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up vote 11 down vote favorite

My Acer Liquid got wet with sea water. I didn't notice that right the moment, but after an hour it made a couple of vibrations and the screen doesn't turn on. Connected to power and nothing happens, no led lights and it does just nothing. Trying to turn it on doesn't give any result. Is it gone forever? Can I try anything? Can I make it repair?

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probably not within the FAQ... – jlehenbauer Jun 19 '12 at 14:54
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also, gotta love the irony here. – jlehenbauer Jun 19 '12 at 16:34
How is it an Android issue? I am voting to close.. – Sachin Shekhar Jun 20 '12 at 1:40
Put it into bowl of rice... – t0mm13b Jul 12 '12 at 14:49

4 Answers

up vote 12 down vote accepted

Even though this may not be the place to ask this question, you deserve some help with this one. First,

DON'T ATTEMPT TO APPLY ANY POWER

  • Separate the phone into as many parts as you can (i.e. take the battery out, back cover off) without taking screws out.

  • Cover the device fully with dry rice. Try three days, usually gets most of it out.

  • Reassemble and try the device again.

If this doesn't work, there's a few more things to try, but chances are you're out of luck :/

IF YOU WISH TO BE EXTREME

Note, I have a friend that has done this successfully several times, and even though it sounds scary, it has worked for many people:

  • first, take out the battery

  • second, check to make sure you took out the battery

  • next, submerge the phone (without the battery) completely in water. Leave it there for 24 hours.

  • after waiting such a time, remove the phone, still, do not replace the battery and cover it completely in dry rice for three times (or a week, to be safe) the amount of time you had it in the water

This process should clean the inside of your phone and hopefully remove any salinity, and should not harm the phone as long as there is no power applied to the device, i.e. the battery

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I would not leave the phone in water for a day or two. This sounds like it'll create more problems than it'll solve. I would do the same thing except leave it in there for 30 minutes max. – user606723 Jun 19 '12 at 16:35
I edited it down to 24 hours. I know it sounds psycho, but I've seen it work wonders, and have a friend that has done it to several devices, and has never been unsuccessful. I did title the section appropriately ;) – jlehenbauer Jun 19 '12 at 17:38
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I dropped my MP3 player in the ocean once. Afterwards, I took it apart, washed it in the sink, and let the pieces dry on a bit of paper towel. It worked fine, and I used it for another year (until I upgraded). – Fake Name Jun 19 '12 at 22:10
Tried this. After just drying no signs of life. After I disassembled everything (screws boards etc) and soaked in water for 30 minutes. After that I dried the phone in rice. It kinda worked after that, but still I will buy a new phone. – Paolo Jun 26 '12 at 9:30
how long did you dry it? – jlehenbauer Jun 26 '12 at 12:08
up vote 11 down vote

You can try drying it out by putting it in some uncooked rice for a couple of days. (Take the battery out.)

Most likely, though, you're hosed. Unless you bought an extended protection plan, you should probably expect to pay full price for a new phone.

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4  
most probably the salty water led to electrolytic corrosion (found some images here: themaclellans.com/macbook_repair.html ). It's hard to judge what's been damaged, ranging from simple connector issues to more serious logic board rot. If taking out the battery and leaving it to dry by itself doesn't help that may be the cause. PS: dried up saltwater remains may still be an issue leading to ongoing electrolytical rot (it possibly stays a little moist) – ce4 Jun 19 '12 at 15:22
+1 for the site @ce4. I'm surprised Apple hasn't tried to sue that guy for showing off the insides of a Macbook yet... – jlehenbauer Jun 19 '12 at 16:36
You may also try a different battery. I had an old cell phone that I accidentally went swimming with. It didn't work right away. I let it dry out a few days and afterwards nothing worked still. A family member had an identical phone though so I decided to try using her battery and magically my phone booted up... and continued to work decently for another year and a half. Even after someone at a retail place opened it up and said "there is no way this thing could work. It's corroded to hell" – Earlz Jun 19 '12 at 17:25
Also, note I dried my phone by leaving it in the car during the summer. I suspect rice is a much better plan though – Earlz Jun 19 '12 at 17:28
+1 to @ce4 - if it's gotten wet with dirty water or especially salt water, you need to wash it with fresh water or preferably distilled water before attempting to dry it out. – Random832 Jun 19 '12 at 17:47
up vote 6 down vote

It sounds like you're screwed at this point.

However, this is what you should do if you happen to drop an electronic device in salt-water:

  1. Immediately remove all battery and power sources and do not reconnect them for several days and after following the steps below.
  2. If the exposure is quite high. (ie submerged in salt water for several seconds), then you will want to flush the device with distilled water. OR if possible, disassemble and clean all electric surfaces with alcohol.
  3. Dry the device by surrounding it in dry rice for 2-3 days. (And maybe put it near something with ambient heat)

  4. Only when confident the device is dry, should you reapply power.

    • The hope here is that when it shorted out the first time, it didn't damage anything.
    • Attempting to apply the power while device is still wet will certainly cause damage.
    • Salt water is known to cause damage, and therefore it might be best to try to flush the salt out with distilled water Or disassembly if possible. (Water itself will not cause much damage unless electricity is applied during the process.)
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+1 since you are the only one mentioning distilled water. – Flow♦ Jun 19 '12 at 21:27
up vote -2 down vote

If if still doesn't work: send it in and try to get it replaced?

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Not likely. Phones have "immersion detectors" in them and warranties specifically exclude water damage. – Al Everett Jul 12 '12 at 14:10
Usually it's a little white "sticker" thing that changes it's color if it comes to contact with fluids. – Richard Borcsik Aug 4 '12 at 12:33
I see. Well, thanks to your comments it might be an useful answer again. :) – YAK Feb 7 at 1:07

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