Steve Kroop at Flytec <<info>>
writes:

Most of us are well aware that allowing the internals of our
electronic devices to get wet can be ruinous. However, since we fly in the real
world and not in the World of Warcraft or in Second Life, the reality is that
our instruments can get wet with events such as: getting caught in the rain,
landing on a shoreline, leaky hydration systems or careless fellow pilots in the
retrieve vehicle, etc. One of the most common causes for repair that I see is
damage from water exposure. Generally all but short term exposure to water (or
beverages) is ruinous but if some simple steps are followed, your instruments
can survive.

If possible contact with water becomes evident when the instrument is in use,
turn it off. For example, if you are flying and it overdevelops and it starts to
rain or if you are coming in on final and there are bodies of water in the
landing area, turn off your instrument before it actually gets wet. This will
minimize short circuit if/when water enters the housing. If your instrument gets
water/fluid inside, for whatever the reason, remove the batteries as soon as
reasonably and safely possible. To avoid or minimize damage, the instrument
internals must be completely dried out. Most electronic circuit boards have a
protective coating on them which will give the circuitry some fluid protection
but allowing the water or other corrosive fluid to remain inside the housing
will usually cause irreparable corrosion damage to the circuit board and other
components.

To dry out the instrument, it is necessary to open the housing. This is done by
removing the housing screws and gently separating the front and rear housing.
Care should be used to not pull on any wires, ribbon cables or pitot tubes. Once
open, the internal components can be dried with a blow-drier set to warm
(nothing hotter than you would use on your skin). IMPORTANT: never attempt to
use a microwave oven! If you are in the field you can put the open instrument on
the hot sunlit dashboard of a car. If it is cold or cloudy you can place it
front of the the heater vent in your vehicle. If the fluid that entered the
instrument is anything other than fresh water (e.g., saltwater, soda, coffee,
etc.) the internals must be thoroughly rinsed before drying. This is because
these fluids are both conductive and corrosive.

Once the instrument is thoroughly dried it can be carefully reassembled and the
batteries replaced. With any luck the instrument will function normally,
however, if it does not, following the above steps should mitigate the damage
and make repair possible. Reassembly can be a bit challenging with complex
instruments like the 6030/Compeo+. In this case, you should contact Flytec/Brauniger
before attempting to reassemble or, better yet, send the instruments in for
inspection/repair and reassembly.