Urgent: Milk on KeyBoard!!!

[bighop]

I've got an 8500, which is basically the same, and I just finished tearing it down to clean out all the lint/dust and crap it had accumulkated in 4 years. I imagine, this is an older laptop and the warranty is out, so go for it. It isn't hard....

To get the keyboard off, look to the left side at the top corner, where the blue stripe runs around the keyboard. You'll see a small inlet that you can get a small screwdriver into and gently pry up. This will remove the whole piece of trim that contains the power button, volume, lights and stuff. It can be tough to get off, fold your screen all the way open to facilitate this. Once loose, there is a small plug on the right end that connects this panel to the MB, unplug it.

Now you should see two small screws through two black/silver tabs at the top of the keyboard. Use a #0 or #1 phillips screwdriver to loosen them. after they're out (but before you loose them) lift the keyboard out by raising the top side first, there's a couple small tabs on the sides that will pop out and then slide up to release the tabs that hold the bottom down. when you get it free, there will be another ribbon cable to unplug from the MB.

How you clean it from ther is up to you. Replacements on ebay for $8-$20.

Ebay

Hope that helps.

 

[fueled_by_ramen]

A couple weeks ago, a friend of mine knocked a full cup of hot black coffee onto his Macbook keyboard. He of course went ape-s*#t. It was still running while the coffee was spilling over it.

So we shut it off and let it dry on the window-sill. In the meantime I called Apple to find out if they would cover any damage. They replied with a resounding "no." So after an hour or two of drying, we turned it on and it worked just fine.

It still works today, but it smells strongly of 7-11 coffee.

You guys got off lucky.

My roommate in NYC had an iBook. One day his cat decided to relieve herself (#1) on the keyboard. I kid you not.

As you can imagine...the laptop smelled sooo bad afterward. We basically had to plug our noses whenever we were using it.

I think he either trashed it or something once he got a new powerbook. But that laptop will forever be known as the "Cat-Pee iBook".

 

[deusex]

Thanks for all the Info, all you guys -

How did the Milk screw up the keyboard? - is it short- circuited, stickied?...

Also, to some guys - it's not a spare keyboard - it's the actual board itself, and I got it almost 3 years ago, so no warranty there.

And about that beeping noise.....keys stuck??!!

 

[misiu_mp]

When you normally press a key on a keyboard you cause two contacts under the key to short. They are connected to a controller with leads. The controller interprets the shorted leads as a keypress.
Milk kan short any contacts or leads causing the controller to belive some keys are pressed. What might be causing the beeps is that when you keep pressing keys when the computer starts the buffer of the keybord may quickly fill up and then it will stop accepting new keys and give a beep on a keypress.
The erratic keys may also be caused by the shorting milk. If you have a lot of it there then pressing one key could cause the current to go other way,

If some of the milk got on the actual controlling circuit it could demage it permanently, so lets hopoe its not the case.
Thats why is very important to turn off all electricity quickly when a spill occurs.

Anyways what you need to do is (as stated here already):
Clean the keybord off the milk (if you cant, ask someone else - it needs to be taken apart). THERE IS NO OTHER WAY.
Bathing the parts that are not electronic is okay (keys themselves, plastic plates) but on the leads and contacts i would just use a moist cloth. Water isnt that bad for electronics as long as they are not ON while wet.
DRY everything before swithing anything on. NEVER TURN ON WET ELECTRONICS.

When you cleaned it nice, put it back and test. If it doesnt work - its bad. Trash it. Replace. Get a stand alone kaybord or a new laptop, whatever.

 

[radicalentity]

*fap fap fap*

Guys I spilled milk on my keyboard too.

:roll:

 

[everett]

No need in over spilled milk :roll: . Do not drink around your rig. That is the best advice you can get.

 

[truromeo4juliet]

Anyway of fixing that?! - This is my only computer right now...

Post some GOOD, BIG screenshots and I'll circle the areas and give detailed descriptions of how to take the keyboard out... >,>

 

[qwazzy]

only thing I could add is blow it out with air. Someone could take it apart, wipe off the copper board below the keys and that would work. Not a job for a beginner.
We have special laptop shops here, but we have almost everything in the land of M$. I take it Dell is out?

Hehe. This is the best title ever. But yeah, we do have everything in Seattle. 8O Traffic too. LOL

 

[PC_Side_Line]

what kinda milk was it?

get out the churn, churn milk in the old days was good fer makin butter

heavy milk

half n half milk

2% or 1% milk

skim or whole?

hey there ya go...shut it down immediately , sop it up with papaer towels, in the nooks n crannies, dont add water, then use a blow dryer for at least an hour on medium or low in the area of da spill.

any warranty on the laptop?

 

[deusex]

Will do -

PCSideline - read my next to last post.

 

[deusex]

W00t!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Eeything seems to work now when I turned it on just now - except I get the beeping still, and the "v" (copied and pasted from elsewhere) and the uppercase t don't work.

Suggestions?

 

[billdcat4]

Hey Guys, sorry for for posting here, but t's really urgent, and I know you guys the best - I just spilled a little milk on my Dell Inspiron 8600 Latop (Keyboard area), and now, the buttons have gone WACKO - each key stands for something else - absolutely no pattern???

Please Help!

(using my Logitech Wireless MX3200 keyboard (desktop) to type this)

Hey, ive got an 8600 as well, actually typing on it now. Damn good laptop has lasted for 3 yrs. so far without any issues. Never got to try out that expensive 4 yr warranty. What you got in her? Ive got a 1.6ghz Pentium M 725, 1.25gb of ram (just upgraded from 512), a dvd+rw, 60gb hd, ATI 9600Pro Turbo 128mb GPU, as well as the clincher a 15.4" WUXGA 1920x1200 LCD w00t!!

Cant say the same for the MX3200 though, I got it on friday as a replacement for my fried MX3100 and I must say it is in no way a proper replacement.

Anyhow, good luck fixing your 8600, hope it lasts you another decade :lol: .

 

[PC_Side_Line]

well congratz....i would use the hair dryer on medium or low again over the spill area for another 2 hrs straight

 

[deusex]

doesn't work?

 

[PC_Side_Line]

SO Deu, its been 5 days since your orig post, IS IT STILL BEEPING?

What about trying a 2nd external keybrd plugged into a UBS port or other port.

If it still makes weird beeps or chars with an external keybrd then thres a remote possiblity that the keybrd controller on ur mobo may be fried.

To change it usually means replacing the motherbrd. 8O

 

[Mobius]

You require a new laptop keyboard. Buy one from you vendor.

Remember not to pour milk into your laptop again.

 

[Eviltwin17]

dont you have a warranty for accidental damages? thats all i can think of. trying to fix a laptop yourself is risky business, if you dont have a warranty then maybe its time for a new laptop anyway

 

[darkguset]

If its not to late, go get some cheerios and pour them on your keyboard.

Mmmmmm, cheerios....

LOL!
I was thinking more like a piece of bread and a knife... milk will turn into butter slowly due to the heat coming out from the CPU... then all you need is a little honey on top of it too and you are done!

 

[deusex]

No Guys!XD - No beeping, and everything "back to normal."
Have tried various typing/games on it - left side of keys slightly less "springy," but only if you are a perfectionist, you can feel it.

to Mobius - You make it sound like It was a habit XD /JK

To the breakfast bunch - I don't really like cheerios - Toast crunch w00t!!!

Will post back if trouble ascendsXD -

Will go back posting on the Forumz!

 

[bydesign]

Milk is bad, it's a mild acid. On older Dells the screws that hold in the keyboard are labeled with a K. On newer laptops I don't think they do that anymore. Either way you can Google for the service manual if you're not adventurous. The keyboard runs from $50-150 and is connect with one or more ribbon cables that may be of the delicate variety.

 

[turboflame]

Milk is actually a mild base!

Wow I actually paid attention during chemistry class 😀

Maybe some lemon juice would neutralize it, but I wouldn't recommend it

 

[PC_Side_Line]

Lemon juice would make it even more acidic hehe

ALL milk products except for one are acidic:

http://www.cfsan.fda.gov/~comm/lacf-phs.html

The Peptonized version is used in special testing. It is very slightly basic at pH 7.1

neutral pH is 7.00

Acids are 1.0 to 6.99

Bases are 7.01 to 14.00

The Cow milk that we drink is in the 6 range which means acidic.

 

[PC_Side_Line]

THnx for saying its back to normal Deu, we love ya!

 

[turboflame]

:lol: dammit! 😳

well, maybe you could neutralize it with bleach!

c'mon, for the sake of science!

 

[qwazzy]

Interesting thread. I'll remember this one for a while.