Fixing possible water damage?

[WTFGoD]

Spilled a cup of water on my keyboard a week ago. I probably waited too long to unplug it but after letting it dry for a few days it seems to work....conditionally.

It only seems to work when the cable  (a new cable ) is plugged in at specific angles. So, naturally I thought it was the connector, which is odd because I don't think water got on the connector. Although the cable did get quite wet and it is braided, so I'm not sure if water got into the cable and did something...or something. (I'm not a doctor)

What I've done so far is pour alcohol on things - it helps people, so I figured it would be the same for keyboards. After, it seems the connector works at more angles, seemingly confirming that it is the connector, but it's not really usable as-is. Should I continue trying to clean the connector out? Will that risk damaging the leads? Is there a better way? Does life really have any meaning?

TL:DR - spilled water, keyboard only works with a new cable pushed to a specific angle.

[xtrafrood]

Ouch, yea cleaning the usb port could be a good start.

[tp4tissue]

/headscratch...

um.. what area did the water land... also, taking it apart to dry is best..

Don't worry about the cable, worst case,  you can solder the cable directly to the keyboard.

[WTFGoD]

/headscratch...

um.. what area did the water land... also, taking it apart to dry is best..

Don't worry about the cable, worst case,  you can solder the cable directly to the keyboard.

Landed to the far left, connector is on the far right. The braided cable was sitting in the pool of the water though...

I guess...osmosis?!?

No clue.

Cleaning the port a few times seems to have made it kind of usable, it does stay connected as long as I stay very, very still. (Typing on it now...slowly)

[xtrafrood]

That sounds less than ideal. Holy moley did you fry the usb port?! But how?!

[tp4tissue]

Well, the controller should be fine then.. Um..

Yea.. prolly still recommend taking it apart to fully air out.


If it's just clear water,  everything should be fine once dry..


if your water is hard, with lots of minerals... and is indeed leaving calcified residue, or shorting things... an alcohol rinse would help,  you'd want 99% alcohol for this.. because 90 and 70 have 10% and 30% water..

[Jin]

maybe use a hairdry....

[WTFGoD]

Everything is already dry. I didn't post this until like 4-6 days after it happen.

The keyboard does work, kind-of. The angle for the mini usb cable has to be at a specific angle or else it loses connectivity...

[xtrafrood]

Everything is already dry. I didn't post this until like 4-6 days after it happen.

The keyboard does work, kind-of. The angle for the mini usb cable has to be at a specific angle or else it loses connectivity...

Like tp said it almost sounds like there is some kind of build up inside the USB port of the keyboard. If you used a different cable with the same results then odds are it has to do with the port. I'm sorry if you have a boat, I'm sure your boat is fine, I meant your USB port.

[WTFGoD]

Everything is already dry. I didn't post this until like 4-6 days after it happen.

The keyboard does work, kind-of. The angle for the mini usb cable has to be at a specific angle or else it loses connectivity...

Like tp said it almost sounds like there is some kind of build up inside the USB port of the keyboard. If you used a different cable with the same results then odds are it has to do with the port. I'm sorry if you have a boat, I'm sure your boat is fine, I meant your USB port.

Hi csmertx,

I do believe this is the case, although I'm not quite sure how. The original cable I was using actually doesn't seem to work, or at the very least, is much, much more difficult to get connected at an angle that will allow persistent connectivity. I am using a different cable, which as mentioned does seem to provide steady connectivity, at least at some specific angles.

I have focused my efforts so far in attempting to clean out the mini usb port with a brush and alcohol. While this possibly has increased connectivity, allowing for a greater range of angles in which a connection can be sustained, the results are still sub-optimal. Are there any other potential ways to clean out this mini usb port?

Ideally I would like to avoid replacing it completely, as my soldering skills are...well, let's just hope it doesn't come to that.

[xtrafrood]

Everything is already dry. I didn't post this until like 4-6 days after it happen.

The keyboard does work, kind-of. The angle for the mini usb cable has to be at a specific angle or else it loses connectivity...

Like tp said it almost sounds like there is some kind of build up inside the USB port of the keyboard. If you used a different cable with the same results then odds are it has to do with the port. I'm sorry if you have a boat, I'm sure your boat is fine, I meant your USB port.

Hi csmertx,

I do believe this is the case, although I'm not quite sure how. The original cable I was using actually doesn't seem to work, or at the very least, is much, much more difficult to get connected at an angle that will allow persistent connectivity. I am using a different cable, which as mentioned does seem to provide steady connectivity, at least at some specific angles.

I have focused my efforts so far in attempting to clean out the mini usb port with a brush and alcohol. While this possibly has increased connectivity, allowing for a greater range of angles in which a connection can be sustained, the results are still sub-optimal. Are there any other potential ways to clean out this mini usb port?

Ideally I would like to avoid replacing it completely, as my soldering skills are...well, let's just hope it doesn't come to that.

I can understand you wanting to avoid usb port soldering, it can be tricky. Wooden toothpicks could help. Maybe dip the toothpicks in alcohol first. If that doesn't help you might have a more complicated issue with that usb port, especially if the port wiggles while you clean it with the toothpick.

[tp4tissue]

maybe use a hairdry....

Be very careful with hairdryer..  very easy to cause the keyboard to WARP.. because the heat is not applied evenly to the whole structure.