Fix Your Stuff Community Store

The fifth Google Nexus phone. Officially announced on October 31, 2013, it sports a 4.95" 1080p display, a 2.26 GHz Snapdragon processor, and LTE support. Powered by Android 4.4.2, KITKAT. Manufactured by LG.

222 Questions View all

Options

Dead after being drenched in heavy rain.

Hello everyone,

I recently got really drenched in the rain while I was on my bike. The phone was in my pocket and there was no way I could escape the heavy downpour. When I took my phone out once I got home, I noticed that there was some water on the screen, however, it didn't seem like it could have seeped all the way in. Assuming that it was just water on the outside, I wiped everything clean with a soft dry cloth. Note that by this time, my battery had died out (it was already on the way to being replaced). I then plugged the phone to a charger and the moment it turned on, the screen went awry. I tried powering it down using the button however the power off button was already unresponsive. I quickly removed the back cover, disconnected the battery and found that there were a few drops of water inside. I dried everything up and placed it in a dry place (rice, silica) for up to 48 hours to dry out. Went through the teardown videos to disassemble everything to see if I could spot anything. However, there was nothing I could find and now the phone is complete dead.

Could anybody suggest what I could do to revive the phone? Or is it too late already? Are there any indications I could get by observing the visible parts for any signs of damage? I have not disassembled the screen yet as I'm not too confident in doing this.

Thanks for any support I could get on this!

Regards,

Jeetu

Answer this question I have this problem too

Is this a good question?

Yes No
Score 0
Add a comment

2 Answers

Filter by:
Most Helpful Newest Oldest
Most Helpful Answer

Options

@g2rao Maybe you should have mastered water bending, maybe you would have saved your phone. All joking aside, What kind of rice did you use? I would try cleaning your hardware gently with isoprothyl alcohol, see if this works if not youll need a new phone.

Was this answer helpful?

Yes No
Score 1

2 Comments:

there may be, some slight corrosion

by

You could just replace the motherboard, a new phone might not be necessary.

by

Add a comment

Options

Hey guys,

Thanks for all the answers so far. As long as I don't have to buy another phone, I'm good. However, I'm also disappointed that losing the motherboard would mean losing all the data that's on the built-in drive. Fortunately, I've always had the photos backup on on Google and thank God for small mercies, it saves the day! I'll take it to the service center this week to confirm if it's indeed just the motherboard or anything else before going for a replacement. I hope it's not as expensive as the phone itself!

@bouchard, I used dry, white Indian rice. I wrapped the phone lightly in soft tissue and buried it in the rice and left it for about 48 hours. I did clean the visible parts with Isopropyl, however, did not necessarily dip the board or any of the components in the solution as I'm not too confident about doing this.

Was this answer helpful?

Yes No
Score 0

1 Comment:

@g2rao Darn! I was too late... I had a similar situation with my nexus 5 where I was being stupid and dropped it in the shower... Anyway, I immediately fished it out and I completely disassembled it, letting the components dry out individually. There was a lot more water inside the phone than was initially obvious when I dried off the exterior of the phone. It fixed the charging issue and the phone was good as new! So if its not too late for you, I would try dabbing the motherboard with isoprophyl/ rubbing alcohol. Good luck!

by

Add a comment

Add your answer

Jeetu Rao will be eternally grateful.
View Statistics:

Past 24 Hours: 0

Past 7 Days: 0

Past 30 Days: 0

All Time: 53