I accidentally spilled a small amount of water on the top of my PC. I acted quickly to clean it up, opened the case, and dried it thoroughly, only the top fan got a bit wet, and there were a few drops on the motherboard. I unplugged everything and removed the GPU to ensure it was undamaged, which thankfully it was. However, after plugging everything back in, I noticed the DRAM and GPU lights on the motherboard are on, but my monitors, mouse, and keyboard are not powering on. I've checked the power supply, reseated the RAM (even trying each stick separately), and reset the CMOS, but nothing has worked. I'm starting to wonder if the GPU isn't fully plugged in, but I'm hesitant to push too hard for fear of damaging it further.
2 Answers
It’s hard to be certain you inspected the GPU properly. Start with a basic setup and see if it even POSTs. If it doesn’t, there might be an underlying issue that the water caused. Sometimes things may look fine but can still be faulty.
It sounds like the motherboard might have gotten shorted when the water spilled. Have you checked for any burns or residue? It might be a good idea to leave everything to dry out completely for at least 24 hours and then try booting it again with the minimal setup: just the motherboard, CPU, and one stick of RAM.
I’ll try that! Just want to make sure I’m not missing anything.
Is there a way to tell for sure if something got damaged without taking everything apart?