The risk of water damage for cell phones, laptops and other electronic devices is immense considering that they are always used in places with plenty of water around. Yet, it might surprise you to learn that the circuit boards laptops and any other electronic devices we have around are actually rinsed in clean water and dried before they are put to use. This means that as long as the water is clean, the gadget might not be irreparably damaged. The water damage risk increases however with dirty water.

Should your laptop get affected by water damage, the first thing to do is turn it off immediately. You should then remove all sources of power from it and after setting those aside, you should turn the laptop upside down to stop any further liquid from seeping into the computer. After that, use paper towels or a rag to wipe the water off the keyboard and other outside areas of the computer. Any electronic nearby, like an external CD-ROM or external hard drive should also be wiped.

The laptop should then be disassembled and allowed to air out for at least one full day and possibly longer to prevent further water damage. What you want to be sure of is that the laptop is completely moisture free. If the liquid involved is just water, allowing the laptop to dry will be all but if other liquids like soda and coffee are involved, you will need to clean the gadget with some rubbing alcohol. After that, you should put the device back together, reattach the battery and test to see that it works. If it does, test to see that it starts up normally then attach the A/C adaptor and plug it in.

For a cell phone that lands in water, the first thing to do to prevent water damage is to get it out of the water as quickly as possible. You should then remove the battery as quickly as possible to save it from heat from shorts. This is the most crucial step in saving your phone and if done promptly will save many circuits inside the phone.

For those with GSM carriers, the next step should be to remove the SIM card. Because of the wealth of data that SIM cards carry, for some people this is more precious than the phone itself. While SIM cards survive water damage sturdily, make sure you do not heat-dry them but rather just pat-dry them and put them aside until you need to re-connect your phone.

You should then dry the phone and remove as much water as possible. You can shake the phone, observing care not to drop it, then proceed to use a towel or paper towel. All external covers to the phone should be removed to open up as many gaps as possible. If possible a vacuum could be used to help further dry the phone. Avoid using a hair dryer for this exercise as this may force moisture further into the small components deep inside the phone and cause further water damage.