I had a guy once tell me a story about how he destroyed a pipe when it fell in the river while fishing. I kept asking him what he meant by "destroy."
"I had to throw it away."
"Why did you 'have' to throw it away? What was wrong with the pipe?"
"It got wet. Everyone knows that when a pipe gets wet, you throw it away."
"But, what about getting wet destroyed the pipe?"
"Getting it wet, destroys it."
The Abbot and Costello routine went on for a bit, until I realized that he was just making shit up. Nothing bad will happen by getting a pipe wet. I leave mine out on the porch and they get rained on. Not on purpose, but things just happen. They work fine when they dry out. My wife once washed one of my Nordings in with the dishes, I still smoke it.
I wouldn't advise someone to immerse their pipes in water as a matter of practice, but if it did happen... It will be fine. I have yet to see proof of one disintegrating in water.
