Having just suffered thru a Motorola Rzr going thru the wash cycle, and then the dryer, I would also add theses steps in addition to or instead of:
1) After removing the battery you can use a shop vacuum to suck out as much water as possible for a few minutes. Blowing air isn't as good a choice.
2) After doing the other things mentioned, get a pound of uncooked rice, an appropriate-sized tupperware style sealed bowl, and put the phone in the rice in the middle, so it's covered on all sides by rice, sealed in the bowl. Leave it there for a week. You shouldn't see any moisture or condensation on the screens or the phone. You can throw the battery in, but it is probably toast the moment it hit the water.
This phone was recovered with the purchase of a new battery. This site was very helpful in confirming these steps, and VERY appreciated! :2thumbs:
Originally Posted by Mark Rejhon
In the event that a non-waterproof cellphone/PDA/digcam accidentally gets immersed in water, you should follow these steps...
Thanks for sharing this. This is really useful information. I hope I never get my phone damaged but in case I do get any water damage, definitely gonna keep this in mind. :)
Alright... So I dropped my phone in the tub. It's a verizon env3... I think I did everything wrong. I took the battery out and blowdried it them let it sit and turned it in a couple hours later And it started working but then the screen axes out and it made a static noise :( did i ruin it?? It makes that noise when it's plugged into my wall charger wihout the battery :((
2) After doing the other things mentioned, get a pound of uncooked rice, an appropriate-sized tupperware style sealed bowl, and put the phone in the rice in the middle, so it's covered on all sides by rice, sealed in the bowl. Leave it there for a week. You shouldn't see any moisture or condensation on the screens or the phone. You can throw the battery in, but it is probably toast the moment it hit the water.
This phone was recovered with the purchase of a new battery. This site was very helpful in confirming these steps, and VERY appreciated!
This post is really useful and you'll never know when this might come in handy... The tip about putting your wet cellphone in a baggie or bowl with uncooked rice is so true since it sucks all the moisture out of the phone and I have read about it on other sources too, it may sound weird but a must do if you still want to save your phone
doesn`t burying it under rice get it all filled with tiny rice particle and all sorts of other crap?
no other cleaner way to getr rid of moisture?
Yes, putting anything into rice to dry it out does get rice particles into the device-- NOT RECOMMENDED!! It also just dries any minerals that were suspended in the water right onto your circut board which may cause shorts.
The best thing to do is take the phone apart-- or at least remove the circut board and rinse it with distilled water (no minerals, rinses off any salts, dirts, or other crud). Dry with a lint free cloth as well as you can, then place the entire phone- dissasembled- into a jar or airtight plastic container along with a dessicant (a couple of those little packs that say "Silica Gel-- Do Not Eat!" that seem to be packed into everything these days).
Leave it alone for 5-7 days. (Yes-- a week! You WILL survive!) If after a week there is still fog or moisture in the LCD (Screen) it is not ready to be put back together yet! Moisture in the LCD is a pretty good sign there is still moisture in the circuts. If you put in a battery you will have a very high chance of frying your phone.
Once the phone is totally dry, it should work-- about 90% sucess if done correctly.
Michele
Action Wireless
"Breaking Your Cellphone Sucks, But We Can Make It Suck A Little Less!"
doesn`t burying it under rice get it all filled with tiny rice particle and all sorts of other crap?
no other cleaner way to getr rid of moisture?
If you are that worried about rice dust getting into your already water damaged phone/device then you can always wrap your phone in tissue/toilet paper before burying it in the rice.
Or as mentioned, buy or find some Silica Gel packets to use instead of uncooked rice.
If you feel that you have to correct some of my posts for my capitalization of some of my words, then just bear with it. It's just a discussion forum where some may be limited by time to answer in well-versed and eloquent sentences.
I already got a PHD (Plain High School Diploma) so ignore my style of writing and I'll ignore your ignorance.
Subject: You can read this-trust me!
I cdnuolt blveiee taht I cluod aulaclty uesdnatnrd waht I was rdgnieg. The phaonmneal pweor of the hmuan mnid. Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae. The rset can be a taotl mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit a porbelm.
Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe. Amzanig huh? yaeh and I awlyas thought slpeling was ipmorantt!
When asked if I see the glass half empty or half full, I responded I see just a glass of water.
Now you know how I think.
I dropped my lg enV 9900 in the toilet. WAH. I dried it up as best as I could and removed the battery. Then I placed it in a tub of cat litter. (New litter NOT used by cats litter... eww) I put it on a plastic bag and placed that on top of the litter and closed the lid and kept it there for 3 to 4 days. The thing works now if it is plugged in. The moment I unplug it, it stops working. Me thinks it may be a shorted out battery? I'll try an el cheapo ebay battery and see if it solves my problem. Been rockin' my old Motorola Razr for a while now. I miss all my LG's fancy buttons but now I know that I miss the Razr's perfect size. Almost a toss up to go back to my enV now.
Leave it alone for a day or two to let it fully dry out, try it then. Continuing to try and turn it on will just increase the chances of it shorting out somehow (if that hasn't already happened; but in a few days you will know for sure)
When I was a slot mechanic in a casino, when someone spilled a drink into a machine and it got onto the system board, we would:
1. Wash it in soap and water, using a soft brush like a paint brush.
2. Rinse it in tap water.
3. Rinse it in distilled water.
4. Blow the water off with an air gun.
5. Let dry completely and then re-install.
Total time was usually 24 hours, most of it drying.
These boards were thru-hole, so I imagine that a surface-mount board may need a bit more care. In particular, an air can with straw may be needed to get under some chips and caps. The most important thing is not to leave any minerals behind to cause corrosion or shorts.
Originally Posted by oldcarman
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