DeWalt batteries have been with us for many years offering lasting energy and power supply to machines and appliances. The batteries are based on the XR lithium-ion chemistry, making them durable and lightweight. Irrespective of its abilities, as with many batteries, there are faults strange to DeWalt batteries, one of them being the DeWalt battery not charging.
But how can you tell if your DeWalt battery is faulty? The red light might stop blinking when the battery attains a full charge. If the charge lights go off, the battery pack is faulty, and the charger will stop. No lights indicate a bad battery or issues with the battery charger.
Like all battery models, DeWalt batteries always go through things that don’t allow them to charge. Fortunately for you, this piece addresses the common issues and ways to solve them.
Table of Contents
Causes of DeWalt battery not charging
You might experience issues in charging your DeWalt battery due to different reasons. This includes:
- The charger is not being connected properly
- Rusty terminals that inhibit the current flow
- A dead battery that needs additional time for the cells to reactivate
What to do when your DeWalt battery doesn’t charge
You can apply many methods to ensure the dead battery is back to life and can hold a charge. Here are some of the options to consider.
1. Ensure the outlet you’re using is working
If your battery isn’t charging, the more straightforward fix is to ensure the charge is connected to a working outlet. Connect another device to that outlet and ensure its functioning. If the outlet is faulty, try another outlet and determine if the charger’s red lights pop up when the DeWalt battery is connected.
While this seems incredibly simple, it can cause problems in most cases. Maybe a fuse is damaged, or the outlet is faulty. Don’t ignore this step, as it can save effort and time.
2. Connect to another functional battery
Here, you’ll need another fully charged DeWalt battery. It’s possible to boost the charge from a healthy battery to a dead one. It would help if you had two pairs of scissors, razor blades, or unfolded paper clips. Once you’ve assembled the necessary tools, follow these steps:
- Connect both positive terminals using razor blades, scissors, or paper clips
- Connect the negative terminals using the other razor blade, paper clip, or scissors
- Let the setup rest for at least 5 minutes
- Remove the razor blades, paper clips, or scissors, and test your battery
- Make sure you connect the terminals correctly since a wrong connection might lead to a damaged battery
3. Ensure the charger is functional
While the battery charger is connected, try another DeWalt battery. This will help you determine if your battery has issues or if the charger isn’t working. When you connect the different batteries, and the red light appears, the charger is ok. So, you’ll know the problem is with your battery.
If you don’t see the light on the battery charger even after plugging in a different DeWalt battery, that means your charger is faulty. It’s rare, but you can’t have two faulty DeWalt batteries. If the problem is with your charger, contact DeWalt since most batteries come with a three-year warranty.
4. Slow charging
Sleep mode is when a battery is drained, dying, and takes some time to boost. This happens when the battery is left uncharged for many days or undercharged.
One of the effective ways to bring your battery out of sleep mode is charging it slowly and in controlled bursts till it’s fully charged. When in sleep mode, your battery is slow to recharge, thus the need for the controlled technique. Here is what to do:
- Plug in the battery to its charger and allow it to charge for 5 seconds, and switch the charge off
- Repeat this process, taking off the charger before the red lights appear
- Continue doing this for 30 seconds until your DeWalt battery is good to charge continuously
5. Clean the terminals of debris and dirt
Dirt on the battery’s terminals or the charger will block a good connection. It causes an interruption in the current flow that can’t let the battery charge. The terminals on the charger and battery must be free from debris and dirt to maintain a good connection.
Occasionally, debris such as corrosion, dust, or dirt can be seen. But even if the battery appears clean, there might be unseen gunk that can interrupt the connection. Cleaning the terminals removes the dirt, letting current flow uninterrupted into your battery. Get sandpaper with a finer grit and a clean rag to clean the terminals. You’ll need a charger to test your battery after cleaning.
Plug in the charger to find out if it responds, and then charge your battery. If there are rusty terminals, scrub them until you get rid of the rust. If the terminals have dirt, use a clean rag to wipe them and charge until they are clean.
The battery terminals are tiny and hard to get access to. So, you can use sandpaper or an envelope folded over. You need something strong not to lose its shape or crinkle when you insert it in the terminal slits. You can dip the envelope or sandpaper in rubbing alcohol to make the cleaning efficient. Use the charger to test if the battery responds to charging.
6. Use an alternate current adapter
For this method, you’ll need an AC charger, a screwdriver, pair of scissors, and a wire stripper. Here is the process:
- Snip the AC charger’s end
- Remove the wires and separate them
- Peel off the wire cover using a wire stripper
- Take off the battery case with the screwdriver and take out the plastic part
- Remove the battery from its case and connect the AC charger to a functional power outlet
- Boost the DeWalt battery by connecting the negative terminal to the negative (black) wire and the positive terminal to the positive (white) wire
- Continue touching the cables on and off for 60 seconds. Make sure the right wire is getting in contact with the correct terminal (negative-negative or positive-positive)
- Put the case back on the DeWalt battery pack and allow the battery to charge
- If it doesn’t respond, repeat the procedure for a minute
If you do all that and your battery fails to charge, you might need to call customer support for professional help and possible replacement.
Tips for resetting your DeWalt battery
Most people don’t know how to reset their DeWalt batteries. This is a quick and straightforward process.
- Unplug the battery from its charger
- Press the yellow button while holding it down for a few seconds
- Reconnect the battery to the charger and press the reset button down and hold it for a few seconds
Blinking red light on a DeWalt battery charger
The light appearing on a battery charge shows if your battery is fully charged or still charging. The red light remains on when the DeWalt battery is charging, and the green light indicates that charging is almost complete or the battery is charging correctly. But what if the red light blinks continuously?
The red light shouldn’t flash or blink but stay on. The red light blinking indicates that your battery isn’t properly connected to the charger or your DeWalt battery is in sleep mode. Remove the battery and return it or charge it to solve the problem. If this doesn’t work, use another healthy and fully charged battery to try the slow or contact charge technique.
Other lights on your charger will indicate different things. For instance, the yellow light shows that your battery is nearly full, and the flashing green light indicates it’s almost fully charged.
What makes DeWalt batteries popular
DeWalt batteries are famous because of their lifespan. A DeWalt battery’s lifespan depends on external factors like its charge condition, temperature, and humidity before storing it. Dewalt batteries can last up to three years. These batteries have other different traits that make them the best choice:
- They have a higher capacity
- Compact and lightweight
- Easy to use
Conclusion
Different things can make your DeWalt battery not charge. Fortunately, you can try these fixes to give your battery a new life.
- Ensure the wall outlet is functioning
- Use a functional charger
- Put the battery on the charger properly
- Use an alternate current adaptor
- Clean the charger and battery terminals to remove debris and dirt
- Try slow charging your battery in controlled bursts
- Jumpstart your dead battery using a healthy DeWalt battery
- Call customer service at 1-800-433-9258 for professional help
If your battery doesn’t charge past two bars, try testing the charger with a good battery to determine the issue. If the issue persists, call a technician to diagnose and fix the problem. After reading to this end, we believe you know why your DeWalt battery isn’t charging and know the fixes that can help you get your battery back to life. However, comment if you have questions about the DeWalt battery not charging.