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Turn an Ordinary 9-Volt Battery into a Secret Safe

Mar 28, 2016 11:37 PM
Jun 3, 2016 12:18 AM
Squirrel interacting with a 9V battery.

Sometimes the best way to hide things is in plain sight. Whether you're trying to sneak some medication past security at a concert with a zero-tolerance policy, or you're just worried that maybe Omar comin', YouTuber MrGear has a clever way to put your mind at ease.

In the video below, he shows us how we can store important or treasured items in five places few would think to look. Out of the five, the best one is definitely the 9-volt battery mini safe.

What You'll Need

  • 9-volt battery with cylindrical alkaline cells (many common 9-volt batteries use these cells)
  • X-Acto knife
  • scissors
  • wire (optional)
  • hot glue gun or soldering iron (optional)

Open the Battery

Take the X-Acto knife and slice around the edge at the top of the battery.

Person inserting a needle into an alkaline battery.

MrGear/YouTube

Cut through until you're able to remove the plastic piece that the battery connectors are attached to.

9V battery being held with a finger.

MrGear/YouTube

Remove the Cylindrical Cells

Pull out the connectors and the cylindrical cells, which are just six 1.5-volt batteries.

Batteries being inserted into a battery holder.

MrGear/YouTube

Now, you've got a choice to make depending how secret you'd like to make your 9-volt safe. We'll start with the simpler version first, and save the more clandestine version for later.

Clip the Ribbons (Skip to Step 4 if You Want It to Still Work)

To make the simpler version, just clip the ribbons attached to the battery cells, so that they are no longer attached to the connector.

Battery being examined with hands holding the components.

Cut both connectors if you just want to make the easy version of the safe.

Your simple 9-volt battery safe is done. All you have to do is stick the items you'd like to keep secret inside, pop the connector back onto the case, and be on your way.

(Working Version) Remove Some of the Cylindrical Cells

If you think you're going to need to be a little more sly by actually using the 9-volt battery safe to fool people, keep two of the cylindrical cells attached so that your safe will remain a functional (albeit less powerful) battery. You'll also have a little less storage room inside your "safe."

Instead of cutting both ribbons, just clip the ribbon below the negative connector (the female, or wider, flatter, connector).

Person holding a battery with a disconnected terminal cap.

Leave the ribbon under the positive connector intact for this version for the safe.

You're going to want to carefully unravel the cells. There will still be one cell attached to the positive connector—this cell will remain, as well as the cell directly attached to it.

So, before you make the cut, it should look something like this:

Turn an Ordinary 9-Volt Battery into a Secret Safe

Eric Ramsley/WonderHowTo

Since we just need the first two cells, you're going to want to snip the ribbon between the second and third cells.

Cutting a blue electrical wire with pliers.

MrGear/YouTube

And you should be left with this:

Illustration of a mechanical device with blue components arranged in a zigzag pattern.

Eric Ramsley/WonderHowTo

Reattach Remaining Cells

Next, we'll need that wire and a hot glue gun (or a soldering iron if you have one). Glue or solder one end of the wire beneath the negative terminal, where we previously disconnected the ribbon.

Close-up of hands holding two blue batteries with a disconnected wire and a small component.

MrGear/YouTube

Once that dries, glue or solder the other end of the wire to the positive end of the second battery cell.

Hot glue gun being used to secure blue battery cells.

MrGear/YouTube

You can then glue or solder both cells to the underside to keep them in place. This way, you won't have to worry about the cells moving around inside your safe, and the amount and shape of the storage area will remain consistent.

Once you've done this, your battery safe should still have 3 volts of power to help keep up the illusion.

A person demonstrating a simple circuit with a battery and a light bulb.

MrGear/YouTube

Load Your Safe

Now all you've got to do is load up your battery safe. If you're putting hard, rigid objects in your safe, you might want to consider wrapping them up first. Nine-volt batteries don't rattle—it'll be a dead giveaway if someone hears something shaking around in there.

Hand inserting a white tablet into a 9V battery with additional tablets nearby.

MrGear/YouTube

Press the top back down, and you're good to go. When you need to get back inside, just pry the top of the 9-volt battery off with your fingernail, or a credit card, guitar pick, or similar item.

MrGear has a couple other tips for making hidden storage compartments out of household places in his video, so check those out too for ways to hide money and jewelry.

More DIY Safes You Can Make at Home:

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