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How can I bring my little portable Bluetooth speaker into the shower without ruining it?

To ensure it is loud enough to hear over the shower on full blast while not noise polluting too much, the speaker needs to be kept close, well within splash range. However, it isn't one of those waterproof speaker designed to handle shower environments.

Bonus points for:-

  • Protecting the speaker not just from direct splashes but the high humidity of steamy showers that could potentially ruin it as well;
  • Leaving playback control buttons on the speaker accessible (by being able to press them through a transparent or perhaps even opaque layer?);
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  • 3
    Make a tiny little umbrella and a pair of wellies for it
    – MrPhooky
    Mar 10, 2015 at 8:40
  • I believe there are some water proof bluetooth speakers out there. I usually just leave my phone on a shelf just outside the shower. I can hear it fine, and after a long time, the phone is in perfect condition(Galaxy S3 - 2 years)
    – s3v3ns
    Mar 10, 2015 at 9:58
  • @s3v3ns Yes, I know: I had linked to some; however, I do not wish to buy any which is I turned to Lifehacks.SE. Thanks for sharing your experience; however, I believe that the Galaxy S3 is "water-resistant" (the relevant certification authority forbids using the term "water-proof") which my speakers are not. (In addition, outside the shower would probably be too far away as I mention in my question). Mar 10, 2015 at 12:30
  • Zipper-locking plastic bags, or a waterproof cell-phone case, such as amazon.com/eForCity-Waterproof-Case-Cell-Phone/dp/B007ZZQB0Q. Mar 10, 2015 at 21:01
  • @YatharthROCK I just remembered, there is a company that turns electronics waterproof. liquipel.com. If you have the money, you could send them your phone and can stop worrying about your phone getting wet overall.
    – s3v3ns
    Mar 13, 2015 at 13:34

5 Answers 5

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I've found that the best option to bring any technology in the shower is to use a Ziploc bag. I prefer bigger ones, but sometimes small ones can work. You should squeeze all of the air out of the bag; you can do this by physically squeezing it with your hands or by sucking out the air with your mouth. Ziploc bags are transparent, so you will be able to see the buttons and they will be easier to touch because the bag is airtight.

It's also worth noting that Ziploc's, and sandwich bags generally, are weaker around the edges. So, it's always a good idea to double-bag (with the zipper of the outer bag closing over the bottom of the inner bag) to ensure that, should the side of one break, no water gets onto the device.

Additionally, making sure there's a bit of air in the inner bag (so it's a bit puffy) is a good idea for a few reasons:

  1. It lets you know if the inner baggie isn't airtight / watertight.
  2. It allows you to effectively use the touchscreen (on touchscreen devices, otherwise it can be very difficult to tap and swipe effectively), and
  3. It's less likely to muffle the speaker.
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  • +1 This is indeed the solution I'd thought of using initially (but didn't as I didn't have a zip lock bag handy at the time). Mar 11, 2015 at 6:32
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    Would you be able to speak to whether to audio quality would be severely compromised or not? Mar 11, 2015 at 6:33
  • I agree with @YatharthROCK , I though about this idea a couple of times but always thought that it would seriously muffle the sounds coming from the speakers, but have never tried it so wouldn't be able to comment completely
    – MrPhooky
    Mar 11, 2015 at 9:00
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    @YatharthROCK Ziplocs aren't very thick so the sound doesn't get muffled
    – michaelpri
    Mar 11, 2015 at 10:53
  • I can confirm that double-bagging with Ziploc bags works extremely well with regards to peace of mind, sound quality and button pushability. Jun 8, 2015 at 7:55
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I can just add a detail to michaelpri's answer of using a Ziploc bag. This may be safer to use outside the shower without direct water influence but best is you test it with toilet paper, for example, or just something that is easy determined if it's got wet or not.

Pinch little tiny holes into the plastic bag with a small needle. Place the speaker membrane right behind those little holes and they hopefully will help the sound waves get through the plastic easier but will prevent water from getting inside the Ziploc bag. I've not tested this, so as I said, you may want to test this with something different than your speaker and also test it in a dry place to determine if tiny holes even help the airwaves get further and be less muffled (please tell me, I'm curious about it!).

A different solution without even taking your speaker into the shower would be placing it preferably in a sink next to the shower. As explained in various answers of this question a bowl (in this case we use the sink) amplifies your speakers and makes it easier for the sound waves to get into the shower. If you're worried about the high humidity you could place something over the electronics, best would be some kind of plastic. Water steam is usually hotter than the air in the bathroom so it will fill the room from top to bottom.

I personally just place my phone in my sink next to the shower. I don't protect it in any way since splashes don't get that far and if you're phone didn't break when using in rain it sure won't break when taking some splashes from the shower. Although you're right about high humidity potentially causing defects to your device it sure depends on the size of the bathroom, the temperature of the water (thus the production rate of steam) and the time you shower to fill the whole bathroom with steamy hot air.


Something else just popped into my mind - It will probably make it harder to press buttons on the speaker, but it is possible to achieve with a transparent fabric: Build your own speaker-tipi! These tents, mostly used by Indians, are designed to let smoke out and no rain in. The wooden poles alone already prevent the interior from getting wet by letting rain drops follow the poles all the way to the ground. You can still add a Rain Cap or Ozan to make sure the interior stays 100% dry.

Depending on the size of your speaker I would recommend using toothpicks or wooden skewers as poles and some kind of plastic foil or any other water-repellent material as canvas. This solution includes some tinkering but it sure is a creative one which can add a nice Indian touch to your shower.

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So I cam across a solution but it does require sort of completely destroying your existing speakers which may or may not be desirable...

What you will need:

  • A watertight plastic container
  • A drill / something to cut into the plastic container
  • Glue (something like hot glue or epoxy)
  • Screwdriver
  • Sandpaper

What to do:

  1. Start by dismantling your existing speakers (remove entire outer casing so all that's left is the speaker and all electrical innards) the buttons should stay in tact but just be dangling around.
  2. Get the speaker and place it face down onto your plastic container and draw around the circumference of the speaker cone.
  3. Cut around said drawn circle (repeat 2 & 3 for the buttons)
  4. Place all electrical innards inside the box through the speaker hole (which should be just too small to allow the speaker cone all the way through) and apply a small amount of glue around the edge of the speaker cone allowing it to be fixed into place.
    An option at this point could be to get a small plastic bag to sort of line the inside of the box just to add an extra layer of waterproofing.
  5. Glue buttons in place where you've cut holes for them and fix small sheets of plastic (cling film) over them in order to add more waterproofing to these parts and allows them to still be usable.
  6. Allow glue to set and Bob's your Uncle (hopefully).
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  • I'm not sure I quite understand how the cone will be protected. Could you add a drawing ? Mar 13, 2015 at 14:33
  • @YatharthROCK well the cone doesn't really need protecting if it's made of plastic, you could stretch some cling film over it and make it right so it moulds to the shape and shouldn't effect the acoustics too much
    – MrPhooky
    Mar 13, 2015 at 15:08
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I hate advertising for Sony, but you can get one of these waterproof headphones: http://www.sony.co.uk/electronics/walkman/nwz-w273-nwz-w274s

They're made for people who engage in sports activity and sweat a lot. I use them only in the shower and it works fine.

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I have stumbled across this problem as well, but I don't have speakers. I throw my laptop in the sink and it works surprisingly well. You might be able to do this with your speaker, as the sink makes it quite a bit louder.

This is also a completely free option, as it doesn't require you to purchase bags or a shelving unit. Almost every bathroom has a shower already in it :)

NOTE: Do not turn the water on! I have almost done this before

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