Face ID not working after water exposure

"Hi,

Water and electronics and electricity are not a good mix.

The impurities in the water causes corrosion and provides circuit paths for the electricity which were not in the phone's operating design and could damage the components.

First do not turn on your phone and then remove the battery as soon as possible from the phone to minimize further damage.

Then you need to dis-assemble the rest of the phone and clean all the affected parts using Isopropyl Alcohol 99%+ (available from electronic parts stores) to remove all traces of corrosion and water. Do not use ""rubbing alcohol"" as in some cases this is <70% IPA, can contain scents and is not as effective. If you do check the label to verify the amount

Here is a link that describes the process.

Electronics Water Damage

As always with electronics, especially surface mounted PCBs be gentle when handling and especially when brushing away the corrosion. You do not want to remove any components from the board.

Hopefully after you have done all this the phone might possibly work correctly again.

Here is a link to the ifixit iPhone X Repair guides, which may be of some help.

If this process seems too daunting, take your phone to a reputable, professional phone repair service, experienced in water damage repair and ask for a quote for a repair.

If you decide to do this, do it sooner than later."

"Judging by what we have learned during the teardown of Face ID, main circuits of the Face ID are exposed. Once water damaged or exposed to a relatively humid environment, there might be electricity leakage or short-circuit problem that can result in Face ID failure.

Why Face ID Not Working After Repair"

"@Isak Helland Wahl

See the Chosen Solution above.

Using rice to fix water problems in electronic devices is a myth. It doesn’t fix the problems of corrosion caused by the impurities in the water coming into contact with the metals in a phone, especially when there is also power on the motherboard. Rice is for dinner, not repair

There is always power at certain points on the board even when the phone is turned off. The power button is not a power isolating button. Its function is to signal the OS what to do. Think of the phone as being in an extremely low power state when off, rather than being disconnected from any power

Here’s the Ifixit iPhone XS Max Repair guide that may help"