BleepingComputer.com: cleaning up laptop spill keyboard specific

I was reading I can use isopopyl alcohol to clean the keyboard. Would that solution rub off any of the letters on the laptop??

Welcome to Bleepingcomputer.

It depends, but in most cases, it is better to use a damp rag moistend with a solution of water and dish soap, never use a rag that is dripping water!

Bruce.

No, it won't rub the letters off.

A good method to use is q-tips. Dip the q-tip in whatever you use, then squeeze out as much of it as you can with a paper towel. Or you could use an old toothbrush, again squeezing out the excess.

As MrBruce mentioned, you don't want it dripping wet.

An alternative to the alcohol: Listerine or other ANTISEPTIC mouthwash.

Just a safety suggestion. Don't forget to "unplug" your machine. If you don't there is still the possibility of a shock hazzard. After you have it cleaned as good as possible, use a hair dryer on low or medium heat to speed up the drying process before you reconnect the power cord. You could use canned or compressed air but if there's any residual liquid it may wind up getting in a not so good place.

Good luck,

bensurchn

bensurchn, on Sep 6 2010, 01:20 PM, said:

I will make sure its disconnected, thanks and ill wait a bit for the capacitors to discharge.. I was planning on disasembling it and cleaning it out that way to play it safe with the MOBO and such. Its a Macbook and it had a bit of beer spilled on it ..Hopefully it was a good beer at least..Hopefully start this endeavor today.

Queen-Evie, on Sep 6 2010, 01:18 AM, said:

New one for me..it doesnt leave it sticky, really?

Nope, doesn't leave it sticky. At least it never has for me.

Well I finally got my hands on this machine. But to my disappointment it doesn't look like a hardware issue it, unless the liquid totally shorted out the keyboard. It boots up fine and the trackpad works however. None of the keys work and the caps lock wont even light up when pressed. I tried hooking up a USB keyboard which works fine. Right now im running Permission repairs and verifying the disk. Afterward ill try resetting the pram. If that doesn't work ill be at a standstill.

Should this post be moved into the Mac OS forum instead?

Anytime you want to clean a laptop keyboard the best thing is to remove it from the system and clean it. I use isopropyl alcohol and lint free cloths and q-tips.
Then let is dry for 2x as long as you think it should (even though the alcohol should evaporate instantly) before you re-install it.

Make sure you also clean the contacts on the ribbon cable that connects to the motherboard.