Two types of Charger required?

[Cisco-man]

I’ve got a lot of Lithium batteries. My power tools have them, some household appliances have them, and now our bikes have them. I don’t use them all the time and especially over winter months a few get ignored for a while - to their detriment. I’m loath to spend time once a month going round them all - charging them up all up to probably too much charge. Do they not have chargers available that you can leave connected to the battery, and it just periodically tickles them up to (say) 60% charge without drama, or attention required from me?

 

[flecc]

I’ve got a lot of Lithium batteries. My power tools have them, some household appliances have them, and now our bikes have them. I don’t use them all the time and especially over winter months a few get ignored for a while - to their detriment. I’m loath to spend time once a month going round them all - charging them up all up to probably too much charge. Do they not have chargers available that you can leave connected to the battery, and it just periodically tickles them up to (say) 60% charge without drama, or attention required from me?

Not that I know of, but two monthly is frequent enough for any lithium ion battery. Like you I have a large range of these batteries and have been charging only on the even months each year since the 1990s. No part charging, just letting them all fill each time and I've yet to have any one of them fail from that cause, so too much charge has never been an issue.

They include a hardly ever used Nokia 1112 phone battery from 2006, three vacuum cleaner batteries from circa 2014 and my cameras batteries, a couple from 2011. The earliest was the one battery for a Sharp 702 portable Minidisc player which was charged other month from February 1999 to February 2012 when I finally scrapped Minidisc use, but it could still play a full length disc with capacity to spare.
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[Charliefox]

Not that I know of, but two monthly is frequent enough for any lithium ion battery. Like you I have a large range of these batteries and have been charging only on the even months each year since the 1990s. No part charging, just letting them all fill each time and I've yet to have any one of them fail from that cause, so too much charge has never been an issue.

They include a hardly ever used Nokia 1112 phone battery from 2006, three vacuum cleaner batteries from circa 2014 and my cameras batteries, a couple from 2011. The earliest was the one battery for a Sharp 702 portable Minidisc player which was charged other month from February 1999 to February 2012 when I finally scrapped Minidisc use, but it could still play a full length disc with capacity to spare.
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Is it just me, or do you find this rush to make all tools battery operated a bit over the top? They are heavier to hold and do not stay at max power like corded tools do. More expensive even without the battery, which may well become an obsolete shape in a few short years. I have never had a problem with mains powered stuff even at 50m from the plug. The few extra minutes to rewind the cable after use is no worse than the time to recharge the batteries.

 

[matthewslack]

Is it just me, or do you find this rush to make all tools battery operated a bit over the top? They are heavier to hold and do not stay at max power like corded tools do. More expensive even without the battery, which may well become an obsolete shape in a few short years. I have never had a problem with mains powered stuff even at 50m from the plug. The few extra minutes to rewind the cable after use is no worse than the time to recharge the batteries.

I'm impressed by the capability of modern cordless power tools, and by the use of a common battery across the range of tools...as long as you commit to one of the quality brands, or the increasingly capable Lidl range.

Two batteries and a quick charger support my whole range of tools, and with intermittent heavy and light use periods, my oldest are 12 years and going strong.

I buy new tools if I need the reassurance at the start of a serious piece of work, but more often slightly secondhand for something exotic that I might not use so much.

 

[Nealh]

Cordless tools are so much more portable and easier to use , no need for 110v on site or trailing extension leads.
I use ryobi 1+ muitple tools using the same battery , my original nicads gave up the ghost a few years ago but the lithiums packs I have now some are 14 years old and still hold charge and hold power very well.

My ryobi mower is still corded but the hedge trimmer, strimmer , drill driver , right angle drill, sds drill, hand vac , mouse sander , recipricating saw, air pump etc ,etc are all using the same four batteries .

 

[flecc]

Is it just me, or do you find this rush to make all tools battery operated a bit over the top? They are heavier to hold and do not stay at max power like corded tools do. More expensive even without the battery, which may well become an obsolete shape in a few short years. I have never had a problem with mains powered stuff even at 50m from the plug. The few extra minutes to rewind the cable after use is no worse than the time to recharge the batteries.

I tend to agree, but not for some things where mains cables are a always a damn nuisance. For example vacuum cleaners and hedge trimmers. And of course in our 200 acre nature reserve there's no mains so it's either a stinking, noisy two stroke or a clean battery electric chainsaw.
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[Charliefox]

I tend to agree, but not for some things where mains cables are a always a damn nuisance. For example vacuum cleaners and hedge trimmers. And of course in our 200 acre nature reserve there's no mains so it's either a stinking, noisy two stroke or a clean battery electric chainsaw.
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I must agree with you there except for the vacuum cleaner. We have never looked back since buying a British made Henry. The cable rewind is totally foolproof and needs only a human hand! The on/off switch is a non fancy job unlike the one on our last, expensive, Miele which failed just after the warrenty ran out and a nightmare to replace. As a bonus the Henry bags are huge, available everyhere and cheap.

 

[flecc]

I must agree with you there except for the vacuum cleaner. We have never looked back since buying a British made Henry. The cable rewind is totally foolproof and needs only a human hand! The on/off switch is a non fancy job unlike the one on our last, expensive, Miele which failed just after the warrenty ran out and a nightmare to replace. As a bonus the Henry bags are huge, available everyhere and cheap.

Some agreement, I know the Henry is well regarded, but I have two bagless vaccuum cleaners so no benefit for me. Agree on Miele products, their service vans seem to almost live here attending to various neighbours broken down washers etc.
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