Zen V Plus + water... Any hope?

[Zeno]

Hi, it seems like I'm in need of some Zen-rescue advice.


There was a tiny accident with my almost brand new Zen V Plus-player yesterday.
(In order to make sure that other Zens does not follow the path of mine; remember to
always look in the pockets before stuffing clothes into the washing machine.)


Is has been drying of a little since the watery experience, but still looks drowned.
I have not tried turning it on just yet, but the suspicion is that there is no hope.


Has anyone had a similar experience or heard of a player of this type surviving a
similarly wet ordeal? How to open the Zen, to let it dry, without destroying it?


Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

[CrowdAds]

[kratonator]

Whatever you do, don't turn it on. I don't have a Zen V but try to take the backplate off and remove the battery. Wait as long as you can (14 days or so) to dry it out and then try to turn it on. But not sooner. Good luck.

[woob]

So far my sister has washed 2 of them And they both work great, im not sure about battery times tho. Make sure you dry it out properly, but 14 days is a bit strong. 3-4 days did the trick in her case Good luck

[ZenChick]

Absolutely take the battery out! Not only will this prevent any further damage due to random voltages going all over the Zen's circuitry, but it will prevent further damage to the battery. Li-ion batteries are designed to permanantly kill themselves if they sense an overcurrent - this is to prevent the overcurrent from heating the battery to the point of spontaneous detonation (ie. keeps it from going "BOOM!").

After that, leave the back cover off, and situate your player so that the water still remaining has the best chance of draining out through the data port. If you are comfortable with opening up the device further (since your warranty is now void), go ahead and do so. This will aid faster drying.

After a day or so of drying, if you have opened up your player, get a small, flat paint brush and some isopropyl alcohol. Dip the brush in the alcohol and apply it liberally all over the mainboard using light strokes, then allow this to dry. This will remove any deposits left by the water which could cause corrosion or various conductance issues.

[Zeno]

Originally Posted by woob

So far my sister has washed 2 of them And they both work great, im not sure about battery times tho. Make sure you dry it out properly, but 14 days is a bit strong. 3-4 days did the trick in her case Good luck

That's good news, thanks
I've been searching after a guide on how to open it, found none, and tried anyway. I gave up after trying to remove some of the plastic with a screwdriver (only ending up scratching the surface). Instead I put it in a nice and dry place (cabinet on top of refrigerator) where it will stay for a few days. It will be interesting to see if it will ever work again.

[ZenChick]

If it's any comfort, one of my kids decided to take my $300 digital camera into the bathtub with him for some "underwater" shots.

After air-drying for three days, the camera was perfectly fine. I wish you luck!

[JDGAFFLIN]

Damn..That sucks. I searched for a disassembly guide and found nothing.

I hope it works for you when its dried out. Good luck.

[Zeno]

Originally Posted by ZenChick

Absolutely take the battery out! Not only will this prevent any further damage due to random voltages going all over the Zen's circuitry, but it will prevent further damage to the battery. Li-ion batteries are designed to permanantly kill themselves if they sense an overcurrent - this is to prevent the overcurrent from heating the battery to the point of spontaneous detonation (ie. keeps it from going "BOOM!").

After that, leave the back cover off, and situate your player so that the water still remaining has the best chance of draining out through the data port. If you are comfortable with opening up the device further (since your warranty is now void), go ahead and do so. This will aid faster drying.

After a day or so of drying, if you have opened up your player, get a small, flat paint brush and some isopropyl alcohol. Dip the brush in the alcohol and apply it liberally all over the mainboard using light strokes, then allow this to dry. This will remove any deposits left by the water which could cause corrosion or various conductance issues.

Ok, reading about batteries and water gives me enough incentive to try and open the Zen one more time. I'll buy a new (and smaller) screwdriver tomorrow and try again. Thanks for the info about isopropyl alcohol.


Interesting to hear about the camera. I thought that most electronic equipment fried quite quick after being in water. But it seem like stuff are more water-proof than expected

[moto]

this might be some help
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xei7Pxt5BIg

[Zeno]

Originally Posted by moto

this might be some help
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xei7Pxt5BIg

Thanks. The link really helped me a lot in my efforts to open the Zen. Even if the guy on the video makes it look really easy... I had to apply some violence to remove the screen. Apparently it was glued stuck in place. (Could be some release mechanism that I overlooked; it seem unpractical to have to use the amount of force I had to use to remove the screen...)


I put it together this afternoon, after four days of drying. At first it looked dead, but as soon it got plugged in to the computer it came alive. Even the screen worked almost perfect


The connector for the screen is difficult to put in place. If someone else dismantle their Zen I recommend not to remove the screen contact from the “main-board”. I did it by accident..


My zen is now in working condition. I've used it for a few hours today, and I'm both relieved and happy.



Thanks for the support and useful advice.

[cfr1970]

Originally Posted by Zeno

Thanks.

The connector for the screen is difficult to put in place. If someone else dismantle their Zen I recommend not to remove the screen contact from the “main-board”. I did it by accident..

Well, unfortunately, that's exactly the reason I need to take apart my daughter's ZV. The screen is dead. The thing is under warranty, parts only, but Creative wants $25 just to look at it. That's not including $6 shipping there, another $6 back...you see my point. I have a 1GB, and my daughter's is a 2GB, I'm going to swap screens, and just get her a new one. Her birthday is October. Thanks for the You Tube link, it was exactly the reason I came to this website in the first place.