I dropped my I phone 4 in boat bilge water yesterday

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Swanrad2

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... it kind of slipped down the hull side diapeaing under the 'water' comtel. I pulled it out in seconds- but it survived! Still works, everything fine with no water proof cover.

Now the boat has been standing for a couple of years and the water has evaporated leaving an unusually thick gloppy layer of diesel and oil on the surface. I fished the phone out in seconds - could the gloop of coated the phone as it slipped through it, keeping the water out?

I know it is a small matter, but dropping a phone in wrist deep bilge water and it surviving is the kind of boating luck I just don't get. I'm buying a Houdini hatch this week to replace an old knackered generic hatch, I now fully expect the new one to slip into place, the screw holes to match up perfectly without cutting or cursing. That's the problem with good luck, it knocks the edge of your carefully cultivated cynical outlook.
 
Get a torch and shine it into every orifice on your phone. If you see any pink it shows a damp detector has been wet, which has serious implications for any future damage claims or upgrading.
 
The damp detectors are only really an issue for warranty claims, basically you'd get charged for any repair (even if it's nothign to do with damp). They may also affect the price paid by Mazuma, etc. if you try and sell the phone.

Can't remember off-hand for sure where they're located on a 4, but probably the same as a 4S which is in the headphone socket and the behind the multi-connector at the bottom. If they have gone pink you can't do much about it!

Glen
 
I dropped my Nokia 6300 into a bucket of water last week, and snatched it out immediately with my cat-like reflexes. No water ingress, no harm done. I did carefully dry the outside with toilet tissue, then took the back off, removed the battery, and dabbed the insides with dry tissue. Then I left it in the airing cupboard overnight, just to be on the safe side. I assume surface tension along with small orifices in the casing kept the water at bay long enough for safe retrieval.
 
glenp said:
The damp detectors are only really an issue for warranty claims, basically you'd get charged for any repair (even if it's nothign to do with damp). They may also affect the price paid by Mazuma, etc. if you try and sell the phone.

Can't remember off-hand for sure where they're located on a 4, but probably the same as a 4S which is in the headphone socket and the behind the multi-connector at the bottom. If they have gone pink you can't do much about it!

Glen
Click to expand...

I take it the pink colour is due to hydration of a cobalt salt. Pop in the oven at about 110C for an hour or so. That'll get rid of the pink colour.

It'll almost certainly f*** the phone but it will get rid of the pink colour
 
I speak having lost one phone to bilge water, one to a mug of tea (you couldn't have written it) and rescued one - well worth trying leaving the phone in a sealed tupperware container of rice in the airing cupboard - it's as good a dessicant as anything else you're likely to have domestically...
 
I got my iPhone 4S slightly wet where the charging cable plugs in.
It was fine for a couple of months then I noticed corrosion on the terminals. Another month past and it would no longer charge.
The repair fees aren't bad. A new cable port fitted is under £30.
I bought the kit off ebay and did it for under £10.

I now have an iPhone 5 with a Lifeproof case. The cases are really expensive but it has already paid for itself when the iphone was left out in the cockpit during a sudden downpour.
 
In my opinion the bilges are the best place for an iphone! I was really glad to swop mine for a Samsung, talk about big brother!
 
Apple do an exchange sceam for about 100 pounds for phones in or out of warrantee
Dropped mine in a bucket of water contacted them had one by return,simples
 
bert49uk said:
Apple do an exchange sceam for about 100 pounds for phones in or out of warrantee
Dropped mine in a bucket of water contacted them had one by return,simples
Click to expand...

Yep - have recently done this with a 4S - £139 and 5 - £180 - both had smashed screens. I just walked into a local Apple store.
 
Talulah said:
I got my iPhone 4S slightly wet where the charging cable plugs in.
It was fine for a couple of months then I noticed corrosion on the terminals. Another month past and it would no longer charge.
The repair fees aren't bad. A new cable port fitted is under £30.
I bought the kit off ebay and did it for under £10.

I now have an iPhone 5 with a Lifeproof case. The cases are really expensive but it has already paid for itself when the iphone was left out in the cockpit during a sudden downpour.
Click to expand...
This has happened to me recently, except it only took 12 hours to stop charging. When I get back to the UK next week I'll be buying a new charging port and swapping it myself since the kit is only about £6 on amazon. Only if that fails might Apple get a £100 odd quid for swapping the phone over.
 
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