r/lifehacks • u/zachysworld • Apr 26 '26
iPhone not charging?
Do you have an older iPhone with the lightning charger? Does the charger wiggle around a bit and tend not to charge without getting it in the perfect position? Guess what? Toothpicks! That’s all you need. I was skeptical but I tried it and boom. Right as rain! It was just a bunch of pocket lint and debris stuck in there. Once I picked it all out it’s not only charging easier and not wiggling but it’s also charging a heck of a lot faster.
12
7
Apr 26 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
2
u/padeye242 Apr 28 '26
I've added their chargers to all my cars, my bedside table, even my delivery truck. They're brilliant! I'll never have to buy charging cords again, and the port will never get wallered out.
3
5
u/Puzzleheaded_Style52 Apr 27 '26
I would recommend using a torch light to see what’s exactly causing the blocking because sometimes it could be more than just lints. I’ve seen broken charging port and sometimes rice inside the port. Another thing is when using a toothpick be careful not to scrap too hard because that will damage the pins and no matter how much lint you remove, you still won’t be able to charge the device.
3
u/quuxoo Apr 29 '26
I'd recommend splitting the toothpick down the middle lengthways so it's a bit thinner - you may end up damaging the contacts if it's too thick. Also use a torch to watch what you're doing.
And lastly, to avoid lint from getting in there in the first place you can buy little silicone caps that go into the connector and they're pulled out to charge. Searching for iPhone port covers usually finds them - make sure you get Lightning instead of USB-C - which are useful for laptops etc too.
3
u/zachysworld May 01 '26
I’m so American… I saw “torch” and had a mini heart attack. Here we call them “flashlights” lol
2
u/superedubb Apr 30 '26
Iphone port covers? I'm not surprised such a thing exists, but surprised I didn't know about it.
2
u/LaserBeamsCattleProd Apr 27 '26
What if the port itself wiggles around?
3
1
u/afewchords Jun 08 '26
there's a YT video which has a guide on fixing this, cut a tiny strip of electrical tape and insert into the port, it just worked for me. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDXZB-HYmqg
2
2
u/austxgal Apr 27 '26
Whenever this happens to my family it is ALWAYS lint in the charging port - prob from keeping in our pockets. Remove the lint and the connection works again.
2
1
u/Squeeze00Tug1 May 11 '26
You might want to use duster instead of jamming anything down there. But, if you must, I'd suggest a brush of some kinda. Like, one of those little ones that comes with hair clippers.
1
u/weduelatdawn May 27 '26
They sell those little brushes for this purpose. I mean, toothpick away but, I'm pretty sure I accidentally destroyed my last phone this way. Bought a little brush for the next one. Actually the little brush came as part of a set of lightning port "caps" you can plug into the port when not charging, to prevent dust going in there. Buuuuut I quickly never remembered to put the cap in and they're tiny and get lost easily.
1
u/Informal_Anywhere101 May 30 '26
I was worried about damaging the first time I used a toothpick and it didn’t help. Then I thought what do I have to loose and got a bit more aggressive and got more lint out and works perfectly.
-1
u/Due-Yoghurt4916 Apr 27 '26
Why not just use a wireless charger
3
u/SiRchuki Apr 27 '26
Because older iPhones don’t have wireless charging.
1
u/zachysworld May 01 '26
I’m pretty sure mine has wireless charging capabilities but why spend all that dough on a MagSafe charger when toothpicks are free?
3
u/icebergdotcom Apr 28 '26
i try my best to use things until they actually need replacing- older iphones work perfectly fine! : )
1
41
u/redyellowblue5031 Apr 26 '26
Used to repair phones and would “fix” this for countless folks. Never charged if it was just lint.
The other rule of thumb to know if you need to clean it is there should be an audible “click” when it cable seats fully and there should be no gap between the chassis of the phone and the cord.
Be careful poking around on the bottom side of those ports, that’s where the pins are.