Water Damage

Eleanor24 August 2010

Leave a water damaged phone overnight in an airing cupboard (one with a hot water cyclinder in it). Also works for watches.

Cameron25 August 2010

I work as a journalist with the Army and my kit gets drenched on a regular basis. In the last few years I've soaked 6 video cameras, 3 digital cameras, 2 laptop computers and countless mobile phones - ALL of which have been successfully brought back to life by removing batteries, accessories and as much body-panelling as possible, then placing everything on a dry towel in an airing cupboard for 12 - 24 hours (depending on size and complex density of the tech). Stuffing desiccant (those little 'silica gel' packets that arrive free in gadget packaging) in all the nooks & crannies can help even further, but this is not usually essential. The best defence is to minimise initial contact with the water and start the drying process as soon as possible after exposure. I've never lost a gadget to water-damage using these methods and I trust I never will. Additional cautionary note: From experience I know that LCD Screens can still be permanently damaged/marked if the water was contaminated or dirty.

Dudeitsjackwild26 August 2010

I take out my phone battery and sim card, then place them on the radiator over night :) worked for me and my phone went through a wash cycle

Mik28 August 2010

Try a hairdryer

Dave Mason30 August 2010

Re the water in phones/GPS etc. and how to repair. First if the water is salt water (The sea), or there are inpurities in it - loo water/chlorine etc - you must try and wash it fully with clean water. If you dont do this the salt in sea water will track over and short out the components. It then becomes useless.Then you can use a hair dryer on full blast (hot) to dry and remove the heavy amount of water. To remove the water that has been sucked up into the display through the layers by capillary action and general moisture you can put the item in a air tight sandwich box and fill it with silica gel crystals, these can be obtained from the web or a double glazing company. This will take about a week to remove all the water. This does work in most cases, however manufacturers can prevent a lot of water damage by spraying the PCB with a waterproof varnish - like the cans of spray you can buy to remove the water content from ignition on cars,(the stuff that dries) but this is not a DIY method and I would leave it to the experts. If the screen is a touch screen then it may be permanently damaged and will have to be replaced. Dont forget to remove the battery as soon as possible after the device has been in the water. The item using rice does work but you may have to wait months and then you will have to keep replacing the rice. Good luck Dave

adam04 October 2010

hello, i dropped my psp in the loo and found the perfect method to save it take the battery out open up as much casing as possible and then leave it on a dry towel on the radiator.

Leonard31 July 2011

Does putting a phone in a bowl of rice after water damage help the phone??