Charging Chordless Drills & Power Tools

[Cotemar]

You cannot go wrong with either one.
Here the prices for both DeWalt at $109 usd and Ryobi at $70 usd at Home Depot for comparison

[cadmus]

Originally Posted by mbianka

I have a 12 volt charger for my SEARS 19.2 volt drill on board. Use it to raise sail with a winchbit and for projects. Battery also fits a Sears Hand Vac for quick cleanups.

Mike,
you said "Hand vac" so i assume this one:

Good? Bad? Pros/cons?


Have you tried the
wet dry vac:

any good?

thanks,

[sartorst]

I have owned just about all of the brands of battery powered tools and use them every at work and most have worked well being used every day, but the battery's on the tools used at home and on the boat never lasted and I found myself using the 110 volt tools that I have owned for many years (25+) go figure !!nothing worse than running out of power in the middle of a project ,the rechargables weigh twice as much and still have a cord !!!!!! (charger)

[Tellie]

Has anyone tried the underwater trick yet with an old battery drill? I can't bring myself to do it to even one of the old ones I have laying around the shop. But I understand they will run for a bit under water.

[Khagan1227]

Originally Posted by rebel heart

I use Dewalt primarily because of its vacuum cleaner which is easily the most used "cordless tool" on my boat.

Amazon.com: DEWALT DC515K 1/2 Gallon 18-Volt NiCd Cordless Wet/Dry Vac: Home Improvement

Thanks Rebel heart, I was wondering of that was worth a darn.

I'm sold on Dewalt. I got a Fluorescent Area Light with my grinder, thought it was a waste, until I used it. Since a lot of people are switching over to Li batteries, NiCd batteries are easy to get and fairly inexpensive.

No inverter needed if one gets the cigarette lighter charger.

[hellosailor]

Tellie, electric motors work just fine underwater. Not as fine in seawater as it is more conductive and will short out the battery more. But they'll all work till the battery goes flat. Take 'em down too far and you'll also flood the battery through whatever vents or seals it has, and ruin it. But again, they'll work until then.

If you stick to a "12" volt tool you can recharge it from DC on board. If you go for the 18 volt hype, not so easy, you'll need an upconverter of some kind. Since there are plenty of dc-to-dc laptop supplies that run on 12v and put out 20v, one of those could always be modified to recharge an 18v tool as well. Or, a "20" volt solar panel and some patience...

[Celestialsailor]

Originally Posted by clockwork orange

I switched to the Ryobi 18v one plus tool from home depot because i got tired of all the other brands i had been using coming out with new tools and making the old ones obsolete. The Ryobi have cheaper batteries that have outlasted all my previous brands ,im still using the originals from 2005 along with the newer lithium ion ones that still fit the old tools, i like that. Another thing i like is that they have a 12v dc to 18v dc charger available for cheap that i can use on the boat, also a great wet and dry vac and a good hand held spotlight, lots of good tools that can be bought bare as well as some silly ones.

Steve.

Me too...Use to buy Mikita but after using Ryobi at 1/4 the cost, I can afford to burn them up. For $79.00 I got a drill, Circular saw, 2 batteries and a charger.

[noelex 77]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

Tellie, electric motors work just fine underwater. Not as fine in seawater as it is more conductive and will short out the battery more. But they'll all work till the battery goes flat. Take 'em down too far and you'll also flood the battery through whatever vents or seals it has, and ruin it. But again, they'll work until then.

If you stick to a "12" volt tool you can recharge it from DC on board. If you go for the 18 volt hype, not so easy, you'll need an upconverter of some kind. Since there are plenty of dc-to-dc laptop supplies that run on 12v and put out 20v, one of those could always be modified to recharge an 18v tool as well. Or, a "20" volt solar panel and some patience...

The hobby chargers are an easy way. Then your not restricted to 12v and can use the (generally) better higher voltage drills.
They will also correctly terminated the battery pack using Delta V. This means you can charge them quickly as well.
All for $30 or so.
I am always surprised so few (well actually none) seem to use them.

[mbianka]

Originally Posted by cadmus

Mike,
you said "Hand vac" so i assume this one:

Good? Bad? Pros/cons?


Have you tried the
wet dry vac:

any good?

thanks,

Cadmus:

Yes, that is the hand vac that I use with the same battery used for the drill. It comes in handy for quick cleanups. I have not tried the battery wet/dry vac. But, I do carry a Sears 2 gallon wet/dry vac that runs on 120 volt AC. I just need to fire up the Honda 2000 generator to use it. Does a great job sucking up the last bits of water in the bilge and any other places where it might collect as well after project clean ups.

[mbianka]

Originally Posted by sartorst

I have owned just about all of the brands of battery powered tools and use them every at work and most have worked well being used every day, but the battery's on the tools used at home and on the boat never lasted and I found myself using the 110 volt tools that I have owned for many years (25+) go figure !!nothing worse than running out of power in the middle of a project ,the rechargables weigh twice as much and still have a cord !!!!!! (charger)

You bring up a good point about how those battery operated tools used everyday hold up better in terms of battery use. That's why I also carry an 120 volt electric drill on board too. With my Honda 2000 generator I am not limited by battery capacity and charging issues. For some jobs it is just better to use it over a battery operated tool like cleaning the prop:
THE BIANKA LOG BLOG: SPRING CLEANING: PROP

[Dustymc]

Originally Posted by mbianka

You bring up a good point about how those battery operated tools used everyday hold up better in terms of battery use. That's why I also carry an 120 volt electric drill on board too. With my Honda 2000 generator I am not limited by battery capacity and charging issues. For some jobs it is just better to use it over a battery operated tool like cleaning the prop:
THE BIANKA LOG BLOG: SPRING CLEANING: PROP

I have one of these things, and it works great - for a while. It goes through batteries fast, but it also cuts fast. I installed rigging with it, and it mows through SS wire in a couple seconds, leaving a very nice, smooth cut. Pretty sure I rigged my whole boat with one battery. Same with battery cables and bolts - ZIP!, they're gone. I suspect it would work better than any drill to polish a prop. Anything bigger than that, and you do need a cord.

[clockwork orange]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

Tellie, electric motors work just fine underwater. Not as fine in seawater as it is more conductive and will short out the battery more. But they'll all work till the battery goes flat. Take 'em down too far and you'll also flood the battery through whatever vents or seals it has, and ruin it. But again, they'll work until then.

If you stick to a "12" volt tool you can recharge it from DC on board. If you go for the 18 volt hype, not so easy, you'll need an upconverter of some kind. Since there are plenty of dc-to-dc laptop supplies that run on 12v and put out 20v, one of those could always be modified to recharge an 18v tool as well. Or, a "20" volt solar panel and some patience...

As mentioned before, Ryobis 12v to 18v charger just plugs into your lighter socket, charges their 12v and 18v batteries ni cad and lithium ion and only costs about $40 if i remember right, you just cant get any easier than that, no need to reinvent the wheel.

Steve.

[hellosailor]

"and only costs about $40 if i remember right,"
See, that means a lot more than "cheap", Steve. $56.95 on Amazon though.

[Cotemar]

Originally Posted by hellosailor

"and only costs about $40 if i remember right,"
See, that means a lot more than "cheap", Steve. $56.95 on Amazon though.

$40 at Home Depot every day

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...&storeId=10051

[clockwork orange]

My first cordless drill was 7.2v, followed by 9.6v, 12v and now 18v, now there are 28v and 36v drills out there, i wonder if they come with a shoulder strap and a back brace, i also have to wonder how long it will be before they work there way up to 110v and put a cord on it.

Steve.