Fix Your Stuff Community Store

Repair information and guides for the iPhone 6 that was released on September 19, 2014. Model Numbers: A1549, A1586, and A1589

4994 Questions View all

Options

Why is my GPS not working after water damage?

After some light water damage (quick swim in toilet bowl), the phone soaked in rice for 50 hours or so and ended up working perfectly... except for the GPS services. The first thing I tried was some hard resets and software troubleshooting but I had no sucess. The wifi and cellular services were still functioning properly, but I thought that the antenna might have separate reception elements for the three signals and only the GPS broke so I replaced the antenna. Location was still not working after the hardware replacement.

I am guessing there is water damage on the logic board itself, but I have no idea at this point.

Has anyone dealt with anything like this or know how to fix it?

Answered! View the answer I have this problem too

Is this a good question?

Yes No
Score 0
Add a comment

1 Answer

Filter by:
Most Helpful Newest Oldest
Chosen Solution

Options

Hi,

As you know water and electronics and electricity are not a good mix.

The water causes corrosion and provides circuit paths for the electricity which were not in the phone's operating design and could damage the components.

Also, rice is good to eat but does nothing to fix the effects of corrosion.

Don't Put Your Device in Rice. Here's Why...

First do not turn on your phone and then you need to remove the battery as soon as possible from the phone to minimize further damage.''

Then you need to dis-assemble the rest of the phone and clean all the affected parts using Isopropyl Alcohol 90%+ to remove all traces of corrosion and water. Do not use "rubbing alcohol" as in some cases this is only 70% and is not as effective. If you do check the label to verify the amount

Here is a link that in general, describes the process.

Electronics Water Damage

You will probably have to replace the battery as it is very hard to recover a battery from water damage.

As always with electronics, especially surface mounted PCBs be gentle when handling and especially when brushing away the corrosion. You do not want to remove any components from the board.

Hopefully after you have done all this the phone might possibly work correctly again.

Here is a link to the Ifixit guide on how to dis-assemble your phone.

iPhone 6

Was this answer helpful?

Yes No
Score 2
Add a comment

Add your answer

Nicholas Pomianek will be eternally grateful.
View Statistics:

Past 24 Hours: 0

Past 7 Days: 1

Past 30 Days: 17

All Time: 3,298