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battery question

775 views 13 replies 10 participants last post by  Karda 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
I have a Kobalt 24V drill. will it damage the battery to leave it on the charger over night
 
#4 · (Edited by Moderator)
It should be fine. Li-Ion batteries cannot handle over charging and require a very smart charger to prevent them from exploding. Once the battery is fully charged, the charger should shut down completely, or alternatively, monitor the charge and only provide a short 'topping' charge when necessary. There is no such thing as 'trickle charge' with Li-Ion. The manual for your drill does not specify any charger specific details, so how it behaves at full charge is unknown.

Having said that - IMO, it is still a good idea to remove the battery once fully charged. If the charger should malfunction, you could wind up with a very serious situation. YMMV.

Cheers,
Brad
 
#7 ·
I have always seen where some put elaborate timers and cut off switches on battery chargers. Me, I just plug the battery in until I need it again and forget about it. I just don't think it is an issue anymore. The old batteries and chargers I am sure are long gone now…except for those owned by timer and cutoff crowd.
 
#9 ·
It should not as Li does not have the memory issues of NiCad or Ni-M-H Both the chargers and battery chips monidor the temp and current and protect them from run-away. BUT: Rechargers are infamous for starting fires. It is advisable to only leave them on when you are around.
 
#11 ·
I leave mine on the charger for weeks or months at a time. Not saying its a good idea but I do. I did upgrade to a dual charger for my Ridgid tools though. I'm not sure I would trust the free charger that came with some of them the same way.

I doubt I would ever go thru the trouble of a timer but if/when I get to redo electrical I wouldn't mind a couple outlets that get turned on/off with the outer bank of overhead lights.
 
#12 ·
I have my chargers on a timer (60 minutes/day), but my reasons are because my chargers turn off when the batteries are fully charged. To get them charging again, like if the battery has been sitting on them for a month or more w/o being used, I have to pull the battery off, them reinstall to start the charge cycle again. Having the timer automatically resets the chargers each day so the batteries can be "topped off" and always ready.

My chargers are Milwaukee (one LIon and one NMH), other chargers may be designed to properly turn back on for topping off periodically.

The battery type that needs a constant float charge is lead-acid, but I'm unaware of any cordless hand tools that may use those 8^)
 
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