I spilled coffee on my new Mini M

[Victor524287]

Hello,

I spilled a bit of coffee (black, no sugar) on my Mini M keyboard, not a lot, but some liquid did find its was into the hole by the support for the spacebar stabilizer.

I cleaned the keyboard and it has had a couple of days to dry. Sadly, some keys do not register (S, B, spacebar), and the N key registers while pressing some keys around it. I know I can sent the keyboard for repair to Unicomp, but I am wondering it there is something I can try to fix it myself, as the shipping from Canada will make sending it to fix not only take a long time, but also more expensive.

Does anyone know what I may try to do to fix it?

Kind regards.

[-Space-NATO-]

Screw/Bolt mod?
Be more careful with liquids near your boards!

[thefarside]

My guess is some of the coffee got in the layers of the membrane and is causing the keys not to register. To fix this you’ll need to disassemble the board to access the membrane sheets to clean them off. Doing this will require you to break off your rivets on the back of the metal plate that hold the barrel assembly to the back plate, voiding your warranty and requiring a bolt or screw mod. You can find more info on the bolt/screw mod here:
viewtopic.php?t=9169

Once the membranes are accessible you can see where the coffee went, clean and test the contacts before reassembling.

In general this is a common practice, but I will caution that Unicomp told me they will not fix any keyboard that has a bolt or screw mod, so if you do this you can’t send it to them later.

[fohat]

Unicomp told me they will not fix any keyboard that has a bolt or screw mod

My understanding is that they open the case, remove the internal assembly, and drop in a new one.
If that is the procedure, it makes the price more palatable.

[Muirium]

They have to. When a membrane is shorted out by fluids, it’s so much work cracking everything apart just to clean it down, it’s not worth their time or materials.

If it’s worth yours: great. But a bolt / screw mod is the most invasive procedure imaginable for a keyboard. Open heart surgery, almost literally.

[SK-8K]

I had a similar experience with my Model M. (The "Ultra Classic" that Unicomp doesn't make anymore). Haven't gotten around to repairing it yet but I plan to clean, boltmod, and repair any corroded traces with conductive glue.

[thefarside]

Unicomp told me they will not fix any keyboard that has a bolt or screw mod

My understanding is that they open the case, remove the internal assembly, and drop in a new one.
If that is the procedure, it makes the price more palatable.

Yes I think it’s easier for them to replace the assembly and they probably don’t want to deal with the bolts or screws.

Considering how new the keyboard is it couldn’t hurt asking Unicomp how much it would cost to have them repair it. I recently purchased screws and washers for a screw mod and it cost $30!

[Muirium]

Screw mod is excellent value for money. It’s the skill and time that’s the tricky part.

[thefarside]

Screw mod is excellent value for money. It’s the skill and time that’s the tricky part.

The skill part matters! When doing my first bolt mod I thought I’d be clever and drill additional relief into the back plate using a large drill bit and accidentally drilled right through it, along with the membrane and barrel plate…

The only salvageable part was the back plate. I drilled through a trace and flipper retainer. To make matters worse I shipped it to clickykeyboards.com and the case and several keys were destroyed while in transit. This poor keyboard has been doing fine for 31 years until it met me

[fohat]

I recently purchased screws and washers for a screw mod and it cost $30!

Ordering from China on ebay would be a fraction of that, but it will take 3-4 weeks to get them.
But they usually come in packs of 100 so get get enough for another procedure.

Order now and keep them for the future!

[jsheradin]

For anyone in the US, these work perfectly when paired with a 1.5mm drill bit. $2.96/pack of 100. No washers needed.

[thefarside]

For anyone in the US, these work perfectly when paired with a 1.5mm drill bit. $2.96/pack of 100. No washers needed.

Excellent thanks!

[digital_matthew]

It may be worthwhile to ask Unicomp if you can buy a new barrel assembly and install it yourself. It will be cheaper than having them repair it and it isn't a difficult operation.

[Victor524287]

Thank you for all the replies.

I did contact Unicomp and they will charge $40 to repair the keyboard, which is fair, but it is the shipping that makes it more expensive.

I am considering doing the screw mod to clean it, but I just re-tested the keyboard and to my surprise all the keys but B are working now! Perhaps I just need to wait for the liquid to dry completely? It has been 4 days since the spill.

A long time ago when I bought my Model M I put it on the dishwasher (it was incredibly filthy), I waited a few days for it to dry and it has been going strong ever since for more than 15 years now. Not that I am seriously considering it, but could perhaps giving the Mini M a 'rinse' be an option? At this point I will wait a bit to see if the B key starts working...

Cheers.

[Muirium]

I’d be tempted to give it a little dishwashing and patience, in your position.

Failing that, following Matthew’s advice and ordering a fresh barrel frame from Unicomp will save half the shipping. That’s a simple job to install: just a few screws, as it’s the whole sealed heart of the keyboard.

[fohat]

I waited a few days for it to dry and it has been going strong ever since for more than 15 years now.

If the liquid was drawn between the layers by capillary action it could take a while. Putting it out in the sun could speed it up quite a bit.

[Maledicted]

I waited a few days for it to dry and it has been going strong ever since for more than 15 years now.

If the liquid was drawn between the layers by capillary action it could take a while. Putting it out in the sun could speed it up quite a bit.

fohat is so retro that he wants you to put new ABS in the sun to properly yellow it for use.

Working with cheap membrane Chromebook keyboards, even if I flush the whole keyboard with isopropyl, I like to leave it on its side to drain (alternating sides occasionally) and let the alcohol evaporate for at least 24 hours or more. Water should take much longer and may or may not ever evaporate if it is trapped between layers of membrane without any exposure to ambient air. I have found wonderful mold colonies living inside membrane keyboards. Pressing random keys with the board unplugged might help move the unevaporated liquid around and/or expose it to air. I have seen totally dry coffee spills still prevent trackpads and keyboards from functioning as well (conductivity or resistance of the remaining residue maybe?), but that may have just been because the user just wiped the palmrest off and went on using it while the circuits cooked themselves and/or formed corrosion that wasn't externally visible.

Leave it unplugged a week and forget about it. The more you try to test it, the more damage shorts could be doing.

[Muirium]

ABS? The barrel frame? Are they white or black now?

Quite right though. How do you even know it’s genuine plastic if it’s not yellowed?

[Yasu0]

Dehumidifier a/c unit could speed up the dry. Some old geezers will let a stuck motor soak in diesel for YEARS while they wait for the rings to free up. I've got one soaking on year #3 in my shed.. a week is easy. The whole coffee fiasco is why I like M's though. Hard to kill, and even if you do manage it, its under $150 to swap in new unit. Imagine doing this to an F or heavens to betsy a beamer.

[Muirium]

No drinks near the Kishsaver!

At least they’re easy to open, mind.

[Maledicted]

ABS? The barrel frame? Are they white or black now?

Quite right though. How do you even know it’s genuine plastic if it’s not yellowed?

I thought I responded to this. Apparently not. I meant the case. No idea what the material of the internal plastics are for Unicomps myself. Probably better to just do the guts inside as far as airflow, but I'm sure that black case will help a lot for heat in the sunlight.

Dehumidifier a/c unit could speed up the dry. Some old geezers will let a stuck motor soak in diesel for YEARS while they wait for the rings to free up. I've got one soaking on year #3 in my shed.. a week is easy. The whole coffee fiasco is why I like M's though. Hard to kill, and even if you do manage it, its under $150 to swap in new unit. Imagine doing this to an F or heavens to betsy a beamer.

I would rather spill coffee on a Model F than a Model M, other than the fact that I care a lot more about my Fs. The disposable nature of the M's internal assembly is objectively terrible for the user in my opinion, especially when it comes to the plastic rivets.

With an F you could just strip the whole thing and clean it with isopropyl and have it back together and in use in minutes.