Amazing Secrets Hidden in Everyday Things - Part 5

There’s nothing cooler than a secret hidden in plain sight, especially when it comes to the objects we use and interact with every day. Some of those secrets seem obvious once pointed out, while others may surprise you. Learning about those hidden features and uses can seriously upgrade your life, so let’s get right into some amazing secrets hidden in everyday things.

Battery Bounce Test

Ever been in the frustrating position of having a drawer full of batteries, with no idea which ones are used and unused? Most people have, and it can take a long, tedious time to test each battery individually by popping them into appliances.

Luckily, there’s a handy trick to test your batteries’ power levels instantly; and it’s so simple, you’ll wonder how you ever managed without it! All you need to do is drop the battery from a relatively low height, in an upright position. If the battery is unused, or mostly full, it shouldn’t bounce much. If it’s depleted or empty, the battery will be notably bouncier.

Battery Bounce Test - tell full from empty by dropping it! by DiodeGoneWild

So why is that? When a regular battery is used, energy is given off by a chemical reaction between the materials inside the battery. The process converts those materials into new compounds, one of which is zinc oxide, which happens to be naturally very bouncy.

It’s so bouncy, in fact, that it’s used in golf balls to increase the distance they travel when hit. Up to an upper limit, the more a battery is used, the more zinc oxide forms inside, and the bouncier the battery becomes. So, when you’re checking your batteries, whichever battery bounces least is the one you’ll probably want to use.

Of course, it goes without saying that you should never try that on batteries that are broken, misshapen or leaking, nor should you be throwing car batteries around the place. But for general, small batteries, that is a real game changer.

Tiny Pocket On Jeans

Anyone who owns a pair of jeans with a pocket like the one in the image below, for sure at some point wondered what it’s really there for. After all, how useful can a pocket so small really be? While today it’s occasionally used to hold loose change, keys, or even some candy, the original purpose of that mysterious pocket was much more specific.

The pocket’s origins can be traced back to before even the earliest jeans in the Levi’s archives, which date to about 1879. It’s no coincidence that that pocket emerged around that period, as its purpose is related to another very common item from the time that’s rarely seen nowadays: the pocket watch.

The tiny pocket was specifically designed to snugly fit a standard pocket watch, keeping it secure, while the higher position on the leg allowed for easy access. With a chain attached to the belt loop for extra security, it was common to see that jeans and pocket-watch combo among the more fashionable cowboys back in the day.

Pencil & Ink Eraser

If you ever used one of these kinds of erasers back in school like the one in the image below, you might’ve heard that while the red part was for erasing pencil, the blue part could erase pen ink. If you were like me, you may have put that theory to the test and tried rubbing out your pen marks with the blue side, only to be left with a smudged, crumpled page.

But it turns out, the reason that method never tended to work as planned is that the blue eraser isn’t primarily designed for erasing ink at all. In fact, it’s not even really supposed to be used on standard paper. The blue eraser is designed for removing thicker or darker pencil marks from higher grade paper, with most coming with a gritty texture to help with that.

However, over time, the myth of using the blue eraser to rub off pen marks, which can occasionally work if your paper is strong enough became more widely known than the actual purpose.

Companies began embracing the slightly inaccurate reputation as a pen eraser into their design as a marketing technique, and some brands even added a pen icon to theirs! But while knowledge of the blue side’s original purpose has been mostly erased, people in the know can still erase our dark pencil marks with unparalleled expertise.

Soda Can Hack

If you ask most people what the purpose of the tabs on soda cans is, they’d probably tell you the obvious: opening cans. But there’s a surprising amount of hidden ingenuity in soda can tabs, including an additional use that most people miss.

Let’s start with that hidden function I mentioned. If you’re committed to drinking smarter, you can turn the tab around and put a straw into the hole. It’s a handy way to stop that pesky straw wriggling away from you between slurps, though it actually appears to be more of a happy accident than an intentional design choice.

What can soda lid is really for by knightrandom

The intended purpose for those holes on soda can tabs is actually to give them more structural stability and ease of use. If the tabs had no holes at all, and were just an aluminum strip, they’d likely just bend instead of providing the pivot force necessary to open the can.

By leaving gaps, with the curved edges of the tab rolled inward, flexibility is exchanged for increased thickness, reinforcing the pivot points while also preventing any wasted aluminum. The rolled edges also reduce the risk of anyone cutting themselves on any sharp edges! So, next time you sip from a can, with straw or not, take a moment to appreciate the often ignored cleverness of its design.

Tic Tac Dispensing Hack

As surprising as it sounds, the classic candy treats we call Tic Tacs also come with a nifty hidden feature. Those tiny sweets, and the fun little clicky boxes they came with, were a staple for many childhoods around the world.

But most of us missed the fact that that satisfying to use lid came with a built-in Tic Tac dispenser, in the form of a raised area specifically for catching single candies. Using the Tic Tac catcher, all you need to do is flip the pack upside down, open the lid, and you’re ready to serve a single Tic Tac to your friends.

How To Open Tic Tac by UNOBEAR

They’ll be so blown away by the whole spectacle, they won’t even notice how stingy you’re being! While some tend to prefer eating a handful at a time, those with a little more restraint or just tiny mouths will undoubtedly find that little tip handy.

Coin Ridges

At some point, in a moment of boredom, you may have found yourself fiddling with some loose change, and wondering why some coins have those ridges along their edges. As it’s so commonplace, you may have assumed it’s an aesthetic choice that’s just become the norm, but there’s actually an intriguing reason behind the ridges.

Before the ridges became widespread, a common problem faced by the rulers of the past was that people would shave down the edges of their coins, harvesting the precious metals. That shaved metal could then be melted down and resold for profit.

The shaved coin, meanwhile, remained usable, and most of the time, could be spent without the recipient being any the wiser. Of course, that wasn’t how rulers wanted people using their official coinage, but it took until the early 1500s for anyone to figure out a solution.

Around that time, some European coins began being produced with ridged edges as standard. That meant that shaving and reusing the coins would be impossible, as unless the coin scammer was willing to painstakingly re-engrave them, the ridges would disappear after shaving.

But not all modern coins have ridges. You may have noticed that nickels, cents, and pennies have smooth edges, instead. That is because, thanks to their lower-cost construction materials, their value isn’t enough to make ridging, or equally, shaving them worthwhile. As if all those pennies clogging up your wallet didn’t already feel worthless enough!

Small Holes On Mobile Phones

Most people are able to appreciate the fact that the smart phones we carry round in our pockets are absolute wonders of technology. But few people fully grasp just how clever phones can be even when just picking up the sound of your voice for a phone call.

Taking a look at your smartphone, you may notice several holes scattered around the frame and back, though some newer phones do a great job at hiding them away. Whether you can see them or not, those holes are tiny microphones which pick up your voice during calls. But that’s far from the most interesting part.

On most modern smartphones, at least two separate microphones are used during calls to ensure maximum clarity through noise canceling technology. How that works is that one microphone, usually near the charging port on your phone, will pick up the sound of your voice more prominently than the other mic.

It makes sense, seeing as it’s close to your mouth when you’re holding your phone on a call. The purpose of the secondary mic, which is usually found on the back of the phone, near the camera, is to pick up more of the background noise in your environment.

You may be wondering, “why would I want the background noise to be picked up if I’m trying to increase the clarity of the signal?” It’s a valid question, but here’s where the clever part comes in.

Your phone is capable of taking both signals, and analyzing which parts of the microphone input are your voice, and which parts are unwanted background noise. It then processes the sounds, lowering the background noise in the final signal, resulting in a much clearer output sound than would be possible with a single mic!

Why Do Some Trucks Have Wheels That Lift?

If you’ve ever found yourself stuck in traffic, your wandering gaze may have fallen upon the wheels of a dump truck. Specifically, the raised set of wheels that are occasionally seen in the mid-section or rear of the truck. Those same raised wheels can be seen on garbage trucks too, so what’s the deal?

For starters; they’re not faulty those wheels are working exactly as intended. The reason the axels rise up in such a way comes down to the purpose of those types of trucks. As they’re intended to carry increasingly heavy loads over the course of a job, the wheels help with weight distribution as the load increases.

For example, once a garbage truck is filled to a certain weight, the additional set of wheels is lowered down, taking some of the strain away from the main axels. But if extra support is needed for working vehicles like those, why not just keep the extra wheels on the road the whole time?

It actually works out to be more economical to raise the wheels up when loads are lighter, as fuel efficiency decreases the more wheels in contact with the road. So, when cruising empty, the wheels are up, and when fully loaded, they come down. Like loosening your belt after a Thanksgiving dinner, it’s all about easing the strain.

Secret Button On Your Seatbelt

In the case of some everyday objects, we don’t tend to notice they’re even there unless something goes wrong, or they disappear. That’s exactly the case with the little buttons you may have spotted on car seatbelts.

Those easily miss-able fixtures serve the handy purpose of keeping the seatbelt buckle from falling all the way down the belt. Not only does that mean your buckle conveniently falls into position near your hands when you’re seated, but it also stops it getting lost behind the base of the seats.

As you can imagine, having to spend time fishing a buckle out from among all the crumbs, coins, dirt and god knows what else that’s fallen between the car seats wouldn’t exactly be fun. So, instead, we have those little buttons; the silent, unspoken hero of the car, whose value we’d only really appreciate in the unfortunate instance where it falls off!

How To Install A Seat Belt Stopper On Your Vehicle by Martin's Used Cars & Collectibles LLC

Fix Leather With Vaseline

The household staple that is Vaseline has many more uses than just moisturizing chapped lips. As it turns out, Vaseline, and petroleum jelly in general, is surprisingly effective when it comes to fixing up leather shoes and clothes.

It moisturizes leather in a similar way it moisturizes human skin, meaning you can rub it into old leather clothing and footwear to revitalize it with shine and water resistance. That moisturization can even help reduce the visibility of scuff marks.

All you need to do is coat the leather item in the jelly and treat it all over with a hair dryer on maximum heat. Once the Vaseline becomes runny, rub it in thoroughly, bending the leather where possible to help with absorption and flexibility. Finally, after rubbing a generous amount of jelly into the leather, wipe off the excess and leave it to dry.

How To Fix Leather With Petroleum Jelly Tutorial by Digital Friend

Your item of clothing or footwear will not only regain some of its previous charm, it’ll also become more resistant to harsh weather providing handy preparation for winter! But that’s not all Vaseline can do! That miraculous jelly can also prove very useful for creating an airtight seal around things like car battery terminals, keeping them lubricated and reducing the risk of corrosion.

Prevent Car Battery Terminal Corrosion With Petroleum Jelly by DT

Electrical Blanking Plates

If you were to check every wall of every room in your house, there’s a reasonably high chance that, somewhere, you’ll find something like the image below.

Those blank outlets regularly leave homeowners and renters alike scratching their heads as to what their purpose is. After all, an outlet isn’t much use if you can’t plug anything into it, right? But, as it happens, those outlets are actually very important, and when they’re not used in places they’re supposed to be, it can prove deadly!

That is because, typically, those blank plates are used to cover old power outlets or telephone ports that are no longer in use. And while it may seem somewhat lazy to use a blank plate rather than plaster and paint over the old spot, the blank plate’s actually a legal requirement in many cases.

telephone wall jack (diy) by Survival on a Budget Made Easy

That’s because, if an old outlet is removed and covered over to match the wall, there’s a risk someone might unknowingly drill into the wall around it. If the wires in the wall happen to still be live, that’d mean a nasty shock for the person drilling, to say the least.

It’s also a legal requirement for all electrical junctions to be accessible within a building, in case of a malfunction with the building’s circuitry. So, those blank plates are used to make people aware that a system of wires is still in place, both as a warning, and as a useful indicator of available access when needed.

Ceiling Fan Hack

Despite it being a built-in feature on most ceiling fans, a surprising number of people don’t realize the tremendous usefulness this little switch can have. What a switch like that does is simple: it changes the rotation of the fan between clockwise and counter clockwise.

So, why does it matter which way a fan is spinning? You might think that it’s blowing air around the room either way but the direction in which the air is being moved actually makes all the difference to the perceived temperature. After all, ceiling fans don’t actually cool the air itself it’s the interaction of the moving air with your body that creates a cooling effect.

Typically, counter clockwise rotation means the air in the room will be pushed downward. That is handy in the summertime, as moving the air directly down toward you, sitting below the fan, evaporates more of your sweat, which cools you. By contrast, when spinning clockwise, fans pull air upwards toward the ceiling, dispersing it outwards and across the walls.

That is perfect for winter, as it circulates the warm air of the room without blowing a draft directly onto you, meaning you’re not cooled off by evaporating sweat. So, whether you choose cooling counter clockwise, or warmth spreading clockwise, just remember: fans cool people, not rooms.

The Hook On A Measuring Tape

A measuring tape is a super handy item to have around, but many people fail to realize the full extent of its clever built in features. One of the most useful of those features is the little hole on the metal hook. That grips onto screws and nails, allowing you to keep the tool in place while measuring without needing a second person to hold the tape.

The hook also holds a second function many people miss, which can be found in the serrated bottom edge. Thanks to its saw-like teeth, if you find yourself needing to mark out a specific point on a surface but you don’t have a pencil, you can scratch a mark into place. Useful as that is, though, it’s probably not a good idea if you’re measuring the lengths of priceless antiques.

4 Tape Measure Tricks by seejanedrill

The "Secret" Little Cones Underneath Traffic Lights

At certain pedestrian crossings in places like the UK, there can be found an intriguing feature that’s super easy to miss unless you know what you’re looking for. Or, rather, feeling for.

These small dials in the image below are designed to spin round on the underside of pedestrian crossing button panels when it’s safe to cross, as guidance for the visually impaired and hard of hearing.

For the blind, that is extremely useful in areas where the usual bleeping sound indicating it’s time to cross is drowned out by traffic or other noise. However, the dial only spins when the little green man is showing, which doesn’t necessarily make it fool-proof against drivers who ignore traffic lights and speed through.

For that reason, the dial should be used in conjunction with listening to the environment for approaching vehicles, rather than being entirely relied upon on its own. But either way, when used safely, it’s still a major help to the visually-impaired who desire a little more independence.

Blank Buttons In Cars

If you’re a naturally curious, you might be the type to press every button inside a vehicle to see what it does. In doing so, you may have happened upon blank buttons like these in the image below, which no matter how hard you press refuse to do anything.

That’s no accident. Those buttons are used in place of functional buttons for optional extras in vehicles, like switches to activate heated seats or air conditioning. A new car’s interior is built to accommodate all additional feature buttons as standard, but if the customer opts out of certain features, they fit the blank buttons instead.

They’re basically the motorcar equivalent of going to a restaurant and ordering, only for them to bring your food plus an additional empty plate, saying, “this could’ve had a steak on it if you weren’t so cheap”. While dummy buttons may be a painful reminder of a missing feature you could’ve had, it’s still better than having a labelled button that doesn’t work at all.

I hope you find these hidden purposes useful. You might also want to read our entire secrets hidden in everyday things series. Thanks for reading!