Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

My iPhone Water Damage - FYI Only

I just put a ziplock in my briefcase and my car's glovebox. Excellent idea, since I was just running on the beach the other day and sneezed so hard (hay fever) that my sunglasses flew off and took a tumble in the sand and scratched 'em all up! Definitely, do not want that to happen to my iPhone. :eek::p
 
UPDATE (If you care): Since I got my 16GB back from apple, it has been working perfectly. I am still using my 8GB and just activated the 16GB using an extra number on my family plan to see how useable it was before I posted it for sale, but it has been about a week and it is working fine.

Soooo - I have a question - is there anyone out there that has had water damage to their phone, experienced some initial problems, but they went away and now have a fully-functional iPhone? I have seen several posts on here about water damage then the phone dying in 6 months or something - but are there any water damage success stories? Just trying to determine whether or not to move back to my 16GB and sell the 8GB - then have it die after I sell it (see above for my 'luck' :) )

Thanks!

g
 
what to do after a swim...

I dropped my iphone in a toilet (yes, not good). I grabbed it within a few seconds but there was already water under the screen, phone shorting out, could not turn off, screen did not respond.

I took out the sim card, shook the phone in a towel, dried it with a hair dryer (not too hot), and then cooked it in the oven. Seriously!

I took a small baking pan, put about an inch of rice in the bottom to insulate the phone from the direct heat, and cooked it for 8 hours total at about 120-130 degrees. The phone works fine now! No trace of water damage except the red half of the water sensor lit up (half white/half red now instead of all white).

I hope you have my luck - and keep it away from water! I recommend turning it off if it will respond before you cook it, but I didn't have that option.
 
Surely after your first water based incident you might have thought "insurance". You might possibly be the unluckiest guy on the planet ;)

I made sure I've got mine insured on my house contents insurance so if anything like that happens I claim on that. No way would I use an iphone without insurance it's just too expensive.
 
SAFC2403 said:
Surely after your first water based incident you might have thought "insurance". You might possibly be the unluckiest guy on the planet ;)

I made sure I've got mine insured on my house contents insurance so if anything like that happens I claim on that. No way would I use an iphone without insurance it's just too expensive.
Click to expand...
But if you put it on your home contents... what is your deductible? $100? If it's $500 or more the iPhone is less than that and wouldn't be worth claiming on your insurance. :confused:

I just dropped mine in water... IDIOT - Called the Apple Store, it's $249 to replace an 8g and I just had to make an online appt with their Genius Bar. done.

My biggest problem is the sound is very faint, and the screen has streaks across it. I'm going to try to get the latest photos off of it, before I take it in.
 
Let's start a movment

This really annoys me because it has happened to me too. And it doesn't matter if you have insurance because it does not cover water damage. Personally I'm getting real sick of these cell phone companies ripping us all off through little technicalities that they hide in the fine print. Does anyone know of a website, group, or organization to join against these terrible business practices? And if not is anyone interested in starting one? I'm thinking class action lawsuit.
 
gftx73 said:
UPDATE (If you care): Since I got my 16GB back from apple, it has been working perfectly. I am still using my 8GB and just activated the 16GB using an extra number on my family plan to see how useable it was before I posted it for sale, but it has been about a week and it is working fine.

Soooo - I have a question - is there anyone out there that has had water damage to their phone, experienced some initial problems, but they went away and now have a fully-functional iPhone? I have seen several posts on here about water damage then the phone dying in 6 months or something - but are there any water damage success stories? Just trying to determine whether or not to move back to my 16GB and sell the 8GB - then have it die after I sell it (see above for my 'luck' :) )

Thanks!

g
Click to expand...

Sorry about your string of bad luck. I've never dropped a phone or cell phone ever in water, so I have no useful answer. I can understand others' frustrations however there may be significant damage whenever you expose an electronic device to water.
 
slbjr said:
I dropped my iphone in a toilet (yes, not good). I grabbed it within a few seconds but there was already water under the screen, phone shorting out, could not turn off, screen did not respond.

I took out the sim card, shook the phone in a towel, dried it with a hair dryer (not too hot), and then cooked it in the oven. Seriously!

I took a small baking pan, put about an inch of rice in the bottom to insulate the phone from the direct heat, and cooked it for 8 hours total at about 120-130 degrees. The phone works fine now! No trace of water damage except the red half of the water sensor lit up (half white/half red now instead of all white).

I hope you have my luck - and keep it away from water! I recommend turning it off if it will respond before you cook it, but I didn't have that option.
Click to expand...

Wow! You were a little lucky and a lot ingenius ;)
Good job! :D
 
Another iphone goes surfing

After dropping the iphone in water, and panic stricken, I found this forum... with helpful tips. Thought I'd add what worked for me, ...

Dry as much as possible (outside), popped out the sim card since that is easy enough to do (it actually had a water droplet on it) .... and placed iphone inside a ziploc with ALOT of Silica packets .... sealed up the bag and then placed it on top of my coffee maker (it is always on, so it is a warm spot!)

When I first tried to turn it on (1 day later), it showed a battery (red line on it) and a lighting bolt under it... I set it on the wall charger.... I wasn't sure if was really charging. So I then plugged it in to the computer cable, to see if would sync or if the computer would recognize it. It didn't sync at first, since the battery was still in the red. But eventually it woke up!!

Someone suggested the silica packets and/or rice.. and it worked like a charm!! Thank you!!

My sensor does have a bit of red on it... but the iphone has been working just fine now for about 1 day... Will see if it continues!!

Thanks again for the silica packet idea!!
-charmandhammer
 
I have this image of a guy getting real drunk at a party, then talking to his iPhone like it is his best friend and trying to get him to drink just one shot.

"Come on little buddy... Just drink this one shot of Patron"

as he slowly pours tequila down the headphone jack.
 
iphone In swimming Pool !!!

So here's the deal. I went for a swim keeping my iphone on my towel. Finished swimming and picked up my towel and and didnt realize my phone was on it. wiped myself and everything and was looking for my phone. And all of a sudden i stamped on something inside the pool to find out it was my IPHONE .

Took it out to find that it didnt respond to anything i did. And all of a sudden the phone went blank......

Went to my apartment and placed the phone in front of light bulb.

1st Day

Place the phone facing the back cover( apple logo ) towards and bulb and removing the sim card cover. Didnt turn it on or charged it .. NOTHING. DONT EVEN TOUCH IT... FORGET U HAVE AN IPHONE.

2nd Day

Woke up and turned my iphone towards the screen facing the light bulb. Dont turn it on or charge it. Still forget u have an IPHONE.

3rd Day

Woke up and changed the side again. The back cover facing the light bulb. Let it Go , dont touch it if u ever want it to work.

4th Day

Woke up and switched it on to find that there is still some water on the screen. But it switched and and tried to " slide to open" and it worked ... Well there was still some water in the screen and i knew the touch response would stop eventually if all the water hasent been evaporated. so kept the phone back in front on the light bulb ( the screen facing the bulb ).

5th day

woke up and tried to turn it on. Turned on well and the water thad evaporated too. And when i tried to " slide to open " it , it didnt respond to my touch. Grrr..... felt like throwing it out the window. I didnt . Placed it back in front of the light bulb facing the screen. Didnt touch it the whole day.

6th Day

woke up and prayed that it starts well. Switched on the Phone. The apple logo. "SLIDE TO OPEN" . and it opened and for the first time in 6 days i saw my home screen. Tried to open all the applications , and stated my music and kept it going on until battery went dead ( for any moisture left, the phone would heat up and drain it out ).

So thats my story hope it helps anyone out there. Just remember to place the IPHONE 6 Inches away from the bulb so it wouldnt heat it too much.

Well need any help let me know.

Thanx and best of luck
 
I came really close to dropping mine in the drink. Sometimes when I drive it sits in my lap. One rainy night coming home from work I must have forgotten it was in my lap and I stepped out of my car. As SOON as I stood up I knew that I should not have. It fell and I swear it was slow motion. I look down and there is this huge puddle on the curb.

:eek:

Lo and behold my dear and beloved iPhone was sitting casually on the curb, inches from a certain doom. It was a wake-up call not do drive and put it down on my lap. Oh boy was that scary! Thanks to the iPhone condom it was safe from scratch and thanks to the curb it was dry.

Phew!
 
archieafroz said:
So here's the deal. I went for a swim keeping my iphone on my towel. Finished swimming and picked up my towel and and didnt realize my phone was on it. wiped myself and everything and was looking for my phone. And all of a sudden i stamped on something inside the pool to find out it was my IPHONE . ....
Well need any help let me know.

Thanx and best of luck
Click to expand...

Thanks for your story archiafroz, I'm giving it a shot.
 
If you dip it in rubbing alcohol right after it's dropped all the moisture will be dried up and your phone will work fine.
 
Here's what i do when my electronics take a bath ...

I have done this with previous cel phones (not iphone yet thank god!), remotes, etc ... and have 100% success :)

If your sure it has had serious water ingress or if it has had any other liquid spilled in it ... like juice or coke ...

1) Rinse it (like submerge it in a glass) a couple times in demineralized / distilled water (take it apart if possible). When water dries it leaves behind whatever minerals that were dissolved. If there is enough minerals then it will bridge small electrical paths with a semi conductive substance that can cause you troubles. Pure water is actually not very conductive.

- optional -
2) Get some methyl (or also rubbing alcohol, but methyl is less potent, methyl is also known as gas line antifreeze) alcohol and rinse your device. methyl alcohol will absorb the water and flush it away so there will be less moisture to dry up meaning less residue. You however must be careful that paint or different inks aren't dissolved in it. For example the coating on cheaper cel phones keys might not be compatible. Also alcohol evaporates easier and will not short electrical components like water can.

3) Put it somewhere warm for at least 6 hours. An old PC exhaust fan works good lol or the oven works great. CAUTION - do not let the oven get too hot, and don't let the heat of the element hit the phone directly. If the oven metal is too hot to hold onto then its too hot for your phone (preheat for best results and then shut the element off, reheating as necessary). Be careful because some cheap plastics will actually warp even at the low temps. I had a cheap battery for a samsung a660 warp so much i couldn't use it but the phone was fine, worked great.

Its advisable not to try to turn your phone on when its wet, you could damage small sensitive parts.

As always it works for me but your mileage may vary. For information purposes only. But the way i see it if it still doesnt work when your done then nothing has changed lol
 
maxxscholten said:
I had an awful incident similar to yours, but being the inconsiderate cheap bastard I am, I painted that water indicator back to white and it passed.
Click to expand...

Amazing what people will admit to. I have to wonder what the cost to us would be without the bogus returns? People think the are "sticking it to the man", but guess who ultimately pays for those "defective" units?

Flame if you need to. I'm not judging the act, just questioning the result. Whether the return is refurbished or goes to a landfill, the processing cost must be quite high and passed along.
 
cagza1124 said:
This really annoys me because it has happened to me too. And it doesn't matter if you have insurance because it does not cover water damage. Personally I'm getting real sick of these cell phone companies ripping us all off through little technicalities that they hide in the fine print. Does anyone know of a website, group, or organization to join against these terrible business practices? And if not is anyone interested in starting one? I'm thinking class action lawsuit.
Click to expand...
my insurance DOES cover water damage. it covers any damage at all, except for it being a software issue. it even covers theft and "mysterious disappearances" . a little high ($52/yr) from state farm. it's called a personal articles policy. call around to a few different agents, cuz it's up to them if they feel its worth it for them to do. i had two agents tell me no, and then the 3rd said no problem, as long as the phone was $400.00

and to the poster who said they have theirs covered under the homeowner's policy (one agent told me to do that btw), why would you want to do that and then have to pay that high deductible for the claim?? with my state farm policy, there is no deductible =)
 
stylesjl said:
Someone with your type of luck, MUST invest in a case like this:

http://www.otterbox.com/products/ipod_cases/iphone-case-armor/

Videos of it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYru2tN4Mv8&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W4z1UnF4Ws4&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-kurfSYo48&feature=related

Spill away, buddy, spill away! :D
Click to expand...


Says on their web site that it will not work with iphone 3G. If it did hearing this guys story, I would have bought one today.
 
PNutts said:
Amazing what people will admit to. I have to wonder what the cost to us would be without the bogus returns? People think the are "sticking it to the man", but guess who ultimately pays for those "defective" units?

Flame if you need to. I'm not judging the act, just questioning the result. Whether the return is refurbished or goes to a landfill, the processing cost must be quite high and passed along.
Click to expand...

to be honest, in some situations I'd agree with you. But this rule Apple have about Water Damage = You're F*cked, is so ridiculous, that I don't have a problem with people circumventing it if they can...

I mean seriously, how come you can damage your iphone in pretty much any other way, no matter WHAT the level of stupidity involved, and yet the minute water's involved, they don't want to know??
 
distilled water

I know a common method of fixing electronics that have smoke damage and/or water damage is to soak the item in distilled water with an agitator. It loosens up the corrosion. Rinse well and then air dry, or use a hair drier on low heat to evaportate the distilled water.



...also a good reason to purchase items like this with an American Express card which, I think would cover the damage.
 
maxxscholten said:
Man that's awful, I'm sorry for your bad luck.

I had an awful incident similar to yours, but being the inconsiderate cheap bastard I am, I painted that water indicator back to white and it passed. This was back in February I believe.

You can see my post explaining this here:
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/367749/

The post is about half way down... the really long one.

Best of luck to you!
Click to expand...

That's fraud and arguably theft. Congratulations, you're no better then a two-bit shoplifter, except you're stealing a $500 device.
 
Forgive me for being crass.

I don't understand why some of you feel it's up to a company to replace an item that YOU broke.

Quit being boneheads and start accepting responsibility.

If I f-up my iPhone, shame on me. They're not indestructible.

Some of you sound like scam artists.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back