How to Repair Water Damaged Mobile Phones

How to repair water-damaged Mobile Phones is not an uphill task. Water contact on cell phones is one of the greatest challenges of using a phone. Technically, these can also be referred to as liquid-damaged phones. Why everything should be done to avoid liquid contact, especially water on phones, if it however happened, there is a solution.

I prefer using the term “water damaged” than liquid damaged because not all liquid is injurious to mobile phones or electronics. In fact, some liquid aid phone repairs but water as at the time of this discourse is one of the greatest enemies of cell phones. We are still waiting for phones that have water-friendly circuit boards.

Mobile Phones have different makes and configurations. The approach to solving a fault caused by water may differ slightly. There is a first aid approach that is applicable to all makes of cell phones (I called it the First Aid Approach for the sake of simplicity). The advanced approach will differ in accordance with the type of phone with respect to unassembling and heating up the phone to drain the liquid.

The extent of liquid damage on a mobile phone will determine the solution adopted. If the volume of water on the phone is not much, the first step is to remove the battery. Don’t make any attempt to switch on the phone. The following steps have proved to be very helpful:

1. Remove the battery: The first thing to do is to remove the phone battery. It depends on the extent of damage; it is advisable to change the battery as this could cause further damage if there was water contact on the battery. Water and cell phone battery are unfriendly. Once there is water contact, battery leakage is unavoidable though this may not be noticeable immediately, the damage will be done gradually on the phone power circuit until the phone goes dead.
2. Don’t switch on the Phone: As soon as you observe liquid on a phone remove the battery. Don‘t switch it on immediately. Out of panic about whether the phone will still work or not, you may be tempted to switch it on. If you do so the integrated circuit (ICs) will absorb water and the mobile phone may never work again.
3. Expose the phone to free air: Expose the phone to air and let it get dried before use. Some phone casings are easy to remove. If possible remove the casing for easy aeration to aid the liquid (water) getting dried up.
4. Incubate the Phone via Electric Bulb: After removing the external casing of the phone, the phone can be incubated through an electric bulb (not an energy saver) for a number of hours depending on the extent of water penetration. The heat generated from the bulb will help drain the water (dry it up). This is a very simple approach but very effective. It has a lesser side effect on the phone than a Hot Air Station.
5. Examine the extent of Damage: Another very important factor is to examine the extent of the damage. In a situation where the phone was inside a bucket of water for more than 2mins, an advanced Solution approach will become necessary. Follow the steps for the Solution as discussed below.

1. There are water damage situations that steps discussed above may not solve Though you need to begin with that same approach before getting the tools for an advanced solution. Once a phone has spent more than two minutes inside a water-based liquid where water is dominant as stated earlier, these under-listed steps are inevitable.
2. Go through the Basic Approach: The basic approach listed above is vital no matter the extent of water damage. But you will need to go further in a situation of serious damage.
3. Disassemble the Phone: The entire phone has to be disassembled. At this juncture, you may need to employ the services of a professional if you are not one yourself. Some phones can be very complex to disassemble. You may end up doing more damage to some very important components.
4. Use the Hot Air Station: The hot air station (re-work station) is to be used by trained and certified personnel for optimum results. This machine will help in drying up any traces of water on the phone but with absolute care.

The air and heat level have to be regulated as the heat can go up to 450°c depending on the make. From personal experience, Overheating the circuit board can cause the phone to go dead, especially on sensitive parts of the board such as the CPU.

The use of Hot Air Stations is a Course on its own in Cell Phone Repair training. Allow the heat to expire before switching it on. I will advise a minimum of 30mins to one hour after heating up the circuit board technically and successfully. If the phone is not beyond repair it will definitely come on.

Conclusion

Professionally, there is a seal on most Phones which is usually white in colour that will turn Red if it comes in contact with water. This in most cases will render the warranty void if it carries one. This may not be stated clearly in most warranty agreements but it is a means of knowing if the phone has contacted water or liquid as the case may be.

The above-listed steps on how to repair water-damaged phones is a well-researched endeavour and it has yielded many results for me personally and as a source of income a couple of years ago. Please note, if a phone comes on after a water contact without the above-listed steps. It will go dead after some time or may develop other technical faults which may be costlier to handle. It is advisable to do a thorough check.