Jump start a car with a drill battery

ATTENTION:

We have partnered with top-rated providers to help you save on auto insurance.

Compare FREE Auto Insurance Quotes Now!

Most vehicle users will have found themselves stuck with a dead battery from time to time whether it’s due to extended use, or just an old battery.

The favored way that most would deal with a dead battery is by jump-starting it, which involves using another car with a fully operational battery, but when you’re in desperate need of power and there is no other car what can you do? 

It may seem odd, but you can actually jumpstart a car with household items, like a drill battery. To do this, route the power from the drill battery to the car battery with a positive and negative wire, wait a couple of minutes and try starting the engine.

From a stuck door to a flat tire, we all end up facing some issues with our vehicles eventually no matter how prepared we may be. Knowing how to get yourself out of these problems with your vehicle is a necessary way to keep yourself and any passengers safe at all times.

Dead batteries are one of the most common issues with vehicles of all ages and sometimes are just simply down to driver’s error instead of vehicle faults. 

We recommend for automatic vehicles that you use another car with a functioning battery to help your vehicle get started as this will be the best way to transmit power from the cell to your dead battery.

You can’t connect any battery to an automatic car either, if the other vehicle has a higher battery than yours then this could cause irreparable damage to your battery and leave you in a worse position than you started with.

Starting a Car With a Household Drill

If you are stuck in a real emergency then you can use the battery from your household drill to help you jumpstart your car!

Prices pulled from the Amazon Product Advertising API on:

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.

By removing the battery from your drill you can connect your jumper cable to the battery and use this source of power as a way to give your vehicle the boost you need! 

1. Take the battery from your drill or another power tool 
2. Use heavy-duty solid core copper wire and bend the ends so they loop to fit onto the battery terminals
3. Place the brown wire to the positive terminal and then refit the terminal lead.
4. Place the second blue wire over the negative terminal and refit the terminal lead
5. Connect the other ends of the wire to the drill battery and make sure you wire the negative to the negative and the positive to the positive. If your drill battery is not clearly marked as positive and negative then use a test meter to find the correct connectors. Do not guess!
6.  Leave them plugged in for a minute or two before trying to start your engine.
7. Once the engine is started disconnect the drill battery and does not touch any of the bare wires to other areas on your vehicle or engine.
8. Leave the car to run so the alternator can charge up.

You can find more information here in this handy video.

In lower temperatures, your battery can be affected and be more reluctant to start which is why using different household items may be a handy way to get you going fast. A jumper cable or rope can be used to start your vehicle alongside some AA batteries. 

You can also use handy portable battery jump starters to charge up your battery if it is a regular occurrence for your vehicle. It can also be used in your household to charge electronics which is ideal for road trips.

Cleaning a Corroded Battery

Corroded batteries can be one of the most popular causes of a vehicle being unable to start and addressing the corroded terminals as quickly as possible is the best way to keep your car running.

Even owners who pay close attention to every detail can find themselves in this situation from time to time, so here are some tips to keep your battery from getting corroded. 

Using a can of coke is another popular way to clean your battery as the slightly acidic drink can eat away at the rust and leave your battery corrosion-free.

Start by removing the car battery and disconnecting the cables then you can apply the coca-cola and leave it to sit for a few minutes to soak into the rust then scrub away with slight force before drying and reconnecting your battery. 

Spotting a Dead Battery

If you’re facing issues with your car then you may be struggling to pinpoint where exactly their fault lies. There are a few tell-tale signs that can help you to spot if your vehicle is having issues with the battery or if it has already failed and could benefit from a replacement, 

Vehicle batteries are only designed to last between 3-5 years depending on the climate and driving habits the vehicle is under, but if it’s not been that long you may want to look into other issues that could be causing a problem with your battery. 

1. Slow-cranking times can be a sign of a weak battery if you are not in colder weather conditions, but if the weather hasn’t taken a drop it could also be starter issues or a bad alternator. 
2. Dim headlights occur when your vehicle isn’t getting enough power from the battery as all its power is being used to run the engine but not any of the other components in your vehicle.  If your headlights are completely off with no power then this is a sign that your battery is completely dead,
3. If your engine starts but dies almost instantly then this means your battery only had enough charge to start the engine and not keep it running. When the battery fails it causes disruptions in the signals sent to the ECM and the engine dies.

It may be obvious to some, but the best ways to prevent the battery in your car from dying are the lesser-known options. Heat can drain your battery so where it is possible you should park and store your vehicle away from direct sunlight to keep the temperature low.

Keeping the battery and terminals is also just as important to ensure that the proper connections can be made whilst driving. Making longer journeys instead of frequent short ones can also increase the lifespan of your battery overall.

FAQs

Can you jumpstart a car by yourself?

You can jumpstart a car by yourself, but you will need another vehicle with a healthy battery to connect to in order for your car to get up and running again. Once you get started you can use your car’s alternator to get the battery back to full charge. 

How do you push start a car?

Putting your vehicle into second gear and depressing the clutch whilst your vehicle is pushed at a speed of 5-10mph whilst engaging the clutch can get your engine to rotate and start without the use of any leads, however, this will take some power and more than one person present.

Should I replace a 7-year-old car battery?

Most car batteries last a maximum of 7 years so you should look to replace them once it reaches this age as the capacity will have dropped significantly less than when it was first purchased. 

How often do you need to drive your car to keep the battery charged?

Driving at least once a week can help your vehicle to stay in the best condition and young should aim to drive for over 30 minutes on a highway to get the boost your battery needs to keep going.

Conclusion

A dead battery is never a welcome discovery when you go to start your car. But there are a variety of ways you can jumpstart your car and keep it in the best condition possible so you can stay on the road and away from expensive garage repairs.

Using jumper cables is the best way to jump-start your car ut if you find yourself stuck without this piece of an essential car kit, there are some household items that you could use that will also do the job. Items such as a drill or a can of coke.

Check out some of these related topics:

Can You Jumpstart an Old Car With a New Car?

Can A Car Jump Start a Truck?

Can Jumpstarting a Car Damage Your Battery?

Can I jump start a car with a lithium battery?