Perrier (Mineral Water) + DMC-FX30 = No Work.

[KonnMan]

Hi all,
I read all there is to read about water damage to cameras, but still didn?t find anything that helps me out. I got a Panasonic DMC-FX30 Black digital camera. While I was on my vacation (with my sister), my camera got wet. My sister put Perrier (mineral water) in her back. The bottle was close or so we thought, and when it came time to take a picture, is when we seen that her bag was wet. I reached for the camera. When I pulled it out, the switch was in ON possession and it did not turn on. We immediately went to the hotel, where I took the battery out and my SD card. The battery was dried and recharged, and my SD Card was working fine. I set the camera on a fan and it was getting dried. Next day I tried the camera but through a USB cable, not the battery and nothing happened. My questions are as follows. Will Panasonic fix my camera? Should I just go and buy a new one? (Bought it at $300, now valued at $225) Can I fix this myself? If yes then where can I get the service manual or how to do it? Someone help. I like this camera; a new model came out, DMC-FX33, this month. Do not want to see this baby go.

[JLV]

Have you tried the camera again WITH the battery? I don't think the USB cable will run the camera. I could be wrong.

[genece]

There have been many reports of a wet camera starting to work after they dry out......
If you could place it in a dry place to permit it to completely dry.
Most advice I have seen says do not try to operate until your sure its dry.

[David Metsky]

Will Panasonic fix my camera? Should I just go and buy a new one?
If the electronics are really fried, it will be uneconomical to fix the camera. Panasonic may fix it for about as much as a new camera costs, they certainly won't cover this under warranty. It might be possible to buy a dead camera off eBay and scavenge for parts; building one camera out of two but it's a long shot.

[KonnMan]

The DMC-FX30 does work from USB when you plug it in and turn to piture view mode. I tried to turn it on again with the battery but no action. should I back it to dry it faster? How long should I wait?

[Mike63]

I've had good luck drying stuff out but have not tried a camera.

The switch being in the on position is a bad thing. Having current running through it while soaking is the worst combo. I would let it dry longer with air blowing in the battery door if possible.

[Paradox]

If the switch was on, I wouldn't hold up much hope (Unless the camera had put itself into standby). It's not water that damages electrics - it's the circuitry shorting out when a current passes through the water. So electronics that get wet but aren't turned on till they're left to dry out can be fine. If it was on however, I'd probably see what I could do to get it replaced. Wait a few days and try again though, just in case.

[jabo75]

It is the impurities in the water that cause the damage (shorting and corrosion). Mineral is especially bad for this reason.

Distilled water does not conduct electricity. It is for this reason that distilled water is used to "wash" submerged electronics to clean them up. Isopropyl alcohol is sometimes used too.

What I would do is disassemble the camera as much as is practical. Pour the distilled water or alcohol over the unit.

Try not to soak the sensor.

Shake the camera in a bunch of different directions to remove as much liquid as possible.

Dry the camera over several days in front of an incandescent light bulb, occasionally hitting it with a hair dryer.

I am a boater who has had much more than my share of cell phones and other electronics "go for a swim". Although there is certainly no guarantee that this will work, this process has revived a surprising number of items.

At this point you have little to loose.

[Ambriel]

Of course a sneaky sort of person instead decide to drop it down the stairs and then claim on the accidental damage section of his household insurance policy....

[jabo75]

Of course a sneaky sort of person instead decide to drop it down the stairs and then claim on the accidental damage section of his household insurance policy....

Well, in addition to the fraud component (leave that up to each individual to determine their own ethical perspective on that one), if you have homeowners a deductible low enough to make that worth it, you're probably paying way too much for your insurance.