Phone fell in water: what to do in the first 10 minutes (and why not rice)

Your phone fell into the sink, a puddle or the pool. The first minutes decide whether you get away with a scare or an expensive logic board repair. Here is what to do.

Right away: the first 1–2 minutes

1. Get the phone out of the water as fast as possible. Every second lets water seep deeper through the speakers, port and seams.
2. Don't press buttons to "see if it works". If the phone is on, turn it off. If it's off, leave it off. Power plus water inside means corrosion and short circuits.
3. Remove the case and the SIM tray. Water stays under a case the longest.
4. Don't charge it, even if the battery is flat. Plugging a charger into a wet port is a common cause of a burnt board.

The next 10 minutes

• Gently blot the body with a soft dry cloth or paper towel.
• Tap the phone against your palm with the port facing down to let water out of the charging port and speakers. This is what Apple recommends.
• Leave it in a dry, cool place with airflow, for example in front of a fan on a normal (not hot) setting.

What not to do

• Rice. The most persistent myth. Rice doesn't pull water out of the inside of the phone, and starch dust and grains get stuck in the port and speakers. Apple's own guidance says: don't put your iPhone in a bag of rice.
• Hair dryer, radiator, oven, direct sun. Heat can deform the screen adhesive, damage the battery, and still won't dry what's under the shields on the board.
• Cotton swabs or paper in the port. Fibres stay inside and block charging.
• Compressed air. It pushes droplets even deeper.

When you can wait, and when to see a technician

If the phone fell into clean fresh water for a second, it's water-resistant and everything works after drying, you're probably fine. Watch it for a couple of days for spots on the screen, a muffled speaker or charging issues.

Bring it in straight away, without waiting for it to "dry out", if:

• it was in sea water, a drink, coffee or soapy water (see Phone dropped in the sea);
• the phone turned off by itself or won't turn on;
• there are spots or lines on the screen, or touch, camera or Face ID stopped working;
• the phone is old or has been repaired before, since water resistance after opening is usually not the same.

Water itself doesn't always kill a phone immediately. Corrosion does, and it starts within hours and continues for days. A technician opens the phone, cleans the board with a special solution in an ultrasonic bath and removes oxidation. The sooner, the better the chance that cleaning alone is enough.

What we do at Brick Service

We film the phone at intake, the technician runs diagnostics and gives you the price before any work. We don't promise chances in advance: that is what diagnostics are for. After water damage the warranty covers only the replaced parts, because hidden corrosion can show up later. If the screen, port or battery was affected, we tell you exactly what needs replacing and what can stay. More about the service: water damage repair.

Tip for the future: turn on backups (iCloud or Google). If a phone can't be saved, your photos and contacts stay with you.

Phone already wet? Message us on Telegram. We'll tell you what to do right now and book you in.

Read also

• Phone dropped in the sea: why salt water is worse than fresh water
• IP68 water resistance: can you swim with your phone?
• Cracked glass but the screen works: can you replace just the glass?
• Which replacement screen to choose: TFT, OLED, FOG or original