LPT: If you have a car, quit messing with jumper cables and get a rechargeable jump starter.
It’s that time of year, where it’s bitter cold — 10°F or -12°C tonight — and that weather separates the good car batteries from the old car batteries. Twice today, I was charging my car at a gas station (ironic, right?) and someone couldn’t start their truck. The first guy didn’t have jumper cables. The second guy did, but the other car couldn’t give his dead battery enough power.
Enter me, with my rechargeable lithium-ion battery pack. Clamped it to the battery terminals and their trucks started right up. (Okay, fine. The second guy needed two cranks.) Two quick jump starts, and my battery pack was only down to 70%, and that’s after it sat in the cold car for months.
This advice goes double for EV or hybrid owners. Those cars can *accept* a jump start if the 12-volt battery is low, but they cannot *give* a jump start, because that would overload the inverter and risk frying sensitive and expensive electronics. (Read the owner’s manual.) Having a pack can help others, but also help you! It’s also a giant phone battery if you need it.
And let’s face it. Jumper cables are the ultimate life hack, but they are intimidating. They sit in your trunk until you have an emergency, and then you have to remember how they hook up (to a ground on the dead car, not the negative terminal). One false move and you’re shooting sparks, shorting something, or zapping yourself.
I might be endorsing this product, but it’s not an affiliate link. I get nothing if you click here or find it on Amazon. Or buy something from a different manufacturer. I’m not an influencer.
https://www.hulkman.com/pages/alpha85
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