What to Do If You Accidentally Drop Your Phone in Water

As a smartphone owner, nothing is scarier than dropping your phone in water.  It happens to everyone and in all circumstances. Some can be pretty inglorious, like dropping your phone in the toilet.  Others can be rather spectacular, like dropping your phone in the Red Sea, then a few weeks later dropping the replacement phone in the Nile.  True story! Everyone can be a victim of the dreaded phone in water situation, and it always triggers the same reaction no matter the circumstance: panic!  Now, after you’re done panicking over your wet phone, take a deep breath and be ready for some good news. Phones that have been dropped in water can be salvaged.  Of course, that is not always the case, but depending on the extent of the damage and how quickly you react, there is a chance to save your phone.  The steps below can help you save your phone after dropping it in water.

STEP I: TURN YOUR PHONE OFF

Contrary to what you may expect, your phone does not always die immediately once it hits the water.  Some phones may stay on, even usable, afterwards. But be careful because water particles left in the phone will end up causing damage. The longer the phone stays in the water, the more components the water reaches, causing your phone to shut off.  By comparison, if your phone doesn’t stay in water for too long, the water will not have permeated through the whole phone right away but will remain in the phone.  So while you may think that you’ve survived the dreaded phone-in-water situation, it is probably just a matter of time until your phone short-circuits, according to this USA Today article.  The smartest thing to do is to immediately turn your phone off.  The idea is to not make any assumptions.  Whether your phone was in the water for a few seconds or a few minutes, it’s best to turn if off so you can dry it efficiently.

STEP II: REMOVE WHAT YOU CAN FROM THE PHONE

After turning off your phone, you want to dry it completely.  Because of the intricate make-up of smartphones, that requires several steps.  The first of those is taking out all the parts you can from your phone. For most smartphones, that means removing the battery, taking out the SIM card, and removing any memory card or other accessories.  If you’re an iPhone owner, you probably won’t be able to remove more than your SIM card. The idea is to remove anything that can get in the way of getting water out of your phone. You will also be preventing damage to your SIM card and accessories.  It’s bad enough that you dropped your phone in water!

STEP III: DRY THE WATER OUT

Remember, you don’t want even a single water particle to remain in your phone.  It is highly recommended that you dry your phone entirely. The good news is that you can make use of household items to dry your phone.  But be careful which appliances you use. Probably the safest appliance to use for your phone is a vacuum, according to the video below. Don’t, and I repeat, do not, put your phone in the microwave or the oven.  Heat is extremely damaging to cell phones, and a microwave may just cause it to explode!  This warning also extends to hair dryers. While those make more sense for drying things, the heat emitted by hair dryers can easily damage your phone.  Once you’ve dried your phone as best as you could, you are ready for the next step.

Step IV: SOAK YOUR PHONE…IN SOMETHING DRY

“You dropped your phone in water?  Just put it in rice.” If we had a penny for every time someone used this phrase!  While it is not so simple–there are a few steps before the rice part as we’ve seen–rice can help you with the drying process.  If you thought using a vacuum was your last step in this process, well, you were wrong. You can shake your phone as hard as you can or use a vacuum as long as you want, but that does not guarantee that you’ve gotten every single drop of water out.  Don’t just trust that your phone is dry because it is no longer damp to the touch.  You need to submerge your phone–no pun intended–in some absorbent material, such as rice. Other materials work as well as, and even better than rice, according to this article by Gazelle.  Leave your phone submerged in the absorbent material for at least one day, and after that cross your fingers and try to turn it on.

WHAT NOT TO DO AFTER DROPPING YOUR PHONE IN WATER

There are certain things to avoid after dropping your phone in water.  Under no circumstances should you place your phone in salt. While salt is known to absorb water, it also can corrode the materials on your phone.  So don’t reach for the salt jar as a rice alternative. Don’t try to turn your phone on before the full day has passed, either. Sure, it’s hard to not use your cellphone.  But what would you rather have: no cell phone for a day or no cell phone at all? Do not assume that the above steps are a sure bet. Different phones react to water damage differently, and damage levels are not all the same.  If you drop your phone in water, be prepared for the possibility that you may need a new one. Which takes us to our last step: do not despair. Even if your phone no longer works, you can still sell it for good money. Swift Tech Buy has an excellent buyback program which can help you get a little cash in your hands for your next phone.