Phone fell in water: what should you do?

Splash! Your phone has fallen in the water! How should you react?
Do DIY "miracle fixes" really work for a smartphone that's fallen in water?

The mobile phone is almost inseparable from our lives. It follows us everywhere: to work, on holiday, into the bathroom and even into the toilet. One moment of distraction and disaster strikes. The phone falls into the toilet bowl, slips into the bathtub, dives into the pool with you, or gets lost in the waves.

It's panic time, because we all know that water and electronic devices don't mix. Even so, it's often possible to bring a phone that's fallen in water back to life. Here's our advice.

Phone fell in water: 3 valuable first moves

1. Turn the phone off

Turn your phone off as soon as you retrieve it. Even if it still seems to be working, with the screen lit up, force it to shut down immediately. Water can cause short circuits and lead to irreparable damage.

Another tip: don't shake your phone around. Sure, water sitting at the edges of the gaps might escape, but water already inside the device could reach areas that are still dry.

2. Take the phone apart

Wherever possible, take your phone apart. Remove the SIM card and take out the battery. Be careful not to play amateur repairman: if you don't feel confident enough to open up your smartphone, avoid doing so. Sometimes the best is the enemy of the good.

3. Rinse the phone

How so? Add more water? In certain cases, that's actually useful. If your phone has been in contact with seawater or "dirty" water (such as toilet water or dishwater), it may be harder to save. Salt water is extremely corrosive and speeds up the oxidation of electrical circuits.

Rinse your smartphone with clean water, or better still, with demineralised water (the kind used for irons). Use this rinsing technique carefully and sparingly.

Be careful: while rinsing your smartphone can be useful when it's been in contact with dirty water, regularly cleaning it with a sponge or a disinfectant liquid to remove dirt or germs must be done with the utmost care. If you really want to disinfect your phone, use a disinfectant wipe instead, ideally not too wet.

How do you dry out a smartphone that's fallen in water?

1. Never use heat sources

You might think that speeding up the drying process with a heat source is a good idea. Quite the opposite! Using a hairdryer, placing the smartphone on a radiator or leaving it to dry in the sun will only make things worse.

Under the effect of heat, the water will create condensation, which speeds up the oxidation of the circuits.

2. Are miracle recipes a good idea?

Is the famous rice-bath miracle trick actually useful for a phone that's fallen in water? Opinions differ on this. Even though this trick seems to work in some cases, it should also be noted that rice can have the completely opposite effect and speed up corrosion of the phone's circuits.

The same goes for tricks involving charcoal or silica ... Don't play sorcerer's apprentice. The simplest solutions (such as hand-drying) are often the best.

3. Dry it by hand ... and wait

The best way to dry a smartphone that's fallen in water is to do it by hand and arm yourself with patience. Hold your phone upright and gently dab it with a cloth or absorbent paper.

Be thorough and go over every gap (charging port, headphone jack, microphone and speaker), possibly using a cotton swab...

Then leave your phone that's fallen in water to rest until it's completely dry. Once fully dry, wait another hour or two. Give it time to recover. Above all, do not plug it in at any point during the drying period.

4. Call in a repairer

Despite all your efforts, the phone still won't start? Take it to an approved repairer or ask for advice from the shop that sold it to you. The damage could be serious: your battery and/or memory card may have been affected.

In fact, we strongly recommend having your phone checked over, even if it seems to be working fine.

Be careful: a phone that's fallen in water is generally not covered by the warranty. Any repair or replacement solution will be at your own expense. If you've subscribed to Safe & Connected assistance, contact the Helpdesk: they'll be able to give you valuable advice.

Final tips ... to apply in all circumstances

The best advice we can give you is to handle your phone carefully and sensibly. Pay attention to it, protect it or keep it safe when you're in exposed places (at the beach ... or in the toilet). Lots of accidents happen while on holiday!
There are plenty of waterproof pouches or bags available to help protect your precious smartphone.

And if you do need to invest in a new phone after an accident like this, consider a waterproof phone. There are more and more of them on the market.

Finally, to avoid irreversible data loss too, don't hesitate to back up your data regularly. Connect your phone to your computer or upload your data to the Cloud!

Prevention is better than cure: keep your phone away from all liquids!
Because protecting your data isn't just about having a secure password!

Article written in collaboration with We are the Words.