Axe FX II got wet

jethro

Inspired
A pipe burst above my studio in my new house. It was racked but got very wet along with everything else. I waited a few days and plugged it in an it took a unusual amount of time to boot up. It seems to work but I don't know for how long. I have extra insurance on all my gear but the adjuster wants it to be inspected. I think I want it replaced. It was like new and now its not.
 
I'm not sure how your insurance coverage is setup, but voice your concerns and work with them first. If it is functional and not showing any issues (make sure to test EVERYTHING), then it's pretty unlikely they'll do anything, I imagine. Even in the best case, I doubt they'd replace it with a brand new one - most likely, cut a check with depreciation factored in and let you do whatever you want with the money.
 
I guess I am curious as to what others would do? They will replace it for up to one year after the claim is settled.
 
Depends on the terms, like everything else. If they'll replace a perfectly working used unit with a brand new one, with no cost to me (such as: up front $, raised premium or deductible, etc. etc.), then I'd take that deal.

The only time I lost gear was a number of years ago when a house fire took, well, everything. Insurance simply cut us a check to do whatever we wanted/needed, they didn't itemize replace items.
 
That sucks. If it was clean water and it dried out completely before powering it back up, there's a decent chance it's ok. A splash of water is not so bad. If it was completely submerged or water was pooled up inside the unit, the odds go down quick. I'm sure you could send it in to Fractal and have them run it through some hardware diagnostics. The fact that it powers on and works is a good sign. When electronics get soaked, sometimes you can flush them out with alcohol to displace any water stuck inside hard to reach places. The alcohol then evaporates much more quickly. Just make certain there are no batteries or charged power supply capacitors that could make a spark and ignite the alcohol or its fumes. Desiccant packets or white rice is also use to help absorb moisture too. Fill the unit up with a bunch of white rice and seal it up inside a plastic bag.
 
If it were me, I'd probably open it up and take a look inside to ensure there isn't any moisture build-up. As long as the unit is completely dry before powering on, it's usually not a problem. If there's any moisture inside while powering on, you run the risk of a short. It's not uncommon to let electronics air dry for a week or more before powering them on.
 
Used the rice trick a number of times with success, but I don't think I would ever want to fill my Axe FX with it !!

Yeah desiccant packets work better than rice, but not many people have a supply of silica gel on hand. Rice works pretty well too and is super cheap and readily available everywhere. You can put it in cheese cloth to make it easier to remove as well. The idea is to pull the moisture out of the air in the sealed bag or container, causing more of the trapped moisture in the device to evaporate. You want to remove as much surface moisture as possible with compressed air before putting the rice or desiccant in. Putting rice in or on a device that it still wet on the surface would cause a sticky mess for sure.
 
I'd open it up and have a fan blowing into it, after I'd inspect the circuit boards, components and connectors for rust, spray with electronic contact cleaner (not automotive type).
 
Insurance companies will generally not replace things that work as intended, and have no physical damage. The worry about the possible added risk of failure on your point won't matter to them.

If a qualified inspector says there is a problem, they must also provide a cost to make good. This estimate is used to decide if repair or replacement is offered. Generally (not sways by mostly) if repair is more than 50% of replacement, then you'll get a replacement (or value of), if less they will repair.

If they are asking for inspection then that's what you have to do. I'd send it back to your supplier (dependant on region) for a check-up and written report (with quotes).

Unfortunately the fact it was like new and now isn't doesn't make a difference if it still works and isn't physically damaged. Nor does the fact you want a replacement. They will decide that based on the professional report and quote.
 
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Leave it on for hours (days?) to see if any issues come up. You only have a small window to prove it faulty and get it fixed.

You could ever consider pouring more water in it while it's is running to force it to fail... But that might be fraud...
 
I dropped a knock-off MP3 player, with an LCD screen, into a pool while it was on. I pulled it out of the pool and let it sit for a couple of days to dry out. When I turned it on, it worked perfectly. That was five years ago and it's still working today after using it on a regular basis over the last five years.

I realize an MP3 player is not on the same scale as an Axe-FX, but the MP3 player was fully submersed in the pool. I think if the Axe-Fx was off at the time and it was allowed to dry completely before turning it on, it should be fine.
 
A pipe burst above my studio in my new house. It was racked but got very wet along with everything else. I waited a few days and plugged it in an it took a unusual amount of time to boot up. It seems to work but I don't know for how long. I have extra insurance on all my gear but the adjuster wants it to be inspected. I think I want it replaced. It was like new and now its not.
Electronics either work or they don't for the most part. I seriously doubt that moisture would affect the AFXs boot time alone; it would either start or not start. What probably happened was you sat and worriedly watched it boot and noticed it has a definite, finite, boot time.

I absolutely would not blame the insurance company for not wanting to replace a unit that may not even be damaged and an inspection is definitely a reasonable request from that perspective. You should check all the I/Os etc. Anything that could be shorted out without bringing the entire box down but if I'm the insurance company's rep I would be concerned that you were just looking for a free hardware refresh on their dime, barring some proof that the thing is actually even damaged.

For the definitive answer, if it were my personal unit, I would contact Fractal support and see if they could actually certify it for you and arrange with insurance for the associated turn time.
 
Given that the unit was racked, the biggest risk - I'd guess - would be water infiltration at the front-panel switches. If they got wet, there's a chance that you might find a flaky switch or encoder. Of course, that'll depend a lot on the design of the switches and on the water chemistry in your area.

Best case: it's probably OK. Worst case: you may need to convince the insurer to pay for a front-panel replacement when it begins to show issues resulting from the water.
 
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