A mobile phone is perhaps the only thing that we constantly carry with us, even if we leave the house for only a couple of minutes. The constant wear of such a delicate product, of course, does not affect its appearance and performance in the best way. But if the exterior can be protected with a variety of cases, then there is no universal way to prevent water from entering the phone (for example, through the speakers).
And if such a nuisance did occur, there are quite effective ways to get rid of moisture. Many users do not even know about them, and in vain: you need to know the enemy in person. We intend to fill this knowledge gap with time-tested and safe methods.
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How to use sound to push water out of speakers
The acoustic method of cleaning the speaker from moisture is based on known physical laws. From the school physics course, it is known that sound waves propagate in the environment by vibrating particles. Getting through the protective mesh onto the membrane, water drops form a dense layer that prevents the normal oscillatory process that generates acoustic waves. As a result, the sound is muffled, and this is the first sign that water has got into the phone.
How to destroy this layer? That’s right, with the help of the same vibration, and if you use this vibration purposefully, then the water film will gradually collapse, and it is much easier to expel individual drops from the speakers.
Therefore, the idea of using sound to clean the speakers of a smartphone from water turned out to be really productive, and many tools have now been developed to achieve the desired result using acoustic methods.
At the same time, the methods of drying the speakers using a heated air stream cannot be called absolutely safe: it is enough to overdo it a little, and excessive pressure on the membrane can damage it. When using sound waves, there is no such danger, however, the energy component of the acoustic method is decent and quite sufficient to remove moisture.
But here it is necessary to clarify that the usual low-frequency sound, which is a source of oscillatory processes with a large amplitude, but a small operating frequency, may not be enough for this. But if high-frequency ultrasonic waves, which are inaudible to the human ear, are connected to remove water from the speaker, the popping effect will be excellent.
Where can I get this sound? For example, on YouTube. Here is an example of a video that actively uses ultrasound with frequencies up to 2.4 kHz. Its duration is 2 minutes, if one view is not enough, try running the video again in 1-2 minutes. You can take some additional measures to put your smartphone in order – for example, remove dust and moisture from the case with a cotton swab.
In addition to the popular video service, tracks for cleaning speakers from water can be found on other sites. Moreover, it is desirable to make their use regular for preventive purposes.
Android apps to remove water from speakers
Instead of looking for the right sounds on the web, you can simply install a special application that allows you to rid your speaker of water in minutes and even seconds. Fortunately, there are enough such applications in the Play Market.
“Clean speaker”
This application uses acoustic sine waves at specific frequencies to effectively shake off water from the membrane mesh and act as a speaker vibration generator.
“Clean speaker” offers several cleaning modes:
- in the automatic mode, you do not need to enter any parameters, and the cleaning process itself lasts about 80 seconds;
- manual mode involves entering the sound frequency that is optimal for a particular speaker.
It is recommended to use the automatic mode, and only if it does not help – manual, it is advisable to study the characteristics of the speaker before that in order to find out at what maximum frequencies it can operate.
Super Speaker Cleaner
An alternative Android app used to clean up water from speakers also offers several modes of operation.
But here you can choose which speaker to clean: the main (Loud Speaker) or ear (Earpiece Speaker).
The cleaning procedure itself is simple: increase the volume with the slider or button to the maximum, tap on the button with the image of a crossed-out drop and quickly put the smartphone face down.
The Remove Water application uses the same principle, but it is recommended to hold the phone in your hands and shake it from side to side during the procedure, and in Super Speaker Cleaner you need to place the smartphone face down when cleaning.
How to remove water from smartphone speakers online
The beauty of a smartphone is that it can be used as a miniature analogue of a computer, installing the applications necessary for work and entertainment on it, as long as there is enough internal memory. But on outdated and budget models, there are big problems with this.
In such cases, to clean the speaker from water, you can use the online resource – the site https://fixmyspeakers.com , which does not require the installation of additional applications – it is enough to have any browser on the phone, including the cut-down version built into Android.
The principle of operation of the cleaning function is similar to that used in the Apple Watch: the use of acoustic waves allows you to push all foreign bodies, including particles of dirt and dust, out through the air ducts.
To start the cleaning function, tap on the icon with the image of water drops and dust particles, an acoustic accompaniment that is not very pleasant for the ear will start, lasting several minutes – this may be enough to remove water from the speakers. If the sound does not work due to water ingress, then the animation of the pressed button will indicate that the cleaning procedure is functioning. You may need to repeat the procedure, especially if your phone has survived water activities such as swimming.
How to Clean Speaker Water on iPhone
As you can see, for Android phones, there is no shortage of specialized applications for removing water from the phone. But what about the owners of “apple” devices? Here the choice is not so great, but it is.
The easiest way to search is through the App Store, where you need to type a query like “Clear speaker” in the search bar. Most likely, Sonic will be in the first place in the list of applications . Download it, install it and run it.
The main screen will display the only operating parameter that can be adjusted – the frequency of the reproduced sound. To change it, touch the screen in the area of the number, to start the procedure for cleaning the speaker from water, tap on the Play bar at the bottom of the window. You can stop the process using the same strip, on which the Stop inscription appears.
If it was not possible to completely get rid of water at the default frequency (the sound is still weak or distorted), try changing the frequency. It is also recommended to shake the device while cleaning the iPhone – this will help get rid of dirt, dust and water film.
The only downside to Sonic is the presence of ads, but the vast majority of free apps could hardly exist without this source of income.
Another popular app in this category is Sonic Pitch Sound Generator , which also has a version for Android. Here it is also possible to change the frequency of acoustic vibrations in the range of 1-25000 Hz.
The principle of operation is approximately the same: launch the application and tap on the Play button, having previously set the sound volume to the maximum. To change the sound frequency, slide your finger up (increase) or down (decrease the operating frequency).
Note that if a lot of water got inside the phone, cleaning with sound may not be able to cope with the task. Surplus water will constantly move from one place to another, and it is possible that they will be in more vulnerable locations. So it’s better to immediately take your smartphone to a service, where a professional procedure for getting rid of water in any case will cost you less than a repair.
Emergency measures when water enters the smartphone
Water that has entered the phone in small quantities can be easily removed from the speaker. But there are times when it was not possible to protect the phone from serious getting wet, and then the measures taken to influence the speaker, as potentially the most vulnerable part in this regard, will not be enough.
How to minimize the effects of water entering the phone in a significant amount?
The main task of paramount importance is to de-energize the device. As you know, water is a good conductor, and if it gets on the conductive parts and components of the smartphone, then there is a high risk of a short circuit, which threatens with the most unpredictable consequences.
Well, if you have a model with a removable battery, then you need to remove it as quickly as possible. After that, you can start drying the insides of the device. For example, using a household hair dryer. A few minutes of blowing with warm (not hot!) Air is enough for most of the moisture to evaporate. It is possible that some amount of water remains inside, so after drying it is strongly recommended to place the phone in a warm place for at least a day.
Unfortunately, today models with a removable battery are extremely rare, and even then these are ordinary phones, not smartphones. In such cases, the use of a hair dryer is not recommended, since it can do more harm than good: air currents can move water under the battery to another place, including the area where conductive nodes are located, which should not be allowed.
An attempt to remove water by shaking the smartphone can lead to the same consequences.
For a phone with a non-removable battery, the first step is to turn it off using the power button. To some extent, this is equivalent to its de-energization. Then dry the device by placing it in a dry, warm place for 16-24 hours, after which you can try to turn it on and comprehensively check the performance of the phone and all its functions.
On the Internet, you can find advice that recommends placing a smartphone in a container of rice, which perfectly absorbs moisture. You should not do this – rice, even thoroughly peeled, contains a huge amount of small particles invisible to the eye, which will surely penetrate inside the phone and remain there, gradually decomposing. Other absorbent materials should not be used to remove moisture, with the exception of those that are included in the packaging of many mobile gadgets – their use is safe, but not very effective.