Most cordless drill’s batteries are anywhere from 7.5V to 24V and the cordless drill charging can last from fifteen minutes to up to a few hours; but that alone is not as important as knowing how to properly charge your Ryobi cordless drill, Dewalt cordless drill or any other brand that you use. Doing it the right way will ensure that your battery is good for at least a few hundred charges and you won’t have to replace it for at least a year.
One of the first things you should know when charging cordless drill battery is to always use a high-quality charger that has been made for your specific tool: do not buy cheap chargers since they will not only shorten the life of your battery, but present a great safety hazard. In fact, the vast majority of the house fires in the US have been caused by chargers left on overnight.
When looking for a new charger, make sure that you get an original charger – if you use the Craftsman 19.2 volt DieHard Cordless Drill, then look for a Craftsman 19.2 volt cordless drill charger and don’t try to “adjust” any other chargers since this will only kill your battery really quick.
Keep in mind that the cordless drill charging time also depends on the type of the charger that you buy – the new “fast” chargers will fully charge your battery in a matter of minutes instead of hours, without damaging it any way. The intelligent chargers have a few built-in features like heat sensors that detect when the battery temperature is too high and delay the charging until it cools down; they also have indicators that display the charging progress and once the battery is fully charged, the charger automatically shuts off.
Depending on the brand and the model a cordless electric drill kit can come with two or more batteries, which is why you might consider buying a dual charger, which chargers two batteries simultaneously thus cutting your waiting time in half.
What safety rules should I follow when charging my cordless drill?
First of all, you should never insert a battery in your charger immediately after using your tool – in some cases the battery will be heated and if you use a low-quality charger this will cause a multitude of problems. Also, do not leave the battery in the charger overnight, but if you really have to simply make sure that the charger is placed on top of a non-flammable surface: in case of the charger casing melting or sparks, this will not cause a fire. You should also never try to repair your charger – simply buy a new one and save yourself a lot of troubles.
Why does the cordless drill charging heat up my charger?
In many cases the chargers get hot, but this is actually a safety feature – the chargers are intentionally made “lightweight”, so that they will stop functioning before causing fire. If your charger gets hot when there is no battery in it, then you might have to buy a new one, but in many cases the chargers get hot only when you place a shorted battery in.