Turn it off, unplug the charger and leave it off. Wine has acids and sugar that dry into a sticky layer and eat at the metal inside. Get it opened and cleaned as soon as You can.
What should I do right now?
Do these four things in order.
- Hold the power button until the screen goes black.
- Pull out the charger and anything else that is plugged in.
- Wipe the keyboard and edges with a towel.
- Leave it off. Do not try to start it, even the next day.
Is wine worse than water?
Yes. Water leaves minerals behind. Wine leaves acids and sugar, which are harder to clean off and do more harm to the metal. In the job below, the wine had dried into a sticky layer under the keys and across the logic board. The logic board is the main circuit board that runs the Mac.
It shut down straight away. Is it dead?
Not always. The MacBook in the job below shut down the moment the wine went in, and it would not start again. It was still saved.
Does waiting make it worse?
Yes. The job below came in about three days after the spill. By then the wine had dried hard around the parts and spread to several areas of the board. That meant the whole area had to be checked and cleaned, not just one part.
What does a real wine repair look like?
This is a job I did for a graphic designer who works in North Sydney.
| Model | MacBook Pro 16-inch (A2141, 2019) |
| What happened | About 120 ml of red wine went across the keyboard during an evening of work. The Mac shut down at once and would not restart. |
| What the owner tried | Leaving it unplugged overnight, then trying to start it the next morning. It came in about three days after the spill. |
| What I found | Sticky wine under the keyboard, around the Touch Bar connector and across parts of the logic board. One power part had failed and several others had corroded. Dried wine was trapped under several keys. |
| What I did | Took the logic board out and cleaned it. Replaced the failed part and the corroded ones. Repaired the Touch Bar connector. Replaced the keyboard and top case. |
| Result | It starts and runs as it should. The keyboard and Touch Bar work. All the design files were still there, and I made a backup with the owner’s OK. |
| Time | 4 working days |
| Cost | $795 |
The top case is the upper shell of the MacBook that holds the keyboard. Corrosion is damage that works like rust on the tiny metal joints.
Why did the keyboard have to be replaced?
There was a lot of dried wine trapped under the keys, so the keyboard was replaced. On this model the keyboard is built into the top case, so the two are replaced together.
Will my files be safe?
They were in this job. The storage on this model is part of the logic board, so repairing the board is what kept the files. The owner’s design projects were all still there.
What does it cost to fix?
This job cost $795 in total. It needed two repairs: the logic board, and a new keyboard and top case. No $150 was added on top, because the owner went ahead.
I charge $150 to open, clean and check a wet MacBook, and that comes off the repair if You go ahead. A logic board repair is $290 to $550. A keyboard or top case is $350 to $550. You get the price before any work starts.
Apple charges A$429 for liquid damage if You have AppleCare+. Without it, Apple gives a price only after it has looked at the Mac.
What should I not do?
- Do not put it in rice. Apple says small grains can get inside the Mac.
- Do not use a hair dryer or heater. Apple says not to use heat.
- Do not wait. In the job above, three days gave the wine time to dry hard.
When should I get help?
Get help the same day if You can. Wine is easiest to clean before it dries.
For other Mac repairs in the area, see Mac repair North Sydney. See prices and four real repairs on the MacBook water damage repair page.
Give me a call or send a few photos of what happened … happy to have a look!!