If you accidentally dropped your iPhone in the sink or toilet, there’s no need to panic. Here’s how to recover your iPhone and recover from water damage.
You may already know this, but water and electronics don’t mix and bad things can happen if they eventually touch the noses, so it’s always a good idea to keep your devices away from you while swimming or showering. The good news is that more and more smartphones are becoming waterproof and water resistant, there is no easy way to avoid this mix altogether, especially since both water and smartphones are such a big part of our lives.
That said, the iPhone is by no means waterproof, and we’re not sure when Apple plans to add it to its feature list, but at this point, a quick flush into the toilet can be disastrous. However, not every contact with water your iPhone encounters has to be fatal, and if that happens, there are ways to recover your iPhone.
This is why many users try their best to save their iPhone from water damage by using all sorts of tricks to dry their device as quickly as possible to prevent further damage. However, don’t try to maintain its resale value (resale value will drop as soon as your iPhone is sunk) as the water sensors inside the iPhone will take care of this for you.
Here are some tips and tricks on how to recover your iPhone from water damage and keep it working so you can continue using it.
Urgent Steps to be Taken
Between the time you take your iPhone out of the water and the time you leave it outside to dry, there are a few important steps you should take. Here’s what to do after you get it out of the water:
Don’t Use Rice
It’s probably been said many times that placing your iPhone in uncooked rice will absorb moisture from your iPhone and help it dry faster than air drying, but regular air drying actually works much better.
But where did the myth of the rice trick come from in the first place? A cell phone repair says She tells customers they mostly put their devices in rice “so they don’t try to charge it to turn it back on. Trying to charge your phone because it won’t turn on after dropping it in water is a surefire way to short-circuit the board and make it stop working again.”
He also says that a food dehydrator is actually the best tool because it does arguably the best job at removing moisture from your iPhone, because that’s what a food dehydrator does in the first place.
That said, letting your iPhone dry is the next best option, and a fan can also help the process and keep the air circulating. It is recommended that you keep your iPhone in a dry place that is not damp, and leaving the device in a warm place allows the heat to help the water evaporate. Be careful though, because according to Apple, the iPhone has a limit of 113 degrees Fahrenheit.
If you’re still ready to dip your iPhone in rice, gazelle recommends instead use silica gel, cat litter, couscous, instant oatmeal, traditional oatmeal or instant rice (as opposed to regular rice). These products do a much better job than regular rice, but they’re still not the best option when it comes to drying speed, because the wet sponge can actually dry faster than an iPhone in rice or cat litter.
Get It Working Again
It’s recommended that you don’t touch your iPhone for at least 24 hours, but even then we recommend leaving it for a few days to dry completely before trying to start it up again.
Try turning it on after your iPhone is completely dry. If it opens and works as before, you have successfully come back to life. But if it won’t open, there are a few things you can try.
Charging it for a few hours might give it a start that might eventually allow it to turn on, but it’s possible that the battery is completely burnt out. This is where you can replace it with a new battery, which Apple will gladly do at the Apple Store.
If your iPhone still won’t turn on even after replacing the battery, you can still sync it with your computer, allowing you to recover important data. Otherwise, it’s time to say goodbye.
