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Mac Forum / General / Hardware / July 2007Keyboard and coffee not a great combination :(
Hi Yesterday I spilled some coffee into the keyboard of my Intel iMac. Many of the keys no longer work; in fact I'm typing now with aid of Keyboard Viewer. It is very slow :( I've googled this newsgroup and see that people have fixed this by immersing the keyboard in water. Is this a good idea? Should I dismantle keyboard first? In my attic are a pair of bondi blue iMacs. Both broken but I'm wondering if I will be okay to use one of their keyboards until this one is fixed? The bondi blue iMacs are quite inaccessible but worth it if I am confident it will work. Thank you :)  SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> > Hi > [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > Thank you :) Any USB keyboard will work just fine. So, yeah, if you can get to one of the old iMacs without hurting yourself, you should be good to go. SignatureAF "Non Sequitur U has a really, really lousy debate team." --artyw raises the bar on rec.sport.baseball > Any USB keyboard will work just fine. So, yeah, if you can get to one of > the old iMacs without hurting yourself, you should be good to go. You're right :) The original iMac keyboard seems to work fine. The colour scheme is a bit awful :) I think I'll investigate getting a new third party keyboard if the water treatment doesn't work for the Intel iMac keyboard. However the emergency is over. The internet is no longer a safe place now I have returned. SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> My wife has this problem as well. If the keys are just sticking you can pop them off and do cleanup with q-tips and alcohol. >> Any USB keyboard will work just fine. So, yeah, if you can get to one of >> the old iMacs without hurting yourself, you should be good to go. [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > The internet is no longer a safe place now I have returned. > My wife has this problem as well. If the keys are just sticking you can > pop them off and do cleanup with q-tips and alcohol. Unfortunately it cannot be fixed that easily. The coffee went into the keyboard proper. SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> > I think I'll investigate getting a new third party keyboard if the water > treatment doesn't work for the Intel iMac keyboard. I use one of these: http://www.tactilepro.com (Matias Tactile Pro Keyboard) It's very loud (clickity-clack) but I love the feel of it. Folks seem to either love it or hate it. (Mine was a gift a couple of years ago.) FWIW. SignaturePlain Bread alone for e-mail, thanks. The rest gets trashed. No HTML in E-Mail! -- http://www.expita.com/nomime.html Are you posting responses that are easy for others to follow? http://www.greenend.org.uk/rjk/2000/06/14/quoting > I use one of these: > http://www.tactilepro.com > (Matias Tactile Pro Keyboard) > > It's very loud (clickity-clack) but I love the feel of it. > Folks seem to either love it or hate it. It looks interesting. I'm going to compile a short-list of keyboards and then check them out as best I can. Thank you. SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> > Hi > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > immersing the keyboard in water. Is this a good idea? Should I dismantle > keyboard first? The bad news is, it's probably dead. Put it this way: It can't *hurt* to try immersing it in water for a while and then after making sure it's *completely* dry (wait a few days to be sure) trying it again. > In my attic are a pair of bondi blue iMacs. Both broken but I'm wondering > if I will be okay to use one of their keyboards until this one is fixed? > The bondi blue iMacs are quite inaccessible but worth it if I am confident > it will work. Yep, they should work fine. Nearly any 'generic' USB keyboard will also work fine if you need a stop-gap measure. Both G3 iMacs I have had dealings with had absolutely HORRIBLE keyboards to use however, but this may have just been the individual keyboards themselves. SignatureCheers, Andy. > The bad news is, it's probably dead. Put it this way: It can't *hurt* > to try immersing it in water for a while and then after making sure it's > *completely* dry (wait a few days to be sure) trying it again. I'm going to do this. > Yep, they should work fine. Nearly any 'generic' USB keyboard will also > work fine if you need a stop-gap measure. Both G3 iMacs I have had > dealings with had absolutely HORRIBLE keyboards to use however, but this > may have just been the individual keyboards themselves. It's working great. If water treatment doesn't work for Intel iMac keyboard I will buy an alternative. I've seen good reports about one by MacAlley in a different thread. SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> > Yesterday I spilled some coffee into the keyboard of my Intel iMac. Many of > the keys no longer work; in fact I'm typing now with aid of Keyboard > Viewer. It is very slow :( I am reminded of the old SNL skit, the Pepsi Syndrome. http://snltranscripts.jt.org/78/78ppepsi.phtml jt >> Yesterday I spilled some coffee into the keyboard of my Intel iMac. Many of >> the keys no longer work; in fact I'm typing now with aid of Keyboard >> Viewer. It is very slow :( > > I am reminded of the old SNL skit, the Pepsi Syndrome. > http://snltranscripts.jt.org/78/78ppepsi.phtml That's a great sketch :) The terrible thing about me is that I never learn. Now I have got a keyboard from one of my old deceased iMacs with the Intel iMac and I'm sipping coffee again right beside it. Fortunately I have two old deceased iMacs... SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> >Yesterday I spilled some coffee into the keyboard of my Intel iMac. Many of >the keys no longer work; in fact I'm typing now with aid of Keyboard [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >immersing the keyboard in water. Is this a good idea? Should I dismantle >keyboard first? The idea is ok, you don't need to dismantle it, just put the keyboard into your dishwasher (of course no detergent). Afterwards you need to ensure that the keyboard is completely dry before you use it again. There are two ways to achieve this: 1) wait or 2) put into pure alcohol, then wait (a much shorter period than before) or place into a vacuum. >In my attic are a pair of bondi blue iMacs. Both broken but I'm wondering >if I will be okay to use one of their keyboards until this one is fixed? >The bondi blue iMacs are quite inaccessible but worth it if I am confident >it will work. Any USB-keyboard will do. Good luck Christoph Gartmann SignatureMax-Planck-Institut fuer Phone : +49-761-5108-464 Fax: -452 Immunbiologie Postfach 1169 Internet: gartmann@immunbio dot mpg dot de D-79011 Freiburg, Germany http://www.immunbio.mpg.de/home/menue.html > The idea is ok, you don't need to dismantle it, just put the keyboard into > your dishwasher (of course no detergent). Afterwards you need to ensure that > the keyboard is completely dry before you use it again. There are two ways > to achieve this: 1) wait or 2) put into pure alcohol, then wait (a much > shorter period than before) or place into a vacuum. I don't have a dishwasher :) I'm planning on just leaving it submerged in water overnight. Then leaving it to dry for a few days. Fortunately I have a lot of time because I'm using the old keyboard from one of my original iMacs now so functionally I'm okay, it's just the colour scheme is a bit awful :) SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> >> The idea is ok, you don't need to dismantle it, just put the keyboard into >> your dishwasher (of course no detergent). Afterwards you need to ensure that [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > I don't have a dishwasher :) A dishwasher is a BAD idea anyway. the heat can do some nasty things to the plastic. If you go the water route. Make sure you let it air dry. best way is to disassemble it as best as possible and then soak it. keycaps and all. As for the alcohol idea... EVEN worse! some parts could be severly damaged by this by discoloration or damage to the membrane keypad underneath the keys. SignatureFrom the Desk of the Sysop of: Planet Maca's Opus, a Free open BBS system. telnet://pinkrose.dhis.org Web Site: http://pinkrose.dhis.org, Dialup 860-618-3091 300-33600 bps The New Cnews maintainer B'ichela >>> The idea is ok, you don't need to dismantle it, just put the keyboard into >>> your dishwasher (of course no detergent). Afterwards you need to ensure that [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > A dishwasher is a BAD idea anyway. the heat can do some nasty >things to the plastic. I forgot to mention to use the low temperature (eg. 40 degrees Celsius). > As for the alcohol idea... EVEN worse! some parts could be >severly damaged by this by discoloration or damage to the membrane >keypad underneath the keys. Done two times, with good results ;-) Regards, Christoph Gartmann SignatureMax-Planck-Institut fuer Phone : +49-761-5108-464 Fax: -452 Immunbiologie Postfach 1169 Internet: gartmann@immunbio dot mpg dot de D-79011 Freiburg, Germany http://www.immunbio.mpg.de/home/menue.html > Hi > > Yesterday I spilled some coffee into the keyboard of my Intel iMac. Many of > the keys no longer work; in fact I'm typing now with aid of Keyboard > Viewer. It is very slow :( Keyboards also don't like Soda Pop, Diet or Regular, and Milk doesn't do well in their innereds either....... >> Hi >> [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] > Keyboards also don't like Soda Pop, Diet or Regular, and Milk doesn't > do well in their innereds either....... Is even soya milk bad as well? SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> > > Keyboards also don't like Soda Pop, Diet or Regular, and Milk doesn't > > do well in their innereds either....... > > Is even soya milk bad as well? 7-up is OK, it's the un-cola. jt >>> Hi >>> [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > Is even soya milk bad as well? It's still bad but the keyboard will be less likely to die of heart disease. ;-) Paul (also in Brighton !). >> Is even soya milk bad as well? > > It's still bad but the keyboard will be less likely to die of heart > disease. ;-) LOL > Paul (also in Brighton !). I confess I'm in Hove (actually). SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> >>> Is even soya milk bad as well? >>> [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > I confess I'm in Hove (actually). Never mind - so long as you have a current passport, visa, and a return ticket you can come to Brighton any time you like and see how the better half live. ;-) Cheers, Paul >>>> Is even soya milk bad as well? >>>> [quoted text clipped - 14 lines] > > Paul That's very generous of you :) SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> > > Keyboards also don't like Soda Pop, Diet or Regular, and Milk doesn't > > do well in their innereds either....... > > Is even soya milk bad as well? Hey, if you're absolutely intent on spilling something onto your keyboard, you're best off making it distilled water. Signature<http://designsbymike.info/shop/mac.cgi> Mac and geek T-shirts & gifts <http://designsbymike.info/shop/musings.cgi> Muckraking T-shirts <http://designsbymike.info/shop/prius.cgi> Prius shirts/bumper stickers <http://designsbymike.info/shop/dance.cgi> Ballroom dance shirts & gifts > > Keyboards also don't like Soda Pop, Diet or Regular, and Milk doesn't > > do well in their innereds either....... > > Is even soya milk bad as well? Give them gas. SignaturePlain Bread alone for e-mail, thanks. The rest gets trashed. No HTML in E-Mail! -- http://www.expita.com/nomime.html Are you posting responses that are easy for others to follow? http://www.greenend.org.uk/rjk/2000/06/14/quoting > I've googled this newsgroup and see that people have fixed this by > immersing the keyboard in water. Is this a good idea? Should I dismantle > keyboard first? The old thought was that *distilled* water was best. Tap water or some other bottled waters may have impurities in them. The idea is to flush out the carmelizations left over from the coffee's evaporation. If the keyboard is dead, it won't hurt to experiment. > Hi > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > immersing the keyboard in water. Is this a good idea? Should I dismantle > keyboard first? Someone recently posted a video showing that they ran a Mac keyboard through the dishwasher. They removed the key caps, dropped them in the cutlery holder, sealed up the USB connector with a ziplock bag and some waterproof tape. I have an original Quicksilver keyboard that I will probably do this to so I can wash out all the cruft it has collected. But my SO uses a third-party keyboard, so I often get "free" keyboard upgrades when we upgrade her Mac, which leads us to... > In my attic are a pair of bondi blue iMacs. Both broken but I'm wondering > if I will be okay to use one of their keyboards until this one is fixed? > The bondi blue iMacs are quite inaccessible but worth it if I am confident > it will work. Those will both work. Signatureclvrmnky <mailto:spamtrap@clevermonkey.org> Direct replies will be blacklisted. Replace "spamtrap" with my name to contact me directly. > Someone recently posted a video showing that they ran a Mac keyboard > through the dishwasher. Thank you for this but unfortunately I don't have a dishwasher :( SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> >> Someone recently posted a video showing that they ran a Mac keyboard >> through the dishwasher. > > Thank you for this but unfortunately I don't have a dishwasher :( You can get industrial cleaners for electronic equipment that work fine in keyboards. Basically it is an inert mild solvent that has a very low boiling point that you spray liberally into the keyboard. It will carry away all the gunk, but will dry up nearly instantly. That is, if you spray it on your hand, it will boil away very quickly (like ether, only without all the chance of explosion or loss of consciousness). Used to clean keyboards and other electronic equipment on shop floors. Used to use it when I worked at a sheet-metal fabrication shop. Don't get the stuff that is used to clean and lube passive components like pots and switches. The stuff I'm talking about is just a fast-drying solvent that is safe for use on plastics and electronics. Might be hard to find, but works a treat. Signatureclvrmnky <mailto:spamtrap@clevermonkey.org> Direct replies will be blacklisted. Replace "spamtrap" with my name to contact me directly. I have read of people putting the keyboard through the dishwasher with success. Don't use soap. A quick Google shows "Results 1 - 10 of about 406,000 English pages for dishwasher keyboard clean. (0.34 seconds)" > I have read of people putting the keyboard through the dishwasher with > success. Don't use soap. The problem for me with this is that I don't have a dishwasher :( SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> > > I have read of people putting the keyboard through the dishwasher with > > success. Don't use soap. > > The problem for me with this is that I don't have a dishwasher :( My son put his in the shower and really soaked it. Then let it dry for several days in a warm dry place. Signature-- Lou Pecora When I was a kid my parents moved a lot, but I always found them. (R.Dangerfield) > My son put his in the shower and really soaked it. Then let it dry for > several days in a warm dry place. That's interesting. I'm going to be more sophisticated. I'm going to immerse mine in distilled water for a couple of days then leave it to dry for a long time. Fortunately my stand in keyboard (from an original iMac) works just fine so I can take my time about it. I do have a water distiller because although the water which comes out of the tap in Brighton & Hove is fit for human consumption it tastes horrible. So I distil water which I drink myself. It's far cheaper than bottled water and imho far nicer. SignaturePatrick - Brighton, UK If you wish email me from my web-site: <http://www.patrickjames.me.uk> Inventory service in Sussex: <http://www.inventoryworks.co.uk> |
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