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HELP! I dropped my Moto Z2 play phone in a pool 8 inches deep. I picked it up immediately and shook it out but then the screen went wonky. I put it in a bag of rice for 3 days….there is a white light that blinks when I plug it in but then disappears and won’t turn on. is there a reset buttton or what can I do to make it work again. I thought these phones were water resistant? So disappointed and I really can’t afford to purchase another one.
Hi @irenef , Motorola doesn’t claim that the phone is water resistant, simply that it is water repellent. Subtle difference but enough to get them out of trouble if it is immersed in water. This is what they say on the product specifications: “Advanced nano-coating technology creates a water-repellent barrier to help protect against moderate exposure to water such as accidental spills, splashes or light rain. Not designed to be submersed in water, or exposed to pressurized water, or other liquids; Not waterproof”. (the highlighting in the text is my addition to the quote). As to repairing the phone, as you know liquids and electronics and electricity are not a good mix. The liquid causes corrosion and provides circuit paths for the electricity which were not in the phone’s operating design and could damage the components. The corrosion process starts immediately and continues until it has been cleaned properly Rice is good to eat but does nothing to fix the problems caused by corrosion. Don’t Put Your Device in Rice. Here’s Why First do not turn on your phone and then you need to remove the battery as soon as possible from the phone to minimize further damage.’’ Then you need to dis-assemble the rest of the phone and clean all the affected parts using Isopropyl Alcohol 90%+ (available at most pharmacies) to remove all traces of corrosion and water. Do not use “rubbing alcohol” as in some cases this is only 70% or less, can contain scents and is not as effective. If you do check the label to verify the amount of IPA. Here is a link that in general, describes the process. Electronics Water Damage As always with electronics, especially surface mounted PCBs be gentle when handling and especially when brushing away the corrosion. You do not want to remove any components from the board. Hopefully after you have done all this the phone might possibly work correctly again. Here’s a link to a video which shows how to dis-assemble your phone, which may be of some help If this process seems too daunting, take your phone to a reputable, professional mobile phone repair service experienced in liquid damage repair and ask for a quote for a repair. If you decide to do this, do it sooner than later.
@irenef it really does not matter how long it was in the water. What does matter is which part got immersed. First thing is to skip the rice. It does not work. Rice is a great food but a lousy tool. It will not clean your phone nor will it prevent corrosion. As with any immersion, the importance is to not turn it on, or trying to sync/charge it, as this may increase the likelihood of shortcircuiting any components. Remove the battery, and disassemble it right down to the logic board. Use this guide or something like this to at least get you into the phone. You must remove all EMI shields that are on your logic board. Clean everything with isopropyl alcohol (90%+) and a soft brush, including all connectors and cable ends. Use this guide Repairing iPhone Liquid Damage to see how it gets done. Even so it was written for an iPhone 3G all the points about the cleaning still apply to your phone as well. Check for any burned or missing components. You may have to repeat this step a couple of times. the best way to clean it would be by using an ultrasonic cleaner. Once it is cleaned, reassemble it and replace the battery, then reevaluate for any real damage. So, definitely clean it very well. Hope this helps, good luck.
There is no water resistant phone, one brand try that, those phone resisted normal water, but not salt water, so they paid a lot in waranty, you just had bad luck, but maybe is only the screen that is bad, by the way, is better to put the phone in isopropil alcohol for a day and then let it dry for another day or two.(i did that with my sister phone, after that i took the motherboard and scrub the parts where i found corrosion) In any case, you can know if the phone turn on by conecting it to a pc, if it conects after you try to turn it on then you have to replace the screen.
