One minute you’re enjoying a cup of coffee while working on your laptop, and the next, your drink is all over your keyboard.
This nightmare scenario is surprisingly common — it’s one of the most common types of requests that we receive, and in general, the prognosis for data recovery is excellent (more on that in a moment).
And while spilled liquid can be a serious threat to your laptop and your data, it’s important to stay calm. The safest course of action is to immediately power down your computer, avoid any attempts to turn it back on, and contact a professional data recovery provider. Here’s why.
What happens when you spill liquid on a laptop?
Liquid spills can cause a number of significant issues, including:
- Short Circuits: Liquids conduct electricity, and when they come into contact with circuitry, they can cause unwanted connections (short circuits). As electricity travels those paths, components are damaged.
- Corrosion: Even if your laptop appears to function after a spill, most can cause corrosion over time. Corrosion can gradually degrade the delicate connections on your hard drive or SSD, making it difficult or impossible to access your data.
- Hard Drive Damage: Liquid can seep into the drive’s enclosure and damage the spinning platters or the read/write head. This physical damage can lead to data loss, and if the drive operates in a failed condition, that data loss may be permanent.
- SSD Damage: While solid-state drives (SSDs) don’t have moving parts like hard drives, they are still susceptible to liquid damage. SSDs store data electronically, and damage to the controller or memory chips can be difficult to address.
It’s crucial to remember that even if your laptop seems to work fine after a spill, there could be hidden damage that will eventually lead to data loss.
What is the data recovery prognosis for a water-damaged laptop?
The good news is that the chances of successful data recovery from a liquid-damaged laptop are generally high, especially if you act quickly (and avoid making the situation worse by running the computer).
Data recovery engineers will disassemble the storage media, clean and dry each component, and repair any issues. Depending on the extent of the damage, other steps may be necessary (for example, firmware adjustments might be necessary in some cases).
With that said, an important caveat: The longer you wait to seek professional help, the higher the risk of permanent data loss.
Trust the leaders in laptop data recovery
If you’ve spilled liquid onto your laptop — or submerged your laptop in liquid, which also happens quite often — your chances of a successful case result remain high, provided that you keep the computer powered off.
Follow these steps:
- Turn off the power as quickly as possible. Don’t worry about going through a “safe shutdown” process; just unplug it, hold the power button until the laptop turns off, and disconnect the battery.
- Don’t attempt to dry the laptop. That can accelerate corrosion.
- Don’t attempt the “rice trick.” Rice is somewhat absorbent, but it’s not useful for preserving electronics.
- Contact a professional data recovery provider that operates actual laboratories at each of its locations. Avoid companies with “ship only” offices, which may not be able to clean and dry the computer before corrosion becomes a serious concern.
Datarecovery.com has a proven track record of successful data recovery from liquid-damaged laptops. Our no data, no charge guarantee ensures that you only pay if the files you need are successfully recovered, and with certified cleanrooms and best-in-class technology, we’re ready to help you restore your files.
Set up a case online or call 1-800-237-4200 to get started.
