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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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Submerged in sea water 4 months ago

So I submerged my phone in sea water for a couple minutes, I didn't get access to a bag of dry rice for an hour then set the phone in multiple positions for 3 days in the rice bag. I haven't tried to turn it on since those 3 days or disassemble it. I'm pretty positive the battery is dead but not sure about any other components.

My question is after 4 months is it worth replacing components in the phone? I'm confident in my ability to perform repairs myself. I worked on electronic components in the army and have built several computers and laptops from the ground up. Just would like to know if it's worth the time and money to go through with the fix(es).

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Finally got a tool set to open it up...

I'm giving up hope on this thing. Like wow it is sooo corroded inside the connector ribbon to the thumb button just separated on the most delicate pull. Screws are so rusted I cannot use the recommended size Phillips to screw them out.

Note for every body who sees this do not let your water damaged phone go take care of it asap!!

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Seawater can do a ot of damage in 4 months. Not turning it on probably helped but the only way to know for sure is to disassemble it and have a look.

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ooster, the major issue you will run into is corrosion damage. Salt Water will get your components to corrode very severely. The very first thing I would do is to disassemble it by following this guide. Take a careful and close look at all components and connectors. Truly assess the damage. Look for major corrosion, evaluate the pins in the connectors etc,. Take a look at all connectors as well as cable ends. After that I would suggest that you clean it a couple of times in sterile water, not drinking water (that might have helped right after it got submerged in the sale water). Use a soft brush and clean it very, very thouroughly with the sterile water. For a proper cleaning , you must remove all the EMI shields. Once you got the gross contamination cleaned, use 90%+ isopropyl alcohol and clean your parts some more. For a proper cleaning, use this guide. It was written for a 3G but it is still pertinent to your phone as well. I can not stress the importance of a good cleaning enough, so do it over and over while replacing the alcohol after each cleaning. Do not use compressed air for the cleaning since that can drive liquid as well as corrosion particles into areas that will cause trouble later on. Do not use drinking water, if you need to use water, use sterile water. Also, you do not need to leave it to dry for a day. Isopropyl alcohol in the higher concentration will evaporate quickly and dissipate the water. The importance here is the cleaning. Do not forget to replace the battery. This is a must and not an option. Use this guide for that. It will fail if you do not take care of it now. Also, I suggest to replace the lightning connector. The guide for that is here Keep in mind that water damage is the hardest to troubleshoot and to repair. If "it's worth the time and money" will depend on you, your skills, and your finances. I'd definitely give it a try. There is always a chance and what a great challenge that will be. Hope this helps, good luck.

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ooster will be eternally grateful.
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