There are many web pages dedicated to emergency procedures to take if you
spill a drink into a laptop. But I don't find any describing what to do about
remaining corrosion.

I was given a laptop that had coffee (no sugar, I'm told) spilled into the
keyboard. The owner turned off the power and removed the battery and drained
the computer as best he could, but did not take any steps to rinse out the
coffee. Some time later the computer quit.

There is evidence of corrosion on pc traces, SMD component and connector
leads:

http://www.hostmypic.info/uploads/27f71caf77.jpg

I plan to soak the board(s) in a weak solution of dishwashing detergent and
mineral-free h2o and dry for a few days. (Is there a more effective
solution?)

In preparation for examination and repair of any compromised conductors on
the pcbs, what's the best way to remove (ie, halt) the green & black residue
of corrosion?

Thanks,
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group

In article .net,
DaveC wrote:

There are many web pages dedicated to emergency procedures to take if you
spill a drink into a laptop. But I don't find any describing what to do about
remaining corrosion.

I was given a laptop that had coffee (no sugar, I'm told) spilled into the
keyboard. The owner turned off the power and removed the battery and drained
the computer as best he could, but did not take any steps to rinse out the
coffee. Some time later the computer quit.

There is evidence of corrosion on pc traces, SMD component and connector
leads:

http://www.hostmypic.info/uploads/27f71caf77.jpg

I plan to soak the board(s) in a weak solution of dishwashing detergent and
mineral-free h2o and dry for a few days. (Is there a more effective
solution?)

In preparation for examination and repair of any compromised conductors on
the pcbs, what's the best way to remove (ie, halt) the green & black residue
of corrosion?

Thanks,

I'll take a shot at this, but YMMV. We clean our newly minted PWBAs in a
somewhat corrosive mixture of saponifier and distilled water. They're
then rinsed in fresh distilled water. Occasionally they're left in the
soap too long, or not rinsed well, and the nice shiny new solder joints
end up dull and dark.

I've cleaned gold contacts with liquid silver detarnish, but the best
thing for corroded solder is a drop of (can you believe it?) liquid
flux, and then reflow the joint.

If you've got actual crystals growing, or other severe surface
contamination, a stiff brushing (I use an acid brush with bristles cut
quite short to stiffen them) should preface the reflow work.

DaveC wrote in message
news.net...
There are many web pages dedicated to emergency procedures to take if you
spill a drink into a laptop. But I don't find any describing what to do
about
remaining corrosion.

I was given a laptop that had coffee (no sugar, I'm told) spilled into the
keyboard. The owner turned off the power and removed the battery and
drained
the computer as best he could, but did not take any steps to rinse out the
coffee. Some time later the computer quit.

There is evidence of corrosion on pc traces, SMD component and connector
leads:

http://www.hostmypic.info/uploads/27f71caf77.jpg

I plan to soak the board(s) in a weak solution of dishwashing detergent
and
mineral-free h2o and dry for a few days. (Is there a more effective
solution?)

In preparation for examination and repair of any compromised conductors on
the pcbs, what's the best way to remove (ie, halt) the green & black
residue
of corrosion?

Thanks,
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group


Wouldn't it be a multi-layer board with liquid conducted into the board by
capillary action ?

--
Diverse Devices, Southampton, England
electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on
http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/

Thus spake n cook:

Wouldn't it be a multi-layer board with liquid conducted into the board by
capillary action ?

So, the board's toast? No reason to attempt repair?

Opinions welcome.
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group

On Sat, 22 Apr 2006 11:41:19 -0700, DaveC Gave us:

In preparation for examination and repair of any compromised conductors on
the pcbs, what's the best way to remove (ie, halt) the green & black residue
of corrosion?

Use a fine child's tooth brush on it while you are doing the water
wash.

BTW, if there are any transformers on the board, all bet are off.
You would HAVE TO bake it or vacuum it out (the water).

On Sat, 22 Apr 2006 20:12:42 +0100, "n cook" Gave
us:

DaveC wrote in message
enews.net...
There are many web pages dedicated to emergency procedures to take if you
spill a drink into a laptop. But I don't find any describing what to do
about
remaining corrosion.

I was given a laptop that had coffee (no sugar, I'm told) spilled into the
keyboard. The owner turned off the power and removed the battery and
drained
the computer as best he could, but did not take any steps to rinse out the
coffee. Some time later the computer quit.

There is evidence of corrosion on pc traces, SMD component and connector
leads:

http://www.hostmypic.info/uploads/27f71caf77.jpg

I plan to soak the board(s) in a weak solution of dishwashing detergent
and
mineral-free h2o and dry for a few days. (Is there a more effective
solution?)

In preparation for examination and repair of any compromised conductors on
the pcbs, what's the best way to remove (ie, halt) the green & black
residue
of corrosion?

Thanks,
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group


Wouldn't it be a multi-layer board with liquid conducted into the board by
capillary action ?

The material PCBs are made from, regardless of the layer count, are
hygroscopic and will absorb water.

If he cleans it with water, he will need to bake it out at the very
least.

DaveC wrote:
Thus spake n cook:


Wouldn't it be a multi-layer board with liquid conducted into the board by
capillary action ?


So, the board's toast? No reason to attempt repair?

Opinions welcome.

Toast. Not because of the above but because it stopped working whilst
powered up with the contamination in place. The odds are that
irreversible damage has been done.



--
Sue

No...... clean it and use a conductive ink pen .. i have fixed many laptop
keyboards and mainboards using one of these .. you basically draw a new line
on top of the old one with the pen which is silver conductive ink ... last i
checked MCM electronics carries them .. i still have one from years ago and
it is still half full ... hope this helps you out

cheers ..


"n cook" wrote in message
...
DaveC wrote in message
news.net...
There are many web pages dedicated to emergency procedures to take if
you
spill a drink into a laptop. But I don't find any describing what to do
about
remaining corrosion.

I was given a laptop that had coffee (no sugar, I'm told) spilled into
the
keyboard. The owner turned off the power and removed the battery and
drained
the computer as best he could, but did not take any steps to rinse out
the
coffee. Some time later the computer quit.

There is evidence of corrosion on pc traces, SMD component and connector
leads:

http://www.hostmypic.info/uploads/27f71caf77.jpg

I plan to soak the board(s) in a weak solution of dishwashing detergent
and
mineral-free h2o and dry for a few days. (Is there a more effective
solution?)

In preparation for examination and repair of any compromised conductors
on
the pcbs, what's the best way to remove (ie, halt) the green & black
residue
of corrosion?

Thanks,
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group


Wouldn't it be a multi-layer board with liquid conducted into the board by
capillary action ?

--
Diverse Devices, Southampton, England
electronic hints and repair briefs , schematics/manuals list on
http://home.graffiti.net/diverse:graffiti.net/

Another factor to contend with on multilayer PCB's are the VIA's (some call
them feed-throughs) that rout traces through the board. If the metal has
been etched out of the VIA by corrosive action, then you have to take a very
small drill bit and clean out the thru-hole in the board an pass a small
wire through and solder it to the traces, meaning a lot of work if many of
them are bad. Also if the PCB is more than 2 layers it may be impossible to
repair.

Also if you have heavy soil on a board or it is contaminated with Glycol
(CRT Coolant for PJTV's) you can wash it with an ammonia based cleaner then
rinse with distilled water. Windex works wonders :-)

Jammy

On Sun, 23 Apr 2006 15:49:06 -0500, "ampdoc" Gave
us:

Another factor to contend with on multilayer PCB's are the VIA's (some call
them feed-throughs) that rout traces through the board. If the metal has
been etched out of the VIA by corrosive action, then you have to take a very
small drill bit and clean out the thru-hole in the board an pass a small
wire through and solder it to the traces,

NEVER, I repeat NEVER "take a very small drill bit" to ANY of your
vias. Adding and soldering the wire is fine. Use FLUX for that
operation, NOT a friggin drill bit. That (drilling) would almost
ensure that there will be detached layers.

meaning a lot of work if many of
them are bad. Also if the PCB is more than 2 layers it may be impossible to
repair.

Drilling the ****ing thing will surely produce that result.

Also if you have heavy soil on a board or it is contaminated with Glycol
(CRT Coolant for PJTV's) you can wash it with an ammonia based cleaner then
rinse with distilled water. Windex works wonders :-)

It's a laptop, not a CRT.

Thus spake Charlie+:

...then coated with WD40 for about 30 minutes, compressed air again to remove

most of the WD40 then baked in a warm oven for about 4 hours to flash off the

remaining oil, repired some obviously corroded SM joints by flux/solder and
iron reflow (under magnification!) and then reassembled. The point of the
WD40 soak was to arrest any ongoing corrosive action, it is thin enough to
wick anywhere the original liquid has gone. ...

I fully appreciate your creative technique of halting the corrosion. This is
a concern for me, and until your post, I wasn't sure how to address that
(other than using flux + solder on accessible lead corrosion), especially
that hidden beneath components.

WD-40 -- while it may be effective in this application -- stinks! This is a
laptop I'll be using (if I'm successful), which pretty much places my nose
right above the logic board. Can't imagine smelling that awful smell for
years.

Can someone offer an alternative for WD-40 to arrest corrosion on PC traces
and component leads?

Thanks,
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group

In article .net, wrote:
Thus spake Charlie+:

...then coated with WD40 for about 30 minutes, compressed air again to remove


most of the WD40 then baked in a warm oven for about 4 hours to flash off the


remaining oil, repired some obviously corroded SM joints by flux/solder and
iron reflow (under magnification!) and then reassembled. The point of the
WD40 soak was to arrest any ongoing corrosive action, it is thin enough to
wick anywhere the original liquid has gone. ...

I fully appreciate your creative technique of halting the corrosion. This is
a concern for me, and until your post, I wasn't sure how to address that
(other than using flux + solder on accessible lead corrosion), especially
that hidden beneath components.

WD-40 -- while it may be effective in this application -- stinks! This is a
laptop I'll be using (if I'm successful), which pretty much places my nose
right above the logic board. Can't imagine smelling that awful smell for
years.

Can someone offer an alternative for WD-40 to arrest corrosion on PC traces
and component leads?

Your not going to smell it if its baked like he said until all oil is evaporated.

By the way, I usually coat the board or anything I have sprayed with water
with WD-40.

Want something more aromatic, try some Bullfrog electronic
contact cleaner.
I think it smells pretty!

if not, get some stuff at The Home Depot, CRC 2-26 Lubricant, almost
no smell, its plastic safe, multi purpose, presision lubricant, improves electrical properties,
as read on can. Really cheap too, but slightl more than WD-40.
They also have a no residue electronic contact cleaner which is also cheap for
a large supersized can.

greg

why not soak the board for 20 minutes in DR99 solutiom at a ratio of
5/1. After that bake the pcb for 30 minutes at 60 degrees and then, add
a sprinkle of salt and garnish and serve with potatoes and side dish.

Thus spake GregS:

if not, get some stuff at The Home Depot, CRC 2-26 Lubricant, almost no
smell, its plastic safe, multi purpose, presision lubricant, improves
electrical properties, as read on can. Really cheap too, but slightl more
than WD-40. They also have a no residue electronic contact cleaner which is
also cheap for a large supersized can.

Thanks, Greg. I think WD-40 is great for most such applications (WD, I'm
told, stands for "water displacer"), but if there's any chance I'll be
sniffing that smell for years, I'll try the CRC route.

General Q: these products are water displacers. The reason these products
stop corrosion is that they remove all traces of moisture? After that, if the
green stuff (corrosion) is not causing a short, the corrosion should not
continue, as long as moisture is not reintroduced?

Thanks,
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group

Thus spake DaveC:

After that, if the
green stuff (corrosion) is not causing a short, the corrosion should not
continue, as long as moisture is not reintroduced?

Should say:
Then the water displacer product is evaporated (baked with high temperature).
After that, if the green stuff (corrosion) is not causing a current path, the
corrosion should not continue as long as moisture is not reintroduced?

(It seems weird to post a "reply" to your own post...)
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group

In article .net, wrote:
Thus spake GregS:

if not, get some stuff at The Home Depot, CRC 2-26 Lubricant, almost no
smell, its plastic safe, multi purpose, presision lubricant, improves
electrical properties, as read on can. Really cheap too, but slightl more
than WD-40. They also have a no residue electronic contact cleaner which is
also cheap for a large supersized can.

Thanks, Greg. I think WD-40 is great for most such applications (WD, I'm
told, stands for "water displacer"), but if there's any chance I'll be
sniffing that smell for years, I'll try the CRC route.

General Q: these products are water displacers. The reason these products
stop corrosion is that they remove all traces of moisture? After that, if the
green stuff (corrosion) is not causing a short, the corrosion should not
continue, as long as moisture is not reintroduced?


Green is most easily removed by water. WD-40 leaves a varnish like film when dry.
Not really good for contacts. There are more products leaving a film when dry. Bullfrog
makes a range of cleaners and evaporative film anti corrosion inhibitors. A molecular
layer of material is deposited on metal to prevent corrosion. Many switches
come with the piece of paper with an evaporative product.

greg

I can't say about its use on circuit boards, but my experience using
WD-40 is that it causes RUST. I donno what it is about WD-40, i've long
speculated it displaced other oil, then slowly evaporated over months
leaving the metal unprotected. I never knew "WD" meant "water
displacer". Rust always seems to follow months after using WD-40,
coating with other oil only seems to delay the rust. I've thrown every
can of it away. This stuff is crap.

Diesel makes an ok solvent and leaves a film. I'd rather use that if it
works.

In article , the_blogologist wrote:
I can't say about its use on circuit boards, but my experience using
WD-40 is that it causes RUST. I donno what it is about WD-40, i've long
speculated it displaced other oil, then slowly evaporated over months
leaving the metal unprotected. I never knew "WD" meant "water
displacer". Rust always seems to follow months after using WD-40,
coating with other oil only seems to delay the rust. I've thrown every
can of it away. This stuff is crap.

Diesel makes an ok solvent and leaves a film. I'd rather use that if it
works.

Stinks too. My cellar smells of kerosene and diesel which my furnace uses.

There was some caveats to using WD-40. I got some info from a seemingly
reliable source. There was speculation to having some silicone oil in there
and some problems with aircraft wings. This is on my cleaner page.

http://www.pitt.edu/~szekeres/cleaner.htm

greg

Thus spake Charlie+:

On Mon, 24 Apr 2006 09:35:30 -0700, DaveC wrote as
underneath my scribble :

Sorry nearly missed this reply as you started a new thread!
WD40 as well as being hygroscopic has corrosion inhibitors built in to
a self wetting very thin liquid - that is the whole point. Also the
Some actual experience: I did a resurrect of a Sony MZ-R30 Minidisk
Recorder/Player which had been dropped in seawater and this had stopped
working immediately! This unit had been unwashed and returned around the
world so had had about a month or more to corrode, seawater is unforgiving so

I wasnt hopeful. I removed the 1/32" FG PTH 4 layer boards completely, then

washed them in hot water, then blow dried with compressed air, you have to be

sensible with this as physical damage is possible with compressed air,
scanned them up to X10 for inspection then warmed boards (hot to touch)
then coated with WD40 for about 30 minutes, compressed air again to remove
most of the WD40 then baked in a warm oven for about 4 hours to flash off the

remaining oil, repired some obviously corroded SM joints by flux/solder and
iron reflow (under magnification!) and then reassembled. The point of the
WD40 soak was to arrest any ongoing corrosive action, it is thin enough to
wick anywhere the original liquid has gone. Worked like a champ ever since,
about 3 years now. Your board has failed under power perhaps well after the
event though and this points towards electrolytic corrosion and this may not
be recoverable whatever you do, in a multilayered board. Whatever you do I
would advise you against soaking a board in anything for a few days, imo that

would be asking for trouble! Charlie+

What do you mean by "Whatever you do I would advise you against soaking a
board in anything for a few days, imo that would be asking for trouble!"?
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group

In article .net, wrote:
Thus spake Charlie+:

On Mon, 24 Apr 2006 09:35:30 -0700, DaveC wrote as
underneath my scribble :

Sorry nearly missed this reply as you started a new thread!
WD40 as well as being hygroscopic has corrosion inhibitors built in to
a self wetting very thin liquid - that is the whole point. Also the
Some actual experience: I did a resurrect of a Sony MZ-R30 Minidisk
Recorder/Player which had been dropped in seawater and this had stopped
working immediately! This unit had been unwashed and returned around the
world so had had about a month or more to corrode, seawater is unforgiving so


I wasnt hopeful. I removed the 1/32" FG PTH 4 layer boards completely, then


washed them in hot water, then blow dried with compressed air, you have to be


sensible with this as physical damage is possible with compressed air,
scanned them up to X10 for inspection then warmed boards (hot to touch)
then coated with WD40 for about 30 minutes, compressed air again to remove
most of the WD40 then baked in a warm oven for about 4 hours to flash off the


remaining oil, repired some obviously corroded SM joints by flux/solder and
iron reflow (under magnification!) and then reassembled. The point of the
WD40 soak was to arrest any ongoing corrosive action, it is thin enough to
wick anywhere the original liquid has gone. Worked like a champ ever since,
about 3 years now. Your board has failed under power perhaps well after the
event though and this points towards electrolytic corrosion and this may not
be recoverable whatever you do, in a multilayered board. Whatever you do I
would advise you against soaking a board in anything for a few days, imo that


would be asking for trouble! Charlie+

What do you mean by "Whatever you do I would advise you against soaking a
board in anything for a few days, imo that would be asking for trouble!"?

I'll tell you how I would call it. I have boards made, and they wash them with water for
a short period, then they blow dry them. They set out and dry. If it was soaked
in water for a few day's, I think that would spell real trouble.
These boards didn't work anyway, so they had to be baked after the short washings.
Water might very well get sucked into the layers and take a long time to
dry unless baked. Other solvents may very well start to dissolve stuff.

greg

Thus spake GregS:

What do you mean by "Whatever you do I would advise you against soaking a
board in anything for a few days, imo that would be asking for trouble!"?

I'll tell you how I would call it. I have boards made, and they wash them
with water for a short period, then they blow dry them. They set out and dry.

If it was soaked in water for a few day's, I think that would spell real
trouble. These boards didn't work anyway, so they had to be baked after the
short washings. Water might very well get sucked into the layers and take a
long time to dry unless baked. Other solvents may very well start to dissolve

stuff.

greg

This is a *long* term project. I'll be letting the boards sit in the sun for
days at a time (inside). Any soaking they get will be followed by more than
sufficient drying times.

Thanks,
--
DaveC

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Please reply in the news group

DaveC wrote in
news.net:

Thus spake Charlie+:

On Mon, 24 Apr 2006 09:35:30 -0700, DaveC wrote as
underneath my scribble :

Sorry nearly missed this reply as you started a new thread!
WD40 as well as being hygroscopic has corrosion inhibitors built in
to a self wetting very thin liquid - that is the whole point. Also
the Some actual experience: I did a resurrect of a Sony MZ-R30
Minidisk Recorder/Player which had been dropped in seawater and this
had stopped working immediately! This unit had been unwashed and
returned around the world so had had about a month or more to
corrode, seawater is unforgiving so

I wasnt hopeful. I removed the 1/32" FG PTH 4 layer boards
completely, then

washed them in hot water, then blow dried with compressed air, you
have to be

sensible with this as physical damage is possible with compressed
air, scanned them up to X10 for inspection then warmed boards (hot
to touch) then coated with WD40 for about 30 minutes, compressed air
again to remove most of the WD40 then baked in a warm oven for about
4 hours to flash off the

remaining oil, repired some obviously corroded SM joints by
flux/solder and iron reflow (under magnification!) and then
reassembled. The point of the WD40 soak was to arrest any ongoing
corrosive action, it is thin enough to wick anywhere the original
liquid has gone. Worked like a champ ever since, about 3 years now.
Your board has failed under power perhaps well after the event though
and this points towards electrolytic corrosion and this may not be
recoverable whatever you do, in a multilayered board. Whatever you do
I would advise you against soaking a board in anything for a few
days, imo that

would be asking for trouble! Charlie+

What do you mean by "Whatever you do I would advise you against
soaking a board in anything for a few days, imo that would be asking
for trouble!"?

Some components will wick up chemicals and not work properly,or fail
later,and the board itself may develop leakage,and any residue will attract
and keep dirt.

I've had 20+ yrs of cleaning electronics at Tektronix.

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

DaveC wrote in
news.net:

Thus spake GregS:

What do you mean by "Whatever you do I would advise you against
soaking a board in anything for a few days, imo that would be asking
for trouble!"?

I'll tell you how I would call it. I have boards made, and they wash
them with water for a short period, then they blow dry them. They set
out and dry.

If it was soaked in water for a few day's, I think that would spell
real trouble. These boards didn't work anyway, so they had to be
baked after the short washings. Water might very well get sucked into
the layers and take a long time to dry unless baked. Other solvents
may very well start to dissolve

stuff.

greg

This is a *long* term project. I'll be letting the boards sit in the
sun for days at a time (inside).

IMO,that is insufficient drying.
At Tek,we put boards or complete instruments in a drying oven at 120-140
degF for *at least 3 days*,and the oven had a negative pressure to draw out
moisture.(exhaust fan) You don't want to go higher than 140,or plastics may
soften and warp(like TEK cam drums for switches)

You would do better putting the boards inside your car and leaving it in
the sun. The car's interior reaches 140degF.

Any soaking they get will be followed
by more than sufficient drying times.

Thanks,



--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net

DaveC wrote:

Thus spake n cook:



Wouldn't it be a multi-layer board with liquid conducted into the board by
capillary action ?



So, the board's toast? No reason to attempt repair?



Unless the board has delaminated, the interior layers are darn near
hermetically
sealed in the laminating process. It is very unlikely that anything
like coffee
could penetrate a properly-built board. But, it sure can play hob with the
outer layers, especially when the power is on. Connectors are also easy for
liquids to wick into. I'd disconnect all the connectors, and some may
be the
flex-cable type that just presses a flex-print cable against the board,
and clean
anything there that needs cleaning. If glop got into the hard drive
(usually under
the keyboard!) that will likely be toast. The fans (if any) may have
been glopped
up, causing the delayed failure. Just tear it apart (it isn't working
any more,
anyway) and look for obvious problems. Gentle cleaning with alcohol and
an old toothbrush, followed by a day of open-air drying should fix most
fixable problems. Conductive glop getting between fine connections can
pop chips, so it may not be salvageable. But, worth a try.

Jon

Thus spake Charlie+:

Youll just do whatever you think, so why bother asking out for any advice in
the first place! Your choices dont show much sense. Good luck with it.
Charlie+

*Of course* I'll do what I think best. So would you.

I ask questions here to gather information. I learn. I try to benefit from
others' experience and (sometimes) mistakes. This "gauntlet" of possibilities
"aims" my decision.

But in the end, of course, the decision is mine. And that choice will be
different from yours.
--
DaveC

This is an invalid return address
Please reply in the news group

"DaveC" wrote in message
news.net...
Thus spake Charlie+:

Youll just do whatever you think, so why bother asking out for any advice
in
the first place! Your choices dont show much sense. Good luck with it.
Charlie+

But in the end, of course, the decision is mine. And that choice will be
different from yours.

You just proved his point, Dave. Why ask him if you admit from the start
that in the end your choices will be different from his...


*** Posted via a free Usenet account from http://www.teranews.com ***

I work for a very large computer company. At one time, we spec'ed our
components and PC boards to withstand a cycle in a dishwasher
with Calgonite detergent.

Soaking a PC assembly will (like the poster mentioned) cause
other components to absorb water. Bad thing. Aluminum electrolytics
would likely take it the worst. PC boards are washed typically with
deionized water then run through an "air knife" on a conveyor, then hot
air dried during the manufacturing process.

The problem you'll likely run in to is the keyboard membrane switches
having contact problems but hey, what you have doesn't work so whadaya
got to lose?

I'd opt for a dishwasher cycle (including dry) then placing the board
in a warm area for a while to evaporate any other moisture trapped.
Problem is each button on the keyboard has a separate switch with a
silicon rubber "spring" and each will likely need to be removed.and
replaced. Not fun at all.

b.

wrote in
roups.com:


I work for a very large computer company. At one time, we spec'ed our
components and PC boards to withstand a cycle in a dishwasher
with Calgonite detergent.

Soaking a PC assembly will (like the poster mentioned) cause
other components to absorb water. Bad thing. Aluminum electrolytics
would likely take it the worst. PC boards are washed typically with
deionized water then run through an "air knife" on a conveyor, then hot
air dried during the manufacturing process.

The problem you'll likely run in to is the keyboard membrane switches
having contact problems but hey, what you have doesn't work so whadaya
got to lose?

I'd opt for a dishwasher cycle (including dry) then placing the board
in a warm area for a while to evaporate any other moisture trapped.
Problem is each button on the keyboard has a separate switch with a
silicon rubber "spring" and each will likely need to be removed.and
replaced. Not fun at all.

b.


Often the rubber "springs" are all one piece of rubber.

--
Jim Yanik
jyanik
at
kua.net