18V Dewalt Batteries

[Tscott]

All my cordless tools use the 18V Dewalt system. I've got 2 of the standard batteries and 3 of the XRP type. I've had 2 of the XRP batteries fail in the past 6 months and now this week, both of my standards have taken a dump on me as well. Do you all just buy new batteries or do you rebuild them with one fo the kits available on ebay? I'm thinking of rebuilding the 2 bad XRP batteries and buying a double pack of new XRP batteries. I'll ditch the standards since they have poor run time as compared to the larger XRP batteries.

Any suggestions as to the best way to repair or replace would be greatly appreciated.

Tom

Edit: Everything I have currently is NI-CAD.

 

[NUTTSGT]

Tom, first of all I moved this to the tool section, it should get more hits here.

I was luckily enough to have Dewalt warranty an XRP battery that was a few months old and had a short life. It still works but not as long as it should. While I was waiting on what their decision was, I bought a 2 pack. . . wife's idea. That gave me four and I received a replacement for a total of 5. I picked up a used 18V jigsaw last months that came with two used XRP batteries and a used 1/2" drill for $40. #6 & 7 batteries seem to be in decent shape so far.

Don't be afraid to buy a used battery if the price is right and you can check it out....swap meet, garage sale, auction or CL.

I also dated mine so I know how old they are and numbered them so I can keep track of them individually.

 

[LumpyMusic]

Pair of those China rebuilt NiMh batteries -
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QQZ7TZM/?tag=atomicindus08-20

~ $60 a pair.

More amp/hrs than the DeWalt batteries, cost less than rebuilding your own. I bang away with mine every day. A charge lasts noticibly longer than any DeWalt NiCad charge. And there's more power available at the bit.

Did I mention they're inexpensive?


Sgt Lumpy

 

[Tscott]

Pair of those China rebuilt NiMh batteries -
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00QQZ7TZM/?tag=atomicindus08-20

~ $60 a pair.

More amp/hrs than the DeWalt batteries, cost less than rebuilding your own. I bang away with mine every day. A charge lasts noticibly longer than any DeWalt NiCad charge. And there's more power available at the bit.

Did I mention they're inexpensive?


Sgt Lumpy

I've seen those, but wondered about longevity. With everything coming from overseas I would not be surprised if they came out of the same factory as the OEM units.

Tom

 

[SantaAna12]

Have you tried charging using the conditioning mode?

 

[kctyphoon]

Time to upgrade to new lithium tools.. Youre wasting money buying old batteries. Dewalt is the ONLY brand selling nicad tools these days. I was in the same boat and switched over to Milwaukee..

 

[rsanter]

Right now they have the four piece tool set on sale for $199 and I think there are two batteries with it.
You could by that set, keep the batteries and sell of the extra tools and likly end up having very little into the batteries

Bo

 

[Gotcha640]

I'll second the knockoffs. I have a 14v I bought in 2006, dewalt battery died in 2007, PowerExtra or something, $35 on amazon at the time, is still going. 18v drill bought new in 2010, batteries died in 2011, same deal, whatever 4ah battery on amazon for under $40.

The actual batteries likely come from the same place, but a tool company is (I assume) interested in lowest price, where a battery company is at least going to try.

 

[stage20]

Time to upgrade to new lithium tools.. Youre wasting money buying old batteries. Dewalt is the ONLY brand selling nicad tools these days. I was in the same boat and switched over to Milwaukee..

I have more dewalt than I can afford to replace. I'd love lighter newer technology but its not in my grasp with all the tools I've gathered
I'm glad they have stick with their customers.

 

[Hondarancher4435]

I have recently been buying Milwaukee m12 tools to replace some of my dewalt tools. I can drive more deck screw on one m12 battery than a brand new 18v xrp battery lithium ion is the way to go

 

[djdaredevil]

Theres not really a good reason to replace all your Dewalt stuff, unless you really need the up grades the new stuff offers. I would buy some cheap after market batteries, and once the adapter that lets you use 20v batteries comes out I would pick up that, some lithium batteries, and a charger.

 

[stonesfan68]

I have more dewalt than I can afford to replace. I'd love lighter newer technology but its not in my grasp with all the tools I've gathered

I'm glad they have stick with their customers.

I read on here somewhere that Dewalt is making an adapter so a new 20V battery can be used with some of the old 18V tools. That might be worth checking into.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[stage20]

I read on here somewhere that Dewalt is making an adapter so a new 20V battery can be used with some of the old 18V tools. That might be worth checking into.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Oh yea I'm ready for it lol. Wait has been too long

 

[woody 73]

Sadly I am in the same drowning boat as the op I must have something like 12 dead 18 volt Dewalt batteries.

If you buy new ones from lowes it comes out to something like $100.00 dollars for two new batteries.

At least in my area if you get them rebuilt it works out to maybe the same price because of all the shipping (unless you find someone local); and then again after paying sales tax the costs maybe come a tiny bit cheaper but not by much.

Switching over to another brand is very expensive when you have mega tools and mega chargers and the tools are still in fantastic shape, (I am crying).

I will tell you boys they are not going to pry my corded tools from my dead body (but I still like cordless tools) just not the cost for new batteries.

 

[djdaredevil]

Here you go guys $53 for 2 batteries with 4.5 stars
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00P0N64RA/?tag=atomicindus08-20
They should get you by until that adapter comes out.

 

[knobby]

Maybe I'm a tad crazy but having more than a few dewalt 18v tools i bought a DC9182 charger and a couple of DC9180's. Yes i saw the adapter to run some models of the 20V Li's but was underwhelmed with the limitations as far as what battery and tools that are compatible with it.

 

[kctyphoon]

The dewalt adapter is already available.. Not worth it IMO though.. Sell the old tools and buy new, or **** it up and buy batteries.. Honestly though - aren't you tired of these things being dead every time you let them sit for a little bit.. The lithium will hold a full charge for like a year. You can just start out with a drill and impact driver kit.. You get a kit with 4.0 amp hr batteries, and it's like replacing 4 of the old nicad in terms of run time..

Also - I don't think that adapter works will all 18v tools.. Just a couple

Home Depot has deal of the day things going on every day.. They had an 8 tool 20v max set on sale for $499 one day.. It was almost half price.. You'd be crazy to pass that up.. Sell the old stuff off and put the money towards the purchase you made, or more tools.. Out of pocket that thing might only cost you $250 or less if you sold off 7 old tools on eBay

 

[TheEquineFencer]

I've just been taking my old 18V batteries to the local Batteries+ store and having them rebuild them with higher Ah batteries. It was cheaper than buying new and they seem to last longer. But that thread above with two new non-OEM looks like a decent deal. I'd have to try them when these batteries **** out.

 

[mikebaker1129]

I am in the Same boat on the dealt batteries.
I think I will try some of the batteries in the link above and see how they work out.

 

[djdaredevil]

The dewalt adapter is already available.. Not worth it IMO though..

Where did you see the adapter? Dewalts site says it wont be out until January now. Im actually very interested in picking it up my parents have old 18v stuff that I would like to keep running for them.

The adapter looks like if will fit into any tools socket you just might have clearance issues on some stuff, and that might be why they say it wont fit everything.

 

[MichEE]

its actually very easy to rebuild batteries yourself. Especially if you have a few extra packs. Check out the sites and videos online. Here is one that I've recently viewed.

 

[sk farmer]

lots of mis info here. i saw a list of tools the adaptor did not work on. i checked most of the numbers and they predominantly where tools with built in chargers like radios, lights and the like. if i recall i did not see a drill, driver or saw that did not accept the adapter. the vast majority of common tools will accept it.

i did see that dewalt recommended using the smaller packs rather than the newer 4-5 amp/hour batteries. i am guessing they may present some clearance issues because of the larger size.

some have also questioned the angle of the adaptor. this is my theory and my theory only. i think there are a few reasons.

1. the angle allows certain tools to angle back allowing them to stand on the battery because the lighter batteries change the center of gravity.

2. the slight angle will not allow the adaptor and battery to be inserted into the radios or any other tool that can both charge or be run from the battery.

i plan on picking up an adaptor as soon as i can source one locally. maybe even two. are there newer, better tools? sure but i have a pile of perfectly good tools that have never failed to perform. i like new tools as much as the next guy but that doesn't mean i don't like my old ones. i have thousands invested in 18 volt tools and i see no reasons to spend thousands more to replace ones that wok fine and others still that have seen very little use. the new 20 volts are usually cheaper than the 18 volts and 39 bucks breathes new life and performance into old tools

 

[kctyphoon]

Where did you see the adapter? Dewalts site says it wont be out until January now. Im actually very interested in picking it up my parents have old 18v stuff that I would like to keep running for them.

The adapter looks like if will fit into any tools socket you just might have clearance issues on some stuff, and that might be why they say it wont fit everything.

Google it.. There's adapters sold alone or as part of a kit with batteries and a charger..

 

[djdaredevil]

Google it.. There's adapters sold alone or as part of a kit with batteries and a charger..

I know they show up in places on google but nowhere has them in stock yet.

 

[kctyphoon]

I know they show up in places on google but nowhere has them in stock yet.

http://www.etoolpros.com/automotive-tools/DWT-DCA1820.html?gclid=CPu8lrOY5skCFdAXHwodMQEKXg

http://www.toolorbit.com/DeWalt/DeWalt-DCA1820.html?gclid=CNv3nNSY5skCFQEuHwod74AMMw

http://www.ntxtools.com/network-tool-warehouse/DWT-DCA1820.html?gclid=CL_UpJSZ5skCFQokHwodKwgIYA

Kit -
http://www.toolorbit.com/DeWalt/DeWalt-DCA2203C.html?gclid=CLOrne2Y5skCFcEUHwod7KwCzw

Dewalt seems to have a habit of making things a lot bigger then they need to be.. This AND the power adapter for its heated gear..

Info:
Compatible with most DEWALT 18 V tools. Allows for use of 20 V max batteries in most DEWALT 18 V tools. The DCA1820 will not function with the following: DW9116, DW9117, DC9310, DC9319, DC9320, DCB103, or previous model chargers; DC628K, DC618K, DC616K, DC608K, or DC608B Nailers; DC020, DC022, DCL060, or DCL061 Lights; DC018, DW911, DC011, and DC012 Radio.

 

[djdaredevil]

http://www.etoolpros.com/automotive-tools/DWT-DCA1820.html?gclid=CPu8lrOY5skCFdAXHwodMQEKXg

http://www.toolorbit.com/DeWalt/DeWalt-DCA1820.html?gclid=CNv3nNSY5skCFQEuHwod74AMMw

http://www.ntxtools.com/network-tool-warehouse/DWT-DCA1820.html?gclid=CL_UpJSZ5skCFQokHwodKwgIYA

Kit -
http://www.toolorbit.com/DeWalt/DeWalt-DCA2203C.html?gclid=CLOrne2Y5skCFcEUHwod7KwCzw

Dewalt seems to have a habit of making things a lot bigger then they need to be.. This AND the power adapter for its heated gear..

Info:
Compatible with most DEWALT 18 V tools. Allows for use of 20 V max batteries in most DEWALT 18 V tools. The DCA1820 will not function with the following: DW9116, DW9117, DC9310, DC9319, DC9320, DCB103, or previous model chargers; DC628K, DC618K, DC616K, DC608K, or DC608B Nailers; DC020, DC022, DCL060, or DCL061 Lights; DC018, DW911, DC011, and DC012 Radio.

They dont have it in stock they either say its back ordered or not out yet

 

[knobby]

They dont have it in stock they either say its back ordered or not out yet

.....

 

[kctyphoon]

I get to the last part of checkout on tool orbit and it doesn't say that.. Am I missing something?

 

[djdaredevil]

I get to the last part of checkout on tool orbit and it doesn't say that.. Am I missing something?

I asked them if they were in stock. Because even Dewalts dealers show them online but they say on the page theyre not available. One of them is taking preorders I think. Maybe the other places are drop shippers and would just treat it like a back order.

 

[Cruzomatic]

I have the Dewalt 18v line and just bought some "dewalt batteries" from Amazon and they look just like the expensive ones in the store except the label and thus far they are working well.

 

[skruft]

As an amateur, it makes no sense for me to replace all the tools, so I use Chinese batteries.

 

[LumpyMusic]

Amazon prices as I type this -

All 18v...

DeWalt 2.4 Ah NiCad [single] ... $50

Tenergy 2.2 Ah, 15 pc sub C NiCad batteries for rebuilding ... $35

ExpertPower 3.0 Ah NiMh ... $33

Prices are all rounded up 1 or 2 cents to the nearest dollar and extrapolated for singles/doubles. All include shipping.


Sgt Lumpy

 

[Tscott]

After all my research and reading comments here, it would seem that rebuilding them yourself may save a bit of money, but in a world where my time in the shop is seldom less than an hour or two at a time, I'd rather buy new ones and move on with more interesting projects. With that said, I think I'm going to try a little experiment. I plan to buy a 2 pack of the OEM batteries and a 2 pack of the Chinese knockoffs. I'll mark the purchase date on both sets and see which type fairs better over the next few years.

Tom

 

[woody 73]

Here you go guys $53 for 2 batteries with 4.5 stars
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00P0N64RA/?tag=atomicindus08-20
They should get you by until that adapter comes out.

Many thanks for that link, like getting a free battery instead of paying $100.00 dollars for two plus tax.

 

[djdaredevil]

Many thanks for that link, like getting a free battery instead of paying $100.00 dollars for two plus tax.

Glad to be of service.

 

[csp]

Many thanks for that link, like getting a free battery instead of paying $100.00 dollars for two plus tax.

The link LumpyMusic gave in post #3 is for a longer lasting battery of better technology (NiMH vs NiCad) for just a few bucks more.

 

[djdaredevil]

I didnt even notice his link or I probably wouldnt have posted the one I did. The link I posted was a 3 second search. LOL