Please help - Phone got wet.

Evanp16 · Aug 19, 2014

I was inching my way into a lake when I realized my phone was still in my pocket. The top half of my g3 was submerged in water for about 30 seconds. It was still on but was doing some funky things like turning the LED light on and thought there were headphones plugged in and acted like I was holding the volume up button. I put it in a bag with rice covering the whole thing and the battery and left it overnight. Well, it works totally fine except the power button is not working at all. It was working for a few minutes when I first took my phone out of the rice, but I tried turning the screen off and it didn't work. The volume buttons work fine and everything else is working perfectly. Is there any way I can fix the power button? I know it's a long shot but I'm annoyed and I don't want to pay a hundred or more dollars for an insurance deductible if everything but the power button works fine.

hilmar2k · Aug 19, 2014

Most days I don't even use the power button.

If the button is water damaged, it may come back to life eventually. If it doesn't, replacing it probably isn't worth the trouble. If you really need the power button, your best option is probably getting the phone replaced.

Evanp16 · Aug 19, 2014

You're right, I don't need it for much except actually turning the power off. Any idea how to get to the power menu without the power button?

legalkill · Aug 19, 2014

Try damprid instead of rice. or a better desiccant.

meganoobie · Aug 19, 2014

So much for that video where the kid dunks his G3 in a sink for an hour with no damage.

Kaat72 · Aug 19, 2014

Try leaving it to dry a day or two longer?
I assume you took the sd and sim card out as well, while drying?

Evanp16 · Aug 19, 2014

Thanks for all the suggestions everybody, I left it sitting in the rice a little longer now the power button works again!

Evanp16 · Aug 19, 2014

meganoobie said:
So much for that video where the kid dunks his G3 in a sink for an hour with no damage.

Seriously! Like wtf, hopefully that guy wasn't some troll just trying to get people to damage their phones! Not cool!

Crashumbc · Aug 19, 2014

First of rice is to LEAVE it in the rice twice as long as you think you should!

really 40-48 should be the minimum

Glad it started working for you!

Sdgabe · Aug 21, 2014

Need some info.
Soaked my LG G3 in the pool for sometime put it in a bag of rice for 24 hours. When charging a red blinking light appears but phone is not turning on. Appreciate any and all answers.
Thanks!!!

Hadron · Aug 21, 2014

Battery back out and back into the rice. 24 hours is the absolute minimum you should do the rice thing for, and if it's not absolutely dry then electricity is the last thing it needs.

Sdgabe · Aug 21, 2014

Thanks my man! Will leave it in there for another 48 hours.

HisGirlFriday · Aug 22, 2014

Sdgabe said:
Need some info.
Soaked my LG G3 in the pool for sometime put it in a bag of rice for 24 hours. When charging a red blinking light appears but phone is not turning on. Appreciate any and all answers.
Thanks!!!

Buy a new phone. Chlorine is extremely corrosive to electronic components. Between that and you turning the phone on so soon (it tends to cause things to short out) I'd say your phone is toast. Unless you have insurance, buy a new phone and be more careful.

mytopazjr · Aug 22, 2014

HisGirlFriday said:
Buy a new phone. Chlorine is extremely corrosive to electronic components. Between that and you turning the phone on so soon (it tends to cause things to short out) I'd say your phone is toast. Unless you have insurance, buy a new phone and be more careful.

30 seconds is enough time for liquids to seep into the internals of the phone right?

HisGirlFriday · Aug 22, 2014

mytopazjr said:
30 seconds is enough time for liquids to seep into the internals of the phone right?

Yep. The phone is not water tight. One it's submerged in water the damage begins.

UBRocked · Aug 22, 2014

HisGirlFriday said:
Yep. The phone is not water tight. One it's submerged in water the damage begins.

Would anyone recommend a bath in alcohol? It could get rid of the chlorine and then excess water. Alcohol will evaporate. I think it's worth a shot of you can't get the phone to operate normally (what is it gonna hurt at that point right?)

Mikestony · Aug 22, 2014

Good article here about how to try and save a wet phone

Mentions the alcohol bath that UBRocked suggested

Sdgabe · Sep 3, 2014

Tried all the tricks including the alcohol but it was to no avail.
Thanks everyone for taking the time and trying to help out.

Flamm · Sep 22, 2014

My G3 accidentally dropped from my pocket to a lake about 20cm deep for half an hour before I finally found it next to the boat pier. My friend tried calling my number and the phone sure worked fine underwater so that was a bit surprising when we saw where the phone lied. Before switching off I tried unlocking the screen but the pattern wouldn't complete so I turned power off. The next day switching power on just showed a warning triangle with ? Inside it and the outline of phone with power cord connected and the poor G3 wouldn't turn on

. Drying it in rice for 2 days did miracles and the phone booted just fine, although the connection was just EDGE network. As the phone started to warm more it picked up 3G and eventually 4G in about half an hour, which was another surprise because usually 4G signal was too weak here to switch to that network ?!?. Outside was the first snowfall so that could affect the signal travel but i suppose negatively rather than positively lol

. So, for now things are excellent with the phone. Greetings from mid Finland!

SpyderBite · Sep 23, 2014

Liquid damage is what we called the "Slow Death" when I worked at Apple. People would come in state they had dropped their phone in a toilet, sink, pool whatever. And that they had let it sit in rice for a couple days and it worked. But now they were having problems.

The trick to reviving a device that has been exposed to liquids is NOT to attempt to turn the device on or wake it up. It is an urge almost nobody can't resist. But, if the led display fires up while components are wet, it can short out.

Also, in many cases the resurrection may only be temporary if a successful rice dip worked. That's why we called it the slow death. While it may be dry enough to function again..there is probably still corrosion occurring on the copper, gold and platinum components. It might take a couple days, weeks or even months.. but that corrosion is almost certainly likely to come back and haunt you later.

meyerweb · Sep 23, 2014

SpyderBite said:
Liquid damage is what we called the "Slow Death" when I worked at Apple. People would come in state they had dropped their phone in a toilet, sink, pool whatever. And that they had let it sit in rice for a couple days and it worked. But now they were having problems.

The trick to reviving a device that has been exposed to liquids is NOT to attempt to turn the device on or wake it up. It is an urge almost nobody can't resist. But, if the led display fires up while components are wet, it can short out.

Also, in many cases the resurrection may only be temporary if a successful rice dip worked. That's why we called it the slow death. While it may be dry enough to function again..there is probably still corrosion occurring on the copper, gold and platinum components. It might take a couple days, weeks or even months.. but that corrosion is almost certainly likely to come back and haunt you later.

+1 to all of the above. The flip side is that water damage can be weirdly unpredictable. My son dunked an iPod Touch quite a few years ago, and at first it didn't work at all, after a while it worked, but drained the battery rapidly and got hot. But after a few months, everything was fine again. I wouldn't bet on that outcome, though.

The water itself makes a difference, too. Salt water is the kiss of death. Tap water probably gives you the best chance of recovery, because it typically doesn't have a lot of impurities and contaminants in it. Lake, river or pool water is somewhere in between.

As the old saying goes, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure." If you're going to be spending time around open water, and can't leave your phone behind, invest in a waterproof case.

Flamm · Sep 23, 2014

Lake water has less than tap water the amount of salts.

hilmar2k · Sep 24, 2014

My wife dropped her HTC One in the toilet. Unfortunately, she could not resist the urge to see if it was still working (which it wasn't, at least not fully/correctly). She put the phone in rice for about 36 hours and it came back to life, only to die again a couple of months later. Water is no friend of the cell phone.

rockrrdude · Jan 5, 2015

I was charging my phone near a sink (dumb idea) and someone did dishes and when i went to un plug it was soaked i imediatly took my g3 and put it in rice for 4 days but when i try to turn it on a red light flashes and it vibrates what do i do

rockrrdude · Jan 5, 2015

rockrrdude said:
I was charging my phone near a sink (dumb idea) and someone did dishes and when i went to un plug it was soaked i imediatly took my g3 and put it in rice for 4 days but when i try to turn it on a red light flashes and it vibrates what do i do

it also. Flashes an alternating blue and gree and wont turn on

Please help - Phone got wet.

Newbie

Android Expert

Newbie

Android Enthusiast

Well-Known Member

Kaat72

Guest

Newbie

Newbie

Android Expert

Lurker

Spacecorp test pilot

Lurker

Newbie

Lurker

Newbie

VZW Nexus Please!!!

~30% Carbon Black ±

Lurker

Lurker

Well-Known Member

Android Enthusiast

Lurker

Android Expert

Lurker

Lurker

BEST TECH IN 2023

Smartphones

Best Android Phones

Upcoming

Best iPhones

Upcoming

Tablets

Best Tablets

Upcoming

Laptops

Best Laptops

Upcoming

Televisions

Best TVs

Upcoming

Game Consoles

Best Game Consoles

Upcoming

Wearables

Best Wearables

Upcoming

Smart Home

Smart Home Tech

Upcoming

Similar threads