Have you even wondered how much battery life is left in your old power tool batteries? Well, I do. I bought into the Ryobi line of tools 15+ years ago. I have some batteries that are 10+ years old. I decided to buy a battery load tester to see how well some of my old Ryobi batteries are holding up. Of course, the battery load test would work with any brand power tool batteries.
Here is the MakerHawk Electronic Load Tester USB Load Tester 150W 200V 20A Resistor Adjustable Constant Current Battery Capacity Tester Module Intelligent Discharge Resistance Power Tester which I purchased, used, from Amazon for $39. A new unit sells for $49, but I like to save money where I can.
Here is a YouTube video describing how to set up your load tester to run a capacity test on your power tool batteries. NOTE: For my Ryobi power tool batteries, the battery pack BMS (Battery Management System) will automatically shut down the battery pack at a safe level so it can be recharged normally. You do not have to worry about draining the battery dead.
I have started testing some of my old Ryobi batteries and these are the initial results I got from a random 2 batteries.
40v, 4.0Ah LI battery 3 years old tested out at 3.40Ah (85%)
18v, 1.5Ah LI battery 8 years old tested out at 1.1Ah (73%)
I was overall pleased with these results as I use the crap out of my batteries, and they are still holding up pretty well after years of use.
Now that I know how to use this load tester and measure the capacity of my batteries, I plan on ordering an off brand Ryobi knock off and capacity test the pack to see if it is anywhere near their rated selling claims. I suspect not. But an off brand Ryobi knock off 40v battery is about 1/3 the cost of a genuine Ryobi battery, so I might give it a try.
FYI, in a separate thread, I mentioned that I had purchased an Amazon off brand Ryobi 40v battery for my chainsaw. First one failed at half charge. Repalcement battery sent as exchange but it also failed at half charge. So, I returned it for a full refund. Keep your return receipt, as seller claimed I never sent it back! Scam alert on some Amazon resellers!
Do you need a battery capacity load tester? Probably not. But I just wanted to see how well my old batteries are actually holding up. I figure if I get my 3 years warranty use out of the battery, they have lived up to their guarantee. I was pretty happy to see that an 8 year old battery is still good for 73% of it's rated capacity if new.
I'd be happy to answer any questions or comments anyone has. Understand that a battery testing thread on a chicken forum might not be the hot topic for most. But lots of us DIYer's use battery powered tools for our chicken coop builds and projects. Thanks for reading.
Here is the MakerHawk Electronic Load Tester USB Load Tester 150W 200V 20A Resistor Adjustable Constant Current Battery Capacity Tester Module Intelligent Discharge Resistance Power Tester which I purchased, used, from Amazon for $39. A new unit sells for $49, but I like to save money where I can.
Here is a YouTube video describing how to set up your load tester to run a capacity test on your power tool batteries. NOTE: For my Ryobi power tool batteries, the battery pack BMS (Battery Management System) will automatically shut down the battery pack at a safe level so it can be recharged normally. You do not have to worry about draining the battery dead.
I have started testing some of my old Ryobi batteries and these are the initial results I got from a random 2 batteries.
40v, 4.0Ah LI battery 3 years old tested out at 3.40Ah (85%)
18v, 1.5Ah LI battery 8 years old tested out at 1.1Ah (73%)
I was overall pleased with these results as I use the crap out of my batteries, and they are still holding up pretty well after years of use.
Now that I know how to use this load tester and measure the capacity of my batteries, I plan on ordering an off brand Ryobi knock off and capacity test the pack to see if it is anywhere near their rated selling claims. I suspect not. But an off brand Ryobi knock off 40v battery is about 1/3 the cost of a genuine Ryobi battery, so I might give it a try.
FYI, in a separate thread, I mentioned that I had purchased an Amazon off brand Ryobi 40v battery for my chainsaw. First one failed at half charge. Repalcement battery sent as exchange but it also failed at half charge. So, I returned it for a full refund. Keep your return receipt, as seller claimed I never sent it back! Scam alert on some Amazon resellers!
Do you need a battery capacity load tester? Probably not. But I just wanted to see how well my old batteries are actually holding up. I figure if I get my 3 years warranty use out of the battery, they have lived up to their guarantee. I was pretty happy to see that an 8 year old battery is still good for 73% of it's rated capacity if new.
I'd be happy to answer any questions or comments anyone has. Understand that a battery testing thread on a chicken forum might not be the hot topic for most. But lots of us DIYer's use battery powered tools for our chicken coop builds and projects. Thanks for reading.