How to clean a 15" Powerbook (Al) keyboard (backlit)????

psychobass213psychobass213
Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
I accidently (obviously) spilled fruit punch or something on my 15" backlit keyboard and now the keys that it spilled on are real crappy, they stick and stuff. How would I go about cleaning them? I tried popping off the keys but they wouldn't come off, I was afraid to break them. Are they permanently attached now that they're backlit? Will I have to replace the keyboard?? CAN I replace the keyboard? Please help my new toy!

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 12
    ast3r3xast3r3x Posts: 5,012member
    Drink purified water so that if you spill it, the electricity doesn't get conducted Let it dry and no stickies. There was a thread a bit ago bout pictures of someone taking a 15" AlBook apart. Perhaps that will give you some insight. Just search for it, or perhaps someone can post a link as I have no idea what it is called.
  • Reply 2 of 12
    matt ftmatt ft Posts: 87member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by ast3r3x

    [B]Drink purified water so that if you spill it, the electricity doesn't get conducted



    Water always conducts.
  • Reply 3 of 12
    amaroneamarone Posts: 75member
    Disassembled 15"AlBook



    good luck!
  • Reply 4 of 12
    machemmachem Posts: 319member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by Matt FT

    Water always conducts.



    Actually, water is a non-electrolye (non-conducting liquid).



    Depending upon what drink you are drinking, it may or may not conduct electricity. Usually drink damage to computer equipment has to do with immersion, not conductivity.
  • Reply 5 of 12
    sonofsylvanussonofsylvanus Posts: 579member


    I love it when someone goes "Actually..." and then goes on to display their knowledge of some obscure subject.
  • Reply 6 of 12
    ichiban_jayichiban_jay Posts: 660member
    No, water never conducts electricity by itself. Only if it has electrolytes such as salts and other minerals will it conduct. Or if it has a EXTREMELY high amount of electricity, like lightening.
  • Reply 7 of 12
    machemmachem Posts: 319member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by SonOfSylvanus



    I love it when someone goes "Actually..." and then goes on to display their knowledge of some obscure subject.



    ...You say obscure, I say my life.



    Now if I were to make some comment about how G3 processors are , in fact altivec-capable, you'd need a hipboots to wade through the posts. Heh.
  • Reply 8 of 12
    ast3r3xast3r3x Posts: 5,012member
    Don't ask why I only thought about this now, but I'm sure you still have AppleCare support...probably telephone support still too. They might be able to help you out if you aren't comfortable taking your computer apart.



    Will you let us know how it goes, in case the worst would happen I'd like to know if I can take off my keys or clean my keyboard.





    PS: I hear pure H2O doesn't taste very good...or perhaps it is no taste, I've never had it but the minerals are what gives it it's taste.
  • Reply 9 of 12
    dmband0026dmband0026 Posts: 2,345member
    Just a tip...don't ever ever ever ever ever ever drink fruit punch by your beautiful machine again. When I get my PB G5 (I can dream!) I'm not letting anyone near it. I will not eat or drink anything by it either. A computer's #1 enemy is liquid closely followed at #2 by heat.
  • Reply 10 of 12
    philbyphilby Posts: 124member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by DMBand0026

    Just a tip...don't ever ever ever ever ever ever drink fruit punch by your beautiful machine again. When I get my PB G5 (I can dream!) I'm not letting anyone near it. I will not eat or drink anything by it either. A computer's #1 enemy is liquid closely followed at #2 by heat.



    Best thing really is to encase it in a pretty glass box, with some moody lighting, and maybe a white shine-through turntable bottom slowly turning and thereby showing off the G5 PowerBook in all its glory. Make it airtight, too, so there won't be any dust and stuff.
  • Reply 11 of 12
    the placid casualthe placid casual Posts: 49member
    This *may* work... worked on an iBook keyboard/Dr Pepper incident a few years ago...



    Get a large can of pray/aerosol contact cleaner.



    Spray it on the affected area, and it will hopefully dissolve the fruit punch and pretty then much evaporate...



    I would then take to it with cans of compressed air to dry things out...



    Good luck,



    Marc
  • Reply 12 of 12
    ast3r3xast3r3x Posts: 5,012member
    Can we get a follow up of what happened and how?
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