Liquid in Charging Port: What Does Liquid Detected Mean on iPhone?

You might feel a bit worried the first time you see the words “liquid detected in charging port” flash up on your iPhone display. But by the third time it happens, it’s more likely to be irritating than concerning. 

Here at Ghostek, we realized long ago that there’s little danger of our iPhones suffering serious technical faults and breaking down, and that the once-dreaded warning sign just meant we couldn’t charge them for a while. 

But then again… are we being a little blasé? iPhones are electronic devices, and there’s always a risk of serious damage if they get wet. Obviously, we haven’t been white water rafting with an iPhone or taken any into steam rooms, but should we be taking the threat of a spilled drink or heavy rain more seriously? 

In order to answer this, we dispatched one of our team members to investigate. Here’s what they found out.

Wet iPhone? What Liquid Detection Means

Liquid detection is a safety measure that’s included in all modern iPhones. The warning symbol that shows on the display screen has been around since the iPhone XS was released in 2018. At the time, it was a comparatively minor upgrade and didn’t receive much fanfare compared to the other features. History has proven to be kind, and in hindsight, it’s saved a lot of phones from permanent damage. 

Your iPhone will automatically stop charging if it detects moisture in the Lightning or USB connector. This offers some protection, but if you want to reduce the risk of damage, here’s what you should do: 

• Remove the Cable from your phone: leaving a damp power cable in can corrode the charging pins in your phone, even if the power supply is switched off. 

• Unplug the Cable from the power adapter: the power cable is at risk of water damage too, so don’t neglect it. Remove it from the power adapter to ensure there’s no current running through it. 

• Leave your iPhone to dry: place it somewhere with ample airflow for at least thirty minutes. Or…

• Attempt to dry it yourself: if there is an inordinate amount of liquid, you should be able to drain most of it without employing any fancy techniques. Try turning the phone so the connector faces down, and gently tap it against the palm of your hand over a sink. And if all else fails, try putting your iPhone in a sealed container with silica gel packets. 

How to Not Fix a Liquid Detection Issue

While researching this topic, we encountered several helpful suggestions for drying out excess liquid. And to the surprise of no one in the Ghostek office, a lot of them turned out to be terrible. You might get these suggestions from a well-meaning Reddit user, but do not:

• Put your phone in rice: this has been a persistent myth for years now, but using rice to dry a phone doesn’t work. The theory is that the grains absorb the moisture, but all it does is add loads of starch into the mix and make things worse. 

• Use a paper towel or cotton swab: Paper towels tear easily. Trying to remove a small piece of paper from a charge port is fiddly and irritating. Similarly, cotton swabs can cause damage, they’re not as flimsy as they look.

• Rely on external heat sources or compressed air: if there’s water in the lightning connector, don’t go looking for a hair dryer or a can of compressed air. External heat sources can melt internal adhesives or warp plastics, so they do more harm than good. Compressed air cans aren’t a good alternative either. They can also damage your phone, and as the air they provide gets very cold, they can even increase the amount of moisture. 

Your charging port can take up to 24 hours to dry out, so the best approach is to wait it out. 

Emergency Override 

When you see the ‘Liquid Detected’ warning, you’re also likely to spot the option to run an emergency override. Click this, and you’ll bypass the iPhone’s safety mechanisms. This lets you charge your phone, even when moisture is present. It is useful for scenarios where you absolutely, positively, definitely have to charge your phone, but we must emphasise:

It’s a last resort. 

Using the emergency override risks causing permanent damage to your iPhone. We understand that it can be tempting to use it on a casual basis, especially if you’re convinced that your iPhone isn’t really wet and is having a software glitch. But it’s an emergency override, and should only be used in the most serious situations. Trust us, we speak from experience. 

What About Wireless Charging?

If your iPhone is out of power and wet, you won’t be able to use a standard cable, but there is a workaround. Wireless charging will still work. By its very nature, it doesn’t require the everyday iPhone charging port. 

The only downside is that it requires you to have a wireless charging cable to hand already. Otherwise, you’ll have to figure out which is the quicker and most convenient option: taking a trip to the nearest Apple store, or putting your iPhone somewhere with good airflow and letting nature take its course. We’ve previously included wireless chargers in our list of must-own accessories, and we stand by that. 

Surviving a Damp Lightning Connector

In hindsight, perhaps we should have been taking liquid detection warnings more seriously, but luck was on our side. Nobody on the Ghostek team has lost an iPhone, but that was through chance rather than expertise. If we could go back in time to give our past selves some phone safety advice, it would be:

• Turn your phone off when you see the liquid detected warning

• Remove any charging cables

• DON’T PUT IT IN RICE, USE COMPRESSED AIR OR PAPER TOWELS

• Place it somewhere with good airflow and wait for it to dry out

• Don’t treat the emergency override as a helpful workaround

• Use a wireless charger if you have one available

These will all help to avoid unnecessary damage to the lightning connector pins, and won’t push moisture deeper into the phone. 

And if all this has reminded you that it might be time to pick up a wireless charger, allow us to steer you in the direction of our online shop. We have a full range of iPhone accessories available online. Why not see if something catches your eye?