Water. It is the lifeblood of living creatures and the bane of electronic devices, especially smartphones. It’s true that major mobile manufacturers are indeed making headway on this front, even going so far as to produce handsets that can be submerged in shallow water for a few seconds without damage. But there is still a long way to go before smartphones can be considered fully “water proof.”
In fact, most smartphones currently on the market are just as sensitive as they ever were to the feared agua. Everyone who has ever dropped there handheld in a pool or ocean is well aware of this fact. What many people may not know is that there are emergency steps that can be taken that just may salvage a waterlogged smartphone, eliminating the need for total replacement.
Keep the power off
That means not turning on a phone that has been submerged in water. At all. This point can’t be stressed enough. In fact, most wet smartphones become damaged beyond all help for the primary reason that the owner turns it on too soon after getting wet. This has the very negative effect of spreading the damage throughout the whole of the unit, frying the circuits in the process. The best way to prevent this is for the owner to remove the smartphone’s battery as soon as they notice the unit is wet.
Let the smartphone dry
The second most important step in the process is to allow the unit to get rid of all that moisture. The owner can help this process by removing any and all cards (memory, SIM) inside the unit and allowing them to dry separately. To speed up the drying, smartphone owners can place a fan next to the device. But warm air should be considered the enemy to this process, and smartphone owners must avoid using things like hair dryers, as this often damages electronics.
Pull out the moisture
It’s no secret that air-drying can take quite a while. Also, it can be difficult to tell when all moisture has evaporated from the internal areas of a smartphone. To this end, it is necessary to aid the smartphone in drawing out the moisture. And the best – and least expensive — way to help draw out this moisture is by using rice. That’s right, placing the handheld in a zip-lock bag filled with rice and leaving it overnight is highly effective at removing moisture. Smartphone owners can even see the evidence of the success in the form of moist grains of rice around the handheld.
Wait, wait, wait
The smartphone owner must wait for the smartphone to air dry. The smartphone owner must then wait overnight while the smartphone sits in a moisture absorber. This will require patience, but those who do manage to put in this time will seriously up their chances their smartphone will be able to be used again. Once the requisite time has passed, smartphone owners can replace the battery and cards and test the unit.
These are just a couple household remedies geared towards resuscitating waterlogged smartphones. The best part is that not only are these methods proven effective, they cost little more than time and a box of rice.
