Mavic pro seriously damaged-need advice

[eugen13]

Hello, Eugene here ,long story short I dropped my mavic pro in the blue water of Maldives ocean))(not worth it), anyway it happened, after getting back to UK I send it to a repair center and they gave me a quote of 420 pounds, I have the evaluation report and in there it says the following:

Project work

refurbished gimbal camera replacement
ESC board replacement
Fan replacement
Liquid damage cleanup

condition report

Corrosion on: gimbal and gimbal PCB
Power board
battery socket
vision sensor
core board
stuck fan
damaged components on ESC board

That's pretty much all they told on the report, paying 420 its out of the question and I would like it to fix myself, meaning I want to buy the parts which I saw they are quite cheap like a fan its 20 pounds, the ESC board 40 pounds and gimbal too , my question is, it will work maybe? i am willing to try anyway, and suggestions, also if someone its around London,UK and would like to help I dont mind(not for free of course).
so basically its worth it to buy the parts and go to an electrician and put them on? Any answer its appreciated.
thank you!

 

[STUFF2C]

If it were me I'd have issues with flying a drone that was saltwater damage. Motor reliability would definitely be another consideration

 

[RCdancer]

Get Thunderdrone's advice

 

[Starz]

Probably not going to be a trustworthy aircraft. Sell it for parts and use that towards a new one.

 

[Former Member]

DJI is essentially charging you for a new drone. You dont have to do all that just because it was immersed in salt water.

First thing to decide is whether or not to try to repair it yourself. That could save you some money, but might take you alot longer in troubleshooting.

DJI will replace any component that has any trace of water contact. That is not necessary if the component is still working.

First thing I would do is put an older, cheaper battery in it and check for error messages. Check for gimbal movement, check for connection to the controller. Make sure the fan is working.

I repair drones and help people repair theirs all day long and have done thousands of them. If you do it one step at a time, you might be able to fix it yourself. I have almost 11,000 posts here, so I have nothing better to do than help you

 

[Northern_Bob]

I’m afraid I wouldn’t trust a repaired drone that was salt water dunked and allowed to dry. I spent some years around the ocean and that stuff is insidiously corrosive.

Unless you immediately dunk it in fresh water to get the salt out the corrosion on all the electronics starts right away.

You might luck out but I’d use it for spare parts (not the electronics tho)
NB

 

[Former Member]

I’m afraid I wouldn’t trust a repaired drone that was salt water dunked and allowed to dry. I spent some years around the ocean and that stuff is insidiously corrosive.

Unless you immediately dunk it in fresh water to get the salt out the corrosion on all the electronics starts right away.

You might luck out but I’d use it for spare parts (not the electronics tho)
NB

Would you just toss the electronics in the trash? Im just curious, not being sarcastic. What I have found in most drones that have been in salt water is that not all the electronics are destroyed. When you say you wouldnt trust a repaired drone that was salt water dunked, does this include ones that you have stripped down and examined every part to check for salt water damage? Again, not being sarcastic, just wondering.

Sometimes the core board is damaged, sometimes the gimbal PCB, but most times only 1 or 2 components are hurt.

 

[eugen13]

Thanks all for answers ,yes indeed i admit it is not the proper way to fix a drone that has been into salt water, also i didnt not wash it at all, it happened 3 weeks ago since then i just brought it to this drone center next to my place.
But i said i prefer to fix it, or at least try, i dont mind trying.i attached a better picture with the
Report.

 

[Former Member]

Thanks all for answers ,yes indeed i admit it is not the proper way to fix a drone that has been into salt water, also i didnt not wash it at all, it happened 3 weeks ago since then i just brought it to this drone center next to my place.
But i said i prefer to fix it, or at least try, i dont mind trying.i attached a better picture with the
Report.

I think you can save 100 pounds if you try to fix it yourself based on what that report shows.

As I said, get a battery, try to power it on, and then take it step by step to repair it. It might be a fun project, and might save you money.

 

[eugen13]

I think you can save 100 pounds if you try to fix it yourself based on what that report shows.

As I said, get a battery, try to power it on, and then take it step by step to repair it. It might be a fun project, and might save you money.

I think you can save 100 pounds if you try to fix it yourself based on what that report shows.

As I said, get a battery, try to power it on, and then take it step by step to repair it. It might be a fun project, and might save you money.

Now after put a new battery i can see that its completely dead, but before was opening with back light being red only also it smoked the second time i tried to open 3 weeks ago.

 

[eugen13]

Now after put a new battery i can see that its completely dead, but before was opening with back light being red only also it smoked the second time i tried to open 3 weeks ago.

This is how it looks after 3 weeks

 

[eugen13]

This is how it looks after 3 weeks

 

[Northern_Bob]

Would you just toss the electronics in the trash? Im just curious, not being sarcastic. What I have found in most drones that have been in salt water is that not all the electronics are destroyed. When you say you wouldnt trust a repaired drone that was salt water dunked, does this include ones that you have stripped down and examined every part to check for salt water damage? Again, not being sarcastic, just wondering.

Sometimes the core board is damaged, sometimes the gimbal PCB, but most times only 1 or 2 components are hurt.

You are correct in that, depending upon circumstances, not all electronics would be trashed. But most people including myself are not skilled enough to do a complete strip down and testing.

It’s certainly possible to resurrect the drone but could be quite expensive. In that case buying a new or refurbished drone and saving the other for parts might be the better path to take.
NB

 

[Former Member]

You are correct in that, depending upon circumstances, not all electronics would be trashed. But most people including myself are not skilled enough to do a complete strip down and testing.

It’s certainly possible to resurrect the drone but could be quite expensive. In that case buying a new or refurbished drone and saving the other for parts might be the better path to take.
NB

Yep. The OP says he wants to have a go at it, so we'll see what happens.

I was a scuba diver for many years, and I agree that if you dont protect and maintain equipment, you cant expect it to last. Salt water just gets into everything and tries to eat it. I always had a bucket of fresh water after the dive to wash everything out.

 

[Northern_Bob]

Yep, I dove for years on the West Coast, mostly near Seattle. Got certified by Scuba Schools International soon after they were founded.

Bob M.
S.S.I. Cert. #1949

 

[Former Member]

Yep, I dove for years on the West Coast, mostly near Seattle. Got certified by Scuba Schools International soon after they were founded.

Bob M.
S.S.I. Cert. #1949

I got SSI first too. Then I always had to make sure they accepted SSI wherever I went, so I went and got Naui in addition to SSI. NAUI was more widely accepted.

 

[Northern_Bob]

Well, good luck to you Eugen and let us know how your strip down and repair goes. You’re a braver man than I to attempt this.
NB

 

[eugen13]

Well, good luck to you Eugen and let us know how your strip down and repair goes. You’re a braver man than I to attempt this.
NB

Thank you, a little about me and my skills, i never ever opened a drone before, also not had one, this mavic its my first. So if i can do it wil boost my self confidence in my technical skills, yesterday i completely separate all the parts , i will post pictures when i get a chance as far as the process going i will order parts now, starting with the ESC board, if someone has any other option, im compeletely open to sugestions. Thanks