5 Things NOT to Do When Your Phone Gets Wet (From a Developer Who Learned the Hard Way)

I build web tools for a living. Last month I learned an expensive lesson about phone water damage. Here are 5 mistakes to avoid. 1. Don't Put It in Rice This is the biggest myth in tech. Rice absorbs ambient humidity in the air around it. It does NOT draw water out of a sealed phone enclosure. A study found rice performed no better than open air for drying phones. Worse, rice starch can clog your charging port and speaker grille. 2. Don't Use a Hair Dryer Heat can warp internal components and push water deeper into the device. The adhesives holding your phone together start to soften around 70°C, which a hair dryer easily exceeds. 3. Don't Shake It Vigorously Shaking can spread water to areas it hadn't reached yet. A gentle tilt with the port facing down is fine, but aggressive shaking makes things worse. 4. Don't Charge It While Wet This is the most dangerous one. Water + electricity = short circuit. Wait until your phone is completely dry before plugging it in. Most modern phones wil