Evidence

Does the water eject sound work?

By Marcus Brown, phone technician

Short answer: a low tone can push droplets out of the speaker grille. It does not dry the phone. It does not repair damage. This page shows the evidence.

Verdict

Does the water eject sound work? The verdict

A low tone can push droplets out of the speaker grille. The best evidence is a dye test on four phones. It showed this in the first burst.

It cannot dry the phone. It cannot clear the charging port or the SIM slot. It cannot repair damage. No test we found gives a success rate, so we give none.

If your phone was under water, or it does not turn on, use the first aid steps first.

what to do about water in the port

Sources: 1

The iFixit and Verge dye test

In August 2024, iFixit staff tested four phones for The Verge: an iPhone 13, a Pixel 7 Pro, a Pixel 3, and a Nokia 7.1. They put the phones in a UV-dye bath for about a minute and tapped them. They played a water-ejection video and left the phones overnight. Then they opened the phones to look for dye.

The Verge wrote: "in every case, the phone immediately blasted out a flurry of droplets. The effect didn't last long, but it was clearly ejecting water that wasn't coming out otherwise."

The sound worked on the speaker area only. The burst did not last long. The USB port and the SIM slot were not cleared.

The iFixit engineer said: "It can't hurt, but I don't see it being an end-all-be-all fix or a way to pull all the liquid out."

Sources: 1

How to use a water eject sound correctly

Take the basic steps first. A tone is a small extra. It is not a repair.

Tap the phone gently against your hand with the connector facing down. Apple gives this step for iPhone.
Place the iPhone, speaker side down, on a lint-free cloth. Apple says to see if water drips out.
Leave the phone in a dry area with some airflow. Apple says not to use heat, compressed air, or rice.
Wait at least 5 hours before you charge with a cable. This is Apple's rule for a wet iPhone.
If you play a tone, keep the session short and use pauses. Phone speakers reach about 70 to 77 dBA at full volume (DXOMARK). Hold the phone away from your ear. Stop if you hear ringing or feel pain.
General advice: no test we found gives a best tone length. Check the sound after each short session and stop when it is clear.

Sources: 14 22 21

When a water eject sound will not help

A tone acts on the grille area. Many problems after water exposure start elsewhere.

The charging port and the SIM slot. The dye test did not clear them.
Liquid damage. A tone does not dry the phone or repair damage. Apple and Google both say that this damage is not covered by warranty.
A phone that was under water. iFixit says to disconnect power as soon as it is safe, and that a submerged device likely needs a new battery.
Dust and lint. We found no evidence that a tone removes them. Use a soft, dry brush.
Rice. Apple and iFixit say that rice does not help.

Sources: 1 22 19 23 13

The Apple Watch mechanism

Apple says that Apple Watch plays "a series of tones" to clear water from the speaker when you turn off Water Lock. Apple does not state a frequency, a duration, or a tone count.

The iFixit teardown says the Series 2 speaker is "designed to fill with water, then vibrate to pump excess water from the body of the speaker."

A slow-motion video showed that the watch runs, pauses, and runs again. Some water goes back in between pulses. The pause gives the water time to pool again before the next round.

Sources: 2 3 4

What the Apple patents say

Apple patent US10595107 says that water can be expelled with "a series of tones of the same or about the same frequency". It says "about 10 tones" can be used. It gives no value in Hz.

Two other Apple patents (US9451354 and US10425738) describe, in one example, pulses outside human hearing: "less than 20 Hz or greater than 20,000 Hz". US9451354 also describes an audible tone as a monitoring indicator. It is not a fallback. The patents also give no specific value in Hz.

A patent is not a product specification. These documents do not tell us what a shipping Apple Watch plays.

Sources: 5 6 7

Where "165 Hz" comes from

The number 165 Hz traces to one Reddit post from December 2016. It was about an iPhone 7, not the Watch. BGR quoted the author: "I found the resonant frequency of the water in the grill to be around 165 Hz." The author also said you may have to change the tone a little.

We found no published measurement that supports 165 Hz as an optimum. Many app and web pages repeat the number without data. We treat 165 Hz as a popular starting value, not a measured best value.

Sources: 8

Micro-speaker resonance is higher

A typical 11 x 15 mm smartphone speaker from Knowles has a resonance frequency of 800 Hz in a 1 cm3 test box. In a baffle without a back cavity, the typical value is 450 Hz. The maximum linear excursion is about plus or minus 0.30 mm. Industry coverage says that the response of these speakers extends down to below about 800 Hz. So the mechanical resonance of a phone speaker is roughly 450 to 900 Hz.

Our interpretation: the statement "165 Hz is the resonant frequency of the speaker" does not match these datasheets. At 165 Hz the speaker is well below its resonance. A low tone can still move air. The Bose research director quoted by The Verge says the aim is "the lowest tone that that speaker can reproduce, at the loudest level that it can play". That is expert opinion, not a measurement.

Sources: 1 9 10

Smart amplifiers limit the speaker

Many modern phones use a smart amplifier. A Texas Instruments note says that once the estimated excursion passes the limit, "the input signal is attenuated to realize the speaker protection". It also says the amplifier estimates the voice-coil temperature and keeps it within the thermal limit.

This is one reason the hardware tolerates a loud low tone. It is not a promise of safety for every phone. Older or cheaper phones can use plain amplifiers. Keep each tone session short, with pauses, and keep the phone away from your ear.

Sources: 11

The fact-check of "speaker cleaner" videos

In July 2025, the fact-check site Dubawa checked a viral TikTok video that said a sound can clean a phone speaker. Dubawa rated the claim "Misleading".

We found no evidence that a tone removes dust or lint from a speaker. For debris, Apple recommends a small, dry, soft-bristled, non-metallic brush, and no compressed air.

Sources: 12 13

What phone makers say, and do not say

Apple, Samsung, Xiaomi, and Huawei describe sound-based water ejection for their watches.
The phone support pages we read from Apple, Google, Samsung, and Xiaomi describe no such feature for phones.
For iPhone, Apple says to tap the phone gently with the connector down, leave it in a dry area with airflow, and not to use heat, compressed air, or rice.
Samsung says that moisture on the speaker mesh "can be removed by speaker vibration during call".
The Verge reported that no one at Apple, Google, or Samsung gave an opinion on the video beyond a generic support page. That is no endorsement.

Sources: 2 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 1

iPhone, Android phone and Apple Watch: what differs

iPhone: the Apple pages we read give no tone feature for the iPhone speaker. They give a gentle tap, airflow, and a wait before charging.

Android: Android makers give no single wait time. Google says to turn the phone off, dry it with a soft cloth, and let it dry at room temperature. Samsung says that speaker vibration during a call can remove moisture on the mesh.

Apple Watch: when you turn off Water Lock, the watch ejects water that remains in its speaker. It plays a series of tones to eject water. Apple does not publish its design. The watch has this feature built in. A phone has no Water Lock, so a web tone or an app is a third-party tool.

Sources: 14 22 19 15 2

What about iPhone shortcuts and apps?

A popular water eject shortcut for the Shortcuts app plays a tone. The RoutineHub page shows about 510,000 downloads in October 2026. Its author says the shortcut does not detect water, repair hardware, or guarantee water removal. The page gives no frequency in Hz.

An app or a shortcut is not an Apple feature. Use it as an extra step, not as a repair. It does not remove water from the port.

Sources: 24

Water eject sound frequency myths

Is 165 Hz the best frequency?

No. No measurement shows one best frequency. The figure comes from one 2016 forum post, reported by BGR. The author said you may have to change the tone a little.

Phone speakers resonate at about 450 to 900 Hz. Our tool steps from 150 to 300 Hz. It does not use one number.

Where 165 Hz comes from

Sources: 8 9 10

Does a 20,000 Hz sound clean a speaker?

We found no evidence for this. A Bose researcher quoted by The Verge says the effect needs "the lowest tone that that speaker can reproduce, at the loudest level that it can play". A very high tone moves the speaker very little.

One Apple patent lists pulses above 20,000 Hz as one design option. A patent is not a product.

Sources: 1 6

Does a "dust removal" sound work?

We found no evidence that sound removes dust or lint. Use a soft, dry brush instead.

How to clean phone speaker dust