If your phone becomes wet, place it in a jar of uncooked rice to dry. But how long is required?
Table Of Contents
−- How Long Should a Wet Phone Be Left in Rice?
- Can Rice Save Your Wet Phone?
- Is Rice Capable of Absorbing Water?
- Is It Too Late to Immerse My Phone in Rice?
- What Can Improve My Phone’s Odds of Survival in Water?
- How to Put the Wet Phone in Rice Guide
- Alternative to Using Rice to Dry Out Your Phone
- What You Should Not Do If Your Phone Gets Wet
- How Long Does It Take for a Phone to Dry Without Rice?
- What about salt water?
- How Long Does It Take for Water Damage to Cause Problems With a Phone?
- Why Is the Screen of My Phone Dark After Water Damage?
- After a Month, How Can I Repair My Water-Damaged Phone?
- Finally, How Long Should You Leave Your Phone in Rice?
How long should I leave my phone in rice?
For 24 to 36 hours, soak a damp phone in uncooked rice—dry, uncooked rice functions as a desiccant or absorbent substance. The rice has ample time to attract and suck the water out of the phone after 24 to 36 hours (or 1 to 3 days).
Water has the potential to harm your phone, and sadly, warranties do not cover water damage.
Some of your phones may benefit from using rice, but not all. For example, if the phone is wet, rice will most likely not be able to dry completely.
In this article, we’ll go through seven stages for drying your phone in rice:
- First, remove the phone from the water as soon as possible
- Remove the battery
- Remove the SIM and memory card
- Using a cloth or towel, dry the phone
- Shake the phone to get the water out
- Place the phone in the rice
- To clean your phone, use isopropyl alcohol
Continue reading to find out how long you should keep your phone in rice to ensure it is completely dry.
How Long Should a Wet Phone Be Left in Rice?
A moist phone should be immersed in rice for 24 to 36 hours. This is because the rice has ample time to attract and suck the water out of the phone after 24 to 36 hours (or 1 to 3 days).
Can Rice Save Your Wet Phone?
Regardless of the facts, the rice technique persists because it seems plausible, even if it isn’t: rice absorbs water; absorbing water is critical to preserving a phone; thus, rice will save your phone.
And every time a phone is dropped into a toilet or sink, the technique is passed down from parent to child, friend to friend. Numerous testimonials attest to rice’s efficiency.
Is Rice Capable of Absorbing Water?
Rice is capable of absorbing water.
It may absorb and attract surrounding water molecules, making neighboring things drier and less humid.
Is It Too Late to Immerse My Phone in Rice?
Allow the phone to soak in the rice for at least 24 to 48 hours. Ideally, do not even attempt to pull the phone out to see whether it has begun to operate. Your phone should start operating again if there is not too much water damage.
What Can Improve My Phone’s Odds of Survival in Water?
Before attempting to dry off your gadget, we recommend shaking, blowing, or vacuuming as much water as possible. You should only use drying agents such as silica gel or rice to absorb the final few drops of residual moisture.
How to Put the Wet Phone in Rice Guide
However, there is more to this process. The following are seven procedures to follow to guarantee that your phone is completely dried using the rice method:
- First, remove the phone from the water as soon as possible.
If you have dropped your phone in the water, get it out as soon as possible. Even if your phone is submerged in toilet water, there should be no hesitancy since the more water your phone accumulates, the less likely it is to recover.
If you drop your phone in non-salty water (for example, when taking a shower or cleaning your dishes), it has a better chance of surviving than if you drop it in salty water (e.g., in the ocean).
This is because if a substantial amount of salt is trapped within your phone, it might cause corrosion. Corrosion can also occur when you inadvertently pour a sugary substance on your phone (e.g., a soda). This is because sugar cannot be eliminated from your phone.
- Remove the battery
If your phone has a replaceable battery, remove it immediately after removing it from the water. Removing your phone’s power supply will keep it from shorting out. A short circuit is unlikely; nonetheless, it is advisable to be careful and remove the battery.
If your phone is wet, do not charge it. This has the potential to harm both the phone and the battery.
- Remove the SIM and Memory Card
Remove any detachable sim cards or memory cards from your phone. This reduces the possibility of damaging your sim card and memory card. Also, remove any headphones that are still connected to the phone.
Eliminating them reduces the likelihood of water becoming trapped in these cracks and fissures.
Shake the water out of your headphones, sim card, and memory card before drying them with a towel. After that, set them away.
- Using a cloth or towel, dry the phone.
Dry the phone with a cloth or towel before immersing it in rice.
Water may cause corrosion within your phone, so keeping it soaking wet without even attempting to dry it is not a smart idea if you want to save your phone. When water reacts with your phone’s components and creates corrosion, a short circuit and long-term harm may likely occur.
Another reason you should not let your phone dry on its own without using a cloth or a towel is that water can get inside the most sensitive sections of your phone, causing you to lose it permanently instead of recovering it.
When drying your phone, avoid using paper because it breaks quickly and will likely contribute to the pollutants on your phone. Instead, we’ll propose that you soak your phone in rice for 24-36 hours, but first, dry it off with a cloth or towel.
- Shake the Phone to Get the Water Out
Shake your phone to get rid of any excess moisture. Keep a firm grip on the phone to avoid dropping it! Shaking can remove some of the water trapped within your phone (you will feel/see the water droplets being removed). If you observe any drips of water coming out of the phone, dry it again.
Before immersing the phone in rice, you may vacuum any excess water out of the wet phone.
Vacuum sealers use suction to eliminate water, but since you presumably don’t have one, a plastic or zipper bag and a vacuum should suffice. Put your phone in a plastic bag or ziplock, then turn on the vacuum to suck out the air and water with it.
- Place the Phone in the Rice
After you’ve dried the phone and its parts as much as possible, place the damp phone in a dry, uncooked rice container. Put any moist items you removed, such as the battery, sim card, and memory card, into the rice.
How long should a wet phone be left in rice? Keep a damp phone in rice for 24 to 36 hours.
Rice serves as a desiccant. A desiccant is a type of substance used to dry things out. A desiccant draws and absorbs the water in its environment.
Place your phone in a jar of uncooked rice and leave it for 1 to 3 days.
The rice draws moisture within the container, causing the water to evaporate faster. Leave your phone on the rice container for 24 to 36 hours to verify that all the water has been absorbed fully.
Although some sources criticize the efficiency of rice as a drying agent for wet phones, this method is beneficial for many. In addition, large amounts of rice can also be used to shield wet camera equipment from a moist, humid climate.
To guarantee that your uncooked rice absorbs the water trapped within your phone, place roughly four cups of rice in the container where you would place your phone. Because rice’s moisture capacity, or ability to hold water, is much lower than that of silica gel packets, a big volume of rice is required.
When you remove your phone from the container holding uncooked rice, ensure all rice grains are gone.
Utilizing rice as a drying agent is preferable to using a microwave oven, hair drier, or exposing your phone to direct sunlight for an extended time to accomplish the same task. While these methods can help to drain some of the water, as previously said, heat can harm your phone.
You would suppose that if a substance that can absorb water is required, salt could be useful because it also absorbs water. Yes, salt may absorb water, but, as previously said, salt can cause more harm than benefit since salts promote corrosion.
- Clean Your Phone with Isopropyl Alcohol
If you drop your phone in a liquid that isn’t water, it has to be cleaned thoroughly (solid food, coffee, juice, toilet water, soapy water, etc.). You may also use rubbing or isopropyl alcohol as a cleaning agent.
One virtue of alcohol is that it evaporates quickly. Thus, it does not affect your cell phone’s components or internal operations. Allow your phone to dry for many hours after cleaning it with alcohol.
Some individuals immerse their phones for 30 minutes in a closed container filled with 99.9% isopropyl alcohol. Then, they shake the bottle while the mobile phone is submerged in water so that the alcohol may reach the interior of the cell phone. Alcohol cleans the dirt/impurities that may have gotten into your phone’s motherboard. After half an hour, clean the phone with a cotton cloth and place it in a container full of uncooked rice.
Cleaning your phone with alcohol may be an excellent option to eliminate the salt trapped within your phone (if you dropped your cell phone in salty water). Just remove your phone’s battery before immersing it in an alcohol-filled container.
However, cleaning your phone before placing it in a container with your selected absorbent material is the main concept. Then, after washing it, soak it in rice for 24 to 36 hours.
Alternative to Using Rice to Dry Out Your Phone
Rice is a common drying solution for wet phones since it is readily available at home.
You can also use the following desiccants:
Silica Gel
You may have observed the silica gel packets often included in shoe boxes, vitamins, or other dry food goods and wondered what they were for if they couldn’t be eaten.
Silica gel packets absorb and retain water vapor, reducing mold formation and the potential for deterioration.
Collect a handful of these silica gel packets and place them around your phone. Allow 24-36 hours or longer for the setup to guarantee that your phone is dry. Place your setup in an area where children cannot access it (silica gels are toxic if eaten). Here’s a pro tip: start conserving those silica gel packets in case you need them for this.
Litter for cats
Silica gel or crystal litter are two cat litter components. As a result, this may also be effective in absorbing moisture from your cell phone. Please use the litter.
If you don’t have any of the desiccants above, dry tea bags can be used instead.
What You Should Not Do If Your Phone Gets Wet
Please do not charge your phone
I understand you want to know if your phone is still functional, but one thing that will kill a wet phone is power – if it isn’t already dead.
So, don’t charge your phone since if electricity comes into contact with the water trapped within your phone, your phone’s circuit board will most likely be damaged (short-circuit).
So, if your phone is still operating after being dropped in water, don’t charge it. Charging your wet phone might potentially result in incidents including explosions, flames, or electrical shocks.
Do Not Dry Your Phone or Place It in an Oven
Blowing-drying, instead of evaporating the water trapped within your phone, may push the water further inside, causing your phone to sustain even more harm before you blow-dry it.
Aside from water, heat may also cause harm to your phone, so blow-drying and cooking your phone in the oven are not viable options. In addition, heating your phone in an oven may result in an accident, such as a fire or explosion, which is worse than having a broken phone.
How Long Does It Take for a Phone to Dry Without Rice?
Allow the phone to dry in the container for 2–3 days.
It takes time for your phone to dry out enough to be used again. Allow it to soak for at least 48 hours in the drying agent.
How can I dry my phone without rice?
Assume the grocery store is closed, or you’re in the middle of nowhere; even a bag of rice is out of reach. So, what now?
Look for a site with air movement in the surrounding region. Hopefully, you’re indoors or at another location where the phone won’t become wetter. At this stage, your major aim is to evaporate whatever liquid is left there.
A fan is preferable, but a laptop, cable box, or television all have exhaust vents. You don’t want unclean air flowing over your phone, so wipe off the fan blades or air vents to eliminate any visible dust and debris.
Check that the phone is resting at an angle, with the charging port or SIM card slot pointed downward: water should flow out of the device, not accumulating within. Place a paper towel or napkin below to soak any water that drains.
The more time it has to air out, the better. Again, at the very least, give it overnight, with a day or two preferable if possible.
What about salt water?
The ocean, on the other hand, is a different story.
Most phones, as well as some newer models, are now water-resistant. Water resistance, on the other hand, has its limits.
It’s awful enough to drink plain water, toilet, or flood water. But, according to scientists, salt water is a whole other animal. The salts in ocean water are very corrosive to electronics and can significantly shorten a phone’s life.
If it is not feasible to dry out a phone under a vacuum within a few days.
If it is in salt water, we recommend placing it in a Ziplock bag with bottled, filtered water and a bit of baking soda. It may sound paradoxical, but baking soda neutralizes the corrosiveness of the salt water until you can get it properly cleaned out.
How Long Does It Take for Water Damage to Cause Problems With a Phone?
This harm is not immediately apparent. It’s not uncommon for a phone to start working again after being dropped in water and dried out. But, unfortunately, the phone then quits operating after 2, 3, or 4 weeks.
Why Is the Screen of My Phone Dark After Water Damage?
Unfortunately, water damage may be caused by various factors: the screen, the display driver chip, or even a faulty connector. You did use heat, which raises the potential of melting anything and producing short circuits.
After a Month, How Can I Repair My Water-Damaged Phone?
Get yourself a freezer bag and some rice. Rice absorbs water, which works especially well if you place it in a sealable freezer bag and surround it with it. Next, cover your phone with as much rice as possible in the bag, seal it, and leave it for at least 24 hours, preferably 48.
Finally, How Long Should You Leave Your Phone in Rice?
So, how long should a wet phone be left in rice? Leave your phone in rice for at least 24-36 hours or until it dries.
If you inadvertently dropped your phone in the water, you should turn it off and remove the battery. Afterward, wipe your phone and place it in a jar with an absorbent substance, such as uncooked rice.
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