MacBook Air's fan wouldn't stop - pls help!

[Violinist]

I have accidentally coughed up some water on my Mac's keyboard, which I immediately wiped off. It was NOT a large amount of water, like a spill or something, rather a squirt or drizzle. After I wiped it off, didn't think much of it, but now the cooling fans wouldn't switch off...and computer response is slow. I've already tried a proper SMC reset with shift+control+option+power while connected to the power source, but it didn't work. I've tried at least 4 times, and after each reboot, the fans kick in full force right away. Not sure what else to do. Could anyone help please?

 

[pigoo3]

Water + electronics can be a VERY tricky thing. If this was only a very small amount of liquid...and the fan issue started immediately after the water accident...then we can logically conclude that the water (very small amount that it may have been)...must have landed somewhere sensitive.

The only advice that can be given...is give things time to dry...and keep your fingers crossed that things will return to normal.

Water + electronics + immediate problem experienced....usually means something was damaged/shorted out electrically.

Let's hope this is not the case,

- Nick

 

[Violinist]

Reply to Nick

Thank you Nick for taking the time to reply! Yes I'm hoping that it will resolve itself, since the only problem is the fan working overtime and cannot switch it off. If it were water damage, wouldn't my Mac have more serious symptoms? Display is fine, keys don't stick, cursor has no lag, responds fast, etc. It might be a bit slow loading a web page, but I figured that the system is too busy running the fan. Yes I'll keep my fingers crossed and wait a few more days, maybe there's condensation what the fan is trying to get rid of. But in the meantime if you have any other ideas what I could do, please et me know. Have a nice weekend

 

[MacInWin]

The system does not run the fan, so any slowness is not attributed to that. I would suggest you turn it off, completely powered off, unplug it and leave it in a dry place to dry out. If you are comfortable opening the back, you might think about doing that and disconnecting the battery while you let it dry. You can leave the back off to get more air circulation inside to dry it faster. Depending on how much material was dissolved in the water that will be left behind to short circuit things, you might get lucky.

 

[Violinist]

Hello Jake... thanks for the advice, I will absolutely do that!

 

[pm-r]

But in the meantime if you have any other ideas what I could do, please et me know. Have a nice weekend

If the problem exists even after you have given it a chance to dry out, you might want to give Mac fan control.app a try:
Macs Fan Control - control fans on Apple computers, also on Windows via Boot Camp

PS: I and others use it on "normal working" Macs, as I like my Macs running cooler than Apple's settings.


- Patrick
======

 

[pigoo3]

If it were water damage, wouldn't my Mac have more serious symptoms? Display is fine, keys don't stick, cursor has no lag, responds fast, etc.

It was already communicated in post #1 that the amount of moisture involved was small (a "squirt or drizzle"). Thus why would a small amount of liquid automatically need to cause as many problems as a large amount of liquid?? I mentioned above that liquid + electronics can be a VERY tricky thing.

Sometimes:

- A small amount of liquid causes small problems.
- A small amount of liquid causes big problems.
- A large amount of liquid causes small problems.
- A large amount of liquid causes big problems.

The key is...where does the liquid land on the logic board. Lots of surface area on a logic board...some of that surface area is crowded with sensitive areas...and some of it isn't.

The important item with this situation is...proper observation & reporting of the event. In other words...did the fan issue start right away or very shorty after the liquid incident...or did the fan issue start hours or days later:

- If the fan issue started immediately or almost immediately after the liquid incident...then we can probably assume the water caused some sort of possible damage.
- If the fan issue started a bunch of hours or days after the liquid incident...then maybe the fan issue is not related to the liquid incident.

* Nick

 

[rachalmers]

Macbook Pro Fan Always On, Loud or Not Working



Sent from my iPhone using Mac-Forums

 

[Audit13]

Where did the water make contact with the MacBook?

The fans may run at full speed if the liquid came in contact with one of the MacBook's heat sensors. They are located in a few places.

A defective heat sensor may cause the system to throttle the cpu and cause overall system sluggishness.