What to do if your smartphone falls into the snow

Well-known British retailer mobiles.co.uk tells in your blog on how to save a smartphone that fell in the snow. It turns out that instead of a hair dryer, it is better to use a vacuum cleaner, and a cup of rice has a more efficient counterpart.

1. You need to act immediately

While this sounds obvious, it’s better to repeat: salvation should start right away, and not wait for more serious problems. The first step is to turn off and disassemble the device, as far as possible: remove the cover and battery, pull out the SIM card and memory card.

Smartphones and dialers with a removable battery often have an indicator in the form of a white circle or square. If it is red or pink, water has penetrated inside. This almost certainly means that the battery will have to be replaced, but the device itself can still be salvaged.

Put the SIM card and memory card in your wallet or bag pocket so as not to lose it, and put the device itself in a glove or pocket - the main thing is to keep the cloth dry. If you have the opportunity to enter the room, wrap it in a paper or cloth towel.

2. Dry your smartphone inside

Again, this paragraph only applies to devices with a removable battery. Use a towel to blot the inside of the device to remove water. Try not to shake it so that the water does not flow deeper.

3. Take care of the connectors

Even if your smartphone is waterproof, problems can occur if water gets into the charging port or speaker. Take a vacuum cleaner (preferably handheld or car) and run it several times near all the connectors and speakers - at a short distance from the device. But it is better to leave the hairdryer for styling your hair: it will only push the water further into the cracks.

4. Look for silica gel bags

Many people advise putting your smartphone in a bowl of rice, but silica gel is much more effective. Just in case: we are talking about the same paper bags with balls that are put in shoe boxes and jars of medicine. Place your smartphone in a plastic bag, line it with silica gel sachets on all sides and leave to dry.

If you can't find silica gel, put your smartphone in a bowl of rice and turn it every couple of hours. In both cases, drying should be continued for at least a day. Note that the rice method reject specialists with iFixit - but there is a healthy grain in the recommendation not to touch the device.

5. Be patient

You will probably want to turn on your smartphone as soon as possible and check if it is alive. But mobiles.co.uk notes that a device that has been left alone for 3 days has a much better chance than a smartphone that has been dried for 24 hours. But an attempt to turn it on too early can lead to a short circuit - then you definitely cannot do without repair.