Spilled water into the computer... ya I know

[zozoman]

Hello everyone,

I wish I was posting about something a little bit more cheerful, but I accidentally spilled water on the top of my computer and a little bit got in.

I believe that there is little to no water damage, not that much water got in thankfully. However, I have noticed messages in the bios stating that sensors OPT 1 and 3 are over heating. Those didn't ring a bell to me so I took a look at my mobo and where it says OPT 1 and OPT 3 nothing is there, it is just a couple of solder points (for a higher end version of my mobo I bet).

This only started to happen after the water was spilled into the computer. The temps for these two fans are 110 degrees celious while everything else is normal (cpu is 30 degrees).

I wanted to get a few opinions on this. Could these messages just be harmless errors or is there something more serious going on? As I said earlier, it dosn't seem to be anything connected to those OPT points.

Here are some pictures.

 

[aford10]

I wouldn't worry about it if it's not effecting the performance.

Give it a little time for the water to dry up, and then check back in the BIOS to see if the temps go back down.

 

[violentlyhappy91]

Alright, it happened to me, except it blew my resistor up. Turn the board off, take it out, and look VERY close, if there is any burns or anything of that sort, it's damaged. A motherboard won't report an error like that unless it's important. Dry the board, a hair dryer will do. If the problem persists, go for a warranty. Water does cause damage, it could have caused a short.

 

[chefboyeb]

I would look into taking the mobo out and paying close attention to it like happy91 said... You might wanna try doing an RMA, but conceal the fact that the problem is water damage related and tell them the board is dysfunctional... Don't ignore warnings like this, unless you dont mind frying your cpu, memory or your entire setup for that matter... Cos all components are electrical and could easily get shorted also... Good luck...

 

[Starges]

http://alonzorainero.com/pictures/water2.jpg
http://alonzorainero.com/pictures/water3.jpg

Sorry about the water thing, but if those are cobwebs i see on the back of your machine, then i think spiders are what you should be worried about.
Maybe one of them got fried on your mobo. :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

 

[chefboyeb]

Lmaoh! How did i miss that... Cobwebs tho... Lol

 

[zozoman]

Thats cat hair and dust, lol. I have 4 cats so it's impossible to keep cat hair out of the pc. I blow out the entire computer about once every 3 months, it's just hard to do recently because of winter. I live in a small house so the only place to blow the dust out is outside.

As for the mobo, I believe it is shot; it has been just flaking out (doing reboots, monitors shut off, and etc). Thanks for the help and advice from everyone. I think I'm going to get a cheap LGA 775 and give this computer to my mom, hers is on its way out now that I think of it. For myself, I'm thinking of just doing a semi-upgrade and getting a new mobo, ddr 3 ram, and a new cpu.

I currently have a Q6600, 4 gig ddr2, 4870, and xfi card... The video and sound card aren't that outdated.

Does anyone have any suggestions on good i7's and mobo to overclock? I plan to overclock on aircooling (a zalman) and would like to get similar performance I got out of my Q6600 (I got it from 2.4ghz to 3.38 ghz).

Thanks a again for the help,

-Alonzo

 

[aford10]

Try turning off the OPT overheat protection. You may have simply messed up the sensor. The protection could be shutting down the PC to avoid what it thinks is high temps.

 

[chefboyeb]

Check my system specs... That should help you a little...

 

[zozoman]

I will do that, thanks.

aford10, I'm actually not sure anymore if that is the only damage. I think there is more to it now. Everything is just acting "weird". I'm gonna bite the bullet on this foolish mistake I made and get a new cpu, ram, and mobo and salvage the rest of my current comp into a server.

Thanks again to everyone who helped, it was greatly appreciated!

 

[aford10]

You're welcome,
Good luck.

 

[chefboyeb]

You're welcome... Good luck...

 

[llorton]

I would look into taking the mobo out and paying close attention to it like happy91 said... You might wanna try doing an RMA, but conceal the fact that the problem is water damage related and tell them the board is dysfunctional. .

?

Wouldn't this be considered, well I don't know, lying and cheating the manufacturer?

 

[aford10]

It's a dishonest move.

 

[chefboyeb]

Really? Wow! Some seriously holy bunch we have here huh? I hope these manufacturers feel the same way you guys do... Of all the profits they make shelving overpriced products that barely do what they claim they could, how much would they lose replacing a single motherboard? Smdh!

 

[aford10]

I just call it like I see it. People pulling that kind of crap aren't helping to bring down the cost of parts at all. One motherboard isn't going to cost them much, you're right. But what if 1,000 people do it? 5,000? Ya, the cost starts to add up pretty quick.

I realize that's not going to change anything. You'd still do the same thing. Like I said, I just call it like I see it.

 

[llorton]

Really? Wow! Some seriously holy bunch we have here huh? I hope these manufacturers feel the same way you guys do... Of all the profits they make shelving overpriced products that barely do what they claim they could, how much would they lose replacing a single motherboard? Smdh!

aford10 is right. you are just trying to find a rationalization for your own dishonest act.

 

[chefboyeb]

Are you saying, between the two of you, there's never been a time that you've returned an item or rma a computer part that you clearly messed with resulting in it's failure, but failed to mention in the rma process? Let's be real... I'm not squeeky clean and never would be, but at least i'm totally honest about it... Can't stand y'all holier than thou people... Posers!!!

 

[aford10]

Yes, I can say I've never damaged something, and then returned it, claiming it came like that or was DOA.

What you are advocating, is theft. You don't feel like footing the bill for something you damaged, so you'll just take it from someone else. If you can't stand those who follow the rules, it's likely because you feel guilty that you don't.

 

[Starges]

Are you saying, between the two of you, there's never been a time that you've returned an item or rma a computer part that you clearly messed with resulting in it's failure, but failed to mention in the rma process? Let's be real... I'm not squeeky clean and never would be, but at least i'm totally honest about it... Can't stand y'all holier than thou people... Posers!!!

+10 on that!!

Posers!!

 

[aford10]

It's called honesty and accountability. These are qualities that you should have been raised with.

 

[llorton]

Are you saying, between the two of you, there's never been a time that you've returned an item or rma a computer part that you clearly messed with resulting in it's failure, but failed to mention in the rma process? Let's be real... I'm not squeeky clean and never would be, but at least i'm totally honest about it... Can't stand y'all holier than thou people... Posers!!!

Don't assume that everyone around you has the same ethical standards.

Also, you might consider the inherent wisdom of encouraging theft on the website of a retailer that you might do business with.

Isn't that like walking into a store and announcing that you might shoplift if you get the chance?

 

[chefboyeb]

Exactly... Preach on brother....