Help Galaxy s4 submerged in salt water pool

CanadianBurrito · Jul 6, 2014

So I went to a family member's house to swim. About 10-20 minutes into swimming in 3-4 ft of water, I realized my phone was in my pocket. Almost immediately I removed the basic plastic case and placed the phone in a sandwich bag filled with rice. How long should I wait and should I take off the back cover and sim card and battery to help it dry? Thank you for your consideration

Slim_Shady · Jul 7, 2014

You should definitely take out the battery too, and leave your phone in rice for approximately 48 hours. Take of the back cover and battery, and let it dry without it. If you were swimming for 10-20 minutes, I don't think you have very good odds, but you might be lucky

A good tips would be to buy the galaxy S4 Active instead (which is waterproof), but it might be a little late for that now!

Rxpert83 · Jul 7, 2014

In this instance...The problem is going to be the salt that remains in the phone, not the water.

lotus49 · Jul 7, 2014

You could try using silica gel (ie the desiccant that comes in little sachets when you buy things like cameras and binoculars) which works better tba rice. It is also sold in big bags as cat litter.

My son dropped his iPod in some water once and it was still drying out after a week but we gave up at that point. The likelihood that your phone is not completely destroyed seems pretty remote unfortunately, but it's worth a try.

Slim_Shady · Jul 7, 2014

The salt might be a problem too, yes. He could try to use a air compressor to blow in the inside of the phone. This could be smart to do anyway, because of the water.

Funderbolt · Jul 7, 2014

I believe the coating of salt may short the printed circuits if there is no protective coating on the PCB.

Marc_G · Jul 7, 2014

As others said, the salt can be a real problem. I would immediately soak the phone in a gallon of distilled water to remove salt traces, then dry out the phone. Since it was submerged for so long in salt water a few mins of distilled water to wash away the salt is unlikely to hurt anything not already borked.

So, soak to remove salt, shake the water out as well as possible, then dry out in silica or wrap in paper towels to keep out rice particulates and put into dry rice. Give it a few days.

Prayer can't hurt.

Marc

Rxpert83 · Jul 7, 2014

It'd probably better to use something that evaporates quicker - such as isopropyl alcohol.

That'll not only help with the salts, but will also help displace the water

Just make sure the battery is out. Its not the water that damages the phones, its the electricity going through the wet boards.

bobolinko · Jul 8, 2014

Slim_Shady said:
You should definitely take out the battery too, and leave your phone in rice for approximately 48 hours. Take of the back cover and battery, and let it dry without it. If you were swimming for 10-20 minutes, I don't think you have very good odds, but you might be lucky A good tips would be to buy the galaxy S4 Active instead (which is waterproof), but it might be a little late for that now!

Start Saving your money for a new phone. It's already too late to take out the battery if you hadn't done so on the onset. If the water has not gotten into the device you will be o.k. but the chances of that are just slim-to-none.

The reality of this is that it is quite an expensive learning experience.
I feel bad for you, but the truth is what you've read here.

Good Luck, and Aloha!

Podivin · Jul 8, 2014

The salt in a pool is a much lower concentration than in the ocean, I'd question that it will cause any additional problems. The phone hasn't really been in 'saltwater' in the usual sense of the word. I agree that a good soaking with alcohol is a good idea - it's actually a good idea anytime a device gets wet like that. The alcohol replaces the water in the phone, and doesn't leave minerals and such behind when it dries.
I'd be interested in hearing the outcome.

Help Galaxy s4 submerged in salt water pool

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