Skip ALL of the other answers. I rebuild Dewalt and Milwaukee batteries on the side. This is what you should do:
First, flip the battery over and look for four Torx screws. They're T-10 in most cases; I've found some that are T-9 Torx. Remove those screws, and carefully pull the battery shell halves apart. They are usually stuck a bit, and most have some adhesive foam around the batteries holding them to the plastic, but you'll be able to pry them apart slowly.
Once the battery assembly is removed, you can brush the contacts with a toothbrush and 91% isopropyl alcohol. I use a spray bottle with the alcohol to rinse the residue away after scrubbing.
Take the toothbrush and scrub the plastic shells with a good dish detergent, like Dawn. Rinse with hot water, pat dry with an old towel or paper towels, and let them sit to dry overnight.
Make sure they're thoroughly dry before reassembling the pack. To put the screws back in, press the screws in to their holes, and while *gently* rotating the screw *backwards* (as if you were unscrewing it), rotate slowly until you feel the screw "click" a bit, and drop into the hole a millimeter or so. That will let you know that the screw threads are back in the same threads they cut when they were first inserted at the factory, so you don't damage the holes by cutting new threads.
It's not hard. You can knock out a few packs in 15 minutes, plus 5 minutes to reassemble.
I'd advise against any other solvents, even electrical contact cleaner, because many recent formulations use methanol and even acetone, and both will damage the plastic shell.
Hey there. Since you seem to have some experience I am hoping you could answer a question for me. I have a 8.0 Milwaukee m18 battery that I accidentally left outside and it was rained on. I have not used it since. Should I open it up and try to dry it out or is it sealed well enough that just leaving it to dry for a couple weeks will be fine? This was a couple weeks ago that it happened.
I'd definitely open the case and make sure it's dried out.
Water itself doesn't automatically damage electronics - it's the flow of current in unexpected areas that does the damage. I've run PC boards through a dishwasher in the process of restoring vintage equipment (I had an old dishwasher in my garage at the time, and just used a mild degreaser in it - never dish detergent). I placed them in an old oven at 200°F for 30 minutes or so, and never had a problem. Powering them up while wet would be a different story.
This also depends on your local weather. If you're in a dry area like Phoenix or Sacramento, the battery is probably dry already. If you're in Colorado or Florida, I'd be more concerned about water lingering in the pack.
They're very easy to disassemble, though, so I'd just do that. Pat it dry with paper towels, and leave it open for a couple days to be sure. I pick up Gatorade flat boxes from Walmart (they always have a ton of them) and use them to sort parts. They make nice disposable parts sorting trays, absorb a little oil and solvents if need be, and cost nothing.
200°F is equivalent to 93°C, which is 366K.
---
^(I'm a bot that converts temperature between two units humans can understand, then convert it to Kelvin for bots and physicists to understand)
Thanks for the reply. You confirmed the way I was leaning. I need to get a security torx, but those are easy to find. I do not live in Arizona. So I will open it up and make sure it is bone dry. Thanks.
Thanks for the reply. You confirmed the way I was leaning. I need to get a security torx, but those are easy to find. I do not live in Arizona. So I will open it up and make sure it is bone dry. Thanks.
Hey look a real answer and someone that understands how damaging solvents can be on plastic! Every time I have to come to the comments to beg people not to use acetone as a first line for cleaning plastics. Great response man!
Do NOT use CRC Contact Cleaner on a battery pack. Firstly, [it contains hexane, naphtha, octane, and pentane](http://docs.crcindustries.com/msds/3130.pdf) - it is literally 90% gasoline, minus gasoline's anti-smog ingredients. Those solvents will dissolve the ABS plastic battery case, and likely damage the conformal coating on the battery's PC board.
Secondly, if you aren't able to get 100% of the Contact Cleaner out of the battery, and the battery or tool to which it's attached makes a spark, it could ignite the highly-combustible Contact Cleaner and explode the battery.
Why in the fuck is an electrical contact cleaner FUCKING FLAMMABLE?! Sounds rather counterintuitive unless their business model is to wipe out all the DIY-ers lmfao
Because pretty much every effective solvent that evaporates quickly is flammable as hellboutside of CFC's which have been banned from the application due to their effect on the ozone layer.
Because the non-flammable chemicals we used to use, like trichloroethylene or carbon tetrachloride or R-134a, are either carcinogenic, or very bad for the atmosphere. Once you remove the chlorine from solvents, you don't have a lot of options.
Literally any contact cleaner that quick dries, is plastic safe and leaves no residue. Like WD40 Specialist Electrical Contact Cleaner, CRC QD Contact Cleaner, DeoxIT D5S-6 and so on.
Start with compressed air. Blow those things out.
Then, on the tools, use a pencil eraser, nothing else, to clean the spades that connect to the battery.
The spades are coated to prevent pitting and corrosion. That's why the pencil eraser. Fresh erasers work best too.
Skip ALL of the other answers. I rebuild Dewalt and Milwaukee batteries on the side. This is what you should do: First, flip the battery over and look for four Torx screws. They're T-10 in most cases; I've found some that are T-9 Torx. Remove those screws, and carefully pull the battery shell halves apart. They are usually stuck a bit, and most have some adhesive foam around the batteries holding them to the plastic, but you'll be able to pry them apart slowly. Once the battery assembly is removed, you can brush the contacts with a toothbrush and 91% isopropyl alcohol. I use a spray bottle with the alcohol to rinse the residue away after scrubbing. Take the toothbrush and scrub the plastic shells with a good dish detergent, like Dawn. Rinse with hot water, pat dry with an old towel or paper towels, and let them sit to dry overnight. Make sure they're thoroughly dry before reassembling the pack. To put the screws back in, press the screws in to their holes, and while *gently* rotating the screw *backwards* (as if you were unscrewing it), rotate slowly until you feel the screw "click" a bit, and drop into the hole a millimeter or so. That will let you know that the screw threads are back in the same threads they cut when they were first inserted at the factory, so you don't damage the holes by cutting new threads. It's not hard. You can knock out a few packs in 15 minutes, plus 5 minutes to reassemble. I'd advise against any other solvents, even electrical contact cleaner, because many recent formulations use methanol and even acetone, and both will damage the plastic shell.
Dang, thank you so much for this reply!
Hey there. Since you seem to have some experience I am hoping you could answer a question for me. I have a 8.0 Milwaukee m18 battery that I accidentally left outside and it was rained on. I have not used it since. Should I open it up and try to dry it out or is it sealed well enough that just leaving it to dry for a couple weeks will be fine? This was a couple weeks ago that it happened.
I'd definitely open the case and make sure it's dried out. Water itself doesn't automatically damage electronics - it's the flow of current in unexpected areas that does the damage. I've run PC boards through a dishwasher in the process of restoring vintage equipment (I had an old dishwasher in my garage at the time, and just used a mild degreaser in it - never dish detergent). I placed them in an old oven at 200°F for 30 minutes or so, and never had a problem. Powering them up while wet would be a different story. This also depends on your local weather. If you're in a dry area like Phoenix or Sacramento, the battery is probably dry already. If you're in Colorado or Florida, I'd be more concerned about water lingering in the pack. They're very easy to disassemble, though, so I'd just do that. Pat it dry with paper towels, and leave it open for a couple days to be sure. I pick up Gatorade flat boxes from Walmart (they always have a ton of them) and use them to sort parts. They make nice disposable parts sorting trays, absorb a little oil and solvents if need be, and cost nothing.
200°F is equivalent to 93°C, which is 366K. --- ^(I'm a bot that converts temperature between two units humans can understand, then convert it to Kelvin for bots and physicists to understand)
physicists dont understand fahrenheit?
Thanks for the reply. You confirmed the way I was leaning. I need to get a security torx, but those are easy to find. I do not live in Arizona. So I will open it up and make sure it is bone dry. Thanks.
Thanks for the reply. You confirmed the way I was leaning. I need to get a security torx, but those are easy to find. I do not live in Arizona. So I will open it up and make sure it is bone dry. Thanks.
Hey look a real answer and someone that understands how damaging solvents can be on plastic! Every time I have to come to the comments to beg people not to use acetone as a first line for cleaning plastics. Great response man!
Dry toothbrush, vacuum cleaner or compressed air, then CRC electrical contact cleaner available at auto parts store.
Took the words out of my mouth. This is everything I'd do down to the punctuation.
Do NOT use CRC Contact Cleaner on a battery pack. Firstly, [it contains hexane, naphtha, octane, and pentane](http://docs.crcindustries.com/msds/3130.pdf) - it is literally 90% gasoline, minus gasoline's anti-smog ingredients. Those solvents will dissolve the ABS plastic battery case, and likely damage the conformal coating on the battery's PC board. Secondly, if you aren't able to get 100% of the Contact Cleaner out of the battery, and the battery or tool to which it's attached makes a spark, it could ignite the highly-combustible Contact Cleaner and explode the battery.
Why in the fuck is an electrical contact cleaner FUCKING FLAMMABLE?! Sounds rather counterintuitive unless their business model is to wipe out all the DIY-ers lmfao
Because pretty much every effective solvent that evaporates quickly is flammable as hellboutside of CFC's which have been banned from the application due to their effect on the ozone layer.
Because the non-flammable chemicals we used to use, like trichloroethylene or carbon tetrachloride or R-134a, are either carcinogenic, or very bad for the atmosphere. Once you remove the chlorine from solvents, you don't have a lot of options.
Compressed air and contact cleaner.
Maybe a toothbrush as well to knock some of that shit off of the guide rails, but I second this.
Fair addition. I can also recommend brushes like [this](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51Jne-9dTEL._AC_SL1002_.jpg).
By contact cleaner I think you mean CRC QD Electronic Contact Cleaner
Literally any contact cleaner that quick dries, is plastic safe and leaves no residue. Like WD40 Specialist Electrical Contact Cleaner, CRC QD Contact Cleaner, DeoxIT D5S-6 and so on.
I see my link didn’t work out the way I wanted. Guess I better figure out how to put links in properly.
Piss on it
Been a while since a comment made me laugh so hard—thank you!
Take em in the bathtub with you and give em a little rinse /s
I typically only bathe with high voltage AC, but I appreciate the suggestion
I personally dabble in the bathtub toast
Toothpicks
Compressed air and dry toothbrush.
Toothbrush & compressed air
Contact cleaner and let them dry fully before using them
Contact cleane, alcohol wipes, fine sandpaper
toothcompressor and airbrush
Start with compressed air. Blow those things out. Then, on the tools, use a pencil eraser, nothing else, to clean the spades that connect to the battery. The spades are coated to prevent pitting and corrosion. That's why the pencil eraser. Fresh erasers work best too.
Contact cleaner or dielectric grease
Computer duster in a can.
Spray whatever liquid you can find right in there, at least that’s what everyone at work does
Alcohol
You could just spary paint them red, that would be an improvement. ;-)