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Post by Ken on Sept 23, 2020 11:02:19 GMT -6
On the blueboard there was a thread about this and I mentioned that I dislike battery-operated tools because the batteries were either dead when I needed them or only worked for a short time and then I had to recharge them and wait. We also had a Dyson stick vacuum and the battery life went from maybe 15 minutes to 10 to 5 to about 20 seconds. As a result I now have a corded drill and a corded stick vacuum. For landscaping I have an electric edger/trimmer and an electric leaf blower. I also have a 100' extension cord and it really sucks using it. I saw my neighbor with some cordless landscaping tools so I decided to check Amazon. I found a $100 pack that included an edger/trimmer and leafblower and two batteries. Black & Decker. Sold. They arrived last weekend. Yesterday I went to cut the grass and I just needed to cut it with my gas mower, no trimming. But the cul-de-sac was looking a little fluffy so I used the trimmer on that. Maybe 5-10 minutes of use. The trimmer seemed mildly underpowered but it was nice having no cord. Then I cut the cul-de-sac and my lawn with my gas mower and then I used the leafblower in the front and back. I used one of the batteries which was fully-charged prior to use. I did not finish using the leafblower... the battery was spent. So 5-10 minutes of trimmer and maybe 5-10 minutes of leafblower and the battery was dead. This is not progress.  I realize I have another battery but that is pretty weak. Also, when I have to trim my property, I would use the trimmer for much more than 5-10 minutes so it's basically one battery for trimming and then another battery for the leafblower and then charge them both back up for the next time. Seems wimpy. Did I just buy cheap stuff? |
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Post by drez on Sept 23, 2020 11:27:47 GMT -6
I love battery tools. I have Bosch and Ryobi. For the ryobi I have a string trimmer, pole chainsaw, leaf blower and a bunch of regular tools. On one battery I can string trim my entire 1 acre yard and I have a fair amount of trimming. I love love love them. I see no need to have corded tools to be honest. I still have some but do not plan to get anymore really. Lithium Ion batteries are only getting better.
Also, the shed I built was with all cordless minus the air nailer and miter saw. The trim work I am doing is with a cordless air nailer.
Buy different stuff!
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Post by Ken on Sept 23, 2020 11:50:49 GMT -6
These are lithium ion batteries. Maybe they just don't hold much of a charge.
I remember having a Ryobi cordless drill. I would keep the battery charged. Then go get the drill and the battery and start working. 10 minutes into the project the drill is getting slower and slower and it eventually stops and I have to recharge the battery which could take hours. Even if I had a second battery I feel like I would still need more power before the second battery went down. I assume batteries are getting better but they still have a lifespan for sure. Obviously I love my BT speaker, phone, tablet, etc. and those batteries seem to last a long time. This Pixel 3A that I have... at first the battery would go from 100% in the morning to between 85% and 90% by that night. I was amazed! But now (a little over a year old now) I'm at 55% by 10pm, give or take. The batteries change over time for sure.
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Post by drez on Sept 23, 2020 12:00:04 GMT -6
What amp-hour batteries are you running. I must have a dozen or more batteries for all my stuff so I always have charged ones. Even with a skill-saw I did not change it more than a couple times a day. I have not had issues like you describe since the days of nicad.
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Post by Ken on Sept 23, 2020 12:06:24 GMT -6
 Can I just get heavier-duty/higher capacity batteries? I see THIS. Better? |
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Post by Ken on Sept 23, 2020 12:16:32 GMT -6
I will also mention this: I was about 95% done with my leafblowing and while it was working it just stopped. I thought "no way the battery could be dead this quickly" so I turned it off and then back on and the leafblower fired up... but only for about another 10 seconds and then it turned off again and at that point I shrugged and said, "Okay, I'm done". Could the battery have been seated improperly or was it loose? I think it was in there correctly and tightly. We're having people over this weekend and I will be trimming/edging and leafblowing my whole yard and I will get a better feel for it then.
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Post by drez on Sept 23, 2020 12:19:43 GMT -6
The 3.0AH will be better than the 1.5AH that is for sure. The one issue with a LiION battery is it is charged then it is not. They fall off fast and that is why you saw that on then off. When you plugged it back in you got a smidge of life but there was not really any left.
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Post by Ken on Sept 23, 2020 12:23:42 GMT -6
The 3.0AH will be better than the 1.5AH that is for sure. The one issue with a LiION battery is it is charged then it is not. They fall off fast and that is why you saw that on then off. When you plugged it back in you got a smidge of life but there was not really any left. Makes sense. I should have realized that 1.5ah = weak. I'm going to see how they perform this weekend and if I am unhappy I will pick up the 3.0ah jobbies. Yesterday I used the same battery on both devices. I should just use a fresh battery on each device and it would probably be okay. |
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Post by chils on Sept 24, 2020 7:30:10 GMT -6
Ken, I think we both followed the path of the ni-cad battery tools that never worked when we needed them. I ended up with all corded tools as well. A couple years ago my FIL gave me a Ryobi cordless screwdriver with Li-ion battery and it really changed my view on battery tools.
He gave me a Ryobi jigsaw with their 18V li-ion battery and I ended up buying other Ryobi One stuff to use the batteries in. I'm really happy with them. They hold their charge on the shelf, quickly charge, and last a pretty good amount of use time.
Like Drez said--when they are discharged it's like you flipped a light switch. That's much better than them slowly winding down like the ni-cads though because you have full (or near full) power right up until they need a recharge.
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Post by drez on Sept 24, 2020 8:32:05 GMT -6
Ken, I think we both followed the path of the ni-cad battery tools that never worked when we needed them. I ended up with all corded tools as well. A couple years ago my FIL gave me a Ryobi cordless screwdriver with Li-ion battery and it really changed my view on battery tools. He gave me a Ryobi jigsaw with their 18V li-ion battery and I ended up buying other Ryobi One stuff to use the batteries in. I'm really happy with them. They hold their charge on the shelf, quickly charge, and last a pretty good amount of use time. Like Drez said--when they are discharged it's like you flipped a light switch. That's much better than them slowly winding down like the ni-cads though because you have full (or near full) power right up until they need a recharge. One nice thing about a lot of the batteries too is they have a built in gauge so you can see where the charge level is. |
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Post by Ken on Sept 24, 2020 9:26:45 GMT -6
Ken, I think we both followed the path of the ni-cad battery tools that never worked when we needed them. I ended up with all corded tools as well. A couple years ago my FIL gave me a Ryobi cordless screwdriver with Li-ion battery and it really changed my view on battery tools. He gave me a Ryobi jigsaw with their 18V li-ion battery and I ended up buying other Ryobi One stuff to use the batteries in. I'm really happy with them. They hold their charge on the shelf, quickly charge, and last a pretty good amount of use time. Like Drez said--when they are discharged it's like you flipped a light switch. That's much better than them slowly winding down like the ni-cads though because you have full (or near full) power right up until they need a recharge. One nice thing about a lot of the batteries too is they have a built in gauge so you can see where the charge level is. Not the case here. Another thing is that these batteries have a light on them that blinks when they're charging and is solid green when it's fully charged. But last night I took one and left it on the charger overnight and this morning I swapped them and I'll leave the second one on there all day just to make sure they're fully charged. This weekend I'll see how they perform and I'll decide on larger/better batteries at that point. Thanks for the direction guys. |
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Post by chils on Sept 24, 2020 9:27:33 GMT -6
Ken, I think we both followed the path of the ni-cad battery tools that never worked when we needed them. I ended up with all corded tools as well. A couple years ago my FIL gave me a Ryobi cordless screwdriver with Li-ion battery and it really changed my view on battery tools. He gave me a Ryobi jigsaw with their 18V li-ion battery and I ended up buying other Ryobi One stuff to use the batteries in. I'm really happy with them. They hold their charge on the shelf, quickly charge, and last a pretty good amount of use time. Like Drez said--when they are discharged it's like you flipped a light switch. That's much better than them slowly winding down like the ni-cads though because you have full (or near full) power right up until they need a recharge. One nice thing about a lot of the batteries too is they have a built in gauge so you can see where the charge level is. I did notice that there are gauges on the new Ryobi stuff. Neat feature. |
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Post by shaggaroo on Sept 24, 2020 11:21:11 GMT -6
I've got the Craftsman 20V MAX, battery operated stuff. Weedwhacker, small circular saw, jigsaw. Works well.
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Post by Ken on Sept 24, 2020 12:25:10 GMT -6
I've got the Craftsman 20V MAX, battery operated stuff. Weedwhacker, small circular saw, jigsaw. Works well. Do you happen to know the size of the battery? Mine is this 1.5ah and I see that there are 2.0ah and 3.0ah and I wonder if this is the issue. Maybe my stuff just came with cheap batteries like a device that comes with it's own offbrand batteries like DURASELL or EVERYREADY or ENGERGIZER or RAY-O-WAC.  |
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Post by shaggaroo on Sept 24, 2020 15:32:14 GMT -6
I've got the Craftsman 20V MAX, battery operated stuff. Weedwhacker, small circular saw, jigsaw. Works well. Do you happen to know the size of the battery? Mine is this 1.5ah and I see that there are 2.0ah and 3.0ah and I wonder if this is the issue. Maybe my stuff just came with cheap batteries like a device that comes with it's own offbrand batteries like DURASELL or EVERYREADY or ENGERGIZER or RAY-O-WAC. Mine are 2.0 Ah... thought about getting a 4.0 Ah but those suckers are expensive. |
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I realize I have another battery but that is pretty weak. Also, when I have to trim my property, I would use the trimmer for much more than 5-10 minutes so it's basically one battery for trimming and then another battery for the leafblower and then charge them both back up for the next time. Seems wimpy. Did I just buy cheap stuff?
