It's bound to happen. For me, it was a leaking water bottle soaking everything in my bag. I've also heard tales of sink drops, spilled drinks and toilet dunkings, all leading to the stressful realization that one's cell phone is SOAKED.
Luckily, along with these horror stories, I've heard that one solution to the problem of a wet cell phone is right in your own kitchen: Uncooked rice. I'd never had to try this home fix-it method until this past week, and I must say, I was thrilled to learn the rumors are true. Thanks to the rice, my cell lives! Here's how you can attempt to resuscitate yours, should the worst happen:
1. DON'T TURN IT ON! I made this mistake, as most of us would, because I wanted to see if it worked. It didn't. Trust me, yours probably won't, either. And turning it on to find that out could make this a permanent fact (somehow I dodged that bullet this time). Lesson learned. Be patient.
2. Take out the battery. Remove all other accessories.
3. Gently wipe away visible excess water. Some suggest to gently vacuum the phone to remove the water. I didn't have a vacuum handy, so I went with a paper towel.
5. Leave the phone completely covered in rice for 24 hours.
7. Voila! Enjoy the rush of relief you feel when you put it all back together and discover it works.
8. Discard rice (or save it for tactile play or rice crafts. My girls made potions in their play kitchen with it).
The tips I've read suggest getting the phone into rice ASAP, but I had to wait 8 hours to get home from work, not to mention I actually had to stop at the store to buy the rice. The sooner the better, certainly, but I wouldn't worry too much if you can't immediately get to dry rice. Do leave your battery out the entire time, however. Also, if your phone falls into salt water, I've read that you should flush it with regular water before trying the rice trick. However, don't take my word for that; you may want to research the issue further. Finally, I've heard that this technique can work for tablets, mp3 players, even laptops, so keep a large bag of dry rice handy as you wait for the inevitable!
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