// IPHONE WATER DAMAGE REPAIR
iPhone Water Damage Repair in St Andrews. Don't Wait, Act Fast
Your iPhone just went for a swim. Maybe it slipped out of your pocket into the toilet, took a dive into a pint at the pub, or got caught in a St Andrews downpour without proper protection. Your heart sinks and your first instinct is to panic, shake the water out, or reach for the rice. Stop. What you do in the next few hours will determine whether your iPhone survives or becomes an expensive paperweight.
At Repair St Andrews, we deal with water-damaged iPhones regularly. We have an ultrasonic cleaning station specifically for this, and we have been rescuing liquid-damaged devices since 2011. Our workshop is at 1 City Rd, beside the West Port. If your iPhone has just had a liquid encounter, the best thing you can do is power it off immediately and bring it to us as quickly as possible.
What to Do (and Not Do) Right Now
Power It Off Immediately
Hold the side button and either volume button, then slide to power off. If the screen is not responding, hold the side button for about ten seconds until it shuts down. The biggest killer of water-damaged phones is short circuits caused by electricity flowing through wet components.
Do NOT Put It in Rice
This is the most common myth in phone repair. Rice does not dry the inside of your phone effectively. What it does is introduce starch dust and small particles into the ports and speakers, making the problem worse. We see rice-damaged phones every month.
Do NOT Try to Charge It
Pushing electricity through a wet phone is the fastest way to cause irreversible short-circuit damage to the logic board.
Do NOT Use a Hairdryer
The heat can warp internal components and push moisture deeper into the phone rather than drawing it out.
Bring It to Us ASAP
The sooner we can open the phone and begin the drying and cleaning process, the better the chances of a full recovery. Every hour counts with liquid damage.
// OUR PROCESS
Our Water Damage Repair Process
Time is critical with liquid damage. Here is exactly what happens when you bring your water-damaged iPhone to us.
Immediate Assessment and Disassembly
We open the iPhone straight away to assess the extent of liquid ingress. The water damage indicators inside the phone tell us where moisture has reached, and a visual inspection under magnification shows us which components have been affected. We disconnect the battery immediately to prevent any further short-circuit damage, then remove all modular components. Screen, cameras, speakers, charging port. To allow full access to the logic board.
Ultrasonic Cleaning
The logic board goes into our ultrasonic cleaning bath. This uses high-frequency sound waves to create microscopic cavitation bubbles in a specialised cleaning solution, which reach into every crevice of the board. Under chips, around connectors, into places no brush or cloth can reach. The ultrasonic bath dissolves corrosion deposits and mineral residue left behind by the liquid. After cleaning, the board is rinsed with pure isopropyl alcohol and dried thoroughly.
Component Testing and Repair
With the board clean and dry, we reconnect the components and test everything systematically: does it power on, does the screen display correctly, do both cameras work, does the earpiece and loudspeaker produce sound, does the charging port charge, does Face ID or Touch ID function. If any components have been damaged beyond cleaning. A corroded speaker, a shorted camera module. We replace the affected parts individually. We give you an honest assessment of what has survived and what needs replacing.
Turnaround Time
Water damage repair is not a quick fix. We need to be thorough. The ultrasonic cleaning and drying process typically takes 24 to 48 hours. Rushing it risks leaving hidden moisture that causes corrosion weeks later. If additional components need replacing, we will source parts as quickly as possible and keep you updated throughout.
The most important thing is getting the phone to us quickly. If your iPhone has just been exposed to liquid, call us on 01334 478866 or come straight to 1 City Rd. We prioritise fresh water damage cases because time is genuinely critical.
If the water damaged your screen, we also offer iPhone screen repair. If the battery was affected, see our battery replacement service.
Water Damage Repair Pricing
We charge a fixed fee for the ultrasonic cleaning and assessment, which covers opening the phone, cleaning the board, drying, and testing. If additional component replacements are needed (a new screen, speaker, charging port, or camera module), those are quoted separately once we know exactly what has been damaged.
We are always upfront about costs. If the damage is too extensive and repair would cost more than the phone is worth, we will tell you honestly rather than racking up charges. In those cases, we can often recover your data from the phone, which is worth more than the device itself to most people.
For an assessment, call 01334 478866 or bring the phone in to 1 City Rd immediately.
Severe water damage can affect the logic board. We do component-level micro-soldering to repair damaged circuits.
Frequently Asked Questions
My iPhone is water-resistant. How did water get in?
Apple’s water resistance ratings (IP67 or IP68 depending on the model) are tested on brand-new phones under controlled laboratory conditions. In real life, the adhesive seals degrade over time, especially if the phone has been dropped, exposed to heat, or previously repaired. A phone that was IP68-rated when it left the factory may have significantly reduced water resistance after two years of daily use. Apple themselves state that water damage is not covered under warranty, which tells you everything you need to know about how reliable the seals really are.
What are the chances of saving my water-damaged iPhone?
It depends on three factors: what liquid was involved (clean water is better than seawater, beer, or sugary drinks), how long the phone was submerged, and how quickly it was powered off and brought to us. Phones that arrive within a few hours of the incident, powered off, with no charging attempts, have a significantly higher recovery rate than phones that were left on, charged, or brought in days later. We typically see a good recovery rate when people act fast, but we are always honest about the odds.
Can you recover my data if the phone is beyond repair?
In many cases, yes. Even when an iPhone is too damaged to function as a daily phone, the storage chip on the logic board may still be intact. We can sometimes recover photos, contacts, and other data from devices that will not power on normally. If data recovery is your priority, let us know up front and we will focus our efforts accordingly. For more details, see our dedicated data recovery service.
Should I use silica gel packets instead of rice?
Silica gel is better than rice, but neither is a substitute for professional repair. The problem with any passive drying method is that it does not remove the corrosive mineral deposits that liquid leaves on the circuit board. Your phone might dry out and seem to work fine, but those deposits continue corroding components over the following weeks, eventually causing failures. Ultrasonic cleaning is the only reliable way to remove these deposits and give the phone the best chance of long-term survival.
How much does iPhone water damage repair cost?
The cost depends on the extent of the damage. Our fixed ultrasonic cleaning and assessment fee covers opening the phone, cleaning the logic board, drying, and full testing. If individual components need replacing. Such as a screen, speaker, or camera module. Those are quoted separately after we know exactly what has been affected. We always give you a full breakdown before starting any additional work.
Can you fix a phone dropped in the sea?
Saltwater is particularly corrosive and causes more damage than fresh water, but we have successfully recovered phones from seawater exposure. The key factors are how quickly you powered off the phone and how soon you brought it to us. Saltwater leaves mineral deposits that our ultrasonic bath can dissolve, but the longer those deposits sit on the board, the more damage they cause. If your phone went into the sea, power it off immediately, do not rinse it with fresh water (this can push moisture deeper), and bring it to us as fast as possible.
My iPhone got wet but still works. Should I bring it in?
Yes, absolutely. A phone that works immediately after water exposure can fail days or weeks later as hidden moisture causes slow corrosion on the logic board. The adhesive seals inside the phone can trap moisture in pockets you cannot see, and these gradually corrode connections and components. Getting the phone ultrasonically cleaned now, while it is still working, gives it the best chance of long-term survival. It is much cheaper to clean a working phone preventatively than to repair a phone that has failed from delayed corrosion.
Related services: iPhone Screen Repair, iPhone Logic Board Repair, and Data Recovery. If you know your model, you can book directly for your iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 15, iPhone 14 Pro and iPhone 13. Return to our homepage for all services. Water damage often affects the back glass too — see our iPhone back glass repair page.
// GET STARTED
Book Your iPhone Water Damage Repair
Visit us at 1 City Rd, St Andrews, KY16 9XQ | Mon–Fri 09:30–17:30, Sat 10:00–17:00