Wet Phone in a bag of Rice Trick...

[V_RocKs]

So I have heard that if your phone gets wet you should pull the battery ASAP. Then put the phone into a bag of white rice. Supposedly the rice will absorb the water much quicker than just leaving it out will and possibly save your phone from further water damage by rusting.

So I decided to test the theory... I took two bottle caps. Filled them both with water and stuck one into the center of a bag filled with white rice. The other I just set on the table next to the bag.

After three days the cap outside the bag had evaporated all of its water.

The cap inside the bag only evaporated about 1/3 of its water.

So I have to debunk this myth...

The best thing to do is just leave it sitting out on a table.

[GFED]

i've never heard about using rice, i've been told spraying with wd40 is fine for electronics though.

[Tom_PM]

I do know that restaurants will often use some pasta inside the sugar shakers which also absorbs moisture and keeps the sugar from clumping up.

I think though you'd be better off to try a pouch of desiccant like what comes inside electronics boxes and some other items. Stick them in a ziploc together or whatever. Could work if it's not dripping wet to start with.

[candyflip]

I have done it myself. It worked for me...so I will take it.

[GFED]

Originally Posted by PR_Tom

I do know that restaurants will often use some pasta inside the sugar shakers which also absorbs moisture and keeps the sugar from clumping up.

ahhh yes i have seen this. sometimes there will be some grains of rice in a salt shaker.

[TMM_John]

Heat (within reason for a cellphone), dry air, and airflow will do a much better job of evaporating water than rice. However, the internet loves to perpetuate stupidity.

If you get your cellphone wet, a hair dryer on low is the way to go.

[TMM_John]

Originally Posted by GFED

ahhh yes i have seen this. sometimes there will be some grains of rice in a salt shaker.

Rice will absorb water, sure, but it will not attract water. It'll do a decent job of sucking up the water that drips out of your phone, but it will do nothing to make the water actually leave your phone. Blowing volumes of dry air through your phone will however.

[raymor]

Look at it after three hours instead of three days. After three hours, or ONE day, the rice bag should have had less water. After that, you just have a bag of wet rice unless you replace the rice with fresh DRY rice. Eventually, the water left in the open will evaporate.

The rice, or better yet crystal cat litter, SPEEDS the drying until equlibrium is reached, then if it's still not dry you need to replace the moist rice.

[CaptainWolfy]

actaully i have tested that theory and it works with rice and air flow and the phone was working as a new, not only phone, my camera too :D

[raymor]

Originally Posted by TMM_John

Rice will absorb water, sure, but it will not attract water. It'll do a decent job of sucking up the water that drips out of your phone, but it will do nothing to make the water actually leave your phone. Blowing volumes of dry air through your phone will however.

Dry rice absorbs water from the AIR in the bag, reducing relative humidity considerably. The dry AIR dries the phone.

[V_RocKs]

Originally Posted by raymor

Look at it after three hours instead of three days. After three hours, or ONE day, the rice bag should have had less water. After that, you just have a bag of wet rice unless you replace the rice with fresh DRY rice. Eventually, the water left in the open will evaporate.

The rice, or better yet crystal cat litter, SPEEDS the drying until equlibrium is reached, then if it's still not dry you need to replace the moist rice.

The amount of water absorbed was extremely small...

I think John got it right... It absorbs, but doesn't attract.

[alextokyo]

Originally Posted by PR_Tom

I do know that restaurants will often use some pasta inside the sugar shakers which also absorbs moisture and keeps the sugar from clumping up.

Here in Crapan they use rice or heat-treated cannabis seeds.

So it's quite funny that getting caught with half a gram of weed here (or even just testing positive in a piss test) gets you a harsher sentence than being caught with a 100 kilos of bacon flavored heroin wrapped in hardcore gay porn magazines in Saudi Arabia.

[TMM_John]

Originally Posted by raymor

Dry rice absorbs water from the AIR in the bag, reducing relative humidity considerably. The dry AIR dries the phone.

Yes, but new air will be much more effective at absorbing water than the tiny bit of water that the rice will absorb from the air in a closed bag. Thus the results V_Rocks actually saw.

The "considerably" is the part that is wrong about what you're saying. Air movement (even fresh air without movement) will dry a phone much faster than some rice in a closed environment.

If you really want to see the difference, do it again with two bottle caps, but place them far apart and put a fan over one of them.

[Fap]

The rice absorbs the moisture, works a lot of the time.
(Also give it 24hrs before you say ITS BROKEN! after the rice)

[TMM_John]

Originally Posted by Fap

The rice absorbs the moisture, works a lot of the time.
(Also give it 24hrs before you say ITS BROKEN! after the rice)

You could also wrap it in seaweed, paint a purple circle on a sheet of tinfoil, place it directly in the center while playing Bjork songs next to it for 24 hours and claim that those actions saved the phone. Just because the phone happens to work 24 hours later does not mean the rice magically fixed it.

[RebelR]

Rice didn't work for me when the wife threw a hoodie with my iphone in the pocket in the washing machine. After 2 days.. I took it into the Apple store, and when the guy opened the sim card slot.. water came pouring out.

[DamianJ]

Originally Posted by V_RocKs

So I have heard that if your phone gets wet you should pull the battery ASAP. Then put the phone into a bag of white rice. Supposedly the rice will absorb the water much quicker than just leaving it out will and possibly save your phone from further water damage by rusting.

So I decided to test the theory... I took two bottle caps. Filled them both with water and stuck one into the center of a bag filled with white rice. The other I just set on the table next to the bag.

After three days the cap outside the bag had evaporated all of its water.

The cap inside the bag only evaporated about 1/3 of its water.

So I have to debunk this myth...

The best thing to do is just leave it sitting out on a table.

It's best to understand the myth before you try and debunk it.

[Relentless]

Originally Posted by TMM_John

You could also wrap it in seaweed, paint a purple circle on a sheet of tinfoil, place it directly in the center while playing Bjork songs next to it for 24 hours and claim that those actions saved the phone. Just because the phone happens to work 24 hours later does not mean the rice magically fixed it.

True, but that would help pass the time while waiting ;)

[sandman!]

the bags of silicat work best you can buy a few on ebay for like $5 for the next time you drop a phone in water.

[AsianDivaGirlsWebDude]

From Popular Mechanics:

Q: If I get my phone wet, what's the best way to bring it back to life?

A: Even if a wet cellphone seems dead, there's a good chance it can be resuscitated. Just make sure you act fast--the longer the water sits inside, the greater the likelihood it will destroy the phone for good.

This is a DIY moment. While consumers are conditioned to send back broken merchandise, your phone's warranty probably doesn't cover water damage. And you may not have much luck pulling a fast one on your phone company--most of today's phones come with a "water sticker" that permanently changes color if it gets wet.

The first step: Immediately cut the power by removing the battery. I know it's tempting, but resist the urge to power up your phone to see if it works--just turning it on can short out the circuits. If you have a GSM phone (the type used by AT&T and T-Mobile), you'll want to remove the SIM card as well. Even if your phone turns out to be beyond repair, the SIM should retain a lot of its onboard information, such as the contacts in your phone book.

With the battery safely set aside, you now have one goal--dry your phone, and dry it fast. If you let the moisture evaporate naturally, the chance of corrosion damaging the phone's innards increases. Instead, blow or suck the water out. But don't use a hair dryer--its heat can fry your phone's insides. Instead, opt for a can of compressed air, an air compressor set to a low psi or a vacuum cleaner (a wet/dry Shop-Vac would be perfect). The idea is to use air to push or pull moisture out through the same channels it entered.

Finally, use a desiccant to wick away any leftover moisture. The most convenient choice is uncooked rice. Just leave the phone (and its disconnected battery) submerged in a bowl of grains overnight. If you're worried about rice dust getting inside your phone, you can instead use the packets of silica gel that often come stuffed in the pockets of new clothes. But acting fast is far more important than avoiding a little dust, so don't waste time shopping if you don't already have a drawer full of silica gel.

The most important thing to remember is to avoid heat. That means no hair dryers, ovens, microwaves or extended periods in direct sunlight. While heat will certainly evaporate the moisture, it could also warp components and melt adhesives. Those fragile glues are also why you'll want to avoid dunking the phone in rubbing alcohol (an oftÂhaprescribed tip on the Web). Alcohol is a solvent and can dissolve the internal adhesives. (If you drop your phone in the toilet, it's okay to wipe the outside with alcohol to disinfect it.)

One final, perhaps surprising, note: If your phone gets soaked in salt water, you should probably flush the whole thing in fresh water before it dries. When salt water evaporates, it leaves crystals that can damage a phone's fragile components. Just be sure to remove the battery before flooding the device.

ADG

[martinsc]

Originally Posted by RebelR

Rice didn't work for me when the wife threw a hoodie with my iphone in the pocket in the washing machine. After 2 days.. I took it into the Apple store, and when the guy opened the sim card slot.. water came pouring out.

[CyberHustler]

[undersoul]

interesting idea. i would probably just get a new one. lol

[bronco67]

If you really wanted to test it, you should drop your phone in the toilet water, then put it in the bag of rice and report back your results. Go big or go home.

[V_RocKs]

Originally Posted by DamianJ

It's best to understand the myth before you try and debunk it.

It is best to read how I tested the theory out and formed my hypothesis before commenting.

[Mr Pheer]

Originally Posted by V_RocKs

The best thing to do is just leave it sitting out on a table.

With a fan blowing on it.

[Relentless]

The best thing to do is not to wet your phone in the first place.
Never overlook avoiding the problem entirely.

[anexsia]

I've dropped my phone in the toilet numerous times, freaks me out when people call and I'm pissing

[Spunky]

Those cans of compressed air work great.Do it ASAP though. Then a bowl of rice for a couple days after to make sure

[TurboAngel]

It didn't work on my phone.

[J$tyle$]

I dropped my phone in the pool a few years ago ... immediately after, I pulled it out - took out the battery out and tried to dry it all as much as possible with a towel. Then I left it in between my window and closed blinds on the sunny side of the house for the remainder of the day.

It did the trick. All the water evaporated and nothing on the phone or battery melted.

I know, ADG - Popular Mechanics suggests against it BUT it worked fine for me ... and the phone lasted with no issues until I upgraded it a year or more later.

[WarChild]

Originally Posted by V_RocKs

It is best to read how I tested the theory out and formed my hypothesis before commenting.

I think a better test might be to do it with 4 bottle caps.

1 Bottle cap inside a plastic bag full of rice.
1 Bottle cap inside a plastic bag with no rice.
1 Bottle cap by its self in no plastic bag.
1 Bottle cap surrounded by rice and not in a plastic bag.

[DamianJ]

Originally Posted by V_RocKs

It is best to read how I tested the theory out and formed my hypothesis before commenting.

To test it, as many people have done, you need to use a PHONE for starters.

And it's in a sealed tupperware box of rice.

And you leave it 48 hours.

Your test has proved that a cap of water in a bag of rice left for a short period of time doesn't behave in the way that a wet phone behaves.

Well done, myth buster!

[travs]

that's just fucked up

[V_RocKs]

Originally Posted by DamianJ

To test it, as many people have done, you need to use a PHONE for starters.

And it's in a sealed tupperware box of rice.

And you leave it 48 hours.

Your test has proved that a cap of water in a bag of rice left for a short period of time doesn't behave in the way that a wet phone behaves.

Well done, myth buster!

I clearly stated 3 days... You suggested 2 and then are stating that I performed my test in a short amount of time. You don't make any sense.

A cap of water will be able to evaporate much better than the nooks and crannies of a phone. The phone would have a large surface area, but the cap of water outside the bag completely evaporated without the rice and in less time. This shows that a room full of air has a much higher ability to absorb the water proving I am right.

Having a fan blow on it would be even better.

[InfoGuy]

Originally Posted by bronco67

drop your phone in the toilet water, then put it in the bag of rice

How does that brown or yellow rice taste?

[DamianJ]

Originally Posted by V_RocKs

I clearly stated 3 days... You suggested 2 and then are stating that I performed my test in a short amount of time. You don't make any sense.

A cap of water will be able to evaporate much better than the nooks and crannies of a phone. The phone would have a large surface area, but the cap of water outside the bag completely evaporated without the rice and in less time. This shows that a room full of air has a much higher ability to absorb the water proving I am right.

Having a fan blow on it would be even better.

If you really think a cap full of water is the same as a phone and you've disproved the thousands of people that have done this with an item of electronics, that's great

Just fucking glad you weren't my science teacher!

[bushwacker]

Originally Posted by DamianJ

If you really think a cap full of water is the same as a phone and you've disproved the thousands of people that have done this with an item of electronics, that's great

Just fucking glad you weren't my science teacher!

[beerptrol]

I would just pay the deductible and get a new phone. And use the rice to make a nice meal