A guy at the coffee shop told me his 'tech friend' fixed his laptop with a hair dryer

I was grabbing a coffee in Phoenix when the guy next to me started talking about his broken laptop. He said his screen went black after he spilled soda on it. He told me, 'My buddy who knows computers just held a hair dryer to it for ten minutes and it worked again.' I tried to explain that might dry the spill but also melt internal parts or push liquid deeper. He just shrugged and said his buddy saved him a repair bill. Has anyone else had to undo a 'fix' like that from a well-meaning amateur?

2 comments

2 Comments

patp794d ago

Oh man, that reminds me of the time I tried to fix a sticky keyboard with a can of air and just blasted crumbs everywhere (like, deep under the keys where they became a permanent crunchy feature). Sometimes the "quick fix" just makes a whole new problem.

mark_smith594d ago

That hair dryer trick is a classic bad move. Seen it melt the plastic frame around laptop screens more than once. The heat can wreck the glue holding parts together too. Better to just pull the battery fast and let it dry out for a few days.