What to do when you Drop an Android Device into water

When it happens to drop your Android smartphone / tablet into water, we know that panic sets in.

The thought of paying for a new phone and losing everything what you have stored in your current device is painful, but it doesn’t have to turn into reality.

Your phone’s warranty probably doesn’t cover water damage, but there’s a good chance it can be saved if you act fast, according to these steps:

What to do when you drop your phone into water:

1. First of all, rapidly grab your phone. It really doesn’t matter if you drop your phone in a pool, your tub or any other place. The longer your precious handset takes a bath, the more likely is to find water inside, so act as fast as possible;
2. If you grab your phone and it’s still turned on, turn it off as fast immediately, as long as leaving it on can cause it to short circuit. If it has been in water, it is better to assume it is waterlogged whether it is still working or not and take no chances;
3. After turning off the phone, you have to gather some paper towels or soft cloths to lay the phone on while you remove the battery cover and battery. Many circuits inside the phone will survive immersion in water if they are not attached to a power source (battery) when wet, so don’t skip this step;
4. If you are ready to find the truth (if your Android device is truly water damaged or not), we advise you to check the corner near where the battery is – there should be a white square or circle. If this is pink or red, then you know for sure that your phone has water damage;
5. Don’t forget that you must also remove the SD Card, SIM Card, headphones, and any other accessories from your phone;
6. Lightly dry off your water damaged handset and all the accessories that you has just removed, so feel free to use a completely dry cloth. Gently wipe off as much water as possible without dropping the phone. Avoid shaking or moving the phone to much in order to avoid moving water through it This will just cause the water to spread around and we know that this is not what you have in mind;
7. Don’t even think of using a hair dryer to dry the phone. The heat from the drier may damage the internal components; you have been warned, so don’t blame us;
8. If we are at the crazy ideas chapter, don’t put your phone in an oven or freezer either. We have heard rumors and even people claiming that both methods fix a wet smartphone, but this isn’t at all the truth;
9. Now, it’s time to use a substance with a high affinity for drawing out the moisture. We know that it sight also sounds crazy, but the rice could be a solution as it will absorb the liquid from the phone and will also dry it more quickly. Just make sure to use dry rice and feel free to put it in to a bag or container;
10. You can also choose use a desiccant instead. Desiccants are known for absorbing the moisture even better than rice; the silica gel, generally found with new shoes, purses, noodle packets is a good example, not to mention the desiccants for flower drying can usually be purchased at most craft stores.
11. In these conditions, you should leave the phone with the desiccant or rice at least overnight to absorb the moisture, but don’t forget to rotate the phone to a different position every hour until you go to sleep;
12. After removing the phone from the rice or desiccant, you must place it flat on an absorbent material and DO NOT turn it on just yet;
13. You have to check the absorbent material every hour for 4 to 6 hours. If you still see any water there, repeat the desiccant step;
14. Once you’ve done all these, it’s time to turn it on;
15. Don’t hesitate to plug it into its charger without the battery if your phone is completely dried out, but still does not work.
16. If it doesn’t work then try replacing the battery; if that doesn’t work either, you may be out of luck, but let’s hope that this is not your case.