iPhone XS Water Damage

[Materwelon]

i have been regularly washing my phone for years (iphone 7) and never have any problem by doing that, the phone often falls on hard surface and even have open crack on top right corner.

(illustration photo)

i recently got iphone xs from a friend, which takes much better care of his phone than mine it has no major scratch, dent whatsoever, thats why im confident to wash my xs.

but a few hour after i think my fifth wash, the screen occasionally show pink line, and when i check the wet indicator it shows red. and also fog in front camera, but other than that everything works fine. the pink line usually appear when i first pickup the phone, but after less than a minute of use the screen went normal. the worst is when i put the phone upside down for a while (in a car while plugged in for carplay) sometimes the screen goes full green but after a few press of the side button the screen went back to normal.

my question is, what should i do ? if i use it normally will it get worse ? i asked 3rd party technician and they said a screen replacement is needed, they sell what they claim is "apple orginal" for less than 100 usd which im skeptical of the quality.

right now i have 2 option, to replace the screen now, or wait until the screen is unusable. by replacing the screen im afraid that i would have lower quality screen (low res, low resp, thicker bezel ?) but by replacing the screen they might be able to clean of any residual water inside or should i just ask the technician to open, clean and replace the adhesive(will that help ?).
what do you guys think ?

thank you

 

[Sheepish-Lord]

I say keep it as is but next time use a little bleach in the wash so you kill any bacteria that normal washing misses.

 

[Materwelon]

Dont worry i usually use hand soap which already kill 99.9% of the bacteria..

 

[I7guy]

Wouldn’t it be better to use isopropyl and a device like “phone soap”? But to answer your question, replace the screen when you can’t take it anymore.

 

[now i see it]

Washing an iPhone is asking for water damage. The IP68 ingress protection isn’t guaranteed and even if a brand new iPhone leaks, it’s not covered under warranty.

For your current iPhone? Replace the screen - then Stop Washing it under water.
A wipe off with a damp cloth is all that’s needed.
The best way to clean and sterilize the phone is to use an alcohol saturated wipe.

 

[Splitrail]

I wash mine with my shirts & jeans with detergent and fabric softener, then tumble dry on low.

 

[Phil77354]

If by 'washing' you are actually putting the phone under running water, then I would never do that. Even if that has been your practice with your iPhone 7 and (so far) it hasn't led to problems.

Follow Apple's instructions. The articles linked here will give you guidance that should keep you out of trouble.

Cleaning your iPhone - Apple Support

Learn how to clean your iPhone.

support.apple.com

How to Clean Your Phone

Regardless of whether your phone is actually covered with more germs than a toilet is, you should still clean it regularly.

www.nytimes.com

 

[Materwelon]

Update:
i went to a repair shop and ask them to clean the internal, i haven't see any error on the screen ever since. But they didn't put new adhesive on the screen, i learnt my lesson on not washing the phone, so water resistant isn't an issue, but what about dust ?

 

[jav6454]

Update:
i went to a repair shop and ask them to clean the internal, i haven't see any error on the screen ever since. But they didn't put new adhesive on the screen, i learnt my lesson on not washing the phone, so water resistant isn't an issue, but what about dust ?

If water fails to go it, so will dust. However, don't push your luck and fix any "holes" the phone has.

 

[Materwelon]

Thank you all, like the saying experience is the best teacher. if my xs didn't show this screen error i would probably still wash my phone.. and i learned that apple didn't sell original part to 3rd party repair, is it true ? because every repair shop claimed their screen is apple original with varying cost between 75-160 USD with the 75 USD offering the longest warranty (1 year max 3 claim). Thankfully i didn't need to replace the screen, atleast for now

 

[BugeyeSTI]

Thank you all, like the saying experience is the best teacher. if my xs didn't show this screen error i would probably still wash my phone.. and i learned that apple didn't sell original part to 3rd party repair, is it true ? because every repair shop claimed their screen is apple original with varying cost between 75-160 USD with the 75 USD offering the longest warranty (1 year max 3 claim). Thankfully i didn't need to replace the screen, atleast for now

Apple provides factory parts to authorized service providers only. 3rd party repair shops don't have access to factory parts no matter what they tell you. They might use a screen salvaged from another iPhone or purchase damaged original screens that have been refurbished but most just use whatever screens that result in the fewest come backs