Your iPhone hit the water. The pool, the sink, the toilet, or a glass on the desk. Here is the part most people do not know yet: Apple does not repair water-damaged iPhones. They replace the whole phone for $549 to $799 instead. We do iPhone water damage repair at our Sterling shop with professional ultrasonic cleaning, free diagnostic, and a 30-day warranty on the work. Every hour matters.
This is the single most important thing to know before deciding where to bring your iPhone.
Does not cover water damage. At all. Even on water-resistant iPhones. The Liquid Detection Indicators inside your phone tell Apple it got wet, and the warranty is void.
Covers liquid damage at $99 per claim, with a maximum of two claims per year. If you have this coverage and your iPhone is newer, this is often the best deal available.
Apple only option is a whole-phone replacement at $549 to $799 depending on the model. They do not actually repair the phone you bring in. You walk out with a different phone with a new serial number and a fresh battery.
We take a different approach. We open the phone, ultrasonic clean the logic board, replace any damaged parts, and give you back the same iPhone you walked in with. Your serial number, your photos in place, your battery health reading untouched.
Every iPhone since iPhone 5 has small white dots called Liquid Detection Indicators, or LDIs. They turn red or pink when they get wet. Apple uses them to verify water damage and deny warranty repairs.
Visible when you eject the SIM tray. Shine a phone flashlight into the slot and look for a small white dot. If it is red or pink, the phone has had liquid contact at some point.
A second LDI sits inside the Lightning or USB-C charging port. Visible with a flashlight on most models. We check both LDIs as part of every free diagnostic.
The LDI tells us how serious the damage is and where water entered. It also explains why Apple denied your warranty claim. And it helps us quote an honest price based on the actual situation, not a guess.
We handle water-damaged iPhones from iPhone 8 forward. Price ranges depend on the model, how long the phone was wet, and what parts were damaged. We give an honest case-by-case quote after the free diagnostic.
Pricing reality: water damage is the hardest repair to quote up front because every case is different. Cleaning starts around $89. Total cost runs $89 to $299 depending on what else needs replacing. Saltwater is the most expensive case.
iPhone water damage repair cost is the hardest repair to quote up front. Here is what shapes the final number.
Fresh water is the cheapest case. Saltwater is the most expensive because salt corrodes metal in hours. Sugary drinks like soda, coffee with cream, beer, or wine leave a sticky residue that is almost as bad as saltwater.
A phone brought in within 30 minutes has the highest save rate and the lowest cost. A phone that sat in rice for 3 days has the lowest save rate and often needs a full logic board replacement. Speed matters more than any other factor.
After cleaning, we test every part. If the screen, battery, charging port, speaker, or camera are damaged beyond repair, those add to the total. We tell you each part cost up front. You decide what to fix.
Splash damage on the outside is cheap. Full submersion in saltwater can cost as much as a replacement phone. In some cases we honestly recommend buying a new phone if the math does not work in your favor.
Apple does not actually repair water damage. They swap the phone. Here is the side-by-side.
| What You Get | Apple Store | PC Mobile Sterling |
|---|---|---|
| Same iPhone you brought in | No — new replacement phone | Yes — we keep your phone |
| Your serial number | Lost | Kept |
| Your battery health rating | Reset to 100% (new cell) | Kept (unless battery damaged) |
| Your photos and data | From iCloud only | From the phone if storage intact |
| Cost without AppleCare | $549 to $799 | $89 to $299 |
| Cost with AppleCare Plus | $99 per claim | $89 to $299 |
| Appointment required | Yes | No — walk in any day |
| Wait time | Days to weeks for appointment | 24 to 48 hours typical |
If you have active AppleCare Plus and your iPhone is brand new, Apple $99 accidental damage option is a fair deal. For everyone else, our repair is faster and a lot cheaper.
Some iPhones look fine right after a dunk. Hours later they fail. Here are the iPhone-specific signs.
This iOS warning pops up when the phone detects moisture in the charging port. Do not plug it in. Charging through a wet port can short out the logic board in seconds.
Water in the speaker grilles leaves mineral deposits that distort sound. You will notice it during phone calls and music playback. Both earpiece and loud speaker can be affected.
The Face ID dot projector and flood illuminator sit at the top of the iPhone screen. Water in those sensors stops Face ID even when nothing else looks wrong. The phone falls back to passcode entry.
Water under the OLED panel causes color shifts. Sometimes the whole screen tints. Sometimes only a corner or edge. The display layer is bonded so the panel needs a full replacement to fix this.
A foggy camera lens means water is trapped behind the glass. Mineral build-up shows as streaks or spots in photos. We open the camera unit and clean it during the repair.
Sometimes water damage does not show up right away. Then the phone starts acting weird a few days later. Random reboots and unexplained crashes are corrosion spreading inside the phone.
The worst sign. This means corrosion ate enough of the logic board to shut the phone down. The longer you wait at this point, the harder the rescue gets.
We have rescued thousands of water-damaged iPhones since 2013. The process is the same whether your phone went in the toilet or the ocean. Speed matters most.
We check the Liquid Detection Indicators, screen, charging port, speakers, and battery. Written estimate before any paid work.
Screen, battery, logic board, shields, and connectors all come out on an anti-static mat.
A professional ultrasonic bath at the right frequency lifts water, salt, sugar, and corrosion off every contact. Home methods cannot do this.
We test every chip and every connector. Dead parts get replaced with premium-quality replacements.
Fresh adhesive seal to restore the original IP rating. Same factory-grade adhesive.
We verify the phone status in Apple database before handing it back, so you know where you stand for any future Apple support.
Charging, audio, Face ID, cameras, signal, sensors. Everything tested before the phone leaves the bench.
30-day warranty on the work. Plus a written report of what we found inside the phone and what we did to fix it.
Time depends on what hit the phone and how long it was wet.
Often 24 hours. Brought in within 30 minutes gives the highest save rate and the fastest turnaround.
24 to 48 hours. The extra time is for thorough drying after ultrasonic cleaning.
48 to 72 hours. Extra cleaning cycles needed to neutralize salt and sugar residue.
48 to 96 hours or more. Corrosion has had time to spread. More components may need replacing.
We are based in Sterling, VA. Water damage cases get top priority because every hour matters. Call us at (703) 594-9339 on your way over.
Walk-in customers from Sterling, Ashburn, Herndon, Dulles, South Riding, Cascades, Potomac Falls, and the rest of Loudoun County drive over the same day. Call on your way so we can prep the bench.
Everything you need to know before coming in. Still have questions? Call (703) 594-9339 any day.
We are open every day. No appointment needed. Free assessment. Professional ultrasonic cleaning. Apple GSX verification. 30-day warranty on the work. Trusted by 443 plus reviewers since 2013.
