Liquid Damage

These Things Happen...

Fortunately we might be able to help. 

If you've been unfortunate enough to drop your device down the toilet or leave it out in the rain, we have just the service for you.

All it takes is one drop of any liquid in your device to damage internal circuits and components.

Sometimes this can happen without us even realising it; using our phones in the bathroom or having it in your pocket during a rainstorm for example. We often have customers bring their phones in dead, and to their surprise and dismay, we open them up to find that they're soaking wet inside!


What To Do If It Happens

If your device has a removable battery then disconnect it immediately. If not, turn your device off. Avoid trying to charge your phone. Water and electricity are not a good combination.

If the device was fully submerged in water, it will remain wet inside for at least 48 hours! When you think it's had adequate time to dry, you can try and power it on to see if it works, but we recommend getting your device looked at by a technician ASAP. Whatever's left inside will corrode the logic board & internal components over time; causing irreparable damage. 

Check out this video from the legendary Louis Rossman to see liquid damage happening in real time:

Put It In Rice?

We have to dispel the myth that putting your soaked phone in rice will magically fix it.

If your car was soaking wet inside, you'd leave it with the windows down in the sun, right? - Not in a garage full of rice with the windows up!

Silica gel packs are much more effective than rice as they have a much higher atmospheric absorption rate. This is still only a temporary, damage limitation measure to take before getting your device opened and treated by a technician.

The main reason that rice has seemingly been effective and popularised is because people are leaving their phones turned off and not trying to charge them constantly whilst they're still wet.

We'd rather not have to clean bits of basmati out of your charging port and headphone jack - we have to do this every day!  


Water-resistant Devices

Most modern smartphones are water resistant. Whilst this is a useful feature, it's advisable to not submerge one of these devices in water. 

There's no such thing as a water-proof device (yet). We treat "water-resistant" devices every day.

These devices are probably fairly water-resistant when they're brand new out the box, but over time, its water-resistance may diminish.

Devices that have been repaired before or have cracked glass are not water resistant. When we do repairs, we replace the adhesive and gaskets to make them as water-resistant as possible, but they'll never be fully water-resistant after being opened or damaged.


Liquid Damage Treatment Service

Our technicians are equipped and experienced dealing with liquid-damaged devices.

First, we fully strip the device and carry out an inspection.

Next, we'll thoroughly clean the device with pure alcohol, before drying it out.

Then we re-assemble the device and test it. We test device functionality and individual components. Any issues, then we'll carry out diagnostics. Often the battery will have lost capacity or there will be a short on the logic board.

We're aiming to establish a solid understanding on what has happened, what has been damaged and where issues may develop.

If after all of this, more work is needed or replacement components are required we make an assessment and discuss it with the customer. Sometimes it is not worth fixing a liquid damaged device, as it may not be a reliable or permanent fix. A liquid-damaged device will never be "good as new". 

Sometimes we get lucky and the device works perfectly after cleaning. Other times, they require hours of painstaking labour.

If the device is beyond economical repair or cannot be repaired, we'll look into options for data recovery and help the customer get setup on a replacement device.

If the device is severely liquid damaged, and important data has not been backed up, we will prioritise data recovery.

We take data recovery very seriously. Phones can be replaced. Your photos, work documents & memories cannot.

It's impossible to judge how long a device will last following a successful repair. There's so much that can go wrong on a liquid damaged device - It may last a day, it may last 20 years. 

If we fix your liquid-damaged device, back it up immediately just in case.


Cost & Warranty

Our £12.00 inspection fee will apply. We may recommend comprehensive Liquid damage treatment, which costs £25.00 for phones & tablets and £50.00 for laptops.

The inspection fee or liquid damage treatment fee still applies even if the device is irreparable or beyond economical repair. 

If the device requires more work or replacement components after liquid damage treatment, the technician will discuss this with the customer and quote for any additional work.

In some cases we may recommend attempted data recovery instead of repair. 

We are good technicians and we will try our best, but we cannot guarantee that liquid damage treatment will be successful. It will however give it its best chance. 

We do not give any warranty on liquid damage repairs. Replacement components may come with a limited warranty.
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