So you dropped your phone in water, now what? After the panic subsides, your first thought might be to put your phone in rice. The rice hack has been around for many years, but does it work? Well, the answer might surprise you.
If you’re curious to know whether or not you should put your phone in rice after dropping it in water, continue reading the content below.
What Is the Phone in Rice Trick?
According to the phone in rice hack, you’re supposed to put your phone in rice after it falls into water. The myth is that the rice absorbs the water and dries your phone out without damaging it. Unfortunately, this isn’t true.
In fact, putting a water damaged phone in rice does more harm than good. The reason being is because starch, dust, and small bits of rice can get lost in the crevices of your phone, such as the opening for the headphone jack.
Don’t Put Your Phone in Rice: Alternative Methods
You might be wondering what to do with your water damaged phone if you shouldn’t put your phone in rice. Well, there are some tricks that’ll help to prevent your phone from becoming ruined:
Take Preventive Measures
Your first order of business after dropping your phone in water is to turn it off as soon as possible. Next, remove your phone case and take out your sim card. Keep the SIM card door open so the water doesn’t stay trapped inside.
Lastly, wipe off the outside of your phone. After you’ve completed these steps, focus on drying your phone out.
Use Silica Gel Packets
If you want to preserve your water damaged phone, use silica gel packets instead of rice. Silica gel packets are found in many items—like shoes—because they help to absorb moisture.
Luckily, they can do the same for your phone. Place several of them under your phone or on top of it. Let it sit for a few hours while the silica gel packets draw in the water.
Keep in mind that although gel packets absorb water, they may not fix the issue with your phone. Depending on the severity of the damage, it’s best to get your phone fixed by a professional.
Air Dry
Allowing your phone to air dry might seem too good to be true. But most of the time if you drop your phone in water, allowing it to air dry is an effective method. Put it on a flat surface on top of a paper towel and let it dry out in a warm environment.
You can also allow a fan to blow over it to help with the drying process. After 24 to 48 hours, turn the phone back on. But avoid switching it on while it’s going through the air-drying process.
Again, you might not want to risk doing your own repair after you’ve dropped your phone in water. Instead, take it to a professional repair shop, like Fruit Fixed, and we’ll take care of it.
How Does Water Damage Occur?
Water damage usually happens through the open ports of your phone, like the speakers, microphone charging port, and headphone jack. There are some phones that provide covers for the charging docks, but that doesn’t make it waterproof. Even if you find a way to cover all the openings of your phone, water could still get through.
If you drop your device in the toilet or a puddle of rainwater, the water usually creates the most damage once it infiltrates the internal circuitry. That’s why you should turn your phone off and remove the SIM card when you drop it in water.
Doing so cuts off the power before the water gets into the circuitry. It’s also a good idea to remove the battery too—only if the battery on your phone is removable.
Furthermore, you shouldn’t shake your device or use a hairdryer to draw out the water. Both of these methods could ruin it further by pushing the water deeper inside the phone or causing heat damage. There are also other harmful hack methods for drying a water damaged phone out that you should avoid, like letting your phone sit in the sun. This is a terrible idea, especially since water can create rust on the inside of your phone.
As you can see, there aren’t too many solutions for fixing water damage at home. But taking your phone to a professional right away can help to save it.
How to Know if Your Phone Is Water Damaged
Sometimes you can drop your phone in water, and it’s fine. Other times it’s completely ruined. However, certain phones will let you know how bad your device is damaged.
Many smartphones have a liquid contact indicator sticker that changes colors when it comes into contact with water. It’s usually located under the SIM card slot or under the battery, depending on what type of smartphone you have. If it shows severely damaged, take it to a technician as soon as possible.
Let Us Fix Your Water Damaged Phone
If you’ve dropped your phone in water, don’t put your phone in rice. Sometimes DIY methods aren’t effective, and there could be more extensive damage to your phone than you realize. So, let our expert Fruit Fixed technicians help out instead.
We provide a variety of repair services for smartphones, tablets, and computers.
If you have any questions for us, call 804 698-0004 or check out our online repair tool for more information.
