gridbug

Had the phone powered on, fumbled it into a sink full of water (clean, no detergent or anything) and immediately fished it out. It still worked (had a YouTube video playing at the time) so I took it apart to dry everything out and put it back together. Not knowing any better, I tried to power it back up to see if everything was okay and couldn't get past the white screen with the three droids on skateboards. No error code or anything, just no progress. Hit the internet and found the "uncooked rice" suggestion so I put my poor Eris and the battery (separated) in a bag of rice and will leave it for a day or two.

Has anyone had this happen to them, and if so what was the solution. Also, failing the rice trick, what's the cost for me to get a replacement Eris? I didn't get the insurance option when I got the phone back in December.

Needless to say, I'm pretty depressed... hoping for the best but preparing for the worst.

aleis

my laptop drop in a tub of water...fully submerged!
open the battery door and let it sit for a day...im typing on it now!
it isnt water, its rusted parts that kill electronics.
you`ll be fine after a couple days trust.

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Yosef

Remove the battery cover, battery, and SD Card and submerge the Eris in a bowl of uncooked white rice for a day. The rice will absorb all the moisture and it should work fine. Do not use a hair dryer to dry it, as you will damage the circuitry. Good luck.

Mortgage_It

i can confirm using rice has worked for me the past too.

gridbug

Thanks for the replies so far! Do you think it matters that I tried to power it up after drying it but before trying the rice trick? Worried that I might have shorted something out by trying to restart it prematurely...

Frisco

That's a good question. Be sure to post how things are working with it after you've tested it a while following the dry rice procedure.

jdollprince

DUDE THAT SUCKS!!! I can totally relate to the anguish. I had two new phones go into water in 2 weeks time.

I can confirm that the rice will work in absorbing the water from the device. The first phone i dropped in water got this treatment immidiately. I had to drive over an hour to get to the verizon store so it was in rice that long. The rice kept the red sensors inside the battery from turning red, so the store reps were unable to tell it had gotten wet. This made it a warranty issue instead of an insurance issue. SO hopefully, you wont have to pay ANY replacement costs!!

Good luck

gridbug

Yes. Yes it does. *lol*

I did notice when I took it apart after the dunking that the water damage indicator stickers (one on the battery, one on the phone) were both red, so there's no getting around that. I'm just hoping that the rice will draw out all the moisture and the worst case scenario will be that the battery is junked. Better to buy a new one of those than a whole new phone.

*sigh*

Eris withdrawl is a total bitch.

jdollprince

Mine were initially red too. The rice just soaked it out. CRAZY. Since they couldnt tell that it had been in water they just thought the battery was a dud and replaced that. It worked for about a week. Then the screen started doing crazy stuff so I took it back and they replaced the actual phone. So i got a new phone in theory, just not all at once.

ANY phone withdrawl sucks. Go try and get a replacement!

ttaylor0024

Despite what you may think, water actually isnt a very good conductor. Shorting you phone would be harder than you think. When people say dont swim or take a shower during a lightning storm, the reason is because the salt on your body IS a good conductor. When the salt mixes with the water THAT is when water becomes dangerous... I think your phone will be fine

Also, I have heard that if you put your phone in the freezer it will also help. No joke. My friend fully submerged his KRZR in water, put it in the freezer and it worked just fine. Dont ask me how as I have no clue...

40_LTDShooter

I wouldnt try the freezer trick. I would try leaving it submerged in the rice for 2-3 days without turning it on. Hope it helps fix it. Good luck, and let us know how it turns out.

gridbug

UPDATE: These tears you see are tears of joy. The uncooked rice treatment resurrected my Droid Eris from its accidental soaking. Battery is good, all system settings are intact, volume rockers operational, controls are responsive, headphone jack still good. Extra special thanks to Mahatma brand rice... best 1.50 I ever spent!

So there you have it, friends. Believe the hype: if your phone takes a dunking, take it apart and dry it out as best you can, then bury it in uncooked rice for a minimum of 24 hours. Results may vary, but in this case it was a total success.

Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some smartphonin' to do.

deman89

Awesome! Thank god turning it on had no ill effects.

Pinnacle

That is great news.

You didn't mention what your water indicator stickers look like. Did they stay red or did they revert back to their initial state?

Solitary

wow..i didnt know about rice..wish I knew about it when my mother washed her phone lol

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Last edited by Solitary; 02-01-2010 at 02:01 PM.

Yosef

Glad I was able to help!

Caddyman

congrats, and my money is on the moisture stickers staying red.

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Frisco

Thank you for posting your findings. Great to know.

I admit to once absent mindedly taking my old Blackberry Pearl with me, during a call, into the steam room at my gym. I was in there talking for a good three or four minutes until I realized my mistake.

I ended up have to replace it (got a Curve instead anyway).

So, don't feel too bad about dropping yours into water; at least it was a complete mistake and not absent mindedness.

Pinnacle

Mine is too, but just wanted to know for my own OCD curiosity.

gridbug

There are two stickers visible to the naked eye: one on the battery itself, which is white with red x's on it, and one on the phone by the mini USB jack, which is now a deep shade of pink. Small price to pay for returning my phone to the land of the living!

Kudos to HTC for a solid build. They've won themselves a loyal fan for life.

bjanow

Mine look exactly the same and I didn't submerge mine at all. Although the one by the USB is the same as the battery one with pink xxx's

cevMkV

i also heard that if you submerge the phone in rubbing alcohol it also works, but i woudl be afraid to try that one as well.

Caddyman

The alcohol displaces the water so you dont get rust, you still have to dry it with rice after the alcohol

jdog94

do you put it is a sealed bag/bowl of rice or an open one ????

jdollprince

It doesnt really matter if its sealed or not. Just makes sure the phone and battery are submerged in the rice. The rice will turn a darker color almost instantly and that's when you know its absorbing the liquids out of your precious phone.

never heard of the freezer trick. interesting!


Contgrats on the revival of your eris!

mossholderm

I've done this one. the rubbing alcohol also has the benefit of quicker evaporation. You can stick the phone (and optionally rice) in the oven set on "low" with the door cracked, and drive out all the alcohol pretty quickly.

I did this with a Moto Razor that had gone through a whole cycle in the washing machine, and it came out working as good as new!

thetingster

That is truly amazing. Thank you for the info.

Scorned

Awesome story...I laughed, I cried. Gives me a little more assurance when I use Pandora in the shower.

random155

You can buy the water detection stickers off of ebay... i did this with my old BB after I dropped it in water.