What to do when cell phone is submerged in water?
Introduction
Time is your enemy when your cell phone is submerged in water; even a few more seconds can make a difference in salvaging your phone. Here is step by step information that can help you save your phone that has been dropped in water:
You´ll need
- Phone
- Soft towel
- Distilled water
- Alcohol
Steps
- Retrieve your phone as soon as you can. Once you have your phone, remove the battery form the battery compartment. Don’t bother to turn the power off, just take the battery out.
- Dry the battery with a soft towel and set it aside. The battery may or may not be able to work but it can be inexpensively replaced compared to the main body of your phone. It is however a good idea to replace the battery to prevent leaks that can damage your phone.
- Take the phone apart and dry each component completely. With the use of a cotton tip applicator, dry out crevices that may not be dried by a towel. Dry each part separately laying each on an absorbent towel. Be sure to collect all the screws and braces that you removed to prevent loss.
- Avoid mineral damage by giving your phone a distilled water bath; if you dropped your phone in salt water or water with high mineral content it is best to douse it with distilled water or an alcohol bath to remove microscopic substances and minerals that can damage the electrical components of the phone.
- If you have a bowl of desiccant or a large container of raw rice, immerse your phone in and leave it to dry completely for 24 hours. Make sure that everything is dry before you replace each part back.
Warnings
- If you want, you may have the phone serviced to ensure that no electrical components were damaged.
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Author: Eric
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On top of that, I advise DIY users to use a hairdryer to ensure that all components are dry. Thereafter, the device should be left for at least 2 days before attempting to power it again with dried batteries.
I strongly advice against re-charging the device even after being left to dry for 2 days; Instead, take it to a qualified technician if it powers up. That is what I did with mine.
Because of the nature of my job, I always use water-resistant mobile phones. I find them cheap and readily available in most retail stores.