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First, get your phone out of the water and take the battery out. |
For many of us, our mobile phones are with us at all times, including when we’re washing the dishes, getting ready in the morning, going to the swimming pool, and partaking in other activities near sinks or bodies of water. In other words, you’re often in situations where one drop or accidental knock could send your phone into water deep enough to submerge the entire phone. Fortunately, you may be able save it by quickly removing the battery and drying out the phone. Here, we’ll provide a step-by-step guide for repairing your phone after dropping it in water.
 Emergency Response
Get your phone out of the water as quickly as possible. Most mobile phones feature a fairly tight design to prevent water from reaching the internal components in the rain, and that design may keep the water at bay for a few seconds. The faster you remove the phone, the less water will enter the small spaces. As soon as you get the phone out, remove the battery, because the phone is most likely to be ruined by the reaction of the powered electrical components to the water. Without power, the mobile phone is less likely to short out or become permanently damaged. Many of the components are designed to survive contact with water for a short period of time.
If your model of mobile phone uses a SIM (subscriber identity module) card, which likely stores contacts, SMS messages, and other network data, it’s a good idea to remove the SIM card before attempting to dry off the mobile phone. This way, even if your mobile phone is ruined, you may still retrieve all of your contacts, which may be more valuable to you than the phone itself.
Dry It Out | 
Placing the phone in a bowl of uncooked rice for a day is a great way to absorb the water from the phone’s interior. |
Set the phone in a position, such as standing up vertically, where water can drain away from it. Use a paper towel to pick up any water on the exterior of the mobile phone. In particular, blot the water near keys and other openings where the water could reach the internal components. You’ll want to blot the water, rather than wipe it away, to avoid pushing more liquid underneath the surface. If you removed a SIM card, take some time to dry it off and set it aside in a location away from the water.
Once the exterior of the mobile phone appears to be dry, attempt to remove any of the external casing that can be easily detached, such as a front panel. You’ll also want to open any covers, such as the microphone port cover, to open up as many free spaces for air as you can. Again, try to blot off any visible liquid. Next, you’ll want to blow some air over the mobile phone to help speed the drying process. Heat is normally a good idea for drying, but the plastic exterior or LCD screen may be damaged by intense heat—such as from a blow dryer on its hottest setting—and you don’t want any chemicals in the water to dry on the phone’s motherboard. That being said, using a blow dryer on a cool setting is a good way to push water out of the phone. | 
If you can, remove parts of the external case to remove water that may have seeped inside. |
After you’ve attempted to blow the water out, set it in a bowl of uncooked rice or another water-absorbing agent, such as the silica gel packets found in dried nuts, vitamins, and other materials that need to stay dry for an extended shelf life. Try to arrange the phone in a way where water can drain away from the phone. To help air out the phone, it’s a good idea to set the bowl near a fan or next to a breezy window. Let the mobile phone sit for a day or two.
The Great Test | 
Use a paper towel to blot water off the phone’s exterior. |
It’s tough to be sure if the interior of the phone is dry, but if no water exits the phone when you blow air through it using a hair dryer (on a cool setting) or a can of compressed air, you should be able to reconnect the battery—the uncooked rice should have done its job after a day. If the phone doesn’t turn on, try connecting your phone to the wall outlet to charge the battery and power the phone. If the mobile phone still doesn’t work, you may be out of luck, because water damage isn’t covered under the phone’s warranty. And the manufacturer will know that you’ve dropped the phone in water, because nearly all current mobile phones feature a liquid contact dot (hidden inside the phone) that turns from white to red if the phone is submerged in water.
Apply The Paddles
If you have an insurance plan that covers water damage, the policy may let you receive a replacement for the water-logged phone. Otherwise, you could take the phone to an authorized repair center. The repair specialist will be able to open up the phone and clean off the parts of the phone that aren’t easy to reach, such as the motherboard. If you’ve taken the steps we’ve outlined above to dry the phone, he may be able to clean any of the water or residual chemicals, such as chlorine, that are preventing the phone from functioning.
If you don’t feel that the phone is worth the cost of a repair specialist, you may prefer to try to open up the phone and clean the internal parts yourself. Typically, you’ll need a special set of miniature screwdrivers that feature six-pointed, star-shaped heads. The screws are generally located behind the phone’s battery compartment. When you have the phone open (with the battery removed), use some electrical contact cleaner or a cotton swab with some isopropyl alcohol to clean the internal parts. Once the internal parts look sufficiently clean, carefully put the phone back together and replace the battery. 
by Nathan Lake
Dropped In A Large Body Of Water
If you drop your phone in a pool, which may leave a chlorine residue, or the ocean, which may leave a saltwater residue, you might need to take the phone to a repair specialist after drying it out, even if the phone works. The chemicals left by the chlorine or salt water may corrode the internal components of your mobile phone. Thus, your phone may work for a while, but over time, you may see errors or freezes that cause the phone to stop working. |
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