Yea, at this point I would recommend staying away from the 8Ah and 12Ah unless you plan on using them professionally and plan to swap them every two years anyway.
Milwaukee’s M12 and M18 battery systems are widely criticized for issues like battery failure, compatibility issues across tools and chargers, complicated troubleshooting, and battery warranties much shorter than their tool warranties. Considering how complicated and potentially dangerous the fixes are, it’s unsurprising Milwaukee plays dumb and lets these complicated and potentially dangerous fixes pile up on UA-cam. Will you trust Milwaukee when you buy your next tool or battery?
@ I think it’s more of a lithium battery issue they had more issues than I nicad used to. A rechargeable battery only gets so many cycles. which is fine I don’t think the issue is Milwaukee I think it’s the cost of them. The legit oem 12 amp batteries are like a buck 50. if they were $30 would any of you guys care as much or 40 for that matter. I have a lot of M 18 tools some of them are very good others their functional and tough I have switched to DeWalt and find their tools to be higher grade not really sure about the batteries yet because I haven’t been on the platform long enough but pretty much every tool I pick up is a higher grade tool than what the m18 line has.
@@LM-ii6fd I am going to try out their new forge when I finally need to replace my current high amp battery. Depending on how well they hold up will determine if I stay with Milwaukee.
Just a thought. Rather then charge 3 banks up to level of the fourth would it be quicker to drain the the high one down to the lower level put it back together and charge on Milwaukee charger see if they all come up together. I am going to try that with mine.
You could accomplish that with a power resistor or a programmable load. You would have to check on the cells much more frequently and likely spend more money. But you would not have to wait around for over a day like I did!
Just an FYI they sell replacement M18 Battery main boards that support equal cell charging, it just required some mid level soldering capabilities. About $13 at Amazon or if you dare AliExpress for $4. Happy upgrading.
Thank you! With that 100mA charger, it takes about 45minutes to bring each cell voltage up by 0.1V. The 8Ah battery took a little over eight hours while the 12Ah took the same time, due to less cells being undercharged. Using a beefier charger would reduce the time drastically. Though, slower charging means a cooler cell, which helps preserve the battery life.
@@chriscoco547 After fully charging the pack (At least as high as it will let you) when you open it up and check each cell voltage, the ones that are closest to 4.2VDC would be the "good" ones. Unfortunately, the cells are tack welded onto a strip of metal during assembly at the factory, so harvesting them is fairly difficult and not advised.
A phone charger will always supply voltage, the phone decides when it stops accepting (Most common). Doing that to a raw battery cell will cause a thermal event. You need something that will monitor the cell voltage and turn off automatically.
It sounds like possibly one or a combination of flaws: * the internal BMS does not have a balancing function (saves a few pennies) or * the battery is not left on the charger long enough to balance or * the charger does not provide a trickle balance current after reaching what it thinks is "full" Maybe the "fix" is to wire in a balance connector like used on hobby LiPos and use a hobby charger to periodically balance charge. If I have to do this twice to the same pack, I'll be wiring in a balance connector.
Affixing wires to each cell set and periodically balancing them with a cell charger/balancer would be a more permanent fix. though that would require a bit more money than I am willing to spend on batteries that I hope to swap with FORGE in the next year or two. I would consider doing that if I was going to try and keep these longer than 2 years.
No it was a single battery cell charger (TP4056). Something that can monitor the voltage of a cell and auto stop charging. A phone charger would not do that, unfortunately.
I have a 12ah thats only been cycled a few times. I have a lipo charger and all the cell packs are over 4V now but i still only have 3 bars. The last time i used the pack on my leaf blower it went dead after about 10 minutes.
Thanks for the video but man what a joke. I got some Milwaukie tools a couple years ago and the batteries both have this issue already. I've had my Makita batteries for 6+ years and they all charge fully. I'll not be buying anymore Milwaukie tools! The tools work fine but if the batteries are junk.
I hear ya! I am pretty sure Milwaukee has battery rebuys on their earnings calculations... might be the final push I needed to try out another tool brand for the next new tool I get :)
@@jonnymiskatonic You are not making good contact with the metal, try gently rubbing the alligator clip against the metal before having it bite down. Also make sure it stays in a good position (won't slip off). It should turn red when charging, blue when nothing is detected.
I have 2 milwaukee batteries that needed this. I have 2 super cheap Amazon fake porter cable batteries that are older and work without fail every day. Maybe cheap, fake milwaukee batteries would be better.
Milwaukee batteries are good quality samsungs ... the problem is the shitty designed PCB . No proper balanced built on it . REPLACE the pcb with a Ali express $8 one and problem solved . The chinese knockoff pcb seems better then the OEM milwaukee 😩
it seems like half of Milwaukee's bigger batteries have this problem. Nice going Milwaukee.
Yea, at this point I would recommend staying away from the 8Ah and 12Ah unless you plan on using them professionally and plan to swap them every two years anyway.
Yep all of my bigger ones have got this problem.
Milwaukee’s M12 and M18 battery systems are widely criticized for issues like battery failure, compatibility issues across tools and chargers, complicated troubleshooting, and battery warranties much shorter than their tool warranties.
Considering how complicated and potentially dangerous the fixes are, it’s unsurprising Milwaukee plays dumb and lets these complicated and potentially dangerous fixes pile up on UA-cam. Will you trust Milwaukee when you buy your next tool or battery?
@ I think it’s more of a lithium battery issue they had more issues than I nicad used to. A rechargeable battery only gets so many cycles. which is fine I don’t think the issue is Milwaukee I think it’s the cost of them. The legit oem 12 amp batteries are like a buck 50. if they were $30 would any of you guys care as much or 40 for that matter. I have a lot of M 18 tools some of them are very good others their functional and tough I have switched to DeWalt and find their tools to be higher grade not really sure about the batteries yet because I haven’t been on the platform long enough but pretty much every tool I pick up is a higher grade tool than what the m18 line has.
@@LM-ii6fd I am going to try out their new forge when I finally need to replace my current high amp battery. Depending on how well they hold up will determine if I stay with Milwaukee.
Worked! Saved me from having to buy a new battery. Excellent content. Thanks again
Thank you for confirming!
Just a thought. Rather then charge 3 banks up to level of the fourth would it be quicker to drain the the high one down to the lower level put it back together and charge on Milwaukee charger see if they all come up together.
I am going to try that with mine.
You could accomplish that with a power resistor or a programmable load. You would have to check on the cells much more frequently and likely spend more money. But you would not have to wait around for over a day like I did!
Just an FYI they sell replacement M18 Battery main boards that support equal cell charging, it just required some mid level soldering capabilities. About $13 at Amazon or if you dare AliExpress for $4. Happy upgrading.
I might have to look into that, thanks for the idea!
Where can I get one of those chargers with alligator clips?
I put the name of the charger I used in the description of the video. They can be found on Amazon, same with the alligator clips. Happy hacking!
Approximately how long does it take to charge each cell? And what is the output amp load max on your charger/power supply? Great video thanks!
Thank you!
With that 100mA charger, it takes about 45minutes to bring each cell voltage up by 0.1V. The 8Ah battery took a little over eight hours while the 12Ah took the same time, due to less cells being undercharged. Using a beefier charger would reduce the time drastically. Though, slower charging means a cooler cell, which helps preserve the battery life.
Wondering, if a m18 pack goes bad, is it possible to identify any remaining good cells and salvage them for use in another pack that has “bad” cells?
@@chriscoco547 After fully charging the pack (At least as high as it will let you) when you open it up and check each cell voltage, the ones that are closest to 4.2VDC would be the "good" ones. Unfortunately, the cells are tack welded onto a strip of metal during assembly at the factory, so harvesting them is fairly difficult and not advised.
Sorry. Perhaps a silly question... Could i just wire up a 5v phone charger and avoid buying the plug in doohickey?
A phone charger will always supply voltage, the phone decides when it stops accepting (Most common). Doing that to a raw battery cell will cause a thermal event. You need something that will monitor the cell voltage and turn off automatically.
I already have a cell balancer so now I know how to do it on my Milwaukee batteries . Good video!
Repair rather than replace, keep those darn things alive! Glad you found the video useful :)
Good stuff! Right on!
Got to get the full value out of those batteries, wither they like it or not!
It sounds like possibly one or a combination of flaws:
* the internal BMS does not have a balancing function (saves a few pennies) or
* the battery is not left on the charger long enough to balance or
* the charger does not provide a trickle balance current after reaching what it thinks is "full"
Maybe the "fix" is to wire in a balance connector like used on hobby LiPos and use a hobby charger to periodically balance charge. If I have to do this twice to the same pack, I'll be wiring in a balance connector.
Affixing wires to each cell set and periodically balancing them with a cell charger/balancer would be a more permanent fix. though that would require a bit more money than I am willing to spend on batteries that I hope to swap with FORGE in the next year or two.
I would consider doing that if I was going to try and keep these longer than 2 years.
Did you just use a usb-c phone charger?
No it was a single battery cell charger (TP4056). Something that can monitor the voltage of a cell and auto stop charging. A phone charger would not do that, unfortunately.
I have a 12ah thats only been cycled a few times. I have a lipo charger and all the cell packs are over 4V now but i still only have 3 bars. The last time i used the pack on my leaf blower it went dead after about 10 minutes.
Sounds like the voltage drops drastically when a load is applied. Which means your cells are likely too far gone to be recovered.
Thanks for the video but man what a joke. I got some Milwaukie tools a couple years ago and the batteries both have this issue already. I've had my Makita batteries for 6+ years and they all charge fully. I'll not be buying anymore Milwaukie tools! The tools work fine but if the batteries are junk.
I hear ya! I am pretty sure Milwaukee has battery rebuys on their earnings calculations... might be the final push I needed to try out another tool brand for the next new tool I get :)
gonna give this a go myself. Two flakey HD12 and those bastards ain't cheap.
Always worth a shot! Perform the work on something you wouldn't mind getting burnt... just in case 😅
@@IllInformedHuman Hmmm my little module isn't turning red, LED is staying blue. Where have I gone wrong =D
Reverse the leads..... I came back in to watch the video again and was like "oh was I that foolish?" Indeed I was =D
@@jonnymiskatonic You are not making good contact with the metal, try gently rubbing the alligator clip against the metal before having it bite down. Also make sure it stays in a good position (won't slip off). It should turn red when charging, blue when nothing is detected.
@@jonnymiskatonic Good thing those tiny boards can take a little bit of foolishness :)
If you saved your receipt, the battery warranty would've been warrantied from date of purchase
I did not have the receipt :(
I will likely file it away when I get their newer tab-less cells.
I have 2 milwaukee batteries that needed this. I have 2 super cheap Amazon fake porter cable batteries that are older and work without fail every day. Maybe cheap, fake milwaukee batteries would be better.
At this point, I might be willing to try the knockoffs... maybe just to open them up and see how they were constructed.
Milwaukee batteries are good quality samsungs ... the problem is the shitty designed PCB . No proper balanced built on it . REPLACE the pcb with a Ali express $8 one and problem solved . The chinese knockoff pcb seems better then the OEM milwaukee 😩
That would be an interesting mod 🤔
Is this worth doing to a 1.5? Lol😅
Sure!
Theres Techs on salary to do it for you
But it is so much fun to do this yourself! And cheaper!
@@IllInformedHumanand faster! 😅