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Repair guides and support information for RCA-brand tablets.

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Blue Power light keeps flashing on and off. Exposed to water.

I have a rca cambio and my dad dunked it in water. It makes a weird sreeing sound when I charge it. It won't turn on. The blue light sometimes flashes on than off and doesn't turn back on

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Hi @johndoe3102

What is the model number of the tablet?

The impurities in the water causes corrosion and provides circuit paths for the electricity which were not in the tablet's operating design and could damage the components. The corrosion starts immediately and is ongoing until it is completely cleaned away

First do not try to charge or to turn on your tablet and then remove the battery as soon as possible from the tablet to minimize any further damage.

Then you need to dis-assemble the rest of the tablet and clean all the affected parts using Isopropyl Alcohol 99%+ (available at electronics parts stores) to remove all traces of corrosion and water. If possible do not use "rubbing alcohol" as in some cases this is only 70% IPA or less, can contain additives and is not as effective. If you do have to use it check the label to verify the amount of IPA. The higher the percentage of IPA the better

Here is a link that describes the process. Electronics Water Damage

As always with electronics, especially surface mounted pcb be gentle when handling and especially when brushing away the corrosion. You do not want to remove any components from the board. Remove the shields that may be covering some components as the water may have got in under there. The ends of any flex cables and their connectors need to be cleaned as well

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

Here's the ifixit RCA Tablet repair guides. Hopefully your tablet is listed. If not search for teardown videos of your model on places like YouTube

If this process seems too daunting, take your tablet to a reputable, professional phone repair service, experienced in liquid damage repair and ask for a quote for a repair. If you decide to do this, do it sooner than later.

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3 Comments:

Its been two years since its been exposed. Probably fried

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@johndoe3102

After 2 years the battery most probably has become depleted beyond recovery, so for a start it will have to be replaced.

This is after checking the board for corrosion etc.

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made a new post with more info, ill link it here

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