AIO began to seep.
AIO began to seep.
Began observing occasional crashes and then realized the issue was more serious. The CPU socket is leaking liquid as well. This feels unreal, but I’m unsure. Should I try cleaning it with alcohol and letting it dry, or should I consider replacing the motherboard since I don’t have the money for it?
Remove the motherboard from the case and the CPU from its socket. Immerse it in the strongest isopropyl alcohol available (typically 91% concentration found at pharmacies and big-box retailers) and let it air dry for a day or two. Hopefully, you managed to avoid any serious harm. If your AIO remains under warranty, it could be worth considering a claim.
That may just look worse than it is. Most of the coolant in an aio is barely to not conductive. So basically lots of as high percentage isopropyl alchol as you can for rinsing and soaking. Hell dunk it in a tray of deminiralized water first then a tray if ipa and let it dry for a while. Good chance the board isn't dead. With the cpu just ipa and be gentle with a microfiber cloth on the contact pads. Then let dry for a good while.
Try a good clean with Isopropyl alcohol and let it dry off. You can even use a soft toothbrush and washing up liquid if there's gunk on the PCB but once you've dabbed up any suds and water, a good spray of IA is good. FYI - Just don't do any of this IN the CPU socket! You can probably give it an IA spray but don't try and clean the pins with anything. I've brought back a few PC from the brink after spillages even a few really sticky ones. The only issue you will have if a 'short' has damaged something.
Thanks for the feedback! I plan to try this out again. The benefits are having several graphics cards, CPUs, and power supplies available. My approach will be: clean with 91% isopropyl alcohol and let it dry, then use a USB boot system, a backup power supply, extra RAM, and the CPU. I’ll only rely on the built-in graphics for display. Update: the LED lights up, the GPU powers on, fans start, and RAM seems uncertain but I’m pretty sure the CPU socket is missing.