Battgirl 23 Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 Recently discovered that contrary to instructions I had left the spare cordless battery in the charger and it was dead, no life at all. A Google solution was to charge the cordless battery for 20 seconds using the charger for the car battery then charge as usual in the cordless charger. I can confirm that this works and the previously dead cordless battery is as good as new Link to post Share on other sites
waikiore 400 Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 Sounds like an old panel beaters trick! Link to post Share on other sites
B00B00 310 Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 That's good information, I have many dead batteries at home...... Link to post Share on other sites
Black Panther 1,591 Posted March 7, 2014 Share Posted March 7, 2014 But I don't have a car sized charger Link to post Share on other sites
ab1974 1 Posted March 17, 2014 Share Posted March 17, 2014 Haven't looked at my drill batteries so it may be obvious when I do, but how can you tell +ve from -ve on thos batteries? Link to post Share on other sites
otto 31 Posted March 17, 2014 Share Posted March 17, 2014 Haven't looked at my drill batteries so it may be obvious when I do, but how can you tell +ve from -ve on thos batteries? If there's no + - on the battery or charger use a multi meter and it will show up as to which terminal is which. I.E if the Red from the meter is connected to the - it should show a - on the screen. Link to post Share on other sites
B00B00 310 Posted March 17, 2014 Share Posted March 17, 2014 I have an old 12v drill with 1 battery that's buggered and the other that's still just OK. I took the buggered battery apart and removed the insides then soldered some long wires on the terminals with dog clips on the end, so it looks just like a normal battery but with wires coming out of it (note: tie a knot in the wires so that when they are pulled its not loading on the solder but the knot is just pulling to the hole and no further). Now i keep it on the boat as a boat drill, just hook the wires on the boat battery and I have a drill that gores forever. Works well actually. We even took it on the round north island race with us. Link to post Share on other sites
Clipper 343 Posted March 17, 2014 Share Posted March 17, 2014 I have an old 12v drill with 1 battery that's buggered and the other that's still just OK. I took the buggered battery apart and removed the insides then soldered some long wires on the terminals with dog clips on the end, so it looks just like a normal battery but with wires coming out of it (note: tie a knot in the wires so that when they are pulled its not loading on the solder but the knot is just pulling to the hole and no further). Now i keep it on the boat as a boat drill, just hook the wires on the boat battery and I have a drill that gores forever. Works well actually.We even took it on the round north island race with us. Did the same thing, but put a cigarette lighter plug on it. didn't realise how much current the dill can draw, blew the fuse after melting the plug. Now, like booboo's it goes direct to battery. Link to post Share on other sites
Old Girl 0 Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Both sound like ideas I should try on my no longer holding a charge drill. Have a car charger so will try the 20 sec fix first. Although having a direct battery connection sounds a perfect idea on board. Thanks folk. Link to post Share on other sites
wheels 543 Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Just be careful what battery type you have. NiCad or Lithium Ion. I suspect the original poster has a Lithium Iron and it was allowed to fully discharge, which is not good for them. It is best practice to charge the battery after you have used it and store it fully charged. If they go totally dead, the Chargers think there is a faulty battery and won't charge it. By giving it a zap like explained, the Voltage rises enough to allow the charger to get into gear. WARNING WILL ROBINSON!!!!! Do NOT charge in that manner for long. You can very easily cause the battery to explode if you put too much charge current for too long into it. NiCad's are a little different. It is good practice to run them right down before you charge them, but then you need to fully charge it. Do not part charge them. When a NiCad gets tired, you can sometimes revive them by giving them a real good thump with some current(for a very short duration) and then fully discharge it again, and then put it on it's normal charger. Slowly discharging them by hooking up a small load like a light bulb and leaving it till dead flat helps restore them sometimes. Link to post Share on other sites
Mothership 6 Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 Lithium Ion batteries should not be kept fully charged when storing - it will shorten their life span. 40-60% covers the ideal given by most manufacturers. Also, storage at about 15c is best, and no more than 20-25c before battery life is materially affected. Full discharge won't materially harm lithium ion batteries, although it may make them perform a little oddly. Part charges do not prematurely shorten the life of lithium Ion batteries as it does NiCAD, and to a lesser extent Ni-MH batteries. Some cell manufacturers also suggest a full discharge every 25-30 cycles to prolong life, as well. Link to post Share on other sites
wheels 543 Posted March 19, 2014 Share Posted March 19, 2014 You are correct MS. Although I have an instruction manual that came with a Battery that states keeping it fully charged. I just checked. It's several years old now and I had always followed that as normal for all. But I did a quick search and came up with this, which maybe helpful for all. http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/five-a ... tery-life/ Link to post Share on other sites
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