As I mentioned earlier in the week, Hurricane/Tropical Cyclone/Superstorm Sandy left us without power. We’re still without power, with the regional power company saying that power should be restored by November 5th, five days from now.
Prior to the storm’s arrival I had charged up six Milwaukee M18 lithium ion batteries, four 3.0Ah XC and two 1.5Ah compact battery packs, to go along with the M18 power source I had planned on reviewing next month.
The M18 power source, model 49-24-2371, allows for the use of M18 batteries with Milwaukee’s M12 heated jackets but also features a very handy USB charging port.
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Milwaukee’s M12 power port ($30 via Amazon) can also charge devices via a USB port and 12V car charger socket, but I find the M18 power source to be more appealing.
I have gone through only one M18 XC battery thus far in about 40 hours and several smartphone recharge cycles. Later on tonight I will task a second battery with recharging my iPad and will charge my wife’s cellphone and blackberry overnight.
Going into the storm I knew that I would have maybe a week of normal smartphone usage, longer if I avoided power-hungry apps and 4G internet connectivity, giving me some peace of mind. Even with the power out I’m able to keep in touch with family and friends.
It’s also worth pointing out that the adapter can also be used to power Milwaukee’s M12 heated jacket. I have been testing one of the new fleece-lined jackets, and it’s nice to know that I’ll still be toasty when temperatures drop later in the week, long after my last M12 battery is fully drained.
Milwaukee’s M18 battery packs have a built-in power gauge, allowing me to monitor charge levels. I haven’t needed to swap out batteries yet, but I will soon since the first XC battery is down to 1-bar.
The M12 power port and M12 jacket power source can also charge USB devices, but there’s not that much weight or size savings when you think about how one M18 3.0Ah battery pack has more charging power than three compact M12 battery packs.
The M18 power source is priced at $30, and is compatible with all of Milwaukee’s M18 batteries.
mnoswad1 says
Waiting for someone to mod it into a battery adapter for another brands tools.
Javier says
It would be nice if dewalt had something like this, my 20v max batteries feel left out. If milwaukee comes out with an air compressor m18 tool I might just sell my dewalt 20v tools and make the switch to milwaukee.
Jason says
Yea Javier its really hard to keep loving my Dewalt 20 Volt tools. The number of tools you can get with the M12 and M18 batteries is really insane. Makita is the only company with more 18 volt tools. I really love the Dewalt tools when I use them, but the the money I could save by not having 2 18 volt systems would be huge.
Tony Lima says
Glad you braved the storm ok. I almost want to get Milwaukee batteries just for this feature!
rob says
Glad youe came out OK in the storm Stuart. I know power crews from here in CA were on the road as of Tuesday headed to NYC. They figured it was about 55 hrs driving none stop. So help is on the way!
Stuart says
Still no power here in NJ. Power company turned it off preemptively but no realistic ETA when it will be back on. All they’re saying now is they hope to have everything restored by Nov. 9th. We’ll probably head into Brooklyn tonight.
James C says
How does the M18 1.5 AH and 3.0 AH compare to the two M12 options in terms of efficiency? The USB standard puts out 5V, so both M18 and M12 (to a lesser extent) must have to step down in voltage and lose some efficiency, right? I’m not sure M18 at 1.5 AH is apples to apples with M12 at 1.4 AH.
Stuart says
18V x 1.5Ah = 27W
12V x 1.5Ah is really 10.8V x 1.5Ah = 16.2W
M12 batteries just won’t last as long as M18 batteries from a pure power point of view.
M18 3.0Ah battery provides 54 watts of power, which is 3-1/3 times as much as a compact M12 battery.
I can’t speak about efficiency differences, but for charging purposes M18 batteries are more convenient, if you don’t mind the added weight and size.
anerbenartzi says
Watts = Volts X Amps (not AmpHours)
You’ve calculated that the 18V 1.5Ah battery can do 54WattHours, but that doesn’t tell us how many Watts (i.e. the power).
For that, we’d need to know the maximum Amps the batteries can output – a spec that I haven’t been able to find anywhere for Milwuakee batteries.
Mark says
He calculated it right, he just needed to add “hour” to 27Wh and 16.2Wh…..the amount of power the M18 1.5Ah battery has is more than M12 1.5Ah battery. If the tool is drawing the same amount of power the M18 battery will last longer, but M18 Tool is design to draw more power thus its stronger. Watt Hours is the amount of Watt it draws in an Hour! I believe the battery Ah rating is how much max amps it can push….that’s why when I use a 9Ah battery on my miter saw it’s more powerful than if i use a 5Ah battery…even though they’re both 18 volts.
Al H says
Another option for small electronics is a solar USB charger. Just wondering if a solar USB charger attached to the M18 USB port could recharge the M18? Or is there flow protection circuitry that prevents that? Sure, at a typical 5W solar charge rate, that could take awhile, but might be a last resort in an extended grid down scenario. Anyone tried it?
Stuart says
That could be an option for certain low-voltage devices. A $60 charger + large solar panel setup I just checked out can charge a smartphone battery at a peak rate of 500mA/hour, which isn’t too bad.
It’s not going to be possible to recharge M18 batteries via the USB port.
Assuming there was a way to recharge these batteries using a 5W charger, it would take 11 hours of continuous peak charging for a single 3.0Ah battery pack.
It might be worth investing in a small voltage solar charger that works with 2AA rechargeable batteries or similar. In extended grid-down situations, assuming cell phone towers or mobile towers are still operational, that would be a good continued source of power for cell phones and communication devices.
Jack says
Does this output sufficient amperage on the USB to charge an ipad and or iphone 5?
Stuart says
It charged my iPad, albeit very slowly. I can’t answer about an iPhone, but it charged my Samsung Galaxy Nexus and my wife’s Blackberry just fine.
Jack says
Iphones require 5w for charging and Ipads require 10w. The ipads will still charge at 5w, albeit very slow. I will assume if you said slow charge, then this unit puts out 5w.
Stuart says
Milwaukee says power output is 500mA. If that’s for the USB port, 5V at 500mA = 2.5W.
Michael Quinlan says
I wish I had read this before buying. I’m (as I type) doing a test charge on my Nexus 7 and it’s taking FOREVER – so I believe the claim of 500mA output. I started charging at 18% and am now at 33%, and GSam Battery Monitor says it will be almost 7 hours until it’s fully charged. In contrast, Milwaukee claimes the M12 power source provides up to 2.1A output.
I guess I’ll be leaving the M18 power source and batteries at home for my upcoming 20+ hour bus ride.
Jack says
Stuart, good info here. Thanks for the review!
Shea says
Anyone tried using the 12v DC output for anything other than the heated gear? I’m not having any luck getting 12v out of the plug with M18 battery installed. Ov reading.
Jon B says
I’ve wondered this as well. Been thinking about using either a M12 or M18 power source to run project I’ve got planned. Would hopefully be able to run a stepper motor from the 12dc output and an arduino from the USB 5V but not sure how well it would work.
Rob says
I’m wondering what the maximum current output of the 12v jack is. My USB is labeled 2.1 amp out and charges Galaxy 7 just fine. Dunno if other users got old models and Milwaukee updated their item?
Shea says
Some sort of smart circuit or does it require a M12 battery to work?