How Can I Fix My Cell Phone - It Got Wet
January 13th, 2008
Over the past ten years or so, cell phones have become very popular communication devices because of their convenience and portability. However, along with this surge in popularity there have been many incidents of people accidentally dropping their cell phones into various bodies of water or other liquids. If this happens to you and your cell phone gets wet, you may think at first that it is damaged beyond repair and dread the cost and hassle of replacing it. But with some resourceful thinking, in many cases it is possible to save a wet cell phone if you take action quickly enough.
Once a cell phone gets wet, several methods are available for attempting to dry it out and revive it, but there a few things that you should always do first regardless of which method you choose. The most important of these is to immediately get the phone out of the water and remove the battery. This will disconnect the electrical power source, thus preventing any further possibility of short circuit damage and increasing your chances of a successful cell phone resurrection. If you have a SIM card, this should be removed also - you may be able to save your data.
The next step is to get as much water as you can out of the phone and dry off all visible liquid with a cloth or paper towel. If your cell phone has any other easily removable parts besides the sim card, these can be dried separately. Then your main task is to make sure that the internal parts of your phone are completely dry so that you do not cause a short circuit when you reconnect the phone’s power supply. This is the part that will require the most patience and thinking, as there are several methods that people have used to successfully dry out their cell phones. Here are a few that I have come across in my research:
1. Wait it out. Yes, it’s boring and will take a while, but this is probably the safest method overall. Just let the phone sit out in a dry place for at least three days while the water evaporates. A variation on this that might speed up the drying process slightly is to leave the phone on top of a low heat source such as a television or cable box.
2. Put the phone in a bowl of dry rice. Many people have had success with this one, and it makes sense because uncooked rice can absorb a lot of water. For most cell phone models, you won’t have to worry about the rice grains getting inside of the phone. The following video provides a quick one-minute demonstration of how this is done.
3. Instead of the rice, you can use other desiccating materials such as silica sand or even cat litter. Although these things can dry quickly, they may contain granules that are small enough to get inside of the phone. In this case, you can use a covering such as a sock or pantyhose to prevent this.
4. Compressed air cans such as the kind that are useful for dusting off keyboards and other computer peripherals can be used for faster drying. Just make sure that you hold the can straight and not too close to the phone because these pressurized cans can release a very cold liquid that could potentially cause freezing damage.
5. Many people like to use a hair dryer, but it is important to use a low heat setting if possible. If the air is too hot, it could overheat some of the phone’s parts and wind up doing more harm than good.
6. Instead of heating it up, some people like to cool down their cell phones by putting them in the refrigerator. Although this seems counterintuitive, most refrigerators have a dehumidifying effect that will draw moisture out of the phone and speed up the drying process. However, it should not be placed in a freezer because this can damage the liquid crystal display.
7. If your cell phone gets wet while you are far from home but still have a vehicle nearby, you can place the phone on the dashboard and let the sun dry it out. By keeping the vehicle’s doors closed, the greenhouse effect can work in your favor. You might even think that global warming isn’t such a bad thing after all.
8. If your phone was dropped in something other than plain water, such as salt water or another liquid that contains mineral deposits, this can complicate matters because the residue left behind after drying will remain inside the phone and could cause problems later. In these cases, you can use a rinsing solution of distilled water or methyl alcohol to remove the contaminants first before completely drying.
All of these methods will require some patience, but after you’re sure that the phone is completely dry, you can try to activate it with a charger and see if it works. In many cases, you may find that the original battery will not work anymore, but the cost of replacing the battery should be much lower than replacing the whole phone.
If you still cannot fix your wet cell phone after drying it out for a week or more, chances are that it was submerged for too long and sustained too much damage. In these cases, you can still salvage some money out of the deal by trading in your cell phone for recycling. It is even possible to make enough profit from recycling cell phones to recoup your costs and create a nice new income source.
My friends actually told me about #2 but I didn’t believe them because we were drunk at the time. I would have to put this to the test to find out for sure.
GREAT post!
These are great ideas but what if you are riding on a bike and you have no car and you don’t know it is wet so you don’t take it apart quickly!!!
The best method to dry it out is to use a vacuum. Be patient and try to concentrate the vacuum sucking from every open space. Use your fingers to block the large opening of the vacuum hose end. Spend about 20-30 minutes doing this. This will pull any residual water out and pull air across all the circuit boards for good drying. Place the end of the vacuum right on the key pad and do this for 5 minutes. If you have a desk lamp, place the cell phone under it and place the desk lamp about 6″ above it. Make sure it does not get to hot, just warm. Turn it over a few times and do this for four hours or more. The low heat will help dry out any moisture the vacuum did not dry. Good luck
I dropped mine in a pool and its fine just some of the buttons don’t work. What do I do because I dried it off they just don’t work!
i dropped my cell phone in the toilet. i though about it for like two seconds before getting it out but i did ha.ha. i shaked it, took out the battery,my microship i put it close to the air i used the vaccum of a car wash,the hair dryer,the sun,it worked when i decided to turn it on after i left it like 3 hours in the sun, but it turned off by itself im sad i want my phone to work again what else can i do?
You can use the oven method, just be sure you follow all the steps or you could have a fire.
An open bottle of children’s bubbles tipped over onto my cell phone. The LCD screen was fine for about an hour, then just disappeared. The dialing works fine….I just can’t be certain I’ve dialed the correct number. Called Verizon and the tech said to remove battery and sit the phone in the sun. I tried that for two days then put the battery in. Screen showed up, but only lasted for 20 minutes or so. Tried the hairdryer method with no luck. I will give the rice method a shot. Anyone else experience a bubble spill?
I dropped mine in the toilet right after a buddy of mine got into a lake with hers… I turned around, realized it, grabbed it out, dried it off and used a hair dryer for about an hour
phone works fine oddly enough when I pulled it out of the toilet it was still on and working
oh and it was brand
well i just dropped my phone in juice and i took it out quick then tried to turn it off, so then i dried it off as much as i could then i took the battery out and now i have it under a lamp so hopeful i really hope it works….my screen is just all messed up so n e suggestions??? and NO i have no rice!!!! HELP ME PLEASE!!! I CANT LIVE W/O MY PHONE!!! and i cant afford to get a new one!!! some body please help!!
My friend knocked a glass of water onto my phone yesterday. I dried it off and it seemed to work fine so I thought nothing of it. Now I can answer the phone but can’t hear the person on the other end. It keeps telling me there’s a headset plugged in, but there isn’t!!! Is there any way to save my phone?
just let your phone dry for at least 4 days it does work. use a blow dryer or use the vaccum from a car wash. i tried alot of things and my cell worked again in like 4 days.i tried the rice, i left it outside for the sun to dry it off then i went to the car wash then the blow dryer just wait at least for days.