LaCie Porsche Hard Drive Data Recovery – Short Circuit Due to Liquid Damage

A client from Newcastle Upon Tyne contacted Newcastle Data Recovery after their LaCie Porsche external hard drive suffered liquid damage. The reported issues included:

• Short circuit due to liquid exposure, preventing the hard drive from powering on.
• Lacie support was unable to help, as they only offered a hardware replacement, not data recovery.
• The drive contained vital personal data from the last 5 years, including photos, videos, and important work files.
• The client had no backup, making professional data recovery essential.

Since liquid damage can cause PCB failure, controller board corruption, and internal component degradation, a forensic cleanroom recovery was required.

Our Expertise in Water-Damaged Hard Drive Recovery

With 25 years of experience, Newcastle Data Recovery specializes in:
✔ Recovering data from water-damaged, short-circuited hard drives
✔ Replacing failed PCBs and restoring damaged components in a cleanroom environment
✔ Using advanced data recovery tools like Acelabs PC3000, DeepSpar Disk Imager, and Atola Insight

Diagnosis & Recovery Process

Upon receiving the LaCie Porsche hard drive, our engineers conducted a detailed forensic assessment. The key findings included:

• The drive’s PCB (printed circuit board) was short-circuited, preventing power from reaching the internal components.
• The read/write heads and motor were intact, meaning data was still recoverable.
• The firmware was slightly corrupted, which would require controller board reprogramming.

To successfully recover the client’s personal data, we implemented a multi-step forensic hard drive recovery strategy:

Step 1: Cleanroom PCB Repair & Component Replacement

• Disassembled the hard drive in a certified cleanroom environment to prevent contamination.
• Replaced the damaged PCB with an identical donor board.
• Used Acelabs PC3000 to reprogram the new controller board with the original firmware.

Step 2: Secure Disk Imaging & Data Extraction

• Used DeepSpar Disk Imager to clone the drive sector-by-sector, avoiding unstable areas.
• Extracted documents, photos, and videos while preserving file structure.

Step 3: File Integrity Verification & Secure Data Transfer

• Verified recovered files for integrity and usability.
• Transferred all recovered data to a new external hard drive.

The Result

We successfully recovered 98.9% of the client’s lost data, including:
✅ Personal photos and videos from the last 5 years
✅ Work-related documents and important financial files
✅ Archived emails, PDFs, and creative projects

The client was able to regain full access to their critical files without permanent data loss.

Why Choose Newcastle Data Recovery for Liquid-Damaged Hard Drives?

✅ 25 Years of Expertise – Specialists in water and short-circuit-damaged hard drive recovery.
✅ Forensic-Level Data Extraction – Recovering files from electrically damaged storage devices.
✅ Fast, Affordable, & Reliable Service – Offering the best value data recovery in the UK.

If your LaCie Porsche hard drive has suffered liquid damage or won’t power on, contact Newcastle Data Recovery today for expert hard drive recovery services!