MacBook Water Damage: What to Do (and What Not to Do)
Today we had a 14-inch M4 MacBook Pro come in for inspection after the customer accidentally spilled water over the keyboard. This happens more often than people think — and what you do in the first few minutes can be the difference between a simple clean-up and a full logic board repair.
The biggest mistake: “Let me just check if it still works”
It’s really tempting to power it on after a spill to see whether everything seems fine. Please don’t.
Even if the MacBook boots, the damage may already be starting underneath — and turning it on can push it over the edge.
What you should do immediately after a spill
If liquid gets on your MacBook:
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Turn it off immediately (or leave it off if it turned off on its own)
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Do not plug it in
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Do not try to charge it
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Bring it to a repair shop ASAP
The key goal is simple: disconnect the battery as soon as possible. The sooner the battery is disconnected, the less time electricity has to react with moisture and contaminants.
Why water damage gets worse fast
Water (and most liquids) don’t just “dry up” harmlessly inside a MacBook.
Two things happen quickly:
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Short circuits
If there’s liquid on the logic board, electricity can jump where it shouldn’t. That can instantly damage tiny components — sometimes in a fraction of a second. -
Corrosion
Corrosion can set in fast, especially once power is involved. A MacBook can still be “off” but the battery is still connected, and that’s enough to accelerate corrosion. Charging it makes things worse again — higher power, more heat, more reaction.
“But it was only water…”
Even plain water can be a problem, but many spills aren’t just water:
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coffee / tea
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soft drink / juice
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wine / beer
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electrolyte drinks
These leave sticky residue and minerals behind, which increases corrosion and can create long-term faults — even if it seems fine initially.
The rice trick doesn’t work (and it’s too slow)
Let’s address the classic:
Putting your MacBook in rice is too slow to be effective.
Rice might help with a damp phone speaker over time, but MacBooks are a different story. The real danger is what’s happening inside, on the board, while you’re waiting. By the time rice has done anything, corrosion and shorting may already have done the damage.
What we do in a proper water-damage inspection
A proper inspection typically involves:
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opening the MacBook and disconnecting the battery
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assessing for liquid entry points and affected areas
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checking for corrosion under shields and around connectors
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cleaning and stabilising affected zones
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testing safely after the board has been cleaned and dried properly
If you’ve spilled liquid on your MacBook
If this just happened, don’t gamble with it. Turn it off, don’t charge it, and get it checked as soon as possible.