"Leave it overnight" is the usual advice, and it is not bad. But the right wait depends on how wet the phone got and where the water went. Waiting too little risks a short circuit. These are sensible times for each situation.
Typical drying times
| What happened | Before using | Before charging by cable |
|---|---|---|
| Light splash or rain | Wipe and carry on | 30 minutes |
| Wet speaker, sounds muffled | Use straight away, run the eject tone | 1 hour |
| Quick dunk, water-resistant phone | 30–60 minutes | At least 5 hours |
| "Liquid detected" alert in the port | Usable | Until the alert clears. Often a few hours, up to 24. |
| Long soak, or a phone with no IP rating | 24–48 hours, switched off | 48 hours |
| Salt water, pool water or sugary drink | 24–48 hours after rinsing | 48 hours |
These are cautious figures for a phone drying in open air at normal room temperature. Apple's own advice for a wet charging port is to wait at least 30 minutes before trying, and it notes that full drying can take up to 24 hours.
Why some parts take so long
Water on the outside is gone in minutes. The slow parts are the small enclosed spaces: the charging port, the gap behind the speaker mesh, the SIM tray slot and the seams around buttons. Air barely moves in these spaces, so evaporation is slow. If water has got past the seals, it is inside a closed box with almost no airflow at all, and can stay for days.
What speeds it up
- Moving air. A fan pointed at the phone is the best thing you can do. Moving air carries moisture away many times faster than still air.
- Openings facing down. Let gravity drain the port and speaker.
- Removing the case and SIM tray. Both trap water, and an open SIM slot lets air in.
- The eject sound. A water eject tone physically throws water off the speaker mesh, which would otherwise take an hour or more to evaporate.
- A dry room. In humid weather, an air-conditioned room dries a phone much faster.
- Silica gel. A sealed box with fresh silica gel sachets helps for long soaks.
What does not help
- Rice. No faster than open air, and it sheds dust. See why rice does not work.
- Hair dryers and ovens. Heat harms seals, screens and batteries.
- Direct sunlight. A phone in the sun gets hot enough to damage the battery.
- Turning it on "just to check". This is the most common way a recoverable phone is lost.
How to tell it is dry
- No droplets when you tap the phone, port down, against your palm.
- No fog inside the camera lens.
- The speaker sounds clear at full volume.
- No liquid or moisture alert when you connect a cable.
If in doubt, wait longer. A few extra hours cost nothing. And if you need power sooner, wireless charging is safe as long as the back of the phone is dry.