TnD1w

Q: Iphone 5 lightning port charging problem - SOLUTION!

Just wanted to share a solution to my charging problem.  Very quickly my phone developed a problem where I couldn't get it to charge.  The connector didn't feel sloppy, but if I twisted it to the side, I could get it to make a connection.  However, if I let go or bumped the phone it would immediatly disconnect.  Sometimes it would take a easy dozen tries to get the phone to establish a connection.  Often I'd come back only to find that it had lost the connection and stopped charging.  Took it to the Verizon store and it worked fine on their cords.  Could be the cord, but I have multiple cords stashed in different locations and they all went bad at the same time.  That suggests to me that it's the phone and not the cord.  I tried to fish for some lint in the port and that definetly seems to be part of the problem.  I used a bent paperclip with no ill effects, but I'd be more comfortable with a flat toothpick.  Just stay away from the sides of the port as I don't know how fragile the connection wires are.  In my case, I was going for the bottom of the port.  Reach into the port and try to scrape out any packed in lint from the back of the port.  I'm thinking the lint may prevent the plug from fully seating thus creating a poor connection.  This helped a fair amount, but the connection still needed improvement.  Last night I bought a can of electrical contact cleaner and thought I'd give it a try.  I'd admit that I was a bit nervous to spray this into my phone, but I needed to try something.  Using the included tube, I sprayed a tiny amount of cleaner into the port.  The cleaner will get outside the port, but I don't see any signs of damage to the Belkin case, phone body, screen or disposable screen protector.  While the port was still wet, I grabbed a cord and plugged it in several times hoping to agitate the solution and mechanically clean the connection.  A mini q-tip would work even better.  Instantly I found a signficantly improved connection.  Plug it in and boom, good connection.  First try every time.  No wiggling necessary.  I did this last night at home and I just plugged the phone in at work; again got a good connection.  Now, I only tried this last night, but it certainly looks like the problem is dirt, grime and maybe a touch of corrosion that's causing the problem.  Clean the port out to remove any debris and then apply a quick shot of contact cleaner and you should be good to go!

Posted on Aug 16, 2013 6:52 AM

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Q: Iphone 5 lightning port charging problem - SOLUTION!

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  • by gail from maine,

    gail from maine gail from maine May 8, 2015 10:09 PM in response to thalaxlovee
    Level 7 (26,158 points)
    iCloud
    May 8, 2015 10:09 PM in response to thalaxlovee

    When you indicate that the screen is telling you to plug it in, are you seeing a USB image and the iTunes logo? If you are, then it needs to be restored - it is in Recovery mode:

     

    IOS RECOVERY MODE RESTORE

     

    If that is not what you mean, then what, exactly, are you seeing on the screen?

     

    Cheers,

     

    GB

  • by Kakan9898,

    Kakan9898 Kakan9898 May 13, 2015 4:44 PM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 13, 2015 4:44 PM in response to TnD1w

    Hey man, I had to spend a few minutes creating a account here just to day this; THANK YOU SO MUCH! I think you might have saved me from buying a new phone this year. I've had that problem for a while now, and spraying this contact spray into the contact didn't help, I thought I would have to deal with it until this atumn, but not anymore, you actually gave me a reason for the phone to be good again, which I owe you for. Thanks again!

     

    //A very happy Swede!

  • by thomas.ba,

    thomas.ba thomas.ba May 13, 2015 6:08 PM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 13, 2015 6:08 PM in response to TnD1w

    I have an iPhone 5c it stopped charging out of nowhere, , I already tried cleaning inside the port and everything I dont see any lint in the port or anything, I already tried the compressed air can, a toothpick, a toothbrush and nothing...

    The phone still has warranty(I bought it in the U.S.) but the problem is I live in Argentina and there are no official Apple Stores here so they won't do anything about it.

  • by kboni1,

    kboni1 kboni1 May 19, 2015 6:26 PM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 19, 2015 6:26 PM in response to TnD1w

    I don't actually believe this!! Woww it worked like a charm... I was planning to open the phone and replace the port with a new one following this http://www.imore.com/how-fix-broken-charge-port-iphone-5 Luckily I stumbled on this post! Thanks a lot TnD1w

  • by Moin@pple,

    Moin@pple Moin@pple May 22, 2015 7:54 PM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 22, 2015 7:54 PM in response to TnD1w

    Thank you Thank you and Thank you again...I'm so grateful to God for being able to read your post and cleaning my iphone5 port with a toothpick to see it charge instantly with a brand new cable barely 24 hours old.Extremely Happy and relieved to see my phone charging now.Respect and thanks :-)

  • by Gerald Raddatz,

    Gerald Raddatz Gerald Raddatz May 25, 2015 10:23 PM in response to Moin@pple
    Level 3 (830 points)
    May 25, 2015 10:23 PM in response to Moin@pple

    I too was having the same problem. Sometimes iTunes would see the iPhone and other times not. I tried different computers and different cables. Looking with a flash light I saw no buildup of dirt or grime. Using a safety pin I was able to remove quite a bit of lint. All is now working. Whew!

  • by SteveJolliffe,

    SteveJolliffe SteveJolliffe May 28, 2015 10:15 AM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 28, 2015 10:15 AM in response to TnD1w

    Thanks TnD1w!

    Been have this trouble for about 6 months, wiggling the plug, finally getting a contact, propping it to maintain the contact, only to lose the contact as you put the phone down, trying different cables (all Apple) - etc. etc. Extremely frustrating.

    I was just about to send the phone for repair, after previously brushing out the port with a fine artists paint brush - thinking there was nothing in there.

    I thought I'd have one last look on here for a solution - and sure enough there are dozens and dozens and dozens of people with the same issue.

    After reading TnD1w's post I though I'd give it one last chance. I used strong (jewellers) illuminated magnifying glasses and gently prodded around with a paper clip. Holy Jesus! I could not believe how much crap came out of that port!! No liquids, no sprays, no need to power down. Problem solved.

    Come on Apple - £500+ for a phone and this happens??? Bad design! This simply should not be!!

    Even my old Samsungs all came with little flip-out dust-cover plugs. Of course stuff can get in there, but not to that extent.

    I dread to think how many more people have had this issue, sent the 'phone away, been without it for weeks - paid for a "repair", or ended up simply paying the £209 for a replacement 'phone. Un-beleivable!

    Thanks again. Will be sure to carry out this "maintenance" regularly from now on.

  • by AnJnK,

    AnJnK AnJnK May 31, 2015 4:31 PM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    May 31, 2015 4:31 PM in response to TnD1w

    Thank you so much for taking the time to share this solution! So far, just removing the lint with a toothpick has restored the charging capability, albeit still a little sensitive to the cord being moved, so we'll buy some electrical contact cleaner as well. All the best!  (By the way, this problem is mainly on the one iPhone 5S in our family that goes in an out of a jeans pocket all day long )

  • by bilal_1994,

    bilal_1994 bilal_1994 Jun 2, 2015 3:43 PM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 2, 2015 3:43 PM in response to TnD1w

    I Had the same problem . It was literally impossible for me to properly charge my phone . I had to keep holding the lightening cable to charge my phone . Then I took a tooth brush , sprayed WD40 (a common machenical rust remover) on the brush and cleaned the charging port on my phone . Then without drying it out I repeatedly inserted and removed the cable 15-20 times .Then finally it worked . No I have a stable charging connection as it removed the corrosion inside the charging port. 

  • by TheCoosTail,

    TheCoosTail TheCoosTail Jun 5, 2015 1:18 AM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 5, 2015 1:18 AM in response to TnD1w

    Thanks so much

  • by rick.brusch,

    rick.brusch rick.brusch Jun 8, 2015 3:27 PM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 8, 2015 3:27 PM in response to TnD1w

    My iPhone 5s has had a gradually increasing unreliability in connecting properly to the lightning charger cord.  By twisting the connector or putting pressure on it in one direction or another I was able to get it to charge. But sometimes it would start dinging in the middle of the night as the charging connection came in and out in rapid succession.

         The fix was similar to those already mentioned. After being in my lint filled pockets over 20 months lint and debris had built up on the back of the lightning female connector in the iPhone.  I used a precision screwdriver (some blades smaller than those used for eyeglasses screw replacement), the smallest I could find, to scrape the flat bottom of lightning plug receptor.  I was totally amazed at how much lint I was able to dislodge.  I avoided scraping the sides of the connector slot and just scraped the bottom. The bottom of the plug should be white all the way across the bottom of the connector. For those with black iPhones it will be more difficult to see. I'd scrap a little, then lightly tap the iPhone on a white sheet of paper on the desk with the connector facing downward. Voila!  Stuff kept coming out. Scrape, tap and scrap, tap until the bottom of the connector was all white.  Now the phone charging connection is solid every time I plug in the lightning connector and the lightning connector doesn't wiggle around at all!

         P.S. Previously I had tried cleaning the connector with compressed air from can, such as "Falcon Dust Off."  This did not work as the lint had become impacted on the back of the plug.

  • by UpdatedPlanetClark,

    UpdatedPlanetClark UpdatedPlanetClark Jun 8, 2015 4:00 PM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 8, 2015 4:00 PM in response to TnD1w

    Found this thread while desperately trying to sort out the same problem.

     

    Used a toothpick to clear out the debris - much to my amazement, there was a lot in there!

     

    This solved the problem for me almost instantly - I've also made sure now to order an air spray can, to regularly clean the port.

     

    Many thanks again! This really was invaluable information.

     

    Thanks so much!

  • by Sam Diener,

    Sam Diener Sam Diener Jun 20, 2015 10:02 AM in response to JAFromCT
    Level 1 (4 points)
    Mac OS X
    Jun 20, 2015 10:02 AM in response to JAFromCT

    Yeah,

    I just used a wooden toothpick. I cleaned out a surprising quantity of lint, plugged it in, and voila, it seems my problem is solved. Thanks!

  • by ClarkMcC,

    ClarkMcC ClarkMcC Jun 25, 2015 10:00 AM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 25, 2015 10:00 AM in response to TnD1w

    Solved my problem, thanks for sharing.

  • by Allezdis,

    Allezdis Allezdis Jun 28, 2015 12:46 AM in response to TnD1w
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jun 28, 2015 12:46 AM in response to TnD1w

    I used a small interdental brush and it just worked fine. Thanks for sharing, it made my day!

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