[drownsoda]

So I applied a screen protector to my Priv this evening, and it was one of those "wet application" ones with the spray solution. I turned the phone off and followed the directions, and made sure to try and catch any excess moisture I could from getting into the speakers of the phone. I waited about a half hour before powering the phone back on; it started up just fine, and I used it for a few minutes before I noticed the screen flickering. My stomach sank.

I immediately tried to power the phone off, but to make matters worse the screen went black before I could complete it. Holding down the power button alone doesn't shut the phone off, as you have to select either "Power off" or "restart" from the screen�problem was the screen was friggin' black, so I had to tap around with my finger and try and guess. I felt the screen vibration on my finger, indicating that I'd pressed something, and the keyboard light powered down, so I know I hit the "power off."

I took the phone and put it in a tupperware container full of rice, and placed it face down. Now I'm hoping and praying that it comes back to life, but I'm really worried. Obviously some moisture made its way in, but it's not like it was submerged in liquid. I'm devastated.

For anyone who has experience with this, how long should I leave the phone in the rice? I tried to take out the SIM card so I could use my old phone, but upon removing the SIM slot, I couldn't figure out how to get the SIM card out�it seems like it's one with the slot? Terrible night, especially since I just got the phone two days ago and have been so ecstatic about it.

[rotorwrench]

If it were my phone I would set it on a a table edge with the speaker exposed face down, take a vacuum cleaner hose, wrap an absorbent fabric single layer and stretched tight, like a cotton t-shirt, over the vacuum nozzle, turn vacuum on, and depending on strength of the vacuum, starting from about 3" away, I would gently move the vacuum nozzle closer to the speaker, stopping every inch and checking the fabric for moisture. When you reach a distance that you're getting moisture on the fabric, stop there and hold it several minutes at a time, shifting the fabric to a dry spot each time, until you aren't picking up any more moisture.

You could try a little closer at that point but you need to be careful with too much vacuum on the speakers so as not to damage them. The cloth helps to reduce the vacuum pressure but there is no point in getting any closer than a point you are drawing out moisture. Repeat with the upper ear speaker. I would then slide the phone open and do the same thing to the keyboard area, with the same caution.

I have had good luck with other electronic devices removing moisture this way and it is definitely a method to remove the most moisture in an immediate fashion. I would do this at any point on the phone you suspect moisture could have possibly entered. At this point you could then do the rice bit, but the vacuum will remove moisture and moisture laden air much quicker, and immediacy is the name of the game if you aren't going to disassemble the phone. Silica gel packs would do a much better job of drying out any residual moisture than the rice, but use whatever you have access to. I wouldn't turn the phone back on until the phone had set in the silica gel or rice for a day, just to be sure.

Just sharing what I would do if it were my phone. You decide what you are comfortable with and accept the associated risks. Good luck.

BTW, the SIM card will just pop out of the holder with very little finger pressure.

" If I agreed with you we'd both be wrong."

[drownsoda]

I tried to do this actually with my mouth by sucking air out around the speakers and buttons (I made sure not to breathe at all into them, just try to extract air/moisture). I of course couldn't tell if I was actually pulling any moisture out. I would have used a vacuum but unfortunately mine doesn't have a removable hose to do what you mentioned.

I now have the phone, keyboard slid out, face down wrapped in a napkin and buried in rice. I am praying this works. I had a Blackberry Tour years ago that I completely submerged in water and after lying in a bowl of rice overnight, it was back to working. Granted this is an entirely new (and perhaps more fragile?) phone so I have no idea if it will work. I know that if it doesn't, I'm going to be fairly devastated—I have a case coming in the mail for it tomorrow for Christ's sake!

I'm still baffled as to how the moisture from the screen protector could have done this, as it the amount that came in contact with the speaker area was minimal, and I wiped it up as fast as I could while I was applying the protector. I've applied Zagg protectors and other kinds that are "wet application" and never once done any damage to any of my phones.

Do you think I should attempt to turn it on in the morning? I've read that most people who have totally waterlogged their phones (dropped them in pools, etc.) let theirs sit 24–48 hours. There is no possible way that there was THAT much moisture in there as the phone was never submerged in liquid, so I don't know how long I should wait before I try to turn it on.

[rotorwrench]

I didn't intend for the hose to come off the vacuum, just any attachment that's on the end of the hose, so you are just dealing with the open end of the hose. If you have a non-removable end on the hose I would still try getting some vacuum on the speaker and openings. Using your mouth was actually a good move given the circumstances and is actually what I did a couple of weeks ago when I submerged my Priv in a sink because I didn't have access to a vacuum, being that I was in a motel room and the front desk wouldn't give me access to one.

I agree that the amount of moisture you describe doesn't sound like much but regardless of quantity, one drop in the wrong place is all it takes to cause a possible short or problem. Logic dictates that since the phone was ok until you got the water on it, it is likely, but not for sure, the probable cause. Coincidence is a possibility but not likely.

As to duration of the rice treatment, I believe the longer the better but I have no definitive period because you have no idea as the the amount of moisture that actually got in nor a way to determine when it's actually dry. That being said, I personally would wait 24hrs, regardless of someone else's experience. But that's me.

Did you get your SIM and SD removed?

" If I agreed with you we'd both be wrong."

[drownsoda]

I did remove the SIM card and the SD. There was a small white tab on the bottom of the SIM tray that led me to believe it was somehow attached, and I was already so razzed about the phone that I didn't even want to touch it out of fear of breaking it.

I did pop it out though and put it in my old phone, so I have a working phone for the time being at least. I'm going to let it sit in the rice until at least tomorrow afternoon before I try to turn it on. If worst comes to worst, I may look into what options there are for repairs, as it seems (based on what I saw) that the only thing affected is the screen itself.

If that's insanely expensive, I may just have to bite the bullet and replace it, which I really don't want to do as I'm already paying for this one on a monthly basis and have had it for all but two days, but c'est la vie.

[FF22]

When I had the Ghost Armor professionally installed he really did wet it down and I was kind of thinking this is crazy. But it worked and I did not have the Black Screen like you encountered when he finished. He did put it in a dry box with warmth and a fan.

[drownsoda]

When I had the Ghost Armor professionally installed he really did wet it down and I was kind of thinking this is crazy. But it worked and I did not have the Black Screen like you encountered when he finished. He did put it in a dry box with warmth and a fan.

Yeah, as I said, I've used wet-install screen protectors on other devices before and never had any issues because of it—did it with my BB Classic, iPhones, BB Tour, etc. A little bit of moisture getting in the speaker area or on the side buttons on any and all of these phones during this process never did any damage, which is why I was so surprised/terrified when the Priv starting acting wonky.

Granted, I was fussing around with the screen protector for a good half hour as I struggled to get it stay put on the rounded edges, so I did spray a fair amount of the solution onto the screen protector, but even still. What was strange was it at first showed no signs of any problems when I powered it up. It wasn't until about 5 minutes later that when I pressed the home button, I noticed the screen flickering out. Then it went black.

I'm really hoping leaving it out/in the rice for a day or so will wick up any moisture that may potentially be in there; it seems like a connection issue or something, as the keyboard still lit up—it was just the screen that wasn't responding. I'm resisting all temptation to try and power it up again, as I really, really want it to be okay.

I've read that a lot of times the problem with water getting into phones is the corrosion from minerals in the water, and not so much the water itself; out of curiousity, does anyone know what is in these "solutions" for wet-application screen protectors?

[drownsoda]

Update: I've started the phone up and at first all is well, but when I press the power button to shut off the screen, it becomes non responsive and won't light back up by either pressing the power button or double-tapping the screen. The keyboard is still lit up regardless.

I restarted the phone and it did the same thing—booted up like normal, but once the power button gets pressed, the screen goes out and won't come back on without a reboot.

Any idea what could be the potential problem?