Water damaged PC hasn't shorted but won't power up

[paler103]

Hey guys,

Thanks in advance to anyone who chimes in. I recently spilled water on my desk and a small amount flowed down the side and into the top vent of my pc. I acted as fast as I could to yank the plug and start drying, but at least a few seconds passed with water in the case and there was no crash, blue screen, shut down, shorting, or sparking of any kind.

When i inspected the inside the water missed most of everything. Some drops on the bottom of the case, some drops on non-populated spots of the mobo, some drops on the top of the GPU (its fans are downward facing and it has a metal covering on top), and some drops on the metal casing of the PSU.

After a thorough drying (paper towls) i was foolish enough to think maybe nothing actually got soaked or damaged and that i should check if it would turn back on. No dice. Nothing happened. Almost every case i see on internet forums details the computer powering on for a short time then shorting and shutting back off. But in my case, absolutely nothing happens. The power pins and wire connectors did get a bit wet so I'm concerned that could be a problem. But im very confused as when plugged back in the mobo lights go on. Which means some power is transmitting and the mobo isnt totally trashed. I've resorted to just waiting a few extra days on top of the first day i waited because I know sometimes it can take up to a week for a case to dry out. I've had a fan going on it pretty much non-stop as well.

Does anyone have any ideas about whats wrong here? It just doesn't quite add up to me. Thanks again.

 

[Supahos]

Best guess 1) PSU got wet and isn't supplying enough power to run 2) you knocked power button header off motherboard 3) you knocked any other power connector loose trying to dry it

 

[paler103]

Best guess 1) PSU got wet and isn't supplying enough power to run 2) you knocked power button header off motherboard 3) you knocked any other power connector loose trying to dry it

Thanks for the input! I definitely have my suspicions its the PSU, and luckily thats probably the least painful part for me to replace right now if drying out doesnt solve it. The power pins that actually get plugged onto are still intact and I'm sure im plugging the connectors onto the right ones. I did notice that strip of pins has 1 pin missing but IDK if thats by design or not because I've only had this board for a few months. However, the missing pin is in a section labeled for speakers or something, which im not using it for. I was pretty delicate in the drying process so I hope nothing got knocked loose, but I'll double check the bottom of the case for any detritus.

 

[USAFRet]

"some power" does not mean "full functionality".

 

[paler103]

"some power" does not mean "full functionality".

Indeed. But I'm unsure if its a power supply problem on the Unit's part or a power draw problem on the Board's part or if it just needs more time. I've had friends repeatedly spill in their cases and resolve everything with drying and waiting, but I'm not convinced that waiting is at all a sure solution.

Also thanks for the reply.

 

[USAFRet]

Impossible to say, until you dry and test everything.

I have a system where some water was spilled in it. It killed a single RAM slot. The system continued (and continues) to run several years later.

 

[paler103]

Impossible to say, until you dry and test everything.

I have a system where some water was spilled in it. It killed a single RAM slot. The system continued (and continues) to run several years later.

Interesting. I'm really hoping the motherboard and its component aren't the problem just because of the pain of buying a new one, reinstalling everything, and having to deal with re-licensing the OS and all that. Testing everything might prove a little difficult cause I don't have a lot of extra parts around currently and dont have a lot of friends with rigs living nearby either, but I'll have to figure something out.

 

[Shaun o]

The problem with a spill of water, in any case that manages to drip on the motherboard is that although you dry it off with paper towels water can often sit underneath surface mounted chip of the motherboard.

It`s often why a computer ect does not work when you think you have dried the board out or other components of the system.

The system should be put in a warm air environment for about a day or two so any water that may of seeped under Bga chips of the motherboard such as the north bridge, or south bridge chip set, bios chip or any other chips on the motherboard should be dried out using this method before any of it is turned on again.

It is the best way to ensure all water has evaporated that may be trapped under the set of chips of the motherboard.

 

[paler103]

The problem with a spill of water, in any case that manages to drip on the motherboard is that although you dry it off with paper towels water can often sit underneath surface mounted chip of the motherboard.

It`s often why a computer ect does not work when you think you have dried the board out or other components of the system.

The system should be put in a warm air environment for about a day or two so any water that may of seeped under Bga chips of the motherboard such as the north bridge, or south bridge chip set, bios chip or any other chips on the motherboard should be dried out using this method before any of it is turned on again.

It is the best way to ensure all water has evaporated that may be trapped under the set of chips of the motherboard.

Well after about 4 days of drying, fanning, and heating there are still no signs of life. The motherboard lights still come on when the power supply is switched on, but nothing happens upon hitting the power switch. No noise, no fans, nothing; I want to stress that has been the case since the first attempted boot after the spill, it never powered on and shorted or shut back down.

I bought an external power switch to see if the power connector wires or power button being wet was a problem but the new one changes nothing. At this point im pretty certain it's the PSU or MoBo, even though they both seem to be doing SOMETHING if not working entirely. Without any spare parts to swap in and test with, I'm pretty unsure how to move forward from here besides just buying all the replacements and potentially wasting a lot of money.

It's possible some small part of the motherboard is damaged and preventing a boot, but I have no idea how to isolate a problem like that or if it could be repaired without replacing the thing entirely. And replacing a motherboard is a huge pain with having to reassemble the whole rig and relicense and reinstall windows and drivers, etc.

 

[paler103]

Okay, time for an update. After some time of waiting and hoping I decided that wasn't going to help.. I ordered a new motherboard fairly convinced that would be the problem, installed it and had the same exact problem. Enough power for one light on the motherboard (ethernet port), but no response at all upon hitting the power switch.

SO, i ordered a new power supply and did a breadboard test with it, the original mobo, half the ram, my windows drive, and the processor. IT BOOTED! The fans sprang to life and all the glorious motherboard lights came on. I let it run a for a minute or two and then switched it off so I could reassemble the whole thing in the case.

After a few hours of work it was all ready to go aaaaandddd... back to square one. Ethernet light is on, but nobody's home. I've tried two different power switch connectors, different combinations of ram and no ram, the card in and out and in the alternate slot, but there are again no signs of life. I really have no idea what else could be the problem at this point and I'm at my wit's end.

Does anyone have any more ideas based on this info? It's worth noting that both the mobo and PSU replacements were the exact same models, though i think the new mobo was unnecessary because i got the breadboard boot with the old one.

 

[TMTOWTSAC]

Have you tried the new PSU with the new mobo?

 

[paler103]

Have you tried the new PSU with the new mobo?

That was going to be my next step, though i dreaded having to come to that conclusion.

BUT i tried a few last things before giving up entirely and I've got power on again! I just unplugged power for the case fans which doesnt make sense to me... but if thats a step in the right direction then so be it.

Only problem now is im not getting any video output, even though the GPU lights and fans are on.