I bought a Festool TSC 55 Li REB-Basic some 2 years ago charged the batteries to set it up for an up and coming project, but the project failed to materialist so almost two years later i have another project so i took out the tool only to find one battery dead and refusing to charge and the other apparently fine, I cut down a door using one two batteries hoping that the good one would revive the bad one but no joy, the tool has had no use other than to trim off the anti splinter strip. any advice would be gratefully received
Battery dead
- Thread starter henly1234
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For a start off Ill say that I have no first hand experience of this as I dont own a TSC but I seem to remember reading that there wasa glitch in some of them that meant there was a slight battery drain even when the tool was in storage with the battery in.
That might have drained the battery to the point where charging wont help?
That might have drained the battery to the point where charging wont help?
There's also just a certain level of defect rate in the batteries, I think. I bought a PDC 18 a few weeks ago that had been sitting on the dealer's shelf for a while; one of the two included batteries was dead out of the box and refused to take a charge. (The dealer swapped it for me with no hassle.)
If you bought the TSC two years ago, you should still be well inside your warranty and should be able to get a replacement battery from Festool. If not, well, the good news is that batteries are one of the few things (maybe the only thing?) in Festool's lineup that are the same baseline price as every other tool manufacturer on the market.
If you bought the TSC two years ago, you should still be well inside your warranty and should be able to get a replacement battery from Festool. If not, well, the good news is that batteries are one of the few things (maybe the only thing?) in Festool's lineup that are the same baseline price as every other tool manufacturer on the market.
Jeff Zanin
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As always I am months late and many dollars short, but perhaps for the benefit of the next person...
My TSC-55 was sitting on the top of the Systainer with both 18V batteries in place for several months. When I went to top them up on the charger one charged up with no problem, the other would not take a charge at all and measured around 6V on a voltmeter, and the charge indicator would not light up.
I found nothing on the FOG but lots of videos of people resurrecting rechargeable batteries with a brief connection to a power supply or other battery. The idea seems to be that if the "dead" pack can't power the electronics that the charger uses to determine pack type, temperature, etc. the charger will not send power.
I had nothing to lose so I attached the Festool pack to a Milwaukee 18V pack for ~ 30 seconds with alligator clips. After disconnecting the Festool pack showed 18V, I put it on the charger and it charged normally! After it showed fully charged I took it off the charger and I've had it sitting on the bench for a couple of weeks since then, checking it once in a while and still shows 20.54V.
So the good news is that my Festool 18V pack seems to have recovered – I have tried it on the saw but not used it extensively since the resurrection. But I am still wondering about the discharge, only on one of the two batteries – could there be some sort of phantom power draw, keep-alive, heartbeat or something going on with the TSC-55? I am not curious enough to dismantle anything or otherwise investigate, from now on I will just store the saw with batteries removed, probably a best practice anyway.
My TSC-55 was sitting on the top of the Systainer with both 18V batteries in place for several months. When I went to top them up on the charger one charged up with no problem, the other would not take a charge at all and measured around 6V on a voltmeter, and the charge indicator would not light up.
I found nothing on the FOG but lots of videos of people resurrecting rechargeable batteries with a brief connection to a power supply or other battery. The idea seems to be that if the "dead" pack can't power the electronics that the charger uses to determine pack type, temperature, etc. the charger will not send power.
I had nothing to lose so I attached the Festool pack to a Milwaukee 18V pack for ~ 30 seconds with alligator clips. After disconnecting the Festool pack showed 18V, I put it on the charger and it charged normally! After it showed fully charged I took it off the charger and I've had it sitting on the bench for a couple of weeks since then, checking it once in a while and still shows 20.54V.
So the good news is that my Festool 18V pack seems to have recovered – I have tried it on the saw but not used it extensively since the resurrection. But I am still wondering about the discharge, only on one of the two batteries – could there be some sort of phantom power draw, keep-alive, heartbeat or something going on with the TSC-55? I am not curious enough to dismantle anything or otherwise investigate, from now on I will just store the saw with batteries removed, probably a best practice anyway.
Jiggy Joiner
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We have a vast amount of batteries, and I’m always trying to cycle them regularly.
Sometimes a seldom used tool can sit on a van, or in the workshop along with it’s batteries for months.
This isn’t good practice, so I try my best to rotate all the batteries.
They are best stored in a cool dark place if possible, and try not to let the the battery completely discharge before charging. They can last an incredible amount of time if treated properly but, in the real world this can be difficult to achieve.
Batteries don’t like extreme cold or heat either.
Sometimes a seldom used tool can sit on a van, or in the workshop along with it’s batteries for months.
This isn’t good practice, so I try my best to rotate all the batteries.
They are best stored in a cool dark place if possible, and try not to let the the battery completely discharge before charging. They can last an incredible amount of time if treated properly but, in the real world this can be difficult to achieve.
Batteries don’t like extreme cold or heat either.
Distinctive Interiors
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I also have a TSC 55 that doesn't get used as extensively as my 240v track saws.
Only yesterday did I use the cordless saw to cut down a load of 6mm MDF. I had learned from previous use, not to store the batteries on the saw when sitting in its systainer.
I do try and rotate usage of my 18v batteries on all my cordless Festools, and i can easily recognize which batteries are from my TSC,.....Coz the label on one of them is mounted upside down....!!
Only yesterday did I use the cordless saw to cut down a load of 6mm MDF. I had learned from previous use, not to store the batteries on the saw when sitting in its systainer.
I do try and rotate usage of my 18v batteries on all my cordless Festools, and i can easily recognize which batteries are from my TSC,.....Coz the label on one of them is mounted upside down....!!
Don’t store batteries on the TSC for prolonged periods. There have been several reports of one battery getting depleted sufficiently that the battery could no longer be charged. The jumping solution should work if this happened, personally, I was within the warranty period and sent the battery back for replacement.
Just for what it is worth
Festool batteries are covered under there three year warranty
They will be able to put it on their charging system and see how many cycles it has done and realise their is an issue and knowing festool i would be surprised if they don't just replace it
Festool batteries are covered under there three year warranty
They will be able to put it on their charging system and see how many cycles it has done and realise their is an issue and knowing festool i would be surprised if they don't just replace it
BarrySumpter
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Jeff Zanin said:
Hi Jeff.
Acknowledging this OP is 4 years old.
I've just found after 8 weeks of storage,
2 of the Festool 18v are dead.
Any chance of remembering how you attached the gator clips?
As in pos to pos and neg to neg.
Or pos to neg and pos to neg.
Thanks in advance.
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[member=5568]Jeff Zanin[/member] if you see this post look at the one directly before...
Peter
Peter
Jeff Zanin
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Positive to positive, negative to negative. About 30 seconds.
BarrySumpter
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Champion!
BarrySumpter
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Tried with Mikita 18v.
Connected for a millisecond.
Just sparked.
Changed from 1.2v DC before.
To 2.3 v DC after.
Charger light changed
From orange before.
Meaning not recognised at all.
To Red Blinking.
HTH
Connected for a millisecond.
Just sparked.
Changed from 1.2v DC before.
To 2.3 v DC after.
Charger light changed
From orange before.
Meaning not recognised at all.
To Red Blinking.
HTH
BarrySumpter
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As meeting before.
Nothing to lose.
So had another fair go.
Connected for 30 seconds
no change would not charge.
Try to 2nd time at 30 seconds.
Turn green and started charging.
Still can’t believe it actually worked for me.
Super happy and relieved. It did work.
Hope this helps to confirm the jumpstart works.
Just make sure you have a decently sized gauge as the wire does get hot quickly.
Nothing to lose.
So had another fair go.
Connected for 30 seconds
no change would not charge.
Try to 2nd time at 30 seconds.
Turn green and started charging.
Still can’t believe it actually worked for me.
Super happy and relieved. It did work.
Hope this helps to confirm the jumpstart works.
Just make sure you have a decently sized gauge as the wire does get hot quickly.
Jeff Zanin
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- Jan 2, 2009
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- 328
[big grin]
squall_line
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I've done this twice for a dead Festool battery that I received in a package. Both times, I'm able to get enough charge into the battery for the charger to recognize it as "not totally dead" and start to put a charge into it, but once I take the battery off and let it sit for more than an hour or two, it's dead again and won't take a charge.
This, to me, says that there's a dead cell in the battery itself, and repeatedly going through this process will likeyl cause long-term damage and/or start a fire if I'm not careful.
Caveat usor.
This, to me, says that there's a dead cell in the battery itself, and repeatedly going through this process will likeyl cause long-term damage and/or start a fire if I'm not careful.
Caveat usor.
