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Repair information and guides for the Apple iPhone 5s that was announced on September 10, 2013. Model: A1533, A1453, A1457, A1528, A1530, A1518

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After water damage, no GPS and "No service"

Hi everybody, my 5s has been water-damaged. I left it in rice during 24 hours to absorb the water. When I turned it on, i remarked that the phone couldn't find his location, and it couldn't find the cellular network when far from the antennas. When I come close to an antenna, the phone finds the network but the signal is very weak. At first I didn't notice the GPS wasn't working, and I thought it was an antenna problem. So I changed the dock connector as the GSM antenna is located on it.

But now I think there is a problem in the top area of the phone, where the GPS seems to be. I also noted that the only water sensor that was triggered is the top one on the motherboard.

What would you advise me to do ? I think the top antenna doesn't work at all. How to solve this ?

Thanks !

Answered! View the answer I have this problem too

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Hi Erwan,

Have you treated this device for water damage yet, in any way shape or form? I would give the board a good spot cleaning and assess the damage before proceeding. With water damage, you really can't just replace a part and expect it to work again like new. Electronics, much like gremlins, do not like to be gotten wet.

My suggestion is to treat the board with high percentage isopropyl alcohol and a toothbrush (depending on corrosion). This will all depend on the type of liquid you damaged it with (tap water, salt water, toilet water etc) and how long it sat in the water. It only takes a second for water to seep inside the board underneath chip protectors, so a good clean is always recommended. Good luck!

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Well, thanks for your answer. I got myself some isopropyl alcohol and cleaned everything I could with a toothbrush and... Tadaaa ! My phone came back from the dead !

Thank you very much ! If someone gets the same problem, I think the key is to really drown the motherboard in alcohol, especially the top, because before that's the thing I hadn't done.

Merry Christmas to everyone !

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