TL;DR: System fell in a pool of dishwasher water, managed to save(?) it w/ rice and silica gel. Don't be dumb like me and keep your consoles away from water whenever possible.
To top off my list of crappy things yet to happen to me this week, I left my n3DS XL while I cleaned my dishes and picked it up right after; long story short, my system ended up in a pool of heaping dishwasher water. I immediately took the battery out and it seems to be dry, so is the rest of the console. I have not turned it on since the incident (the system was in water for about 1 and a half seconds) and am panicking. If anyone has any suggestions (I already shook some water out and put it in a bag filled with rice) they'd be greatly appreciated. I'd really appreciate my system not becoming a (very) expensive paperweight.
UPDATE: Turned on the system since I decided to put it with rice and silica gel (as I saw many recommendations for it on the internet) in another bag and it works for the most part. The top screen flickered and turned off at first but then continued to work normally. The 3D effect is working normally, as are all the buttons and the touch screen. As of now the z triggers and the c stick are non-functional but I'll leave it drying for the rest of the night before the next test.
UPDATE 2: going to bed soon so I decided to leave the console in a dry, room temp place. I'll post pictures or a video tomorrow to show any progress. On another note, when I turned on the system last time it shut off semi-abruptly after turning it off via the system power off menu, with a barely audible pop sound coming from the speakers. I've read that it might mean the system shorted out but it could just be that I misplaced the battery a bit and used it w/o the back panel to keep it secured. Any info or possible risks of this are also appreciated. Thanks for all the help!
UPDATE 3: Turned it on just now (about 8 hours with rice and silica gel), the system is fully functional!
Even the speakers (which tend to be delicate in this sort of situation) are fully working. The only issue left is a few inconsistencies with the c stick and the zr trigger getting stuck. Any possible fix for this?
UPDATE 4: A blast of cool hair dryer air seems to have fixed the ZR issue. Something appears to have lodged itself between the B button and it's contact so the system won't even recognize me pressing the B button. The rest is in perfectly working order (with some mushy and sticky buttons here and there, but I'll let the rice and silica gel do their thing). I hope nothing of importance rusts over before Friday, since on that day I can open it and clean it thoroughly.
UPDATE 5:
Here's a picture as promised.
The system appears to be working properly and the debris stuck below the B button seems to have moved after a bit of shaking action. Played with it for around 10 minutes without hiccups and/or the system shutting off, so I'd say it's pretty safe (for now). I'll be keeping it as far away from humidity as possible since I don't know if there's any surprise water left behind. At least I'm not a brick owner XD
UPDATE 6: Decided to record a video for you guys since the system now appears to be fully working. I'll still try not to play with it too much just in case.
UPDATE 7: It is now Friday, and I managed to open the system! To my surprise, I found little to no corrosion in the system! I also took the time and replaced the (now breaking apart) c-stick with a psp analog nub
To top off my list of crappy things yet to happen to me this week, I left my n3DS XL while I cleaned my dishes and picked it up right after; long story short, my system ended up in a pool of heaping dishwasher water. I immediately took the battery out and it seems to be dry, so is the rest of the console. I have not turned it on since the incident (the system was in water for about 1 and a half seconds) and am panicking. If anyone has any suggestions (I already shook some water out and put it in a bag filled with rice) they'd be greatly appreciated. I'd really appreciate my system not becoming a (very) expensive paperweight.
UPDATE: Turned on the system since I decided to put it with rice and silica gel (as I saw many recommendations for it on the internet) in another bag and it works for the most part. The top screen flickered and turned off at first but then continued to work normally. The 3D effect is working normally, as are all the buttons and the touch screen. As of now the z triggers and the c stick are non-functional but I'll leave it drying for the rest of the night before the next test.
UPDATE 2: going to bed soon so I decided to leave the console in a dry, room temp place. I'll post pictures or a video tomorrow to show any progress. On another note, when I turned on the system last time it shut off semi-abruptly after turning it off via the system power off menu, with a barely audible pop sound coming from the speakers. I've read that it might mean the system shorted out but it could just be that I misplaced the battery a bit and used it w/o the back panel to keep it secured. Any info or possible risks of this are also appreciated. Thanks for all the help!
UPDATE 3: Turned it on just now (about 8 hours with rice and silica gel), the system is fully functional!
Even the speakers (which tend to be delicate in this sort of situation) are fully working. The only issue left is a few inconsistencies with the c stick and the zr trigger getting stuck. Any possible fix for this?
UPDATE 4: A blast of cool hair dryer air seems to have fixed the ZR issue. Something appears to have lodged itself between the B button and it's contact so the system won't even recognize me pressing the B button. The rest is in perfectly working order (with some mushy and sticky buttons here and there, but I'll let the rice and silica gel do their thing). I hope nothing of importance rusts over before Friday, since on that day I can open it and clean it thoroughly.
UPDATE 5:
Here's a picture as promised.
The system appears to be working properly and the debris stuck below the B button seems to have moved after a bit of shaking action. Played with it for around 10 minutes without hiccups and/or the system shutting off, so I'd say it's pretty safe (for now). I'll be keeping it as far away from humidity as possible since I don't know if there's any surprise water left behind. At least I'm not a brick owner XD
UPDATE 6: Decided to record a video for you guys since the system now appears to be fully working. I'll still try not to play with it too much just in case.
UPDATE 7: It is now Friday, and I managed to open the system! To my surprise, I found little to no corrosion in the system! I also took the time and replaced the (now breaking apart) c-stick with a psp analog nub
Last edited by Death78793,