If you dropped your cell phone into a puddle or a pool or any other body of water, if you act quickly, there is a good chance that the wet cell phone can be saved. Here’s how.
Don’t turn the phone on. Instead, immediately remove the battery and the sim card, if possible. If you have a hair dryer that has a cool, low setting, use it to dry the surface water. Be careful not to place the dryer too close to the phone to avoid damage to the tiny parts.
Alternatively, use a soft, dry cloth to gently dry the device. Fill three plastic bags or containers with uncooked white rice. Don’t use instant or rapid cook variety, use the regular, old fashioned, “takes-25-minutes-on-the-stovetop” variety. Put the device, the battery and the sim card into its own container of white rice.
Here comes the hard part. Leave the phone, battery, etc. in the rice for at least 24 hours, or as long as you can control phone-separation anxiety up to 3 days.
At the end of the waiting period, use a soft cloth to remove any rice particles or residue and put the battery and the sim card back in the phone. If the phone goes black after the start-up screen, the phone may just need to be charged.
Be aware that most phones have a strip that changes color when the strip get wet, so unless the phone is covered for water damage, appeals to the carrier for a replacement under warranty are likely futile if the rice trick doesn’t work.
