A phone repair expert is issuing a stark warning against placing electronic devices in fridges or freezers to cool them down, following a significant increase in heat-related repairs. Jamie Farnell, who operates Shropshire Phone Repairs in Wem, says his shop has been 'flooded' with damaged devices, with almost all issues attributed to the recent hot weather.
Mr Farnell highlighted that many of the devices arriving for repair exhibit 'internal moisture damage'. He believes this damage is a direct consequence of people attempting to cool their phones in domestic refrigeration units. The rapid temperature change from a hot phone to a cold environment causes condensation to form inside the device, which can then turn into water and severely damage internal components like the screen and logic board.
The repair specialist recalled an incident during June's heatwave where an iPad with a swollen lithium battery even exploded in his shop. This underscores the serious risks associated with overheating devices and improper cooling methods. He suggests that social media trends, featuring 'well put together' but ultimately misleading videos, are influencing people to try these unsafe techniques without proper research.
Mr Farnell drew a parallel to the common misconception of putting wet phones in rice, a method he states is ineffective. He anticipates a further wave of repairs in the coming days, predicting more customers will present with swollen batteries or non-functional phones, often admitting to attempting to cool them in a fridge. Lithium-ion batteries, prevalent in smartphones, laptops, and tablets, can suffer internal structural breakdown when overheated, potentially leading to a dangerous reaction known as thermal runaway.
Instead of risky methods, Mr Farnell advises several safer approaches to manage device heat. These include keeping devices out of direct sunlight, turning them off, avoiding overcharging, and refraining from intensive applications like gaming or video streaming during hot periods. Lowering screen brightness and enabling Airplane Mode or disabling Bluetooth and GPS can also help reduce the workload on the device's processors, allowing them to cool naturally.