Hyper Tough 20v Charger

Everything You Need to Know Before Getting This Must-Have Accessory

If you’re the proud owner of any Hyper Tough 20v power tools, you know how invaluable it is to have extra batteries fully charged and ready to go. But to keep those lithium-ion batteries in top shape, you need a good charger. That’s where the Hyper Tough 20v charger comes in.

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I’ve been using Hyper Tough tools around my home for years now. And while the tools themselves rarely let me down, I’ve gone through a couple different chargers trying to find the best one. After testing some duds and dealing with a lot of frustration, I finally found the official Hyper Tough 20v charger. It’s become an essential part of my tool kit – one I highly recommend to any Hyper Tough DIYer or pro.

If you’re looking to buy the Hyper Tough 20v battery charger, you probably have a lot of questions. How fast does it charge? How many batteries can it handle at once? Will it work with your existing batteries? Does it actually live up to the hype? This guide will answer all those key questions and more so you can make an informed buying decision. I’ll tell you everything I wish I knew before getting the Hyper Tough 20v charger myself.

An Overview of the Hyper Tough 20v Charger and What It Does

The Hyper Tough 20v charger is designed specifically for use with Hyper Tough 20v MAX lithium-ion batteries. This includes the popular 20v 2Ah, 4Ah, and 6Ah battery packs used across the Hyper Tough power tool line.

The charger features a compact, lightweight plastic housing that sits upright on your workbench or shelf. There are charging bays for two batteries at once – super convenient when you need to power through projects with minimal downtime.

It automatically detects voltages and adapts the charging rate as needed for fast, efficient charging. Hyper Tough rates it to fully charge a 4Ah battery in just 60 minutes. And you can expect a 2Ah battery to be topped up in around 30-40 minutes. The charger LED changes from red to green to let you know when charging is complete.

Most importantly, the Hyper Tough 20v charger is made to be compatible with all genuine Hyper Tough batteries. So no matter if your batteries came with a drill, saw, weed whacker, or other tools – the charger will seamlessly charge them. This avoids any compatibility headaches down the road.

Key Specs and Features of the Hyper Tough 20v Charger

Here are the need-to-know specs and features that make the Hyper Tough 20v charger stand out:

• Dual battery ports: The two charging bays let you charge a pair of batteries at the same time. No more waiting around for a single battery to charge!
• Rapid charging: Hyper Tough says you can expect a full charge in just 60 minutes for 4Ah batteries. That kind of speedy charging means less downtime.
• LED indicator lights: The LEDs indicate charging status (red for charging, green for fully charged). This makes it easy to monitor progress.
• Built-in overload protection: This safety feature prevents issues from overheating during charging. It will shut off charging if it detects too much heat buildup.
• Overcharge protection: It also automatically stops charging once your battery is fully juiced up. This avoids potential damage from overcharging.
• Sleep mode: The charger enters sleep mode after 30 minutes of inactivity to conserve energy.
• Universal voltage: The power adapter accommodates 100V to 240V input voltages. So it works internationally with a simple plug adapter.
• Light and portable: At just 1.1 lbs, the charger is easy to move around and pack in your tool bag.
• Warranty: Hyper Tough provides a 2-year limited warranty for peace of mind.

As you can see, the key perks are quick charging times, dual battery bays, universal voltage, built-in protection modes, and portability. It has the essential features you want in a lithium battery charger.

Battery Compatibility: Which Batteries Work with This Charger?

I know first-hand how frustrating it is to buy a new charger, only to find out it’s not compatible with your existing batteries. So I always check compatibility before making a purchase.

The good news is Hyper Tough designed this charger to work seamlessly with all genuine Hyper Tough 20v MAX batteries. This includes the popular 2Ah, 4Ah, and 6Ah lithium-ion battery packs.

So as long as your batteries are from Hyper Tough’s own 20v tool lineup, you should have no issues using them with this charger. I’ve personally used it to charge 2Ah slide batteries, 4Ah packs from my drill/driver kit, and 6Ah batteries from my weed trimmer – with perfect results.

It’s also designed for 20v MAX batteries only – so don’t expect 18v legacy batteries to work properly. Stick with any 20v battery from Hyper Tough’s lineup and you’ll be good to go.

The only time you may run into trouble is with cheaper off-brand replacement batteries. Some lack the circuitry to communicate properly with Hyper Tough’s chargers. So I recommend using only authentic Hyper Tough batteries if possible. But as long as the batteries are high-quality and designed for 20v tools, they should function with the charger.

Where to Buy the Hyper Tough 20v Charger

Wondering where to pick up the Hyper Tough 20v charger? Here are the best places to buy it:

• Walmart: As the exclusive seller of Hyper Tough tools, Walmart stores carry the 20v charger both in-store and online. That makes it really convenient to purchase. The best part is Walmart’s everyday low pricing – expect to pay just $20-25 for the charger.
• Amazon: Amazon usually has a good stock of Hyper Tough chargers. You’ll often pay a couple dollars more compared to Walmart. But the advantage is free 2-day Prime shipping if you have a membership. So it’s quick and easy if you can’t find it locally.
• Home Depot: Sometimes you can find Hyper Tough chargers at Home Depot, either on the shelves or available for order. The pricing is similar to Walmart. So Home Depot is another good alternative if your local store carries it.
• Hyper Tough Direct: You can purchase directly from the Hyper Tough website. But since they don’t sell directly to consumers, you’ll need to select a retailer like Walmart to complete your order. Stick with other major retailers for the best experience.

My personal recommendation is to check stock and prices at your nearest Walmart first. But if they don’t have the charger in-store, Amazon is your best bet for fast shipping.

How Much Does the Hyper Tough 20v Charger Cost?

One of the best things about Hyper Tough tools and accessories is they’re very budget-friendly. And the 20v charger is no exception.

Walmart usually has the lowest price in the $20-25 range. That makes it one of the most affordable lithium-ion battery chargers out there. Even cheaper third-party chargers typically cost $30 and up.

On Amazon, expect to pay around $25-30 depending on current pricing and availability. So you’ll pay a slight premium for the convenience of faster shipping.

Places like Home Depot typically price it similar to Walmart’s retail pricing. Though occasionally you may find it for a few dollars more or less there.

Basically, $20-30 is the typical price range for this charger. And I feel that’s an excellent value for a versatile, dual-port lithium-ion charger designed specifically for Hyper Tough batteries. It delivers fast charges at a wallet-friendly price point.

Charging Speed: How Long Does It Take to Fully Charge a Battery?

When you need to power through DIY projects and yardwork, having fully-charged batteries at the ready is a must. That’s why charging speed is such an important consideration when shopping for a replacement charger.

According to Hyper Tough, here are the estimated charging times for their 20v batteries:

• 2Ah battery: 30-40 minutes
• 4Ah battery: 60 minutes
• 6Ah battery: 90-120 minutes

So you can expect a full charge in around 1-2 hours depending on battery capacity. To me, that’s a perfect balance – fast enough to keep your tools running, without excess heat and wear on the batteries.

Some ultra-fast chargers may boast full charges in 30 mins or less. But repeatedly charging that fast can damage lithium-ion batteries over time, reducing their lifespan. The Hyper Tough 20v charger delivers optimal charging speed while promoting long-term battery health.

And with two charging bays, you can power through projects efficiently. Charge one battery while the other runs your tools. By the time the first battery depletes, the other will be charged and ready to go. For serious DIYers and professionals, having batteries continually charged and cycled through makes all the difference in productivity.

So although not as fast as some third-party chargers, the Hyper Tough model provides reliable, quick charging times perfect for keeping your tools running and batteries healthy.

Is It Compatible with Other Brand Batteries?

A common question I see about third-party replacement chargers is whether they work with batteries from other brands. Unfortunately, the Hyper Tough 20v charger is designed only for Hyper Tough lithium-ion batteries.

It will NOT work properly with batteries from other brands like DeWalt, Ryobi, Milwaukee, Craftsman, etc. Those batteries have different voltage requirements and circuitry that makes cross-brand charging unreliable.

Sticking with authentic Hyper Tough batteries is the only way to guarantee reliable charging. Off-brand or cheaper batteries marketed as “Hyper Tough” replacements may work, but I don’t recommend risking it. Batteries are the heart of your power tools – so use quality ones designed for the charger.

This charger is not universal or interchangeable between brands. But that focused compatibility is exactly why it charges Hyper Tough batteries so efficiently.

If you ever add other brands to your tool collection, you would need a separate charger designed for those batteries. But for a dedicated Hyper Tough system, this charger is purpose-built to keep your batteries running optimally.

What Input Voltage Is Needed?

Many DIYers and professionals travel with their power tools – whether transporting them to the job site or using them overseas. That’s why it’s important to understand the voltage requirements of your battery charger.

The good news is the Hyper Tough 20v charger has universal input voltage capabilities. That means it can handle between 100V to 240V power input without issues.

In the US and Canada, standard household voltage is 120V. But the charger is compatible with anything in the 100V to 240V range.

So with a simple plug adapter, you can use this charger internationally when traveling overseas. All you need is the correct physical adapter – the charger will handle the different voltages itself. I’ve used my Hyper Tough charger in Europe and Asia without any problems.

The universal input makes the charger very versatile. You won’t have to worry about voltage compatibility or look for step-up/down transformers when using it abroad. Just grab the right plug adapter and you’re all set!

Does It Have an Indicator Light?

Along with voltage requirements, many DIYers want to know about the indicator lights before buying a charger. After all, it’s nice to have a visual cue for charging status.

The Hyper Tough 20v charger has red and green LED indicator lights to show charging progress at a glance:

• Solid red light: The battery is charging
• Solid green light: The battery is fully charged

This provides a quick visual reference to check charging status. The lights correspond with each of the two battery bays.

I find it really helpful to be able to see if my battery is fully topped up with a quick look at the charger. Flashing indicator lights would also be useful to show charging progress. But the solid red/green LED lights cover the essentials.

Some reviewers complain the lights are a bit dim in brightly lit rooms. I haven’t had issues seeing them in my garage or basement. But you may want supplemental lighting if using in a brightly lit workshop. The lights do the job as long as you account for glare and brightness.

Step-By-Step: How to Use the Charger Correctly

Using the Hyper Tough charger is very straightforward. But it’s always good to run through the steps to ensure you use it correctly:

1. Insert your 20v Hyper Tough battery into one of the charging bays. The bays are compatible with 2Ah, 4Ah, and 6Ah battery sizes.
2. Make sure the battery clicks securely into place within the bay. You’ll know it’s properly inserted when it clicks and feels snug.
3. Plug the AC power adapter into the charging port on the back of the charger.
4. Plug the other end of the adapter into a 100V-240V power outlet.
5. The indicator light will turn solid red to indicate charging has started.
6. Allow the battery to charge until the light turns solid green, signaling a full charge.
7. Unplug the AC adapter when finished charging.
8. Remove the battery by pressing the release button and pulling it from the bay.
9. Repeat steps 1-8 to charge additional batteries as needed.

And that’s all there is to it! As long as you insert Hyper Tough 20v MAX batteries and use a compatible power outlet, the charger handles the rest automatically.

Just be sure not to exceed the two-battery charging limit. Only insert batteries into the designated bays while charging.

Safety Features and Certifications

Lithium-ion batteries store a high amount of energy. So it’s crucial your charger has proper safety protections built-in. Here are the key safety features of the Hyper Tough 20v charger:

• Overcharge protection – Prevents overcharging when battery is fully topped up
• Overload protection – Shuts off charging if overheating is detected
• Short circuit protection – Turns off power if a short circuit occurs
• Thermal monitoring – Monitors temperatures and adjusts charging as needed
• Safe charging – Designed to UL standards for lithium-ion battery safety
• CETL certified – Independent testing for electrical safety standards

These protections meet UL and CETL standards to keep charging safe and prevent issues like overheating, electrical shorts, etc. It gives me peace of mind knowing the charger is designed with safety in mind.

Link to Senix

The lack of safety certifications on some cheaper third-party chargers is exactly why I recommend sticking with the branded Hyper Tough model. Don’t take risks with knock-offs that may lack proper safeguards. Use the UL/CETL certified OEM charger for the best performance and safety.

Troubleshooting Tips: What To Do If Your Charger Has Issues

Even quality chargers can develop issues after prolonged use. Here are some troubleshooting tips if your Hyper Tough 20v charger stops working properly:

Battery Won’t Charge

• Check that the AC adapter is fully plugged into the outlet and charger
• Try charging a different battery to confirm the charger bays are functional
• Inspect the battery terminals for damage – clean with alcohol if dirty
• Ensure the battery is making secure contact within the bay

Charging Is Very Slow

• Older batteries may charge slower due to cell wear – test with a newer battery
• Make sure the charger isn’t overheating during use
• Try charging the battery individually in each bay

LED Indicator Not Working

• Try charging a different battery – the LED could be broken only for one bay
• Check that the AC adapter is properly plugged in
• Contact Hyper Tough support if LEDs still don’t function

Makes Clicking Noise During Charging

• This can indicate a connection problem with the battery or charger
• Try cleaning the battery terminals with alcohol and inspect for damage
• Charge the battery in the other bay to isolate the issue

Other Issues

• Unplug the charger and allow it to reset for 10-15 minutes
• Contact Hyper Tough customer support for further troubleshooting
• Consider replacing the charger if issues persist after troubleshooting

Following basic troubleshooting steps can fix most common problems. But if issues continue even after trying these fixes, replacement may be needed. Contact Hyper Tough support regarding warranty replacement.

Is the Hyper Tough Charger Energy Efficient?

With rising energy costs, many consumers want chargers that conserve electricity when possible. So how does the Hyper Tough model stack up?

Overall, it has decent energy efficiency:

• Sleep mode – Enters low-power mode after 30 mins of no battery insertion
• Auto voltage – Detects battery input needs instead of overcharging
• 2 hour auto shut-off – Full shut down after 2 hours inactive
• Standby power – Uses 0.1W or less in standby

These features help reduce power use when not actively charging batteries. The auto shut-off and sleep mode are particularly helpful for conserving electricity.

That said, there are more energy efficient chargers available. Some use “smart” technology to monitor and adjust energy consumption during charging. More versatile commercial chargers often have additional efficiency modes.

For a basic consumer charger, the Hyper Tough model strikes a reasonable balance. But hardcore energy savers may want a more advanced commercial-grade charger. For most DIYers this charger gets the job done while saving some power.

Does It Come with a Battery?

Unfortunately, the Hyper Tough 20v charger itself does not come bundled with any batteries. It’s simply the charger unit and power adapter.

You have to purchase Hyper Tough batteries separately to use with it. But this gives you flexibility to chose the battery configurations you need.

Most Hyper Tough tool kits do include batteries – for example, the drill/driver kits. So chances are you’ll already have compatible batteries when purchasing the charger.

Some buyers are disappointed the charger doesn’t include at least one battery. But I don’t mind the flexibility of buying tool kits and chargers separately as needed. Just be aware you’ll likely have to budget for both the charger and extra batteries.

International Travel: Using Your Charger Overseas

One concern DIYers have is whether power tools and chargers work overseas. As I mentioned earlier, the Hyper Tough 20v charger has universal input voltage. That means you can use it internationally with the proper travel adapter.

To use the charger abroad:

• Verify the foreign country’s outlet voltage is 100-240V (most are)
• Obtain a physical adapter fitting the country’s electrical outlets
• Plug the adapter into the wall outlet, then plug the charger into the adapter
• The charger will automatically adjust its voltage without a transformer

As long as the country’s voltage is somewhere between 100-240V, the charger can handle it. All you need is the correct physical adapter to plug into foreign outlets and power the charger.

I’ve used my Hyper Tough charger throughout Europe and Asia following these steps without issues. Just be absolutely certain of the country’s outlet voltage before using any electrical devices.

If you plan to travel abroad with your power tools, the Hyper Tough charger makes it feasible. You can keep your batteries charged anywhere with the proper plug adapter.

Maintenance Tips: Caring for Your Charger

To keep your Hyper Tough charger working its best for years to come, be sure to follow these maintenance tips:

• Keep the charger housing clean by wiping with a dry cloth
• Avoid exposing the charger to moisture, chemicals, or extreme heat
• Regularly inspect the AC adapter for cracks or damage
• Check that the battery bays are clean and free of debris
• Don’t place heavy objects on top of the charger
• Store in a dry location away from excessive dirt and dust
• Consider covering the charger when not in use to reduce wear
• Don’t try to repair the charger yourself – have it serviced by a professional
• Unplug from AC power when not actively charging batteries

These basic housekeeping practices will help reduce wear and tear. Avoiding damage, dirt, moisture, and overheating are key to a long charger lifespan.

The charger itself contains no user-serviceable parts. So don’t try to open it up and tinker with the inside components. Following the usage instructions properly is the best way to get years of service.

Is the Hyper Tough Charger Durable and Well-Made?

It’s natural to have concerns about how rugged and durable this value-priced charger is. However, I’ve found the Hyper Tough model to be pretty robust and well-made overall:

Solid plastic housing – The tough polycarbonate shell resists cracking or breaking.

Reinforced mounting – Steel bolts and mounting points seem study.

Minimal moving parts – Not much to wear out except the spring-loaded battery bays.

Water/dust resistant – Sealed construction keeps out common debris.

Designed for garage use – Rugged enough for unheated garage workshops.

Built to a budget – Corners were cut to meet the affordable price point.

Clearly some sacrifices were made to hit the low price. The plastic feels a bit thin in spots, and the bay springs could be sturdier. But so far, it has held up nicely to regular use and shop conditions without falling apart.

The Hyper Tough line isn’t professional grade, but overall the charger feels decently solid. As long as you don’t abuse it, the durability is totally fine for home DIY use. Just don’t expect specialized ruggedness like DeWalt’s chargers have.

How Does This Charger Compare to Other Brands?

The Hyper Tough 20v charger delivers great performance and value among basic consumer-grade models. But how does it stack up to chargers from other leading brands? Here are some key comparisons:

DeWalt – DeWalt chargers are more heavy duty and charge faster, but also cost 2-3x more.

Ryobi – Comparable to Ryobi in design and features, but Ryobi’s are a bit pricier.

Greenworks – Greenworks has more advanced “smart” chargers with premium features the Hyper Tough lacks.

Milwaukee – Milwaukee chargers are in a whole different league for professional use – much more expensive.

BLACK+DECKER – Very similar overall quality and performance to the BLACK+DECKER models.

EGO – EGO chargers have more advanced LCD displays, fans, and faster charging than the Hyper Tough.

Overall, the Hyper Tough model competes well with other consumer-grade options from Ryobi, BLACK+DECKER, etc. But pro-level chargers far surpass it in charging power and advanced features.

You get very solid functionality and value for the low Hyper Tough price. Just don’t expect industry-leading performance on par with DeWalt, Milwaukee, or other premium tools brands.

Is the Hyper Tough Charger Worth Buying?

After using their tools for years, I can confidently say the Hyper Tough 20v charger is well worth buying. Here’s why it’s a smart choice:

• Cost – Very affordably priced between $20-30.
• Performance – Charges batteries quickly and reliably.
• Compatibility – Works with all genuine Hyper Tough 20V batteries.
• Portability – Lightweight and compact.
• Safety features – UL/CETL certified with multiple protections.
• Universal voltage – Works internationally with just a plug adapter.
• Two bays – Charge two batteries simultaneously.

For Hyper Tough DIYers and pros, this official charger is a must-have accessory. It charges batteries super fast, works seamlessly with your existing tools, and comes backed by a warranty.

The low price makes it easy to justify buying the Hyper Tough charger vs cheaper off-brand models. And it eliminates the compatibility headaches that come with third-party chargers.

For the money, you can’t find a better quality Hyper Tough charger. I highly recommend making the investment. This charger is sure to keep your batteries performing optimally for years to come.

Contact us to discuss your requirements of 20v rechargeable battery. Our experienced sales team can help you identify the options that best suit your needs.

Source: My blog: https://syonyk.blogspot.com//09/dewalt-20v-max-30ah-battery-pack.html

Thought this might be of interest. 3.0Ah, 18v (5s) packs, available online for around $50, which is about what the cells (LG HB4s) cost in small batches. Always live, so stick your tabs in and go!

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It's been a little bit since I've torn apart a new battery pack! The last new-to-me pack I pulled apart was a 26v BionX battery (which, I'd add, I rebuilt to nearly twice the stock capacity by filling all the space with cells). And I've got this cute little DeWalt 20V MAX battery pack (model DCB200, 3.0Ah) that's just not behaving right. It would charge, but then only show one LED on the status bar. I got it for $6 at a pawn shop when I asked for defective batteries.

Well, I've got a dead battery on my bench - that means that it's time to tear it apart!



And you know you want to see what's inside!

Read on for an awful lot of photos inside this solidly built battery pack.

Specs & Warnings
On the back, I've got specs about my DCB200 Battery Pack (Made in Korea). It's a 20V (Max) pack, 3.0Ah, and claims to be a 60Wh pack. Type 2, whatever that means.

I'm going to grumble a bit here. They call the pack a 20V pack, claim it as 3.0Ah, and then say "60Wh." This is the math, but it's not a 20V pack by anyone else's standards. This, in normal terms, is a 18.5V pack (5S pack, 3.7V/cell). To call it a 20V pack requires a nominal voltage of 4V/cell, which is just weird (and not what they have). Anyway, just my thoughts. I'm clearly not a tool pack marketing guy.

Amusingly, the warnings here don't say anything about not disassembling the pack, so I'm good!

Except, I apparently did charge it while damaged. Spoiler alert!



Pack Interface & Voltages
The pack has two significant interfaces: The power interface, and the "How charged is it?" interface.

The "How charged is it?" interface is simple enough. Press button, receive bacon LED status lights. Zero, dead. Three, fully charged.



The electrical interface is a bit more interesting - and, really, quite a bit of fun!

The leftmost slot is a double connector for the positive terminal. This is a full height terminal (two contacts). The rightmost slot is the same thing for the negative terminal. These always appear to have the full pack voltage on them.

In the middle are some other terminals of interest. From left to right, top to bottom: TH, ID, C1, C2, C3, C4.



A tiny bit of experimentation with packs demonstrates that C1-C4 are actually the individual cell bank voltages, conveniently brought out for my use!

If you look at the charger side, the pin that makes contact with the "ID" pin is longer by a tiny bit than the others (the top right of the center 6 pins). This pin seems to be always at low potential, and there's a bit of a voltage floating on the charger pins when there's no battery. I suspect pulling the ID pin low brings the charger circuitry online, but I don't care to actually mess about with my charger since I use it.



I grabbed some voltages from a good pack of mine (I've got 2 good 20V Max batteries). Everything is measured relative to B-, with the relative voltages from the previous reading in parentheses. My pack is fully charged (20.43V, 3 LEDs, solid charger light).

C1: 4.08V (4.08V)
C2: 8.17V (4.09V)
C3: 12.26V (4.09V)
C4: 16.34V (4.08V)
B+: 20.43V (4.09V)

This is a healthy pack. The per-cell voltages are almost identical (within 0.01v), which means a well balanced pack in good condition. Conveniently, this also means that the cell group voltages are externally accessible. This is great news for testing a pack!

Also of note is that the cells are charged to 4.1V instead of the more typical 4.2V. This is great news for longevity - sitting at 100% state of charge (which, for these cells, is 4.2V) is bad for calendar life. Charging almost all the way (but not quite to 100%) means they'll last longer on the shelf when charged - and most people store tool batteries charged.

From this "dead" pack right off the charger? Let's see!

C1: 4.08V (4.08V)
C2: 4.10V (0.02V) (uh oh)
C3: 8.19V (4.09V)
C4: 12.19V (4.00V)
B+: 16.37V (4.18V)

I did double check this, thinking I'd made a mistake in transcribing numbers. The C1-C2 reading is 22.9mV. This isn't good. That's a stone dead cell bank, if it's accurate. And the rest isn't very pretty either. You'd expect to see a nicely balanced pack like mine, not a voltage horror show like this. If the voltages are accurate, there's something seriously wrong with this pack.

Disassembling the Pack
Pulling the pack apart involves removing 4 Torx screws with center pins. These, obviously, don't work with regular Torx head bits. I hear a rumor that things like center pins mean they're a "Security Bit" intended to keep people out.



Fortunately, my shop has something called a "100 Piece Security Bit Set." Any good electronics shop does. So, bring your "security bits trying to keep me out." Hint: I brought it. It's a T10 size Torx security screw, if you're interested. One of which is very much included in this 100 piece set. It's not even very creative...



Pack Insides
With the "Security Screws" out, the top comes off cleanly, exposing the pack guts and a really neat little spring for the pack release button. Sproing!



From this angle, the "double height" B+ and B- terminals are visible, as is the state-of-charge indicator.

Interestingly, it looks like the B+ and B- terminals are a different material than the cell-group contacts and the TH/ID contact.

The B+/B- terminals look like copper to me, with the rest being brass or something along those lines.

That makes sense, though. The B+/B- terminals are the ones carrying the power, while the rest shouldn't ever be transmitting any significant amount of current.



Looking down from the top, there are wires running around to each side of the pack. These are almost certainly the voltage sense/balance wires. It's interesting that they're bare, but it's fine inside a sealed pack. They're custom bent to fit, and fit in perfectly.

The red and black wire on the left are going to the LED indicator. Based on the lack of any other wires, it's likely just a basic voltmeter that lights up the LEDs.

One thing of note here: The battery is always connected to the terminals. There is no way that the BMS can cut off current if the pack voltage is low. It's up to the tool to determine the cutoff point and refuse to work below that.

This also means that if you stick something in the terminals, you can get power out. Don't leave it running and drain the pack, but this would be a really easy pack to repurpose should you care to do so. There's literally nothing to do but jam metal blades into the B- and B+ terminals.



Removing the Battery Pack
There's no real trick to removing the battery pack from the bottom part of the case. It just pulls out. However, it's in there very tightly. Start with one end, pry (carefully - don't short the pack out), and it comes out.

The wire between the battery pack and the output terminals is quite substantial, and is secured with an awful lot of solder. This is very clearly designed as a high power pack! Look at the size of the lug going into the positive terminal...



After a bit more prying, the pack is out. There are 10 cells (2P5S pack), and they're held together with rather substantial interconnect strips. The pack claims to be 3.0Ah, which means each cell should be mAh. Are they? We'll soon find out!







The LED board is secured to the battery pack with some sort of goop. It's not going anywhere.



Cells and Interconnects
One of the cells is very conveniently oriented so I can read the model number.

The model number is LGDAHB. This works out to be a LG HB4 cell - which is a mA cell rated for a 30A discharge! The battery chemistry is NMC (Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide or LiNiMnCoO2). This is one of the newer chemistries, which is nice to see. They're in every way better than the early lithium ion chemistries.

This is a solid, solid choice for a power tool pack - and not a cheap choice either! DeWalt didn't cheap out here with last year's discount cells. People have tested this cell (it's popular for vaping as well), and it's a legitimate 30A cell.

With batteries, one can generally get a lot of energy (watt-hours) or power (watts), but not both. These are hardcore power cells - a single cell at 30A is putting out over 100W! The low capacity (mAh - below half of what a high energy cell can do) is the price you pay for a cell with that kind of power output.

The observant reader may note that the cell in the middle here, with the model clearly visible, looks a bit off. And, you'd be right. This cell is the 20mV group - even after charging.

The plastic wrapper on that cell is incredibly brittle compared to the other cells. It seems like it shorted out and overheated, or overheated and shorted out. I have no idea why, but it's quite dead. Not knowing the pack history, I don't know if it was a cell defect, or if something happened to it. But these two cells aren't even nailed to their perch. They are dead as granite. What likely happened is that one of the cells shorted internally, and the other one dumped its current through as well. Exciting - and not in the good way.



The interconnects here are thick, massive, and well spot welded. I'm not sure if this is a machine built pack or if it was built by humans, but I'm leaning towards "humans" - the placement of the "H" interconnects isn't identical between the left cluster and the center cluster, and the rightmost strip is somewhat off center. I don't see why one would configure a machine to do that.



The shorted cell shows some corrosion and discoloration on the ends (the second pair down, left side and right side). Perhaps it overheated enough to damage the coating on the case? I'm not sure. This is the negative end, and it doesn't look like it's burned through (I scraped the corrosion off and it looked normal), so... still no idea what happened. Nothing good, that's for sure. The top left cell also looks a bit off (the discoloration on the positive terminal doesn't exist on any other cells).



Skipping ahead slightly, I measured the thickness of the interconnect strip used. It's a hair under 0.012" - so 0.30mm, or twice as thick as the common 0.15mm nickel strip used in ebike battery packs. Again, a beefy, beefy pack. For what it's worth, I can't spot weld this stuff - too thick. It takes some serious amps to spot weld 0.30mm strip.



Getting to the BMS
Next, I want to get the BMS off - that lets me get deeper into the pack, and figure out what's going on with the BMS board (not that it's much of a management board).

The solder connections are substantial. This pack really is designed to carry a lot of power. Lots of solder, lots of thermal wicking from the nickel strip... I'm going to need a bigger iron than I normally use!



Fortunately, I have such a beast, warming up nicely in this picture. This is a Portasol 125W butane iron, available for around $70 on eBay. There are times for a precision temperature controlled iron, and times for a hot running beast of an iron. With the butane flow turned up, this thing is the second. Hot, massive, and will desolder almost anything I come across.



Also, a solder sucker for some of these solder globs. Because why not?



This unit took more heat than is usual to desolder stuff. Lots of solder, lots of thermal wicking, and lead free solder leads to needing a serious amount of heat. Light the iron up, let it get good and hot, get some solder on the tip, and go. There's no way I could have popped the main power wires free with my normal bench iron.



A bit of fiddling, and the BMS is clear! The wire routing for the balance wires is really well done. I'm very impressed with this pack so far.



The BMS, free and clear!



BMS Board
I refer to this board as a BMS, but I think it's probably better to call it a balancing board, or a balancer board. And I'm not entirely sure I understand its point.

The back of the board is entirely passive components. Some resistors, a few capacitors, and a diode. Plus some hefty solder joints to hold the prongs in place.



Looking down into the gap between the prongs and the board, there's what appears to be a small IC in there, and a few more passive components.



The bottom of the board shows another small IC down to the left, and what looks an awful lot like a thermistor in the top right. After removing the conformal coating, I measured 10.68kΩ at 21.6C - so probably a standard 10k/25C thermistor. For those unfamiliar, a thermistor is just a resistor that changes resistance with temperature. It's an easy way to monitor pack temperature. Unfortunately, this one is really only monitoring pack temperature - not cell temperature.

It's hard to see in the photos, but this board has a nice conformal coating on everything. A conformal coating helps keep water off the board, and generally improves reliability in rough environments - which tool packs will certainly see. There's basically no excuse to not have one in .



I played with it a bit, and it certainly seems to be a balancer, but I don't understand why it exists. Whatever functionality it allows for can be done externally on the charger. The charger has pins for all of the parallel groups, and an external balancing charger is more reusable than a single pack balancer. On top of it, this BMS can't even protect the pack from an overdischarge or any sort of fault condition. It might be able to alert the tool to an imbalance condition, but the charger could also refuse to charge the pack in that state. So I'm a bit lost as to what, exactly, this board does. Given what it can't do, I'm having a hard time figuring out why DeWalt even put it in.

LED Status Board
The LED status board has a sheet of plastic over the top - great for helping keep the environment out.

Beyond that, the switch, when pressed, applies pack voltage to a system that lights the proper LED based on the voltage. That's all it is - a basic voltmeter.





So, of course, I set about testing it to find out what the voltages involved are.



Results from the testing:

1 LED: >15.3V (3.06V/cell)
2 LED: >18V (3.6V/cell)
3 LED: >19V (3.8V/cell)

Sane enough, though one LED means you really should be charging it now. There's no reason to run a power cell below 3V, and 1 LED is almost there.

I did confirm that the BMS will balance cells. With voltage on the positive and negative leads, the balance leads have proportional voltage across them as one would expect for a battery balancing system. So, cool! Weird, because the charger could do it just as easily, but still neat.

Rebuild or Keep Going?
At this point, I have a decision to make. I can either stop pulling things apart at this point and rebuild the pack, or I can keep going.



I make the decision to rebuild or not based on two major factors: Rarity and cost.

Rarity
How rare is the pack I'm dealing with? For some of the packs I've rebuilt, they're rare, and either very difficult or impossible to obtain a replacement for. If that's the case, rebuilding it makes a ton of sense.

How hard is it to get a DeWalt 20V Max pack? Well... there are are over 800 listings on eBay - so not rare at all. You can buy them in nearly endless quantities at your local hardware store.

Cost
Cost is my other main consideration. If I can rebuild the pack radically cheaper than I can buy a new one, I'm likely to rebuild it. If I can't - then there's no real point in the labor to rebuild it.

For me to buy 10 of these cells, I'm spending basically as much as a new pack. BatteryBro has LG HB4s for $4.57/ea - in quantities of 50. eBay isn't any better, at around $5/cell.

I can buy the 3.0Ah battery packs for $40-$50 shipped, all day long. You're better off buying these packs to extract the HB4s than you are rebuilding them!

The Decision
This pack is not rare. And to obtain similar 30A rated batteries, I'll spend more on cells in small quantities as I will on a brand new pack. Plus, I don't have a spot welder that can deal with the thick interconnects. DeWalt sells these things in insane quantities, and it shows in the pricing.

So, there's no reason to rebuild it. I keep going!

Oh, and if you are trying to rebuild one? Make sure you put a high amperage cell in it. Don't go "Hey, I can double the capacity with some mAh cells!" - they won't like being subjected to the power demands of a tool pack. And those mAh cells on eBay? Lies. Total, complete, bald faced lies. They're recycled junk wrapped in a meaningless number.

Pulling the BMS Apart
This means pulling the BMS apart to see what's on it - as much as I can.



The balance leads are easy enough. They pull off with a bit of fiddling.



They're just standard header pin sizes, and they seat in a regular connector. Slick!

That nice green thermistor is right there too.

The leads going to the LED panel are nicely secured - they're much more solidly connected than what I'm used to seeing in some of my teardowns. Excellent!



Removing the connectors is a lot harder than I expected. I tried to desolder them, and concluded that they're just too large and radiate too much heat. I gave up after a minute or so of trying to free them with my big iron, and went to Plan B: Pliers and wire cutters. Which work, though that approach pulls the pads up with the main contacts. The heat bubbling in the lower right corner is me.



There's nothing much on the front either. Only one IC (and I can't read the model through the conformal coating, so I have no idea what it does).



Is Your Pack Bad?
If you're here because you've got one that's acting up and you want to see if it's bad or not, I suggest doing what I did way up towards the top and measuring the voltages across the pins. You'll need a thin wire to probe the contacts - though a pair of paperclips will work if you're careful. Put the black lead of your voltmeter on the B- pin, and probe C1-C4 and B+ - you should see a steady increase in voltage as you go from terminal to terminal. If one of them is significantly less (like my 0.02V jump), you've got a dead cell bank.

It's worth pointing out that this pack will happily spotweld any short circuit it sees. So don't touch your paperclips to each other, or you will likely find them glowing within, oh, a second. Probably less.

Keeping Your Packs Alive
Lithium batteries are easy enough to keep alive, but there are a few things to know if you want them to last as long as possible.

Don't charge them when they're below freezing. You can use them in the winter - that's fine. They'll be a bit sluggish on output, but you won't damage them. Charging them when cold, especially with the fast chargers that are common for tool batteries, will permanently reduce their capacity. Let them warm up before charging them. You also don't want them to bake. Sitting in the trunk of a black car in Phoenix in the summer will also kill them early.

Don't let them sit empty. That's a great way to kill cells. Always charge them after use.

And, if you're storing them for a long period of time, don't let them sit completely full. It's less of a problem with this pack (as it never charges to "full" by the cell chemistry), but charge them, run a tool for a few minutes, then store them if it's going to be a few months.

Otherwise, just use them. Lithium cells don't have a memory effect, so charge them when you get a chance, and have fun!

Final Thoughts
This is a solidly built pack that will do its job nicely.

The cells are solid 30A performers, which means this is a 60A pack (two cells in parallel add amperages). The 0.3mm nickel strip will handle plenty of amps, especially over the short distances involved here. The main wiring will handle lots of power as well. This is a very nicely built pack, and it's entirely suited to being a power source for small tools.

Fully charged, at 20+V, that means it's an honest W power source (for, oh, three minutes until drained).

The only real complaints I have are that the BMS is really just a balancing board, and the thermistor is more or less useless. With the battery leads connected straight to the output terminals, there's no way for the pack to cut off output - it's up to the tool to not kill the battery pack. This is probably fine, since it's unlikely that most people will use the pack for other purposes. But, if you do, don't be stupid.

The thermistor hanging out on the BMS board also means that it's more or less useless for tracking issues. All it will show you is a lagging reading of the temperature of the cells near it. It'll provide a general idea, but nothing nearly so useful as a set of thermistors on the cells to find if one is running hot and suggest the user back off.



But from an end user perspective, this is an incredibly nice tool pack. It's solidly built, is using great cells, and is capable of handling a ton of power. Use it as intended, don't run it below 1 LED if you can help it, and it should keep you going for a long time!