Google the question “can smoke damage electronics” and you’ll have immediate access to over 274,000 results for potential answers to the question. Clicking any of the links on the first page or two and you’re confronted with some compelling information that answers the question directly… YES, smoke is very corrosive and will cause damage! What you won’t find is the three (3) questions you need to answer before you can determine whether YOUR situation actually falls under the “YES” category.
- What is in the soot and how did (or can) it damage MY electronics?
Not all fires produce soot containing potentially corrosive compounds. Although I’m not suggesting that soot without corrosive byproducts don’t pose a credible threat (carbon is conductive), it’s been my experience that the effects of most soot exposures are grossly overstated. Similarly, there’s a huge difference between ACTUAL and POTENTIAL damage. Most people can’t (or simply won’t) make the distinction until they’re made aware of the difference or why it’s important to differentiate.
- How clean is clean?
If I had a nickel for every time I’ve heard an OEM representative make the claim that ANY contaminate on the equipment will null and void their warranty I’d have at least $1.00! Kidding aside, it’s actually not the OEM that draws the line in the sand; it’s their “authorized” vendors (and more specifically the people working in SALES). While most OEM’s haven’t specifically established definitive thresholds to quantify cleanliness, their Engineering departments are extremely cooperative and reasonable as long as you understand their world and talk their language. More often than not, the pre-existing contaminates pose more of a threat than the smoke ever will. Arm yourself with real – and pertinent – data and the Sales people suddenly fade away.
- How much will it cost (in terms of dollars and time) to restore the electronics?
Simply because a piece of electronic equipment CAN be cleaned does NOT automatically mean that that it SHOULD be cleaned. As Alan Greenspan said – “I know you think you understand what you thought I said but I’m not sure you realize that you heard is not what I meant”. If you thought that asking the first two questions produced a bucket load of gobbledygook, brace yourself for the response you’ll likely receive when you start asking “How much?”. As I addressed in my last article, the equipment restoration industry (as a whole) has flown under the accountability radar for over 30 years. Unless you call them out and request line-item costing, you won’t be able to pursue alternative recovery options until it’s too late to react.
If you find yourself in the situation where you haven’t been able to reasonably answer these questions BEFORE you commit yourself to a recovery path, reach out to me and I’ll be honored to help you answer the underlining question (Did smoke damage YOUR equipment?) as well as point you down the recovery path that makes sense for those affected by the decisions.
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