Motherboard in dishwasher!?

Zaf

Zaf

Soldato
Joined
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Derbyshire
Just wondering if anyone has had any experience with using a dishwasher to clean a motherboard?

I'm about to give it a shot :eek:

IMG-8990.jpg
 
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Just wondering if anyone has had any experience with using a dishwasher to clean a motherboard?

I'm about to give it a shot :eek:

IMG-8990.jpg
Is this a joke...?

I'd guess the salt is slightly corrosive and you don't want pressured water getting under things and getting stuck in places.

What are you trying to achieve? Just clean it?
 
Is this a joke...?

I'd guess the salt is slightly corrosive and you don't want pressured water getting under things and getting stuck in places.

What are you trying to achieve? Just clean it?

Haha no not at all, I’ve done some research and there’s quite a few YT videos and X posts about it. I just wondered if anyone from here has tried it before.

I’ve got a CPU socket cover so the jets don’t do any damage to the socket pins.

Our dishwasher has been long out of salt so no worries there and I won’t be adding any dishwasher tablets, will just be water on the quickest setting.

One guy even dries his motherboards in the over afterwards!

I got the motherboard off eBay, sold as not working as the seller had no way of testing it and in the end I got it for free.

It’s quite disgusting though, there seems to be a layer of tar coating the board, gunk and grime all over it.
 
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My plan was to leave it outside for a couple of days while we are having this good weather :cool:
 
I've seen some video's of people washing them in the sink with Washing up liquid. I know i've seen Phil's computer labs do it on one of his videos. Key is to make sure its dried out thoroughly.
 
I’ve washed plenty of motherboards but you need to dry them off thoroughly and not let water sit on the board. I always use a hair dryer until the boards are baking hot. I’ve washed about 30 boards and never had a problem. I wouldn’t use a dishwasher though personally.
 
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Quick update…

Even though I used a CPU cover, the gunk off the board still found its way into the socket. I’ve cleaned it up using 99% IPA using a q tip, and surprisingly managed not to damage any of the pins (I think!)

Disclaimer: I didn’t know if the board worked before I started, there’s a very dubious looking capacitor repair job!

Gunk in socket
IMG-8995.jpg


Cleaned socket with IPA
IMG-8996.jpg


Dodgy capacitor repair job
IMG-8999.jpg


IMG-8998.jpg


Update: I’ve just messaged the seller and he says he did the capacitor replacement but never tested it afterwards! He never mentioned any of this in the ad grrrr
 
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what does this achieve that leaving it the hell alone wouldnt?

The board is ~19 years old and from what I can tell came from a smokers house, it’s hard to tell from the first photo but was covered in like a tar residue and was just disgusting to touch etc I’m planning on using it in a retro SLI build

I’ve washed plenty of motherboards but you need to dry them off thoroughly and not let water sit on the board. I always use a hair dryer until the boards are baking hot. I’ve washed about 30 boards and never had a problem. I wouldn’t use a dishwasher though personally.

Thanks for sharing :)
 
Update: I’ve just messaged the seller and he says he did the capacitor replacement but never tested it afterwards! He never mentioned any of this in the ad grrrr

Where did you buy it from exactly, I'm guessing ebay? If so getting a refund shouldn't be difficult at least given what he's admitted to.
 
That board looks screwed! Might look worse than it is but those tracks closet to the capacitor look scratched through. Plus it looks like burn marks on some of the other component legs!

I'd deffo had tried it before washing as you can never be sure it's not damaged from you - but I'd say it was probably broken before!
 
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Where did you buy it from exactly, I'm guessing ebay? If so getting a refund shouldn't be difficult at least given what he's admitted to.

Yes eBay, he had already given me a refund before I spotted the capacitor bodge job!

He had even wrapped it directly in bubble wrap, so I wasn’t holding much hope to start with anyway.
 
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