Drill charger diagnostics

[ARW]

If I die before you I can haunt you.

[John Rumm]

It does rather depend on how you interpret "transformer".

If you mean the whole charger, then yup its likely with modern li-ion chargers, there will be no voltage output until a battery is sensed. Older NiCd and NiMh, may or may not have voltage output at all times depending on type.

If you mean transformer as in the internal component, then in the case of an old linear supply - yup it will have AC volts on the output at all times the primary is powered unless its knackered. I would have though that linear style supplies in chargers are pretty rare for all but the most feeble wall wart style chargers these days.

So that leaves a large number of SMPSUs - those will have much smaller lighter transformers, and again its not uncommon to have then shutdown their output on no load.

[newshound]

If it's an old B&D Cordless it might well have NiCad batteries that are now dead; not worth replacing and certainly not worth faffing about with the charger. Go and get a Lithium Ion one from Aldi/Lidl.

[Robin]

I'd say Adam was exercising his right in a multicultural society to take what was the traditional approach in my upbringing to such news. Much as I'd wondered when was the best time to send PM with my best wishes for successful ops and a speedy recovery, and my enquiries about any tools going begging if not.

[ARW]

Honest.

[Brian Gaff]

May well have a thermal fuse and if that has gone well its gone due to an issue. That old a device probably used ni-cads and they do not have much of a life, so unless you feel inclined to make up a battery pack from nickel metal hydrides and make a proper charger that is smart enough to know when to stop charging, maybe its time to been it? Brian

[Brian Gaff]

No that is not correct. There will be an AC voltage there, from there it usually goes to a bridge rectifier and onto the rest of the charging circuit, probably a capacitor and a chip controlling a transistor if its quite old. My guess is that something has put a short across the transformer and a thermal fuse inside it has melted to stop it catching fire. Could be shorted turns, but more likely the bridge rectifiers failed on a mains spike and trashed it I had this happen to a power supply for a sub woofer a couple of years ago, but managed to switch it off before death of the transformer. It just needed a more robust bridge rectifier fitted and a surge protection mains connection! Brian

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Yes, pet.

If you can't tell the difference between an analogue PS and SMPS at a glance, best not to touch it.

[Andrew]

If you're after sympathy, you're going about it the wrong way.

When I started work, men retired at 65 and lived for another 7 years or so, while the ladies chattered on a few more years.

Now everyone seems to be living to 95+, and that age group paid peanuts in NI when they were working, but were already retired when NuLab had its massive top-down NHS re-org in

2001. They benefit from this but have never paid any of the NI increases that were imposed on younger workers to pay for it.

If you are over 70 then you are in 'profit' (unless you were in the top 25% of taxpayers originally).

[Andrew]

+1. Shit happens, even for those with colostomy bags.

[Andrew]

If you allowed the battery voltage to drop too much then I thought this could cause overheating and a fire, so the charger measures the battery voltage and simply refused to charge at all as a safety precaution.

Sometimes, removing the batteries and charging them with a proper bench power supply that can supply a constant current or voltage might recover them.

battery-powered tools need to be charged regularly, even if not used for extended periods.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

With most things like that better to find out ASAP. So more chance of treating it.

Like many as we get older, I've had more than my fair share of the NHS in the past year or so. Making me even more appreciative of it. And hating wankers like Farage who what to turn it into some money making scam even more.

[tabbypurr]

everything does. Thermal fuses are far more reliable than the electronics

it might if the electronics is already fried. That leaves the tranny as the most reliable part.

NT

[Roger Hayter]

I am fairly certain that the only people to benefit from Blair's reorganisation were big American health companies and anyone (mainly nurses sick of hard work, and new MBA holders) who wanted a well-paid management job despite no discernible management ability.

[billj]

But not ones that have 240V on their primary.

[tabbypurr]

They pretty much all do of course.

NT

[billj]

Not in the sense of being directly wired to the mains input. .

[tabbypurr]

Fact: they do see about 240v ac. End of story. Trolltard plonked.