Should I trust the waterproofing on water-safe Kobos?

[Quoth]

I don't think "Rubbing Alcohol" is Meths.
Meth is unrelated.

Methanol: Evaporates very quickly. Rare outside of a lab. Very poisonous. Makes you blind if you don't die.
Methylated Spirit: Meths, denatured alcohol, wood alcohol. Usually a mix of Methanol and Ethanol. May have other additives and is usually coloured/ dyed. Used to start a Primus, degrease and for small spirit burners (used to boil a small kettle up to 1940s, also toy steam engines and beginners chemistry sets).
Surgical Spirit: Mostly Ethanol, perhaps a little Methanol and Antiseptic. Some water. At a pinch it will do for cleaning/degreasing.
Ethanol: Pure form of what is in alcoholic drinks. The strongest drinks are about 50% water. A 100 degrees proof was originally the mix of water and alcohol that didn't prevent gunpowder burning? Degrees Proof is different in USA & UK.
Propanol: AKA IPA, used industrially for cleaning / degreasing. Obviously different when poured/ shaken, evaporates slowly. Also called rubbing alcohol. Probably poisonous.

[NiLuJe]

@Quoth:

Small correction: IPA (Isopropy alcohol/2-propanol) actually evaporates *quickly* . (And, yeah, mildly poisonous, and obviously extremely flammable).

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by twowheels

methylated spirits -- looks like it's a term used in NZ for the ethanol version (as opposed to isopropyl) of what we'd call rubbing alcohol in the US, also called denatured alcohol in the US.

Here 'meths' make us think of something entirely different.

[Rusty100]

Sorry if the shorthand was confusing.

The point is that methylated spirits (largely methanol) mixes well with water and thereby can be used to flush out water from a wet device replacing the water with alcohol that is a poor conductor of electricity.

Other pure alcohols might well do the same. I just used what was to hand - and had complete success with two wet electronics devices.

[Nightflyer]

Kobo website referring to their waterproof eReaders, “ Avoid submerging your eReader in salt water, soapy water, or chlorinated water”.

That covers most probable types of water like pool, beach, bath in places with chlorinated water...

https://help.kobo.com/hc/en-us/artic...-Kobo-eReaders

[shalym]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Here 'meths' make us think of something entirely different.

Yeah...that was my thought at first, too, which is why I asked.

Shari

[JSWolf]

When the original H2O came out, Kobo made a video showing it in a swimming pool.

[MGlitch]

They suggest not doing it because despite the marketing the devices are not waterproof they are water resistant. Over time and with consistent exposure that resistance weakens.

The system they use is meant to protect it from accidental drops in the pool or bath etc. you’re not intended to use the device under water.