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Ipod Nano + Toilet

Chappers

Chappers

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Aug 12, 2003
2,247
1
At home
Yes I dropped my nano down the toilet last week. I like to sit at work sometimes and relax with a little music - however I caught my hand in the headphone lead and fly fly fly my baby for a splash down in the big white telephone that is the toilet.

I could have cried.

Lucky for me we have purified water on tap at work so I filled a container and washed my iPod through several times to clean the insides.

Watching the screen die was heartbreaking.

Next I shook out the water and put it in an oven (incubator) at 37 degrees celsius/centigrade overnight.

Today - several days later - its better than ever - well the battery seems to last longer than before.

I'm smiling again - thank you some one
 
Ouch.

I'm not entirely sure that washing it was the best idea, but as long as it works now, you're golden! :)
 
That's amazing.

Those are probably some of the most ill-advised steps to take when dealing with gentle electronics like an ipod. Washing the insides and then BAKING?

You're one lucky man, Charlie Brown. Congrats.
 
pdpfilms said:
That's amazing.

Those are probably some of the most ill-advised steps to take when dealing with gentle electronics like an ipod. Washing the insides and then BAKING?

You're one lucky man, Charlie Brown. Congrats.
Click to expand...
Considering the number of times an electronic device gets washed and baked before it ever gets to your door ... ;)

The battery and some of the softer plastics used in assembly are probably more fragile than the electronics.
 
my s/e p900 fell in the toilet the other day right as i was getting up and i dried it off and tried turning it on and it wouldnt work. i almost died (all my contacts, calendar, pictures, custom settings.. my solitare high score... were gone) but i put that thing in front of a hairdryer for hours and switched the battery and it worked.. it smelled like sh*t but it worked.
 
I've heard many stories of Gameboys falling in water and workin fine later. I washed my brothers new digital camera in the washer, and it worked fine after a few days, although the viewing eye piece thingy was kinda blurry, but it was a digi cam so it didn't really matter.
 
Sun Baked said:
Considering the number of times an electronic device gets washed and baked before it ever gets to your door ... ;)

The battery and some of the softer plastics used in assembly are probably more fragile than the electronics.
Click to expand...
You find me one source that instructs you to soak your portable electronic device and then bake it, I'll eat my hat. And shorts.
 
pdpfilms said:
You find me one source that instructs you to soak your portable electronic device and then bake it, I'll eat my hat. And shorts.
Click to expand...
Washing Printed Circuit Boards is a method thats been used for years to clean off the flux.

As is baking of those PCBs.

Depending on the process for the individual parts, they may have undergone washing and baking individually in their construction -- chips, are parts that have been washed and baked lots of times.

Processes such as this ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wave_soldering
 
Chappers said:
Yes I dropped my nano down the toilet last week. I like to sit at work sometimes and relax with a little music - however I caught my hand in the headphone lead and fly fly fly my baby for a splash down in the big white telephone that is the toilet.

I could have cried.

Lucky for me we have purified water on tap at work so I filled a container and washed my iPod through several times to clean the insides.

Watching the screen die was heartbreaking.

Next I shook out the water and put it in an oven (incubator) at 37 degrees celsius/centigrade overnight.

Today - several days later - its better than ever - well the battery seems to last longer than before.

I'm smiling again - thank you some one
Click to expand...

does this mean that your display is working again correctly too?
 
The nanos seem to be amazingly resilient to this kind of torment. There's another thread here on MacRumors about a nano surviving a trip through the washing machine.
 
Chaszmyr said:
The nanos seem to be amazingly resilient to this kind of torment. There's another thread here on MacRumors about a nano surviving a trip through the washing machine.
Click to expand...
The baking is the probably the questionable part, since once these things are assembled -- some of those plastics might not like the high heat some would attempt to use.

But he didn't leave it in a high heat, just an incubator.

Anyone remember the baked PowerBook left in the oven? ;)
 
I dropped my phone in the toilet once after a few drinks...

It never worked again after that although it was a good excuse to get a new one as I was in need of a replacement anyway :)

Luckily my SIM card still worked fine so I didn't actually lose that much.
 
I heard about a guy who dropped his iPod in a pit toilet at a campground. So he reached into his pocket for his cell phone and threw it in as well. I asked him why he did that, and he said, "It wasn't worth going down there for just the iPod."
 
The best thing to do if you drop your iPod or mobile phone into a toilet is to leave it turned off and allow it to dry for several days, possibly a week, before trying to turn it back on again. You may be able to save the entire unit from damage if you do this.

The only reason I can think of to wash it before you dry it is to prevent it from smelling like piss, or his brown friend. :p

hookahco said:
but i put that thing in front of a hairdryer for hours and switched the battery and it worked.. it smelled like sh*t but it worked.
Click to expand...

I'm sure it did. *shakes head*
 
IJ Reilly said:
I heard about a guy who dropped his iPod in a pit toilet at a campground. So he reached into his pocket for his cell phone and threw it in as well. I asked him why he did that, and he said, "It wasn't worth going down there for just the iPod."
Click to expand...

That is the funniest thing on this thread so far. Talk about twisted logic!
 
pdpfilms said:
Washing the insides and then BAKING?
Click to expand...
37?C isn't exactly baking, it's about body temperature. And why not wash? It was already sitting in a toilet bowl :)
 
pdpfilms said:
You find me one source that instructs you to soak your portable electronic device and then bake it, I'll eat my hat. And shorts.
Click to expand...

We're reasonable people here (well, most of us). There will be no need to punish yourself excessively by eating your hat. Trust me ... consuming your shorts will provide adequate entertainment. Don't forget to sprinkle some condiments over them before settling in for a yummy dinner.
 
Everything is working fine - including the screen.

My electronics engineer told me to wash it in pure (distilled) water to get off any salts and stuff that would later cause corrosion.

I decided to only heat it to 37 degrees celsius - as not to cause damage to the battery with excessive heat for a long period.

Although the battery life seems to have improved - I'm not recommending this water dunking trick as a top tip.

Arrrgggghhhh - I just noticed I wrote Ipod not iPod - damn. I do have a cold at the moment so thats my excuse and I'm sticking to it.
 
Wow, thats pretty crazy. I can't believe would NOT wash a device after falling in the toilet. I'm pretty sure that isn't sanitary. I would at least dampen a cloth with alcohol and wipe it down.
 
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