Battery Charger Organizer

[Walt Nicholson]

I am trying to get everything in the new shop organized and I remembered what a mess the old shop was with battery chargers and cords going everywhere. I decided there was a better way and built a simple box to solve the problem. This is built with SGS materials (screws, glue and scraps) the bottom is 1 x 10, the sides 1x4 and the top a piece of 1x12. It is 32" long. I fastened a 6 outlet metal (heard plastic has had problems) extension cord/surge protector to the bottom. I had a local electrician friend look at all the chargers and confirm that this outlet would handle all of them with no problems. I laid out my chargers on the top and marked where the cords were. I drilled holes with a 1/2" Forstner bit and then cut from the edge to the holes with the bandsaw. I put two 2x2 pieces in each front corner and drilled them to receive a 5/16" dowel (axles for toys). Lined up the top and drilled it to match. These pins are slipped in to hold the top from sliding around. One pin can be removed which allows the top to swivel in case I need to replace a charger. Lifting off the top full of plugged in chargers did not sound like fun. I cut a notch in the end piece for the extension cord. I gave it a coat of shellac to make it easier to blow the dust off and mounted it to the wall. I wound up the cords for each charger, wire tied them, plugged them in, put the wound up cords in the box and called it good. Now they are all in one spot and only one cord showing. Thanks for looking.

[Roy Hatch]

Walt, That's pretty neat. I have only two chargers in my shop so I don't have the inspiration to organize as you have.

Your picture raises the question of whether you leave the batteries in the charger while not in use. And forgive me if this has been discussed on this forum in the past.

I was told by a battery rebuilder that they should be removed from the charger when fully charged. He explained that although the manufacturer says they may be stored in the charger, this shortens the battery life. (They have new batteries to sell if you need them.) If I recall, the DeWalt manual stated that they could be left in the charger.

The rebuilders advice sounded reasonable to me since his goal is to establish a base of satisfied customers.

Roy

[Al Willits]

Might make sense Roy, I have two cordless drills I use a Makita that shuts the charger off when charged and a Dewalt, which supposely shuts off, least the light quits blinking for charge, but when I pull the charged battery out of the charger it has a bit of warmth to it...Maybe overcharging???

Al

[Rich Torino]

Nice job Walt.. I did something similar a couple of years ago (not quite as organized) but I added a shut off timer that is in hour incerments from 1-12... That will eliminate any over charging probles as mentioned...

[Matt Meiser]

Very nice. The only suggestion I have is to add a lighted switch to the front so you can turn on and off power.

[David G Baker]

I pull my batteries and store them in a small plastic tub after charging so they are out of the way and less likely to get into contact with some metal causing a short. I have stored batteries in a charger but the ones that got stored in the charger had a shorter life than the ones that didn't.
I had a Skill power screwdriver years ago that I left plugged in . The driver was fine but the plug in transformer melted and caused a few sparkies.

[Walt Nicholson]

The manual for the li-ion Makita and Bosch specifically say not to leave the batteries in the charger when they are done so I take them out and put them in a drawer in the bench right next to the shelf. I left everything in for the "photo shoot". I thought of the idea of a lighted switch but what I know about electricity you can write on the head of a pin and have room left for a letter to Santa.
When the shop was built, I had the breaker panel put just to the right of the exit door next to the shop light switches. Whenever I leave the shop I turn off the lights and kill the power to all wall plugs. A short in an old benchtop lamp years ago almost turned ugly so I just kill all the outlets when I am not in the shop just to be safe.

[Jim O'Dell]

I've also wondered, out loud here at the Creek I think :D, if leaving the batteries in a charger even with the power killed to the charger, would cause the battery to discharge. Didn't get a clear answer IIRC. Anyone know?
Walt, I like your solution. I have 3 chargers and want to build an angled shelf between my work bench and the wall mounted tool boxes above it for the chargers, and I've got on the back burner to watch for some type of timer, but I need one that goes from zero minutes to 3 hours. Could be in 10 or 15 minute intervals. Just haven't found it yet. Jim.

[Roy Hatch]

I've also wondered, out loud here at the Creek I think :D, if leaving the batteries in a charger even with the power killed to the charger, would cause the battery to discharge. Didn't get a clear answer IIRC. Anyone know? Jim.

Jim, I, too, have wondered - yet I don't know the answer. My first question was whether an ohmmeter would show a reading across the terminals. So I went out to the shop to take a look. The 8 year old 14.4V DeWalt charger showed no continuity. While the new Bosch 14.4V showed there was some continuity, but I don't know what that means. The Bosch is different in that it has a total of 4 contacts, some of which I suspect are part of the system to measure charge and determine when to cut back to trickle.

Perhaps it's time to consult with company engineers to see what they have to say.

I trust this has sufficiently documented my lack of knowledge when it comes to electricity.

Roy

[Mike Pierson]

what about one of those count-down timer switches to control the outlet...set it for 60 minutes and then it kills the outlet after 60....saw it in one of those "your dream shop" magazines once - i have one laying in my shop from a previous home project that never occurred...thought I might use it for something like you built but have got no further...

[Wes Bischel]

what about one of those count-down timer switches to control the outlet...set it for 60 minutes and then it kills the outlet after 60....saw it in one of those "your dream shop" magazines once - i have one laying in my shop from a previous home project that never occurred...thought I might use it for something like you built but have got no further...
I just made one of those for my two chargers. They had been plugged into a switched outlet - which works fine if I'm in the shop. After a few too many dead batteries, I put them on a timer I picked up at the borg. Works fine.

Wes

[glenn bradley]

Very cool Walt. I took the screws out of the bottoms of two chargers, drilled matching holes and mounted the chargers (including the bottoms) with screws so I could pull my batteries one handed. One charger didn't work out for this so I drilled a hole to each side and strapped it down with a long tie-wrap. All but one of my chargers has the grip of death and requires tht I hold onto the charger to remove the battery or I just pick up the whole shebang ;-)

[John Schreiber]

. . . I decided there was a better way and built a simple box to solve the problem. . . .


. . . mounted the chargers (including the bottoms) with screws so I could pull my batteries one handed. . . .

Sweet and smart design Walt.

Glenn, that's an excellent suggestion for improving it. Usually, you've got the tool in the other hand and have to put it down to pull out the battery.