Thinkpads Forum

Hi! I accidentally spilled some water on my T430 yesterday and now it's having trouble starting up (at all).

Some specs:
Series: Thinkpad T430
Machine Type Model: 2342CTO / 2342CT0
Enhancements: Ultrabay HDD Caddy
OS: Windows 7

The issue:
I spilled a wee bit (20 ml) of water on the upper part of my keyboard yesterday, and some of it was around the power button. Turned it off, removed battery, but eventually it would not turn on. When first plugged into the adapter, the power button will light up for a second then die, and nothing happens - no other led indicators light up, no screen, no whirring of fans or spinning of hard drive, nothing.

Tried:
Unplugging the BIOS / CMOS / Mobo Battery for reset.
Pressing power button 10 times with 1 second intervals, wait 30 seconds, then plug in adapter.
Waiting 12 hours for internal spill to dry.

Does anybody have any ideas? Also how do I know if this is beyond hope - I need a working laptop in a week.
Much thanks!

Moderator edit: Moved this thread from initially (and incorrectly) being posted in the T4x-forum.

Since you spilled water on the top of the keyboard, it might have seeped through the small gap between the keyboard and the bezel around it.

Whenever a laptop gets wet, you must check if the internals are OK. This involves removing the keyboard and visually inspecting the system board and other components.

Then again, all of this is moot since your laptop doesn't properly turn on anymore. If it's still within warranty, you have to send it to a service center for repair-- they'll probably end up replacing the system board.

12 hours won't air dry it. You might remove keyboard etc. and using a hair blow dryer attempt to heat and dry the inside. Disassemble as far as you're comfortable with and give it a try.