Diagnosing a Milwaukee M12-18c muliti charger failure

[@suzesiviter6083]

As a later message pointed out, if you have a completely dead unit, try replacing the TOP256YN smart mosfet, check fuse also.

[@donmoore2045]

@One Up The Sleeve Customs -- this one sounds like the topxxx mains frontend is ok, seeing as the electronics are still functional. Just so you know what you're looking at ... the 4 big mosfets on the solder side of the PCB are used to switch the charging current on/off to the battery pack(s) being charged. In this case, I'll suspect the mosfets are ok (because neither charging socket is working properly) ... but keep this in mind, for if ever you come across a charger that charges the M12 but not the M18 ...or vice-versa...that fault would likely be mosfet related... ...here though, with both sockets indicating they're charging when actually no current is being provided....infers failure of the charging power circuit (which is common to both sockets)... ...on the low voltage output heatsink, is mounted the rectifier diode for the battery charging current supply -- check this diode is okay. On topside of the board in the same area, you will see an encapsulated fuse 'F2' ...check this for continuity. Behind the diode, almost under the heatsink itself, is an axial ferrite inductor ~ check for continuity.... ..let me know how you get on...

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

+Don Moore the information you have provided should help so many people in the future thanks heaps mate

[@arasvaichas2536]

I managed to fix mine. Plugged in the battery, charging light wouldn't come on. I pulled it apart and it started working again, put it back together and it stopped working after a while. So i suspected a loose wire. I looked at the underside of the PCB with a magnifying glass, and some of the joints for the wires to the charging terminals looked a bit bulbous, and I reckon they were dry joints. Put some flux on and gave them some more heat. I used some braid to remove the solder and check that the wire was actually soldered in right. Seems to be working again. Will see how long it lasts! But my suspicion is that they machine solder those wires and they don't get enough time and heat to solder properly. Worth going over all the wires, just in case.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Great thinking mate. You could run over back side of whole board with a heat gun to do the same thing ( I think its called reflowing solder joints

[@KiwiPhil.]

these things are so crappy, I have had 2 fail in 2 years with light home use - one randomly started working again intermittantly, the otherr just has no lights. No visual signs of damage

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Yeah the warranty guys throw them out by the bin full. Something in there is way to sensitive to power surges spike's and voltage drops

[@lynndonovan4941]

I bought a brand new 18 volt combo impactor and a drill. The fucking thing charged both batteries one time and then died! It was brand new!!

[@fc1133]

I "blew up" my charger yesterday, using a voltage converter. The charger is 110v only and I am on 240v now. Unfortunately, the Milwaukee charger blew up and my cheap voltage converter survived. It turns out that the voltage converter only supports 1.85 amperes. That said, I opened my charger today and noticed something like a fuse. However, the "fuse" does not come out... Or am I doing it wrong!? Thanks.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Is it soldered in ?

[@fc1133]

@@Oneupthesleevecustoms Yes. I ripped it out and crushed it. It was for sure glass on the outside but it looked like a "thread" on the inside!? To me that looks like a fuse, but who knows. I was going to just put a little bit of aluminum foil in there, just to see if the charger would come back to life. In the long run, I am going to get a new charger though... No need to burn the house down over 50 bucks. Thanks.

[@Nyck461]

What kind and size of tool did you used to remove those foiur screws?

[@redbay8527]

Got an M12 charger and the red light blinks constantly, whether a battery is in it or not. If I stick a battery in it, then red and green blink. Can it be fixed?

[@redbay8527]

I guess there's no need to fix it. I had one battery showing 1 bar, so I put it in the charger and it charged properly - up to 4 bars. The lights may not be proper, but it charges the batteries OK as far as I can tell. Thanks for the video, it motivated me to check it out.

[@jimbosammy4255]

How in the world does Milwaukee stay in business with so many failures??????? I have a DOA charger from 7 years ago. There are still reports of failure even today. Was too busy for warranty service and just grabbed a Bosch and moved on. Still have it and a new but bad battery too. Wanna buy em?

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

What model batt and charger. Been 7 years old doubt battery would be any good now

[@jimbosammy4255]

@@Oneupthesleevecustoms Charger 48-59-1812, serial D 63C9193290794G. Battery 48-11-2420, reads 'Cells made in Korea or Malaysia with additional processing on China' on the label. New batteries I've seen only say 'China'. The battery came with the charger way back when I purchased it.

[@woodysscrapboxraisinghomev9795]

Mine died when a visitor moved it while at full charge. does it have a fuse as I cant see one and all looks good. Cheers

[@loktom4068]

If you don't see any loose or corroded contacts , it's a throw away situation. Unless you are an electronic repair technician.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Sadly not made to be repaired easly

[@WesLott3rd]

If it is still under warranty, try calling Milwaukee and sending it to them. If that is not an option, proceed. Semiconductors like transistors, diodes, rectifiers and ICs are the most likely suspects. The first thing I always check is I look for hot spots after use, and I resolder the connections in the higher power areas. For intermittent problems like you have, this usually fixes it. Next, I would replace the semiconductor that makes the DC current. Look at the circuit board and follow the line. Warning: Semiconductors are easy to damage with heat, sink the heat when soldering close to one.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

+Wes Lott yeah not under warrenty ill dig deeper and see what i find thankyou

[@csphang8785]

There's a fuse at the power entry point into the board...

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

+CS Phang is there?

[@robertohagan8093]

I have a problem with the m12 charger. Says all my batteries are damaged but they charge up OK on my other charging system. Is there an obvious fault I can fix here.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Ive never had a m12 only charger fail. Sorry mate

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

What battery is it

[@robertohagan8093]

@@Oneupthesleevecustoms yes it's a mystery. Need some torz bits and I will open it up. Cheers mate for your support.

[@butchtheiw]

It took 4 minutes to get to the circuit board, then he puts it back together and says oh, well, it still doesn't work. Waste of time, this video.

[@theentertainmentchannel5347]

Hi, have similar issue with milwaukee 18-28v charger. IT was working fine yesterday, but when I tried to charge a battery today, i plugged the battery in, the red light came on(for charging) and after few seconds it went off. What might be the problem?

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Have you opened it

[@theentertainmentchannel5347]

@@Oneupthesleevecustoms not yet. If i open it, is there anything particular i should look for?

[@sertint]

@@Oneupthesleevecustoms ???

[@sertint]

i have one with a similar problem..what can i do?

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Yes look along the board for any loose or broken components.

[@carloselmoreno1]

Good evening, can you give me the color code or the value of the R8 residence please as it is burned.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Ill see if i still have one open mate i might have binned it

[@ArtuFlako]

Could you help me out, I accidentally connected mines to 220v. How silly, now it doesn't work. What could be wrong with it?

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Would have melted something on the input if its a 110v version

[@suzesiviter6083]

That would destroy the input capacitors unless they are using the UK versions 400V caps, and possibly other components downstream, check the soldered fuse (yellow).

[@lukaspozarro5564]

No entiendo ni mierda..le sacastes los tornillo y lo volviste s a poner y se arreglo??

[@streetbikerchef7022]

I bought a m18 drill driver combo set and the charger worked fine then after about a few months every time I try to charge a dead battery I put it on the charger the light reads green as if it is fully charged but in fact it’s dead but what’s wierd is if I leave it on the charger and battery is dead and light shows green I’ll check it about a few hours later then the battery shows 3bars but never 4 I looked so many places for information and don’t know what the issue could be any ideas anyone??

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Yep cells inside battery have drifted apart in balance mate. Warrenty claim it

[@nightkobe]

hi boss,I have a problem in my m18 fuel hammer dril driver, the light is on but it is not working and the click is sounding every time the trigger is pressed.how can i fix? thanks a lot.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Clean battery and tool.contacts . Has it been wet

[@nightkobe]

Have you ever compared this to a situation like this?light is on nobodies home

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

how old is it

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Is it still under warranty?

[@nightkobe]

i found the problem.power mosfet is broken.i will replace it.thanks again;)

[@haydlew]

I found in the car 12v 24v cigarette charger version in I remove and replace the inline fuse.....it works again. Don't know why...but seems to work again

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Like a hard reset:) I wanted a car one but they charge to slow. 4 hrs for a 12amp

[@haydlew]

@@Oneupthesleevecustoms I only have 3 and 5 ah batteries. So I'm happy with that off my aux car battery👍

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Yeah heaps faster with the smaller batts. :) thanks for the feedback mate

[@eazyrider6122]

your not supposed to charge two batteries at the same time

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Eazy Rider its a sequential charger it charges one after the other

[@eazyrider6122]

One Up The Sleeve Customs ok just saying cause that was the message i got back from the repair guy who fixed mine. that i could only use one side at a time.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Yeah it will only do one at a time be cool if they did both

[@eazyrider6122]

One Up The Sleeve Customs but ssying that i followed that instruction and now my charger- M12-18C is not working again. i also have another which is a rapid charger so i can test the batteries against each charger. so it now looks like its going back for repair today.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Yeah these old style ones seem to fail a bit i have 2 dead ones

[@simpesfaip]

is there a way to reduce current during charge?i have 2 standard chargers,and i would like to charge batteries slower to prolong battery life,cause after 2 years of use two batteries gotten pretty weak,got soldering iron but im not tech,,,

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Using standard or rapid charger

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

What size batts what tool you using most

[@simpesfaip]

@@Oneupthesleevecustoms standard charger, 5.o Ah batteries

[@oneupthesleevecustomsautom2195]

They should go for years ive got a few 3 and 4ah batts that would be in 7 years old

[@simpesfaip]

@@oneupthesleevecustomsautom2195 I got two brand new,2 years now,but i use them daily,mechanic auto shop,however i didnt get 1000 charges out of them both together,so must be charging that kills em.they charge in 1 hour,wich is too fast for li-ion

[@TheGreatFezzywig]

For how much money you pay for the drills themselves youd think theyd make a decent charger. Things are trash, ive only had problems with them

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Newer ones are better but I've still seen them die

[@gasperajdnik5627]

Thats prity col bro 😎 I have one of dovs

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Yours still work?

[@gasperajdnik5627]

No. I want a new car

[@juntjoonunya9216]

Jesus, what do these things cost? A thousand dollars?.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

To expensive to just die for no reason. Milwaukee stuff is expensive in Australia as our $AUD to $USD sucks

[@juntjoonunya9216]

@@Oneupthesleevecustoms ah. Well I just checked the internet and I can grab one for $20 bucks so I'd rather wash dishes for a couple hours while listening to some tunes rather than go digging into my dead charger. Of course if they're still under warranty then get em replaced. Otherwise $20 a year for a shit charger ain't that bad.

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

That's very cheap good score. I've moved to the high output batterys so these are only good for my m12 batts. I'm keen to get hands on a supercharger

[@jimbosammy4255]

@@juntjoonunya9216 The thing is... it's $20 over and over. Then there is the down time.

[@Steve-ib4wq]

These charges suck. Brand new and they dont do shit

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Yep agree. They are out dated and need to be binned. The batterys also got to big for the 3amp charge rate

[@liliabustinzaarias5307]

En español por favor

[@1995themike]

Milwaukee chargers suck!!

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

Old Milwaukee chargers suck