ShortList is supported by you, our amazing readers. When you click through the links on our site and make a purchase we may earn a commission. Learn more

Here's how to charge your phone with a 9-volt battery

Jerry-rig your way to a less-dead handset

Here's how to charge your phone with a 9-volt battery
16 September 2018

In this modern, soulless, terrifying age, if your phone dies you might as well be dead as well. Nothing you do matters if you can’t document it, and what would happen if someone famous did a bad thing on Twitter and you didn’t know about it so didn’t realise they were cancelled? It’s unthinkable.

Luckily, if you are unfortunate enough to have a dead phone, you can get yourself a bit of juice using a nine-volt battery – you know the kind, the rectangular ones with the two terminals at the same end. The ones you can put your tongue on to gently electrocute your head for fun.

You’ll also need an in-car charger, like the ones that go into the cigarette lighter socket. It raises the question of why you’d have one of those but not the ability to charge your phone, but never mind.

You’ll also need the spring from a clicky pen.

Using tape (you also need tape), tape the spring on so that it’s touching the nubby bit that sticks out of the charger, and put the spring inside the battery’s negative terminal – that’s the bigger one, the one that is usually hexagonal – and the end of the charger against the positive one.

You’ll now have to hold them together, and if all goes to plan you’ll get a bit of juice. It won’t be loads – you won’t want to use this method to power a livestream – but could be enough to make a difference in an emergency.

It’s admittedly unlikely that you’d be in a position where you had a car charger but no car, and also had access to a nine-volt battery, some tape and a spring from a clicky pen, but if you are, you’re sorted!

(Pic: Pixabay)