Cordless Power Tools

This post is the first in a series highlighting 18 volt cordless tools series available from major tool manufactures, starting with Ryobi. Lets cut to the chase, what is the initial factor that drives people to buy Ryobi tools. In my humble opinion and solely based on my personal actions in the past, it is price. The Ryobi tool price point is by far the best in the tool business. By business I mean major cordless tool manufacturers, not your K-Mart or Target store brand. If you want a cheap tool that will not go the distance by all means, run to your local discount giant. If you want a lower price cordless tool that does what it is meant to do and last for years, then you should look for the Ryobi Tools name.

Ryobi has nicknamed its 18 volt cordless system as One+ 18V. What are they trying to get at with this name. One battery to power all of your cordless tools, that is there message. It should actually read Two+ now that their Lithium Ion batteries have hit the Ryobi Tools scene. All Ryobi cordless tools can use either the old NiCad batteries or the new Lith Ion batteries.

Let me better explain the “all Ryobi tools” remark. Until recently if you saw a blue cordless tool, your first reaction would be “that’s it is a Ryobi tool“. Well, that is now their old model cordless tool. Don’t be so quick to say “My Ryobi tools are old? I just bought them”. Good news for “old model” users, you can take advantage of the new Lithium Ion batteries the same as the new models. Both NiCad and Lithium Ion batteries fit in both the new and old Ryobi tool models.

The “new” model Ryobi tools are a bright green color. Don’t ask me why they did this, Hitachi tools are already known for the green color. Color trade marking aside, the new tools do offer advantages over the old. The new Ryobi 18v Lithium Ion tools are optimized for weight and balance. Although the new Lith Ion batteries are what make this optimization possible you can still plug the old Ni-Cad battery in if you are in a bind.

So a good question might be, “What tools are available from Ryobi tools”. Here is the short list.

Green Ryobi tools (new)

• 18 Volt Lithium Ion Battery
• 18 Volt Charger (Charges both Ni Cad and Lith Ion)
• 18 Volt Drill
• 18 Volt Circular Saw
• 18 Volt Reciprocating Saw
• 18 Volt Worklight

Blue Ryobi Tools (old, sort of)

• 18 Volt Ni Cad Battery
• 18 Volt Charger (only charges Ni Cad)
• 18 Volt Drill
• 18 Volt Hammer Drill
• 18 Volt Right Angle Drill
• 18 Volt Impact Driver
• 18 Volt Circular Saw
• 18 Volt Reciprocating Saw
• 18 Volt Angle Grinder
• 18 Volt Worklight
• 18 Volt Jig Saw
• 18 Volt Hand Planer
• 18 Volt Rotary Cutter (zip saw)
• 18 Volt Laminate trimmer
• 18 Volt Random Orbital Sander
• 18 Volt “Corner Cat” Finish Sander
• 18 Volt Stapler
• 18 Volt Wet/Dry Canister Vac
• 18 Volt Portable Fan
• 18 Volt Dual Function Inflator
• 18 Volt Caulk and Adhesive Gun
• 18 Volt Wet/Dry Hand Vac
• 18 Volt High Intensity Spot Light
• 18 Volt Blower
• 18 Volt Chain Saw
• 18 Volt Pole Pruner
• 18 Volt Home and Garden Sprayer
• 18 Volt Hedge Trimmer
• 18 Volt String Trimmer
• 18 Volt Car Buffer

I guess that was actually the long list. As you can see from the not so short list above, the New Lithium Ion Ryobi Tools or Green Ryobi, has a way to go. Like I said earlier, the good news is that you can purchase a Ryobi Lithium Ion upgrade kit now. This will allow you to start utilizing the benefits of Lithium Ion tool battery Immediately. As time goes by I certain that Ryobi tools will be redesigning their entire range of old “blue” tools and optimizing them for weight and balance transforming them into cool new “green” tools.

Old or New, Blue or Green, Ryobi 18 volt Cordless Tools is where you want to be for the best price and features.

Charging a cordless tool battery seems like it would be an easy thing to do. Something that many of us have probably done time after time. Step one, remove the battery from the cordless tool as soon as you are done using it. Step two plug the battery into the charger that came with the cordless power tool. Step three let the battery sit on the charger until the next time you need to use the tool.

I know this does not seem like a helpful article thus far. I have just told everyone how to do what they already know. What you don’t know is this is not the best practice for charging your batteries. (Unless you are using the new Lithium Ion power tools) There are 2 things wrong with that step by step guide, can you spot them?

The standard battery for cordless tools (until recently) has been the Nickel Cadmium or NiCad battery. Cordless tool Ni Cad technology has been evolving since its inception, but it still suffers from a few side effects that can be easily negated if you know more about how the battery works.

NiCad battery side effect number one, memory. When you place a Nickel Cadmium tool battery on the charger before the battery has completely discharged, you are creating battery memory. What exactly does this mean. The battery just remembered the point at which it was discharged and thinks that this point is the point of full battery discharge. The battery will remember how much it had to charge from this point to get back to a full charge.

This will not happen over night. It will not happen the first time you place a half discharged cordless tool battery on the charger. If you are an avid weekend warrior or even if you only use your tools once a month. The odds are that you are used to placing your tool batteries back on the charger so that they have a full charge the next time you need them. This is your bane, the time and time again half charges will eventually lead to your batteries only holding a half charge at max charge.

So what should you do. That is actually an easy answer. Buy more batteries for your cordless tools. Always wait until your Ni-Cad battery fully discharges and then replace it with your spare and fully charged tool battery. You are ready to go, and you will never run into battery memory again.

NiCad battery side effect number two, overcharge damage. Simply put, if you keep your cordless power tool batteries on a standard charger until the next time you need it, you will shorten the total life of the battery. I say a standard charger because this is the normal single battery charger that comes with cordless tools. Most of the chargers that come with say cordless drill, are single cycle full power chargers. These chargers are meant for fast charging and removal when the tool battery is full. So what happens when you leave the battery on the cordless tool charger until the next time you need to use it. You will have been sending full charging power to the battery for too long and be over charging. You will notice that the battery will be very hot when you take it off the charger, this is bad and this will shorten the life of your battery.

What is the solution. Simple again, buy a two stage battery charger. Stage one, charge the battery at full power until it is full. Stage two, detect when the battery is full and adjust power to a trickle just enough to keep the battery at full charge for an extended time. With a dual stage battery charger, you can leave the battery on the charger for as long as you like with no damage. What’s more is you will not have a hot battery to put back into your cordless tool, that is good.

With a few simple changes or should I say with a few simple purchases, you can insure a long life for all of your NiCad cordless tool batteries.

What Voltage Do I Need

DeWalt has a large range of cordless power tools but it also has an extensive range of different voltages to go with it. You can choose from 3.6V, 7.2V, 9.6V, 12V, 14.4V, 18V, 24V, 28V and 36V. This range is much larger than many competitor brands. With so many different voltage amounts to choose from it can be quite worrying if you are choosing the right ones for your cordless power tool needs.

The basic thing to consider when choosing the right voltage for your cordless tool is what you need your cordless tool for. Most people choose their cordless power tools to enable them to do work outside or away from an outlet. This means you want the same power as a corded power tool without the tangle of a wire. Thankfully, DeWalt has produced their strongest voltage model yet, the DeWalt 36 volt lithium-ion battery pack comes with as much power as a corded tool and still maintains a lightweight body. This allows for easy cordless drilling without the arm ache and without poor or slow progress due to an inadequate drill speed.

At the other end of the scale, low voltage batteries are typically cheaper and smaller or lighter so they aren’t as effective when it comes to power but they can hold their own as a lightweight affordable alternative for your corded tools.

DeWalt has also launched a new 28 volt battery that deserves some attention. A lower voltage than 36 volts it’s slightly cheaper but with more volts than the 24 volt range it still packs a punch that’s almost as good as the 36 volt battery. The other great thing about this battery is that it’s part of their new lithium-ion battery range which offers long lasting performance and reliability. This battery lasts over 2,000 charge cycles on average.

The entire DeWalt battery range for DeWalt cordless power tools are all designed to be tough and durable and have the reliability you come to expect from DeWalt products. If you are looking for a lightweight, affordable and long lasting product you should try out the lower voltage ranges. However, if you do heavy duty work or industrial work with your cordless power tools you should consider a durable high power alternative such as the 28 volt and 36 volt varieties.