About 80% of the population today has a cell phone, and we carry them around wherever we go. While they are incredibly high-tech and useful, they have one drawback, the worst enemy of nearly every electronic device: water. And it's not just water, anything that gets your phone wet puts it at risk of shutting down forever.
Every year, nearly 30% of cell phone owners damage their phones by spilling drinks on them, and over 850,000 phones meet their end at the bottom of the toilet. However, just because your phone got wet or went for an unexpected swim, doesn’t mean it's broken beyond repair. With this simple guide of do's and don'ts, there is a good chance you can bring your phone back to life!
The first and most important thing you should do if your phone gets wet is turn it off (if it's still working). Do not try to turn it on "just to see if it works" as any water inside might cause a short circuit and damage vital parts of the phone. It's better to first dry it off using the following steps, and then see if it works once it's safe to turn it on again.
Another important thing to avoid is shaking and moving your phone too much. If any water has gotten inside, moving the phone around will just make the water flow into unaffected places that might still be dry. I know it's hard not to panic, but acting in a slow and calm manner might save your phone.
Now carefully take your wet phone and place it on a dry paper or cloth towel. Dry the outside of the phone as best as you can, and be gentle so you don't force any more liquid inside.
Once you are done with the outside remove any cases, covers or shells the phone might have, and then remove the battery and the SIM card. Dry them using a dry towel the same way as you did the outside.
Now before we get to the next step on how to dry your phone, I want to go over some of the worst ways to do it. Though they may dry your mobile device, they will destroy it at the same time. Never use any of these methods to dry your phone: Don't blow on it with a hairdryer, place it on or under an oven, or put it in the microwave.
So, how should you dry your phone? The answer is very simple: the liquid absorbing power of rice. Use a big bowl or a bag and place the phone without its cover and battery inside. Fill the bowl with enough rice to completely cover the phone from all sides, simple white rice works best. Don’t be skimpy, you need to have a good amount of rice around the phone to absorb all of the moisture.
The ideal time to leave your phone like this may change depending on how wet it got. The safest thing is to leave it in the rice overnight but in some cases even six hours will do. When you take the phone out, gently clean it with a soft brush or a vacuum cleaner, put all the parts back together and turn it on.
While it might not always work if your phone gets too wet, or stays in the water for too long, it's still the best and safest way to dry it. Be sure to open the case from time to time after you get it working again to check for any possible corrosion. If your phone still doesn’t work go to a repair lab and hope that the electronic parts that were damaged can be replaced.
Good luck!
