A Computer you can use in the Shower

Always wanted a waterproof laptop? Thought it might be cool to have a computer in the shower? Then read on.

I have created a laptop that can withstand falling water. Such as a shower or rain.

Step 1 Introduction/What you need

I had always wanted to do this. I wanted to make a computer that I could use while I was in the shower. I put it off for a while. Until one day, while reading other peoples instructables, I came across the PopSci contest. I thought, "when would be a better time to do this?". The answer, NEVER! Anyway on to the point.

I had used this old Acer laptop for about 2 years, when the USB stopped working. I also had a problem with my PCMCIA connecter. I put it in my "junk" pile and it's been sitting there ever since. I bought a better, new laptop that I have been happy with so far. The other day I came across the PopSci contest and decided to enter. The only idea I had was to make a waterproof laptop.

What you will need:
An old laptop
Some Saran wrap
Some basic tools
Some time
Hot glue gun and a lot of glue for it or,
A lot of Silicon

Disclaimer: I am not responsible for any damage you may do to your computer. This can be very dangerous for the computer. Please be carful.

Comments

[klaviatury]

Heres another suggestion, how about we dont use laptops while taking a bath. Horrible concept, horrible presentation, that a waste of time. Avoid seran wrap looks horrible and it is not going to keep water out, try shrink wrap and a heat gun for a better seal and nicer finish. Water resistant foam would also be better than silicone since you cannot guarentee a complete seal with silicon. Even with those precautions you still need a water resistant casing and you still have to deal with cooling and condensation. So yeah lets just keep the laptop out of the tub for now.

[2 stroke]

dude whats the point BTW you can get an electric shock and possibly die keep electronics out of the shower other wise you might F yourself up electricity does not give you a second chance

[zebede5]

This person seems like they have little to no clue about electricity other than it makes thing go SIIIIIZZZZZZ.

[2 stroke]

lol

[tylervitale]

Noooooooooooooot quite. Unless you are using it while it's plugged in, the chances of you getting a lethal or even damaging electric shock are slim to none.

[BigD145]

No, it probably won't kill you. Your drain pipe will take the current because that's the shortest route back to the power plant. Ask any electrical engineer.

[bmlbytes]

Actually, the the pipes would be the path of least resistance to an earth ground, not the power plant. And, any electrical engineer would tell you that you would still get a very small amount of current, but it would not be significant enough to cause even a small bit of pain.

[unique20052003]

what aa jok for desttrying laptops
:))

[whatsisface]

why not just buy a panasonic toughbook? these things can be encased into concrete and survive, so a shower aint gonna do no damage. I think they use em in the Middle East for army ops

[Bjorno]

Concrete and water are a bit different. Concrete, even while wet, will not seep into the small nooks and crannies that water will. The toughbooks are nice, but they do not resist full on water damage. They will usually withstand spills and the like, but a shower it will not be able to deal with.

[livingnightmare]

I'm gonna have to disagree with you there Bjorno. When I was in the military deployed to Iraq we used the toughbooks for controlling rooftop satellite dishes and they can resist "full on water". They weathered Iraqi sand storms and even made it through rain storms that happened at the same time as the sand storms. So pretty much a mud storm. The toughbooks we had came with sealed keyboards/screens, and all of the ports had sealed covers. One of our toughbooks was left on the roof during one of the mud storms and when we went to get it, the laptop was under about 4 inches of moist sand. Not exactly concrete, but it was completely undamaged. One of them was even dropped off of the roof of a parking garage there and nothing happened to it.

[Bjorno]

While I don't doubt your experience with the Military and LEO-grade toughbooks, there is a huge difference between free-flowing water and water that accompanies a mud/sand storm.

Capillary action tends to keep most of the water trapped in the sand and mud, so there is no fluid force pushing the water deeper into the laptop. This not so say that it is impossible for a toughbook to withstand a submerge event, it is just not likely to do so without some damage.

Besides, we have to consider the fact that this person is likely not going to be able to get their hands on a toughbook that complies with MIL-STD-810F as they are usually $5000 or more.

[abadfart]

the tough book in my dads fleet van stands up to it... he left it on the hood in a rain storm more than once

[Calorie]

I am really disappointed in this discussion. When I read the title I howled with laughter. Yet I can only count a couple of "auto-erotic" comments. Come on people, step up your game! A teen with a laptop that can go into a shower is too much to pass up. God, I'm heaving with laughter as I right this. Thank you for making my day...Pull my comment if you want, but it is well worth it.

[abadfart]

you know thats a good point... its hard to read a smut mag in the shower lol

[uberdum05]

To waterproof it without taking your laptop apart, just put it in a giant zip lock bag :)

[abadfart]

I've done that with a cell phone before

[smallebee]

you might ont to tell some people the cost of failiur at the begining of the how to
also youl be naild to a wall at some point the laptop is now splash proof non water proof only claim water proof if youve tested it under at least 1mtr of watter
other wize its a fantastic instruction youve coverd all the bases

[swright5]

I don't think you have any room to complain about his spelling. considering how many things are misspelled in your comment.

[smallebee]

speling is horific sos

[biozz]

this is not safe in the least ... laptops carry moth high voltage low amperage and high amperage low voltage ... if they collide it can kill you

[uberdum05]

No, laptops have only ONE high voltage source with very very low current ~1-2mA and the only thing that has a high current is the battery but even that is only 3A at about 12-16VDC...

[biozz]

no that's very wrong
battery - normally 19V 3-5AH
USB - 500mA max
serial port - 10mA max
VGA port can draw up to 5mA
powered eSATA port can draw over 1 amp max
the CCT used to power the monitor is 5mA 1700volts
the speakers can produce well over 50W

it takes 30mA across the heart to kill you but wet can be as low as 15ma http://wiki.answers.com/Q/How_much_current_can_kill_an_human

[uberdum05]

Yeah but low currents like serial ports and vga cant kill you and by the way, to kill you it has got to find a way to your heart and it has to be mains

[biozz]

science 101
electricity finds the path of least resistance
your blood has extremely low resistance (much lower than akin or watter) so all you have to do is have 1 hand on the common ground (or via water to the shielding as thats grounded or any metal parts on it) and the other on a current more than 30MA (well 15 ish) and your heart can easily stop ... all your blood vessels go to your heart so its heard to avoid
you do not have to be mains as electricity is just electricity
in fact the most common form of electroshock death is wet hands on a car battery

[redstarsrbija]

ya... electricity does find the path of least resistance.... like the water you are bathing in... unless you ground yourself you will be fine... the only "danger" would be that 1700V you speak of(which is ridiculous btw) because none of the other voltages are high enough to pass enough current through your body. and even that is only 5mA like you said.think about it... V=IR ----> I=V/R ---> I= (low voltage)/(high resistance).

[uberdum05]

I do know about electricity,science and computers but thats why when you are working with mains that is live, you ALWAYS wear thick soled shoes and stand on a rubber mat with one hand always behind your back so no chance of getting an electric shock... and in the case of laptops, it wont electrocute you if you dont touch both the battery terminals with wet hands so there would be no problem....

[BeefyHaze]

ohh.......mah............gawwd!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i think ill just wait till im out of the shower...... what abount the fan is it gonna overheat? where is the air coming in from? if air can get in than so can water and that is not safe.....

you need a disclaimer not for the laptop but the human that actually tries to make this, you know a broken human costs a lot more than a broken laptop.....

[domwill]

No sense!

[Sanctus]

I am sorry, but it looks ugly. It's a ghetto solution. Better put it out and connect a roll-up keyboard

[MJRSnyder]

affirmative it would be better to just build a custom case for all the components instead of cramming a bunch of silicone into an already cramped laptop case

[uberdum05]

Just build a touchscreen into your shower wall in a custom waterproof encolosure and just have it hook up to a laptop embedded into your wall :)

[Nyxius]

or you could use the heat shrink mono-cote wing covering for you screen. it has heat activated glue on the one side and stretches tight for a good fit.

[ReCreate]

you could also put a plastic cover over the keyboard ive also seen a whole plastic bag(not a bag but like a cover) that fits right over the whole laptop to protect it from water

[hintss]

I'd take 2 freever bags, cut the top seals off one, then melt them together to make an extra-long bag, then seal it. or use ziplock's huge storage bags...

[ReCreate]

What You Should Have Done Is Did Something Diffirent for the CPU, Maybe Carve a hole where the water would go it and touch the CPU and GPU, it Would work Extra Good Especially Underwater. It would be like having a watercooling system

[hintss]

get waterblocks and run tubing from them to the sides?

[noingwhat]

The reason that so many of those components just clip in is to make it easier to repair/upgrade. Think how hard it would be if you wanted more RAM or a new Hard-drive and you had to buy a whole new motherboard just for that one component. With the snaps, the HDD/GPU/RAM/Processor/CD Drive/ whatever, will just pop out so you can pop a new one in.

[ac1D]

Another working solution would be to put the laptop (or netbook) inside a extra large condom.. with little hole at the bottom for ventillation :)

[junits15]

LOL