Unless your dishwasher is hooked to a soft water supply, you might be doing more harm than good.
 
Clean the mobo with Isopropyl Alcohol 95-99% and let it dry, it should still work.
 
We don't have a water filter like that, just straight from our well, enriched with tasty minerals.

I think the alcohol is what I'll go for, seems the most reasonable for me.
 
Last year, a nearly full can of mountain dew found its way off my table and onto the top vent port of my CM super sniper. I turned off the computer immediately and cleaned everything with alcohol. As far as I could tell, there was no damage.
 
That's cool, lol. I spilled a bowl of milk on my laptop keyboard a while ago and just took it apart and wiped it down, and it worked fine. Then a glass of water spilled on the outside while it was shut and leaked down inside. It really messed up the keyboard, but it was ok after it dried for a week.
 
Alcohol, compressed air and 24hours of drying and you should be fine
 
Glad to hear!

Those that run into the same problem could also try using distilled water for rinsing and let air dry.
 
Always wondered if the CMOS battery should be removed asap and during cleaning/drying?
Isn't at least part of the mobo energized while the battery is attached??:confused:
 
I would think so.. but I didn't take mine out for around 30 min (guess) after it got wet, and I just put it back in after the whole thing dried, and it works fine. But maybe I just got lucky, lol.
 
If you have access to a Brita, Pur, whatever water filter or water softener with ion exchange resin beads, you have the most versatile electronics cleaning solvent known to man: Deionized Water.

It's a perfect electrical insulator until it becomes contaminated. The resistance of a water sample is actually how the wash line where I work judges when the wash water has to be refreshed. The wash solution is mainly just heated DI water spray. The other stuff is for removal of fingerprints and such.

DI water flowed under a BGA will remove Mountain Dew residue. I know this first-hand.

Unless your dishwasher is hooked to a soft water supply, you might be doing more harm than good.

A water softener doesn't make deionized water. It makes softened water.
 
But what does a water filter with ion exchange resin beads do?
I don't know, but it could be the difference here :D
 
But what does a water filter with ion exchange resin beads do?
I don't know, but it could be the difference here :D

It depends on the type of ion exchange resin used. Water softeners use cation exchange resin, which exchanges the hardness (calcium and magnesium) in the water for an equivalent amount of sodium threw ion exchange. If you want deionized water then you need to use deionizing anion exchange resin.
 
Clean the mobo with Isopropyl Alcohol 95-99% and let it dry, it should still work.


what that guy said!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

dont be a n00b and get 70%. you can get this stuff from walmart. or anywhere. its cheap. it cleans stuff. and it evaporates quickly. you can get q-tips and dump this stuff on a q-tip
(what i like to do is pour some of the bottle into the cap on a table so there is a little in the cap, and then i stick the q-tip in the cap to get the q-tip wet and then cleannnnnn

or you can buy brake-clean from walmart in the auto part, that stuff will clean anything alive instantly, but make sure you have plenty of ventilation that stuff smells!!!!!!
 
It depends on the type of ion exchange resin used. Water softeners use cation exchange resin, which exchanges the hardness (calcium and magnesium) in the water for an equivalent amount of sodium threw ion exchange. If you want deionized water then you need to use deionizing anion exchange resin.

Find a friend with a salt water fish tank if you need deionized water....
I have 5 gallons ready of deionized water at any moment.
 
I found electronics cleaner at an auto parts store that I used to clean off my friend's ipod when she spilled a shot all over it...it works good as new now. It evaporates instantly and did a great job cleaning some other dusty electronics that I was willing to risk as test subjects.

It also does an awesome job cleaning out spider webs when used with a lighter. :D

On the plus side, since green tea is s'posed to help your immune system your system should be more resistant to viruses, right?
 
Find a friend with a salt water fish tank if you need deionized water....
I have 5 gallons ready of deionized water at any moment.

Lol you have no idea what your talking about. Fish can't live in Deionized water. the PH is too low and it will certainly kill them. Deionized water doesn't have salt in it, the D.I. process removes all the salt.
 
I found electronics cleaner at an auto parts store that I used to clean off my friend's ipod when she spilled a shot all over it...it works good as new now. It evaporates instantly and did a great job cleaning some other dusty electronics that I was willing to risk as test subjects.

this is what I would recommend.

some CRC Electric Parts Cleaner, or even their Mass Air Flow sensor cleaner
 
The risk here is really low. Odds are, you are fine as is once it drys out.

Since it was non-sugar'ed tea, a quick rinse and shake with 95%+ iso will do the trick just to play it safe. Give it a good shake and 24 hours. Electric parts cleaner also works.
 
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