How to fix Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) that keeps showing “moisture detected” warning [Troubleshooting Guide]

Some of our readers who own the Samsung Galaxy A7 are seeking for our assistance as their phone started showing “Moisture has been detected. To charge your device, make sure the charger/USB port is dry.” Needless to say that when this warning pops up, the capability of your phone to charge its battery is hindered or may cause the phone to act differently.

The warning may be triggered by water itself especially if the phone got splashed with or submerged in water and while it has the IP68 rating, it’s not waterproof and is still vulnerable to liquid. There were cases, however, wherein this warning shows up due to a firmware issue. In fact, we have also received complaints about this kind of problem shortly after an update was installed. Whatever the case may be, we still need to troubleshoot your phone so that you can continue charging it. So, continue reading below as this post may be able to help you.

But before we actually jump to our troubleshooting, if you have other issues with your device, then try to visit our Galaxy A7 troubleshooting page for we have already addressed the most commonly reported issues with this device. Try to find issues that are similar with yours and use the solutions and workarounds we suggested. If they don’t work for you or if you need more help, then feel free to contact us by filling up our Android issues questionnaire. Just give us the information we need and we’ll help you solve your problem.

How to troubleshoot Galaxy A7 with ‘moisture detected’ error

The course of our troubleshooting will be to make sure your phone isn’t suffering from liquid damage and then we’ll do a couple of things that may bypass the error and make you charge your phone. Or we may end up doing a reset if we found out this warning is triggered by a firmware issue and that might be all you need to do to fix it. Follow these steps…

Step 1: Check the charger port of your Galaxy A7

You need to check for debris, corrosion and moist. If it looks clean, then get a small piece of tissue and insert it in. Leave the tissue in the port for a minute or two to make sure it absorbs all the moist in there.

For our readers who were asking why they need to check the phone if there’s water in it even if it has the IP68 rating, well, the dust and water-resistance Ingress Protection doesn’t make the phone waterproof. In fact, water may damage it if you take it with you in the pool and do you know the what the main entrance of the water is? That’s right, the USB / charger port.

The warning “moisture detected” specifically tells you that the phone detects water in the port and it’s correct most of the time. So, if you’re the owner and you know that the phone got splashed with or dipped in water, then it’s most likely water that’s causing it.

Step 2: Check the Liquid Damage Indicator

After making sure there’s no moist in the charger port, it’s time to inspect if the phone is suffering from liquid damage. Samsung placed an indicator inside your phone that will tell you immediately if water has somehow found its way into the device.

Remove the SIM tray and then look into the slot. You should find a small sticker in there; if it’s white, then the phone isn’t suffering from liquid damage but it it turned red or pink, it’s a sign that water has messed up your phone. In this case, you don’t have to do anything by yourself anymore as you need a technician to take care of the problem. We also don’t suggest forcing your phone to charge if there’s a sign of liquid damage.

Step 3: Check the charger and the cable

After making sure there’s no moist in the charger port and the LDI doesn’t show signs of liquid damage, it’s time to check the accessories as it’s possible they’re the ones that trigger the problem.

Similar to what you did to the charger port in your phone, get a piece of tissue and insert it to the port in your charger and leave it there for a minute or two. Meanwhile, also check both ends of the cable for signs of liquid, debris or dirt. If you see something between the connectors, get a brush, dip it in alcohol and then brush both ends of the cable.

Step 4: Try to bypass the warning

After making sure the phone isn’t suffering from liquid damage and there are no traces of liquid in it as well as with the charger and cable, try to do these steps to bypass the warning and make your phone charge:

Plug the charger to the wall outlet.
Connect your phone to the charger.
The warning may pop up immediately and charging is stopped.
Without disconnecting your phone from the charger, reboot it.
After the reboot, it should charge normally with or without the warning.

If, however, the phone still refuses to charge after this, move on to the next step.

Step 5: Reboot your phone in Safe mode and charge

Some of our readers suggested this procedure works because it seems like the service that triggers the error isn’t loaded when the phone is running in its bare bones. To make your phone fully-charge even if you’re getting this warning, reboot it in safe mode and connect it to the charger. However, you don’t have to do this if there’s a sign of liquid damage in your phone, it’s dangerous.

Turn the device off.
Press and hold the Power key past the model name screen.
When “SAMSUNG” appears on the screen, release the Power key.
Immediately after releasing the Power key, press and hold the Volume down key.
Continue to hold the Volume down key until the device finishes restarting.
Safe mode will display in the bottom left corner of the screen.
Release the Volume down key when you see Safe Mode.

Step 6: Reset your phone to get rid of the warning

If there are no signs of liquid damage or moist in your phone but the error keeps popping up, then it might be just an issue with the firmware. We have received reports from our readers who said that their phones started to act like this after an update. Apparently, it’s not an issue with the hardware but the firmware so you need to reset your phone. However, make sure you backup all your files and data as they will be deleted during the reset process:

Turn off the device.
Press and hold the Volume Up key and the Home key, then press and hold the Power key.
When the Android logo displays, release all keys (‘Installing system update’ will show for about 30 – 60 seconds, then ‘No command’ before showing the Android system recovery menu options).
Press the Volume down key several times to highlight “wipe data / factory reset.
Press Power button to select.
Press the Volume down key until ‘Yes — delete all user data’ is highlighted.
Press Power button to select and start the master reset.
When the master reset is complete, “Reboot system now” is highlighted.
Press the Power key to restart the device.

If there are signs of liquid damage or if the problem continues after this, then bring your phone back to the store and have it repaired or cleaned.

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