Well I don't have first hand experience with this method. I read that if your cell phone falls in the water you can pack it in uncooked rice and the rice will absorb the moisture. Now that was for fresh water. If you dropped it in salt water there will be the salt damage on the circuits. There are solutions called "contact cleaners" (Radio Shack) that can help. But you'll have to open up the unit and spray the circuit board with contact cleaner. I've done this with remote control units for the TV and DVD players and it works, but I've never had to do that with a Zoom. So proceed with caution.

Hope that helps,

ADRIAN COSENTINI
[log in to unmask]
http://www.sawneybean.com/AudioTransformations/

On Sep 8, 2012, at 6:45 PM, Timothy Wisniewski wrote:

> Hello, all.
> 
> I have a bit of a problem here.  While recording sounds of waves along the rocky shoreline of Portland, Maine, my H4n handy recorder decided to take a swim.  After fishing it out, I immediately removed the batteries and SD card, shook all the loose water out of it and left the battery and SD card slots open, hoping to dry out the interior electronics using the outdoor air and sun.  Hours later, after sufficiently drying out, I attempted to power it up, alternatively with new batteries and the external power cord, both without success.
> 
> Is it time to say farewell to my H4n and get a new one?  Is there any hope in repairing it?  I've heard encouraging things about SD cards surviving trips through the laundry, so at least I'm not too worried about the recordings I had on the card.
> 
> Thanks,
> Tim
> 
> Timothy Wisniewski, M.L.I.S.
> 
> Visual Materials Archivist
> Alan Mason Chesney Medical Archives
> Johns Hopkins University Medical Institutions
> 5801 Smith Avenue, Suite 235
> Baltimore, MD 21209
> 
> http://www.medicalarchives.jhmi.edu/