FYI For Idiots

[Doofy]

In 2018 I bought a new combo set of a Sub-Compact Makita 18volt LXT cordless drill and impact driver. These units are the perfect size and balance for 95% of what I use them for. Fast forward to yesterday, 2022 and I decided to use my older, larger Makita impact driver to drive some 4 inch Timber-Loc screws and low and behold, the battery was toast and would not take a charge. Neither would the battery from its partner, the screwgun!

Moral of the story: Do not neglect your cordless tool batteries! Don't play favorites like I did, and ruin your batteries.

 

[scootr]

Yep. These batteries have a lifespan of about 3000 cycles if not discharged too low or stored fully charged. I'm retired a tradesman who remembers the first NICAD powered pencil style screwdriver. I use everything Lithium powered I can around the ranch today from smoke detectors and driveway alarms to golf carts. 4 or 5 years from a 18v batt is probably average given everybody misuses them a little. I try to buy all the same brand battery tools so the batteries are interchangeable... and they do double duty in the flashlight kept by the back door or the portable fans the wife takes to the dog shows.

 

[Doofy]

Yep. These batteries have a lifespan of about 3000 cycles if not discharged too low or stored fully charged. I'm retired a tradesman who remembers the first NICAD powered pencil style screwdriver. I use everything Lithium powered I can around the ranch today from smoke detectors and driveway alarms to golf carts. 4 or 5 years from a 18v batt is probably average given everybody misuses them a little. I try to buy all the same brand battery tools so the batteries are interchangeable... and they do double duty in the flashlight kept by the back door or the portable fans the wife takes to the dog shows.

These were the Lithium Ion batteries that died on me. I was rather surprised. My "Go To" tools are Makita 18v LXT but the Wife started buying me 20v Worx tools several years ago and they are holding up very well: Lawn Mower, Chainsaw, Weed Wacker, Grass Clipper and a 6-1/2" circular saw.

 

[amarsh64]

Hi Doofy.
I have 2 Makita sets the same as yours bought a few years apart . I use them regularly . The first set of batteries will not take a charge now . I did some reading and apparently after trying 3 times with an unsuccessful charge the battery has a chip that locks you out from any further charging. I don't know how true that is but I have read it in more than one place. Anyone ever heard of this or shed some light on the matter ?

 

[JasperFrank]

I only have praise for the older Makitas. The 6059Ds with the 9000 battery packs lasted 10 straight years of daily 6 hour use, 3 hours on each battery for a 6 hour day of continuous use. They only overheated twice in those 10 years. And only two batteries failed to take a charge out of the set of four that I had. You can still find the 9000 batteries, for $12 a piece and the drills still work fine.

 

[Doofy]

Hi Doofy.
I have 2 Makita sets the same as yours bought a few years apart . I use them regularly . The first set of batteries will not take a charge now . I did some reading and apparently after trying 3 times with an unsuccessful charge the battery has a chip that locks you out from any further charging. I don't know how true that is but I have read it in more than one place. Anyone ever heard of this or shed some light on the matter ?

18V Replacement Battery PCB Chip Board For Makita BL1830 BL1840 BL1850 | eBay
I wonder if this is what these are for, to cure the cut-off problem?

 

[ponytug]

18V Replacement Battery PCB Chip Board For Makita BL1830 BL1840 BL1850 | eBay
I wonder if this is what these are for, to cure the cut-off problem?

Yes, I think that is the replacement board that you need, but to your original problem the chip on the board blows its safety circuit when the battery pack is no longer charging within parameters (whatever that means) after three tries.

Bottom line, you probably need at least one new cell in your battery pack and a new board. I would send it out to someone who does the rebuilding, but when I looked eight or ten years ago, it wasn't that much more to just by new Makita batteries. I did think about clone batteries, but then thought about how often I use and rely on the tools here, and decided it wasn't worth it to me to have a tool fail when I need it.

If you have a pack that fails to charge the first time, there are possible fixes that basically involve disassembly of the battery pack, and the charging of all the cells individually and replacing any that fail to charge.

IIRC, there are security screws holding the battery pack together that are particularly deeply recessed and that are especially narrow, so most security bits don't even fit down the channel. That was the point that I decided to just go buy new batteries.

If the Worx tools are working for you, great!

All the best,

Peter

 

[Doofy]

I will bite the bullet and try to order new batteries. Now the problem will be worrying about receiving counterfeit batteries. Amazon won't ship, eBay are probably fake and no stores close to buy from. Sad

 

[cqaigy2]

I left a lithium battery on a powered off charger. I don't really know how long it was but it was dead when i tried to use it, and wouldn't take a charge. Now the pack it's sitting on my bench, partially disassembled for me to work on when my grandson visits next.

 

[Doofy]

My 2 failed batteries were fully charged when I started using my new Makita sub- compacts and weren't used, checked or charged for about 4 years. These failures were totally my fault for not paying attention.

 

[IndyJay]

These were the Lithium Ion batteries that died on me. I was rather surprised. My "Go To" tools are Makita 18v LXT but the Wife started buying me 20v Worx tools several years ago and they are holding up very well: Lawn Mower, Chainsaw, Weed Wacker, Grass Clipper and a 6-1/2" circular saw.

All is not lost. There is a trick to reset Lithium batteries to get them to take a charge:

how to reset makita lithium batteries at DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo. Privacy, Simplified.

duckduckgo.com

You can search for your specific brand as well. The process for DeWalt seems simpler, at least the directions are.

 

[Doofy]

All is not lost. There is a trick to reset Lithium batteries to get them to take a charge:

how to reset makita lithium batteries at DuckDuckGo

DuckDuckGo. Privacy, Simplified.

duckduckgo.com

You can search for your specific brand as well. The process for DeWalt seems simpler, at least the directions are.

I will certainly give some of these tricks a try. Thanks

 

[ponytug]

I will bite the bullet and try to order new batteries. Now the problem will be worrying about receiving counterfeit batteries. Amazon won't ship, eBay are probably fake and no stores close to buy from. Sad

Will Home Depot ship to you? They list shipping to Alaska, but I haven't tried it myself...

All the best,

Peter

 

[Doofy]

Will Home Depot ship to you? They list shipping to Alaska, but I haven't tried it myself...

All the best,

Peter

We have Lowe's and Home Depot both. 120 miles away but will certainly check there before ice and snow season.

 

[ponytug]

I think that they both offer free shipping to your home, which is why I mention it. Saves the driving... My general impression is that lots of things are "close" in Alaska, but not usually stores.

All the best,

Peter

 

[Doofy]

I think that they both offer free shipping to your home, which is why I mention it. Saves the driving... My general impression is that lots of things are "close" in Alaska, but not usually stores.

All the best,

Peter

Thanks. I'll see if they will mail them.

 

[Doofy]

I think that they both offer free shipping to your home, which is why I mention it. Saves the driving... My general impression is that lots of things are "close" in Alaska, but not usually stores.

All the best,

Peter

Home Depot has them in stock but won't ship. No biggie, I'll pick up a pair if none of the YouTube tricks work.

 

[92blacksunshine]

Expensive dead batteries for my Dewalt are the reason I switched over to Ridgid tools... lifetime warranty on everything including the batteries and charger.

Warranty is as simple as making a phone call and they ship you a replacement.

 

[Doofy]

Expensive dead batteries for my Dewalt are the reason I switched over to Ridgid tools... lifetime warranty on everything including the batteries and charger.

Warranty is as simple as making a phone call and they ship you a replacement.

Very interesting Lifetime Warranty! Are Ridgid tools of high quality and dependable?

 

[92blacksunshine]

Very interesting Lifetime Warranty! Are Ridgid tools of high quality and dependable?

I bought my first Ridgid tools (drill & impact driver) about 4 years ago, and have never had a problem other than 2 batteries not lasting very long. I called, they sent me 2 batteries and I had them in less than 2 days. I have since bought a Ridgid corded sander, table saw and jigsaw, all are guaranteed for life.

FYI, to get the coverage, you have to register every piece, including batteries and chargers. It's simple to do, you just enter the serial numbers.

Home Depot carries Ridgid, and you can actually get unbelievable deals on HD's website by looking at their combo kits. A month ago, I needed a reciprocating saw because my Dewalt one had no more useable batteries. They had a saw only for $179, but then in the combo listings you could get the same saw with a ½" brushless hammerdrill, 1 2ah battery, 1 4ah battery and a charger for $199!!! And overnight shipping!

Needless to say, I was all over that!