Update on My Coffee Ridden Framework 13
A week or so ago, I talked about how I might have killed my Framework 13 by dumping a full mug of coffee over it while it was running.
In that last post I explained how I'd stripped the laptop down and was waiting for some isopropyl alcohol (IPA) to be delivered so I could more thoroughly clean it. Well dear reader, the IPA turned up, I cleaned it as best I could, and left it for 24 hours to dry off.
The next day I came back to it, re-assembled it and hit the power button with a fair amount of trepidation.
Nothing.
I think it's dead, Jim. And I can't help thinking that turning the laptop on in haste, after the first clean is what completely screwed it. Oh well, we live and learn.
In my desperation, I contacted Framework support and explained the whole saga to see if there was anything I was missing.
There wasn't. They told me that the LED pattern I was seeing when powered on was indicative of a communication error with the board, so it's dead and needed to be replaced.
Problem is, a new board is £700 (~$950) and I didn't fancy shelling out that much money out of my own pocket, so I contacted my home insurance provider to make a claim, and to be fair they were great.
A case was logged and a couple of days later I had a payout that would cover the whole amount.
The new board and a ThinkPad
The payout from the insurance was more than the repair cost, so I decided to upgrade from my current Ryzen 7 7840, to an AI 300 series board instead - nice little upgrade!
The Framework site said it would be shipped in 5 days, and would probably be subject to delays of a further 7 days due to global freight disruptions. So I bought myself a ThinkPad T480 to see me through (which I'm typing this post on) as I couldn't bear to be on MacOS for another second.
Framework overachieved again and the board is due for delivery tomorrow (Friday 24th April 2026).
Nice!
Once the board is delivered and my beloved Framework is (hopefully) working again, this nice little ThinkPad will go to my wife as an upgrade from here 2014(!) Gen 2 X1 Carbon.
How did it die?
I've had a few people reach out telling me that they'd done something similar and their device's had survived. Unfortunately I wasn't as lucky, so what happened?
I think it's because I didn't spill the coffee on my laptop, but next to it. Then as the puddle of coffee made its way over my desk and inevitably under my laptop, the spinning fan must have sucked it up and perfectly spread the coffee all over the main board.
Thanks for that. Stupid fan. 🤣️
Had I spilled the coffee on my laptop, it would have had to make its way through the keyboard and chassis before it got to the board, by which point I would have had the laptop switched off and draining.
I can't say for sure, but that's my theory.
So anyway, wish my luck with the new board, folks!
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