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Easy steps to revive a dead cell phone battery and avoid buying a new one
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When cell phone batteries have reached their limit or are left discharged for a long period of time, they eventually lose their ability to hold a charge. If your phone battery dies, there's no harm in trying to revive it before you throw it away. You've got nothing to lose! The battery may just need a little push to make it functional. This wikiHow article shows you a few ways that you can revive a cell phone battery.
How to Fix a Dead Phone Battery
Try cleaning your phone's charging port or using a new charger to make sure they aren't causing the issue. If you can remove the battery, try jumpstarting it with a 9V battery or freezing it to revive it. If that doesn't work, have the battery replaced at a service center.
Steps
Section 2 of 3:
Jump-starting a Removable Battery
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Gather your materials. First, gather a 9-volt battery (any brand will do), electric tape (you’ll need no more than five inches), and electrical wire (basic thin electrical wire will do, but red (+) and black (-) are preferred). -
Cover the connections with electric tape. Take note of which wires go to which terminals of the battery, as not to connect a positive side to a negative. -
Connect the wire coming from the positive terminal of the cell phone battery to the positive terminal of the 9-volt battery.- Do the same with the negative wire.
- Do not connect opposite polarity, positive to negative, because this can short out your cell phone battery.
- Most cell phone batteries have more than two terminals, use the ones that are furthest from each other, or the ones on the outside. The center terminals are not to be used.
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Secure the connection of the wires and the terminals of the batteries with electrical tape.- Place them in a cool, dry place, away from any water or heat.
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Leave the connection for up to a minute or until your cell phone battery gets slightly warm. You should check the battery every 10-seconds or so for heat. -
Remove the connections once the cell phone battery gets a little warm to touch. -
Insert the cell phone battery back into your phone and check to see if your phone powers on. -
Check the battery level once your phone is on. If the level is low, plug the phone into a charger and wait until it is fully charged.
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Section 3 of 3:
Freezing a Removable Battery
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Remove the battery from your phone. -
Place it inside a sealed plastic bag in addition to a sealed plastic container. This will prevent it from getting wet.- Do not use paper bags or foils as water can easily penetrate these materials.
- For the sealed plastic container, think of a Glad or Rubbermaid container.
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Place the sealed battery inside the freezer and leave it overnight or at least 12 hours.- By exposing the battery to low temperatures such as the inside of a freezer, it allows the battery cells to recharge a little, enough to hold sufficient charge to be connected to a phone charger.
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Remove the battery from the freezer. Allow it to warm up to room temperature.- Do NOT use the battery while it’s still cold.
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Wipe any moisture off of the battery. -
Insert it back into your phone but leave the device off. Plug the phone into the proper charger and allow the device to charge for 48 hours. -
After the device has charged for 48 hours, turn the device on and check the battery's power level. You may find that your once-dead battery is revived, and is now able to hold a charge again.
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Expert Q&A
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QuestionWhat should I do if my phone has water damage?Josef Storzi is an Apple and Mobile Phone Repair Specialist and the Owner of Imobile LA, a mobile phone repair company based in Los Angeles, California. Josef specializes in repairing screens, charging ports, batteries, water damage, speakers, and microphones on all mobile phone brands including Apple, Samsung, LG, Nokia, and Sony. He also specializes in tablet, laptop, and computer repairs as well as the pros and cons of recent mobile software updates.The first thing to do for any electronic device that has liquid damage is to remove its power source. This will stop your device from becoming damaged further. For phones, this includes both the charger and the battery. In many cases removing all power sources successfully may prevent damage from occurring to your device. For many newer devices, the battery is not user-removable. In cases where the battery is not user-removable visit your local repair shop as soon as possible in order to have the device professionally disassembled and inspected.
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QuestionWill putting my phone in rice fix water damage?Josef Storzi is an Apple and Mobile Phone Repair Specialist and the Owner of Imobile LA, a mobile phone repair company based in Los Angeles, California. Josef specializes in repairing screens, charging ports, batteries, water damage, speakers, and microphones on all mobile phone brands including Apple, Samsung, LG, Nokia, and Sony. He also specializes in tablet, laptop, and computer repairs as well as the pros and cons of recent mobile software updates.In most cases, this will not help. Modern mobile devices are well sealed, which prevents the rice from making its way inside the device in order to absorb the water.
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QuestionWhat can you do if the battery has expanded?Community AnswerIf the battery is bulging, consider getting a new battery. Using the bulging battery can cause damage to your device and other unwanted problems.
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Tips
- When you leave your battery inside the freezer, make sure the plastic bag is sealed and placed far from any food to avoid contamination in the event that your battery leaks. Also, properly label the bag so other people won’t mistake it for food.Thanks
- If you’re having issues with your battery, you should try using a different charger first to isolate the problem. Most battery issues can be traced to using the wrong charger and/or charging cable.Thanks
- Do not attempt to recharge your phone battery using a 9-volt battery, because this may cause your cell phone battery to burn out or even explode. This method can only be used to revive a battery.Thanks
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Warnings
- Do not leave your phone battery connected to a 9-volt battery. Doing so may cause it to explode.Thanks
- Your battery may explode as well if you leave it inside the freezer for too long. Remember that extreme hot and cold temperatures are bad for batteries.Thanks
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About This Article
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Reader Success Stories
- "I rejuvenated my cordless phone battery. I wrapped it around some newspaper. I put it into a plastic bag. I put it in the freezer for about 24 hours. I took the battery out, left it on the table to thaw out and adjust itself to room temperature for 24 hours. Put the battery back in the phone. Works perfectly and charges with no problem." ..." more
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"I rejuvenated my cordless phone battery. I wrapped it around some newspaper. I put it into a plastic bag. I put it in the freezer for about 24 hours. I took the battery out, left it on the table to thaw out and adjust itself to room temperature for 24 hours. Put the battery back in the phone. Works perfectly and charges with no problem."
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"I 'jumpstarted' a new battery for a Galaxy S tab which was new but lost all charge during a failed firmware install that drained the battery without the ability to charge. Another new battery, completed the reinstall, and this method revived the drained one."
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"The 9-volt battery worked on my spare/back up battery, which had sat for 2 months uncharged. It refused to charge when I put it in the phone. This method fixed it. Its now charging. Thanks to the authors of this article. Cheers."
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"Very informative! I didn't have a clue that this was even possible!"
"The jumpstart method worked like a charm. Thanks for great advice."
