Wet Graphics Card.

[Richards27]

So I came home from work today only to find the top of my case was covered in liquid, I've got a design R4, so the top of my case has mesh then a layer of sound dampening material, I opened it up and it seems my graphics card has been covered in liquid too.
I identified the liquid as a flat McDonalds Sprite, must have leaked out of the cup and off of the desk onto my PC.

How can I clean my Graphics card thoroughly and remove sticky residue, the liquid could have been sitting there for at least 6 hours. Im pretty sure the liquid is only in my GPU and I haven't touched it, wasn't plugged in at the time but I'm scared it could be in other places.

 

[Rit_86]

Sugar charged liquid is killer for any PC component. probably it will be damaged beyond repair the next time you switch it on. It may sound crazy, but since the gpu is already as good as dead, you can try and wash it with clean water thoroughly and dry it thoroughly under the sun for atleast 2 days and then use a hairdryer to dry it further and then try to switch it on.
PS: Keep your fingers crossed.

 

[ccampy]

Remove the psu and take out every component from the motherboard and check them all for liquid reidue and clean then with something like isopropyl alcohol also check the ram and PCI slots for and water in them then Lett everything dry for at least 24hours in a warm room before attempting to start your pc

 

[fudgecakes99]

Well luckily you didn't run any power into it i'd remove it for one. Look up some disassemble videos for your gpu buy some new thermal paste i'm assuming your card has a physical heat sink and isn't water cooled. Get lint free cloths i believe isopropyl alcohol will do the trick the higher the alcohol content the better! Water=bad conductive causes shorts soda=sticky water and make sure it is COMPLETELY DRY before trying anything. Lastly pray to the gods that you're gpu isn't sent to the great moba in the sky. That and or check warranty?

 

[fudgecakes99]

Remember Hard dryers are your friend so are heat guns. just don't melt the pcb.

 

[Quixit]

Remove the psu and take out every component from the motherboard and check them all for liquid reidue and clean then with something like isopropyl alcohol also check the ram and PCI slots for and water in them then Lett everything dry for at least 24hours in a warm room before attempting to start your pc

This solution here. Don't set your hopes too high though, soda is acidic and tends to damage electronics very easily. Also make sure you you isoproply rubbing alcohol (at least 90% pure) because other rubbing alcohol compounds will kill electronics.

 

[Rit_86]

Excuse me guys, do you remember a little subject called "chemistry" back in school ?
Isopropyl alcohol does not dissolve sugars too well. Here are some basic chemistry lessons
http://www.inquiryinaction.org/classroomactivities/activity.php?id=16
http://enrichingexperience.blogspot.in/2008/05/comparing-solubility-of-sugar-in-water.html
At the most, you can try the alcohol after the water treatment.

 

[Richards27]

Don't know if it matters too much but the soda was VERY flat, like maybe a week old and it diffused through a cardboard cup so I don't know if its still gonna be as lethal.
I'm also not too confident about washing my GPU in water let alone disassembling the card.
Checking RMA now, when is an RMA deadline? I got it at Christmas.

 

[fudgecakes99]

Depends where'd you get the gpu from. Also if you wanna salvage it which it might be too late 6 hours is a long while. I'd go is. Also that sugar experiment is assuming it's just pure sugar and not soda correct? Sure some residue will be left over but i'm willing to bet the alcohol is the safest choice.

 

[Rit_86]

To fudgecakes99, if it has been standing for more than 6 hours, it is highly likely that much of the liquid part has evaporated leaving behind the sticky sugary part. The challenge is to get it off cleanly.
To Richards27, you can try to RMA it, but if they check it, you will have an assured busted card and no replacement.

 

[fudgecakes99]

try to clean it up as well as you can then, it seems its the only thing you can do. Don't try and turn it on without getting rid of the dried sugar/soda mess.

 

[ko888]

Don't know if it matters too much but the soda was VERY flat, like maybe a week old and it diffused through a cardboard cup so I don't know if its still gonna be as lethal.
I'm also not too confident about washing my GPU in water let alone disassembling the card.
Checking RMA now, when is an RMA deadline? I got it at Christmas.

Use distilled water to do the initial washing/rinsing since it doesn't have any minerals in it that will leave a deposit. Use pure isopropyl alcohol as a final rinse since it will mix with and draw out any remaining water and evaporate quicker.

A GPU damaged by the user is not covered under warranty. It's usually the first thing they look for.

 

[fudgecakes99]

go with what ko888 totally forgot that distilled water is non conductive, also perfect for getting out the crappy sugar dried mess. Then do a wipe with non lint cloth of 99% isopropyl followed by a hair dryer/heat gun. Leave it to dry at least a full day to be on the safe side though if you heat dry it, it'll probably done in a couple hours .

 

[Richards27]

I see, I don't have distilled water to hand but I have a lot of 100% Icopropol Alcohol I can use.
I'm planning to spray the exposed areas with alcohol from a generic spray bottle then rinse it through with the remaining alcohol and leave for 32 ish hours in a warm room then plug it in and pray for the best.
It won't have evaporated yet, the room and case it is stored in are very cool, and when I removed the card some liquid dripped out although its going to be very sticky.

 

[Richards27]

I've also just read that Isopropyl alcohol can damage plastic components, I'm using a Sapphire R9 270x toxic which has a plastic fan guard and fans, ive also heard it dissolves thermal paste applied to the GPU, is it still safe to pour the alcohol into the card? Or should I just lightly spray in affected areas?

 

[fudgecakes99]

I'd still try to get your hands on some distilled water walmart should have some or your local store. It's fairly cheap and it'll soften up the stick mess for your Isopropyl to finish it.

 

[ko888]

You need to disassemble the graphics card to be able to do a proper cleaning job.

 

[Richards27]

I would totally go down to Wallmart, but I'm from England and we don't have those here =/
Thanks for all the help, I've sprayed my GPU with isopropyl alcohol all the way through and I've stuck it in a warm room, my plan is to let it drip through the same way the liquid did so in theory it should get to all the places the liquid got to, my spray bottle is pretty high power so it should have broken up most of the sugary crap in there. Thanks guys, looks like its fingers crossed from here on in, will write back here on Wednesday if it worked or not.

 

[fudgecakes99]

Tesco?

 

[Richards27]

Yeah, We've got Tescos instead, but they were shut before I could head out and I have already doused it in alcohol now anyway.
Tescos sucks to be honest, its like a crappy version of Wallmart but with less Americans.

 

[Richards27]

If anyone reads this, Card works now so if you have this problem do exactly what was suggested here.

 

[fudgecakes99]

If anyone reads this, Card works now so if you have this problem do exactly what was suggested here.

Glad to see it worked. So what'd you end up doing exactly? For reference?

 

[Richards27]

Firstly I filled a spray bottle with Isopropyll alcohol and really gave it a good coating to the point of where it was drenched, the spray bottle let it get nice and deep in the heatsink etc, then I left it for 24 hours in a warm room, then I poured a load of isopropyll alcohol over it to rinse the card out then left it for another 24 hours then tried it.