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question about water inside device

So I accidentally put an open water bottle in my bag while my tablet was in there, LCD was unfortunately flooded, but I ordered a replacement screen and it arrived today. Though opening up the tablet I found water droplets throughout, so I removed every part meticulously to put in rice or something and noted any current corrosion I had to remove with a q tip.


My question is this. As soon as I opened it up I noticed the water very quickly evaporating. I actually can't see any more now. Anyone who does mobile device repairs, what do you think? Could I skip the deep-dry? I looked at all the components and none of them have any parts that could have trapped water that I missed and I don't really look forward to cleaning the entire thing of starch ( though I do just have silica beads but let's stay on topic)

Am I right to feel confident about the dryness of the components? Let me know!

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Hi @yokonzo

Using rice, desiccants etc to fix water damaged electronics is a myth, it doesn't work. Rice is for dinner, not repair

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/disconnect the battery as soon as possible, 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 which may leave conductive residues 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 what happens. 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.

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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