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ToolGuyd > Power Tools > Cordless > Have You Had Problems with Your Dewalt 20V Max Battery’s Fuel Gauge?
DEWALT 20V MAX Green Laser GIVEAWAY! - Learn More!

Have You Had Problems with Your Dewalt 20V Max Battery’s Fuel Gauge?

Jul 15, 2016 Stuart 97 Comments

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Dewalt DCB204 20V 4Ah Battery

Bill wrote in, describing a problem with the fuel gauge on the Dewalt 4.0Ah battery packs he received with a new kit.

He had purchased a DCK299M2 premium brushless hammer drill and impact driver kit (Amazon link for details), and the fuel gauges on one of the two batteries never fully lit up.

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The charge capacity gauge on these battery packs has 3 LEDs to show you how much juice is left in the pack. In Bill’s experience, even when fully charged only 2 spots lit up. He left the battery to charge further, and that 3rd spot never lit up. His other battery charged fine and the gauge lit to the 3rd position.

He returned the kit to the store, exchanging it for a replacement.

Both batteries in the replacement kit suffered from the same issue, where only 2 out of 3 of the batteries’ fuel gauge would light up.

Is this something you have experienced?

I’m thinking there are 3 possibilities:

  1. The batteries aren’t charging fully
  2. There’s an issue with the voltage detection of the fuel gauge circuit
  3. The LED placement is off (least likely)

I haven’t heard about this issue before, and so I’m assuming it’s a random and isolated one that affects maybe a handful of battery packs produced around the same time.

The reader hadn’t done any testing with the batteries to see whether he was getting full charge out of them, which I guess could be done by depleting the battery in use and then timing the recharge.

I’ll ask Dewalt about whether this is something they know about, but also wanted to hear from you guys to see if it’s a random and isolated issue or not.

Related posts:

Dewalt FlexVolt 120V DHS790T2 sliding compound miter sawNew Dewalt Cordless Miter Saws in 2019? (Reader Question) Dewalt DCB240 20V Max Compact 4Ah Cordless Power Tool BatteryWhy Dewalt Probably Won’t Make a USB-Chargeable Cordless Power Tool Battery

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97 Comments

  1. Albert

    Jul 15, 2016

    Yes I have the same issue on my 5amp battery. Even when fully charged it shows 2 leds. However, if I press on the button hard, it will show 3.

    Reply
    • Steve Smith

      Apr 10, 2020

      I am having the same issues with my 20-volt Max batteries only two lights but they’re not fully charging either because they run out of juice rather quickly when I first got them all three lights would light and they work great Nice strong batteries and I think they’ve been charged maybe eight times and I’m having problems with two of the four that I have.

      Reply
    • Julia Lewis

      Oct 18, 2020

      Yes i have same issue with both of my brand new batteries

      Reply
    • Padraig

      Nov 3, 2020

      My 2 new 5ah batteries charging to 1 bar what should I do

      Reply
  2. Travis

    Jul 15, 2016

    I had this issue with one of my 5ah packs. I would have to push the button many times (7-10) in order for the LEDs to light up. The battery charges just fine and holds a charge. I moved it from tool rotation to the shop Bluetooth radio, just to be safe.

    I called DeWalt customer service regarding the issue and had a very pleasant experience. I have the representative the battery serial number and production date. I was asked a few other questions, the battery was still under the warranty period, and then I was told they would be sending me a new battery to replace that one. I was told to destroy the ‘damaged’ 5ah battery but I decided to relegate it to the low draw of the Bluetooth speaker. Within 4 days I received a new 5ah battery in OEM packaging.

    All I can say is, DeWalts customer service has always been top notch on any issues I have ever had.

    Reply
    • Travis

      Jul 15, 2016

      I have roughly 20-25 battery packs. These are a mixture of 2.0ah, 4.0ah, and 5.0ah.

      Reply
    • Tad

      Jul 15, 2016

      Interested in how you can tell the manufacturer date of the batteries……..could you please explain how to read the code? Thanks Tad

      Reply
      • Travis

        Jul 15, 2016

        I believe it is printed right on top of the battery. 20xx

        The serial number on the battery also tells DeWalt when the battery was manufactured. I was the 2nd owner of my battery that had an issue, DeWalt didn’t care as it is covered under their warranty still.

        Reply
    • Stan

      Jan 1, 2020

      I was only getting 1 green bar on 5 ah new packs. After reading quite a few of these since like typical guy fashion I missed the “push battery in charger harder” in the first review. Finally found it farther down in a thread. Of course I had tried that before and didn’t get different result. So before calling dewalt I held the battery and charger in each hand and “click” there was another position.

      Reply
      • Chuck

        Jan 26, 2020

        Thanks for the tip. You saved me from calling support. Just switched to 20V so not used to the chargers yet.

        Reply
      • Shiro

        Mar 14, 2020

        Thank you so much. Why is this not in the instructions??? There is a second position. Now mine is changing from just one led being on. Thanks again!!!!

        Reply
      • Dave

        Apr 12, 2020

        Thank you for the tip! I have two new 5aH batteries an after leaving each one on the charger overnight, they were only lighting one of the LEDs each. I thought I had defective batteries until I read your post. Now I clicked it further and it looks like they are fully charging.

        Reply
      • Rich

        Apr 23, 2020

        I thought it was strange the battreies did not click into place. It was telling me with 1 LED lit it was charged, now they are charging

        Reply
      • Aaron Livingstone

        May 13, 2020

        Thank you for this, this left me scratching my head for quite sometime! The charger would say the battery was fully charged however when Checked the indicator on the battery it self it only showed 1 bar. Once I heard the click they began to charge!

        Reply
      • Marcus

        May 14, 2020

        That’s it! Thanks for saving me the call to tech support! When I place the battery on the charger, it lights up. I thought that meant it was ready to charge. Left it overnight and still had only one light. It’s not enough for the charger to light up. You have to push the battery in ’til it clicks, then the charging light flashes and it’s on its way! It clicks so tight that it takes two hands to get the battery out of the charger. It’ll probably loosen up as the new wears off.

        Reply
      • John Albergo

        Jun 19, 2020

        Thanks for that! I just bought some DB206 and was trying to figure out why the charger was just giving me a solid red light. The DB203 I already had, did not require any force at all to insert so I had no idea these larger packs required a secret handshake!

        Reply
        • Debbie

          Jul 26, 2020

          I am so happy I found this thread! Our 5ah wasn’t charging and we had no idea what was going on. Now that we pushed it onto the charger more it’s blinking that it’s charging. Yay! Hoping that’s the fix.

          Reply
          • Steve

            Nov 27, 2020

            I just had the same issue so glad I seen this thread too, it’s charging! Business as usual!lol

      • gerry

        Nov 1, 2020

        Thanks for the post…

        I had the exact same issue… didn’t realize you had to hear that ‘click’

        obviously who ever wrote the manual felt that this step would be intuitive

        Reply
      • Thomas

        Mar 28, 2021

        Well Snap! I wouldn’t have believed it. I slammed the heck out of it one time and the thing shows 3 bars when charging but goes away in a few seconds, quits charging, and returns to two bars. 😑 what now?

        Reply
  3. Cr8ondt

    Jul 15, 2016

    2 2.0, 1 3.0, and 1 4.0 all work perfectly.

    Reply
    • jtr165

      Jul 15, 2016

      3 2.0ah and 1 5.0ah, all been cycled quite a bit. No issues so far.

      Reply
  4. Mr. Creek

    Jul 15, 2016

    I have about 25 20v batteries, a mixed lot of 1.5, 2, 3, 4 & 5 amp. I got the 1.5 amp battery new at Lowe’s for $17. The only problem I have with any fuel gauges is on the 1.5, it still shows 1 bar when it is drained. For $17 on the weakest battery I own; I’m like, “meh”.

    Reply
  5. Jacob Scutzlas

    Jul 15, 2016

    I have 4 2.0ah batteries and all the fuel gauges work fine.

    Reply
  6. Todd H.

    Jul 15, 2016

    I have this issue with my DeWalt 40v battery. Not a good way to get introduced to a new tool line.

    Reply
    • Jonathan

      Jul 15, 2016

      I’ve got two of the 40V I had an issue with one, and the local DeWalt/B&D/Stanley service center swapped it right out (well 20 min later after checking it out) I did have it registered online for the warranty. It was painless, I had to have an old 18v LiON , last of the 18V LiON Hammer Drills before the 20V MAX line was rolled out it had the original version of the self tightening chuck, it wouldnt open and I called the 800 number and they sent me to the service center and they replaced it free of charge and took about 20 min as well, again I had registered the tool online for warranty.

      Reply
  7. BonPacific

    Jul 15, 2016

    On my 5.0ah battery, I’ll get three lights, even when it’s not fully charged (can drop it on the charger and it will charge for ~10m). I’ve never actually seen it drop down to one light either. It’s either 3 lights, 2 lights or nothing.

    I just figured the gauges were untrustworthy from the start. In only use them with my weed whacker, and I can tell how full the battery is by the speed of the string.

    Reply
  8. VladFineCraft

    Jul 15, 2016

    No, I use Milwaukee tools ????

    Reply
    • B.I.

      Jul 16, 2016

      Ditto

      Reply
  9. Mike

    Jul 15, 2016

    No never have a problem unlike another company batteries

    Reply
  10. conan

    Jul 15, 2016

    No problems with 3 5amp and 2 4amp batteries.

    Reply
  11. john

    Jul 15, 2016

    No problems with 16.of.5.0ah batteries. .10 of 4.0ah…..acme tools is the best ..buy there

    Reply
  12. Leif Gunderson

    Jul 15, 2016

    My friend had this problem with his 2.0 ah kit. Turns out it was the compact charger (not the dcb101) and the better idea weren’t getting pushed all the way in and because Dewalt charges each cell individually. He simply pushed the battery in harder and it works fine.

    Reply
    • Bruno MA

      Aug 23, 2017

      Same thing happened here. You need to snap it all the way through the charger. I know it SEEMS to be all the way through, but try it.

      Reply
  13. Chris

    Jul 17, 2016

    No problems here, all work perfect

    Reply
  14. dave

    Jul 17, 2016

    It should be easy to figure out if it’s charging fully. Measure the charged voltage with a multimeter after letting it sit off the charger for a few minutes. It should be at or barely below 4.2V/cell which with a 5 cell series pack is 21V.

    Another option is a controlled discharge comparison, hook the same value resistor up to both a good and malindicating pack and see if the good one lasts longer. Of course you have to monitor voltage on both during this test.

    Reply
    • The Wind Below

      Feb 26, 2018

      “It should be at or barely below 4.2V/cell which with a 5 cell series pack is 21V.”

      DW so-called ’20 volt’ chargers only take cells up to 4.1 apiece (thankfully). I usually see 20.4 on a full charge.

      Reply
  15. Erik Olsen

    Jul 19, 2016

    I have five 20v batteries from dewalt of varying Ah’s. None of the battery indicators lasted for more than a year.

    Reply
  16. Stan

    Sep 9, 2016

    I’ve been through 6 drill/driver kits in a week. Depending on the outlet that I plug the charger in, it either charges the battery or kills it. So far
    I’ve found two outlets that kill batteries and only one that actually works. All sets have been returned and I’m now in the market for another brand of drill/driver impact set. I’m really bummed because I really wanted to keep the DCK283D2 brushless set as I totally fell in love with it.

    Reply
  17. Darin

    Sep 19, 2016

    I have the Dewalt DCD 792 (Type 2) 20V brushless drill in the XR series. I have had the drill about a week and only the 2 out of three lights illuminate on the fuel gauge of both batteries. I have used it enough to charge the batteries twice each.
    I called Dewalt Customer service. They said I need to use the drill enough times to deplete and charge the better 4-5 times before all three lights on the fuel gauge will work properly.
    In my head, I am calling balderdash on this, but I will give it a try and check again after a few more charges.

    Reply
    • Fred

      Mar 12, 2019

      Did it fix your issue?

      Reply
      • RCAD

        Mar 31, 2019

        We have 12 of the 20 volt batteries and soon after putting them into service, they no longer charge to a full 3 lights. At full charge they only show 2 lights. Have had no success in finding out what the problem and why these (more than half of the 12) are no longer charging to a full 3 lights.

        These are used on our sawzalls for auto extrication and other needs (EMS service). The 2 Ah batts charge life is marginal in the sawzall anyway even when charged to the full 3 light indication but due to room constraints we cannot effectively fit the larger capacity batteries in the the cases we have and the little amount of use these get does not warrant the expense of upgrading batteries, cases and truck compartment sizes so we have to get the most effective use we can out of the 2 aH batteries. We carry an extra so there are 2 on hand on each truck, however, if neither are charging to full charge that bottlenecks an already short battery charge life.

        We spent quite a bit on upgrading from the 18 volt batteries to the adapter and 20 volt Li-Ion batteries with hopes of increasing effectiveness however after nearly a year with these and having them not charge fully we may have to reconsider using DeWalt products in the future and going with a more reliable product since when we need the tool it is likely a matter of potential life and death so they must be dependable.

        Reply
  18. Ross

    Sep 20, 2016

    I had the same problem. Tried to charge both said fully charged with 2 bars. Tried a suggested method of hitting the battery into the charger and now it says it’s charging. Still charging and showing 3 bars. Battery must not have been seated all the way all seems good now.

    Reply
  19. Darin

    Sep 22, 2016

    I think I got it figured out the other day.

    Place the battery in the charger, then push harder and it will snap into place. It took me a couple of weeks to realize this. This is not obvious as the charging light comes on when you set the battery in the charger. But you need to snap it in place.

    Despite the fact that the battery charger is inclined to hold the battery, and despite that fact that the charging light comes on, unless you force the battery down further into the charger, it is not fully seated.

    Now my batteries fully charge. All three lights on the fuel gauge come on after a charge!

    I’m glad I figured this out. It is not in the instructions, and Dewalt did not suggest this when I called.

    Good topic!

    Reply
    • Dave

      Nov 3, 2016

      Thanks worked a treat.

      Reply
      • Stan

        Nov 5, 2016

        Darin,
        Thanks so much. I thought that I had already tried shoving the battery further into the charger, but perhaps not. I picked up a new set yesterday and got both batteries charged up without issue! I’m now the proud owner of a DCK283D2 combo set!

        Now I can get to the projects that have been languishing around the house for nearly a year!

        Reply
        • Duncan

          Nov 15, 2016

          This was the answer for me, genius!

          But be sure to take the battery fully out before trying this. If the battery is already partially in, and it shows charged, then if you simply push it in to the “click” then the charger still reads the battery as fully charged and doesn’t restart charging.

          But once I had done this, my “2-bar” battery started charging as expected!

          Reply
      • Jack

        Nov 20, 2016

        Oh wow…..I’ll give this a try. You’re right, when I slid the batteries into the charger, it just didn’t “feel” right and I only ended up with 2 lights. If this is the issue, then DeWalt really needs to specify this in the instruction manual. On the other hand, the grill works great and I am very happy with it. I bought a DCD791D2B.

        Reply
    • Peter

      Nov 15, 2016

      Thanks Darin!

      This was the problem I was having and returned two batteries because they would not charge fully.

      Dewalt really needs to advise the end users to push the battery hard into the charger until it ‘clunks’ otherwise you only get partial charges. Now I have 3 bright lights.

      Reply
    • Sean

      Feb 12, 2017

      Had the same problem. Thanks for the quick fix. Was pretty irritated after dropping $280. Pushed it in hard and now I have 3 bars.

      Reply
      • Tim

        Feb 17, 2017

        How hard do you have to push it in? My charger says the battery is fully charged however the battery shows one bar. There is no click when I put the battery in, it would fall out of the charger if I were to turn it upside down.

        Reply
        • MB

          Aug 20, 2017

          Thank you! So simple!
          Always try to be gentile since am told I am too rough on things. Am a female. Go figure! Force works in this instance. ?

          Reply
    • Andy

      Apr 21, 2017

      Fantastic, thank you.
      You’re right – it isn’t at all obvious!

      Reply
      • Cal

        Feb 27, 2020

        Yes it worked for me also. Thanks

        Reply
    • Skidog20

      May 27, 2019

      Thanks. I did not realizing I was not “snapping” it in till I read your post

      Reply
    • Brent

      Sep 15, 2019

      This seems to be my issue. I have three batteries after buying 60v Max leaf blower and tool combo kit. None of the batteries would show anything over 1 bar. Left in charger over night and no change. When on the charger, it showed steady red light indicating full charge.

      Then I read your post and gave the batteries a little extra push down on the charger. Viola! There was a little pop as it seated and the charge light began blinking.

      Have 2 batteries charging now. I’ll post results.

      Thank you for figuring this out!

      Reply
  20. joe petrone

    Dec 26, 2016

    thanks for the great info i have talked to dewalt twice on this isssue and not once did they say to press the battery firmly in. thanks again

    Reply
  21. Brad S

    May 21, 2017

    Thanks for the detailed solution. That is exactly the problem I had with my 5 amp battery. Every battery I have is charging perfectly.

    Reply
  22. Chad Myers

    Jun 3, 2017

    Yes I have had and still have that issue, it did not happen at first but after hard use they would not fully charge. I believe the actual charger is at fault; I now can hook up a battery at any charge level (as stated by the LEDs) and it immediately shows a fully charged battery- I’m about to throw in the yellow towel and just go Milwaukee exclusively… all this multi volt biz with Dewalt and Makita is kinda foolish. The only battery tools that I have seen take all the punishment u can dish out are the Milwaukee- I hate their battery clip in system, and they are $$$. I guess u get what you pay for. Makes sense.

    Reply
    • Bradford Sparks

      Jun 3, 2017

      Initially I had the same problem with the DeWalt 20V 5 amp battery pack not charging and only showing one light on the pack. I did not know what was wrong.

      However, after reading this forum, I went out to the garage and checked how the battery pack was seated in the charger. In fact it was not seated all the way into the charger as previously mentioned. I gave the battery one final nudge and it popped securely into the charger.

      No more problems. I am extremely pleased with the Dewalt battery packs I currently have–20V 3 amp, 20V 5 amp, and 40V 4amp.

      Thank you for helping me out.

      Reply
  23. george

    Jun 24, 2017

    i have the 18 volt to 20 volt kit the batteries won’t fully charge they last about 10 to 20 min i keep charging them for 24 hours a thy still won’t last long

    Reply
    • Brad

      Jun 25, 2017

      I have not had any problems since learning to push the battery fully into the charger!

      Reply
    • The Wind Below

      Feb 26, 2018

      The DCA1820 adapter is always ‘on’. When you’re done with your tool, just remove (or, even just unclip and withdraw slightly) the 20V battery from the adapter. Cheers.

      Reply
  24. Paul

    Jan 22, 2018

    I cannot get the battery to charge fully. I only get 2 lights on the indicator. After reading your suggestion, I tried pushing the battery in more firmly. It is in as far as it can go. Still get 2 lights.

    Reply
    • Joe

      Jan 27, 2018

      I have the same problem… Followed all the suggestions and no luck so far…

      Reply
      • Paul

        Feb 5, 2018

        *Update: I contacted Dewalt customer service. They suggested I bring the batteries and charger to a DeWalt factory service center for testing. I did that, and they determined the batteries (20 volt) were defective and only putting out 14 volts. The charger was working fine. I received 2 new batteries in the mail within a week. Great customer service!

        Reply
  25. Brad

    Jan 27, 2018

    Do each of you only have one charger? Perhaps it is the charging unit? I apologize for not being more helpful.

    Do the batteries hold enough charge to let you use the tool for a reasonable amount of time?

    Reply
    • Paul

      Jan 28, 2018

      I tried charging the batteries on my son’s charger (which fully charges his batteries) and they still only go to 2 lights on the indicator. Though the strength of the charge is good initially, it does not last as long as it should. I have emailed DeWalt and am awaiting a reply.

      Reply
  26. Mark

    Feb 23, 2018

    I was charging and discharging the batteries on my 2 new Dewalt sets in first week many times and they still only go to 1 or 2 lights on the indicator. I should reed this before I bought Dewalt. All new batteries on display in Home Depot and Lowes do it to!!! I test them all ,I pushed button thru clear plastic wrap. Last time I bought this brand , I was lucky to get them online for half price than in HD or L and next time I get Hercules .

    Reply
    • Mark

      Mar 25, 2018

      I take it back. I feel like idiot now. It shows 3 bars now when fully charged.

      Reply
  27. The Wind Below

    Feb 26, 2018

    I have a pair of DCB204s that I mostly use with a DW056 impact and DCA1820 adapter. One went wonky and wouldn’t charge anymore, and in short order, the second one would only charge to 2 bars on the gauge. The dead pack was just under 3V/cell, IIRC. The “good” one had two cells at 3.8V and three at 3.6V. I made sure the batts were fully seated in the charger, if not before the problems, certainly after I read pages like this one. No dice.

    I actually went out and bought a new DW kit that comes with a different charger (DCB115, instead of the DCB101 I have now) just to see what would happen. My charger charged the 1.5 batts without complaints (though I didn’t test voltage, so who knows?), and the DCB115 *seemed* to charge both of my DCB204s. “Seemed” is the key word there: My dead batt’s gauge rose to 3 bars, but it was still wouldn’t turn my DCD985 with no load (again, no DVM readings). Being connected to the DCB115 didn’t work to make the dead batt charge on my DCB101, either.

    I’m gonna go tell my sob story to B+D now (minus the bits about testing with DVM, just in case) and hope they come through for me.

    P.S. I religiously charged my batts when they reached 1 bar until shortly before the batt failure, when I stupidly ran both down to zero bars (didn’t even notice; it was still driving screws like butter) Cause and effect? No idea, but I’ll still change batteries at one bar…if they ever work again!

    Reply
    • The Wind Below

      Mar 2, 2018

      SBD rep initially tried to direct me to a factory service centre for testing, but when I told her that the closest place was 260 km (160 mi.) away, she relented and agreed to send me new batts and charger. Good thing, because those security Torx screws in my batts and charger are no longer secure! LOL

      Reply
      • RCAD

        Oct 29, 2018

        Did the problem seem to be with the DCB115 charger, batts or other….assuming the new batts and charger solved the problem.

        we use Dewalt Swazalls for auto extrication. When I noticed the 18V to 20V adapter kits out there it nudged me to get enough for all our extrication units (6) thinking that the 18V battery might shortly become unavailable. Our batteries charged to 3 bars initially but over the past few months one at a time they are only charging to 2 bars and use duration on a “fully charged” battery is suffering considerably. We got the DCB203 battery and DCB115 charger with each kit. I replaced one battery without worrying about warranty issues thinking we might have just got a bad one but since then one at a time they are all only charging to 2 bars. They sit either in the tool or on the charger 99% of the time.

        If the charger seems to be the issue that might be a place for me to start in resolving what may likely be a reliability and liability issue with these.

        Reply
        • Bruce McDonald

          Dec 8, 2020

          Didn’t work for me

          Reply
          • Big Richard

            Dec 8, 2020

            What seems to be your problem, Bruce? Battery not fully charging, not taking a charge at all, or something else? what are your battery and charger model numbers?

          • Murray22

            Dec 8, 2020

            Something to try: Make sure the battery is fully seated in the DCB115 charger. Place the battery in the charger and push down on the battery a little harder until it “clicks” in. If you’ve done that and there are still issues, I would contact Dewalt about it. Hope that helps!

    • RCAD

      Mar 2, 2019

      Did the problem seem to be with the DCB115 charger, batts or other….assuming the new batts and charger solved the problem.

      we use Dewalt Swazalls for auto extrication. When I noticed the 18V to 20V adapter kits out there it nudged me to get enough for all our extrication units (6) thinking that the 18V battery might shortly become unavailable. Our batteries charged to 3 bars initially but over the past few months one at a time they are only charging to 2 bars and use duration on a “fully charged” battery is suffering considerably. We got the DCB203 battery and DCB115 charger with each kit. I replaced one battery without worrying about warranty issues thinking we might have just got a bad one but since then one at a time they are all only charging to 2 bars. They sit either in the tool or on the charger 99% of the time.

      If the charger seems to be the issue that might be a place for me to start in resolving what may likely be a reliability and liability issue with these.

      Reply
  28. Amanda

    May 25, 2018

    I have a 60 V dewalt battery for a chainsaw. The charger that came with it is now lighting up only one bar. I have no doubts about it being seated correctly.

    Reply
  29. Enrico

    Mar 21, 2019

    WOW… I ordered two DCB205s because one of my 201s wasn’t getting any charge and put it on the trash. I got the 205s today and only one LED was lighting. Followed the recommendation about pushing hard the battery into the charger and my 205s are now charging. Thanks God the 201 was still in the trash can, took it out, put it on the charger and pushed hard, and now it’s charging again 🙂 Now I have 4 x healthy batteries. You guys saved my day!!!

    Reply
  30. Paul Bishop

    Mar 29, 2019

    I have the same problem ask for an exchange but he they said it was out of warranty even though it was only a week out.

    Reply
  31. Ron Both

    May 2, 2019

    I have two of the DCB204 20v batteries which are new replacements and not even a yr. old. They stop charging with 2 bars and the drill stop working with one bar showing. When so called fully charged and sit unused for week they will be dead with no bars so if you can well imagine they are always dead when you need them. I’ve tried leaving a battery in the charger so at least to have one that works,that didn’t help the battery was dead in the charger. I did chat with Dewalt and the gentleman suggested bring the batteries to one of their service centre. I tried to explain that the nearest one was 800 miles away. The gentleman just went offline. Not Happy

    Reply
  32. Randolph County (Missouri) Emergency Services

    Jun 10, 2019

    We use 12 of the 2 amp batteries. Converted from 18 volt using the conversion kits. Only one of the 12 batteries will charge to the 3 LED mark. The rest only charge to 2 LEDS and the charge life seems to indicate they are not fully charging. They are fully plugged in so that is not the issue with these. Since we are an Emergency service and these are used with Sawzall tools for auto rescue, it is of utmost importance these work each and every time and to full capacity.

    To say we are disappointed with the performance of these compared to the old 18 volt batteries that they replaced is an understatement.

    Reply
  33. Barry

    Oct 13, 2019

    This entire thread should read as an indictment on the engineering and quality control for Dewalt. The design does not allow 20VLi to fully charge in a number of circumstances AND if you leave an adapter+battery in your tool it will discharge.

    Reply
  34. RCAD

    Oct 17, 2019

    Agreed! I have convinced upper management to let me try one 4 AH battery to see if we have any better reliability from tool usage and charging with it. If it works and I can modify the hard case to allow the larger battery to fit mounted on the sawzall then we may replace all 12 of the unreliable 2.0 AH. Otherwise looks like we will be replacing the entire lot of DeWalt batteries and tools with a more reliable brand. BTW our chargers came in the 18Volt to 20 volt adapter kit and are not the ones some here have said you could push the batteries in harder to fully seat.

    Reply
  35. Barry Hills

    Oct 17, 2019

    After reading this post I decided to get to the bottom of this issue. My Li never gave 3 lights but they worked so I let it go for 3 years before taking action. None of the “solutions” posted above worked for me. I measured the “two led” charge on 2 “fully charged” batteries and got only 18.5vdc. Even after 3 years DeWalt shipped me new batteries after hearing my story. They also confirmed leaving a battery connected to the 18v adapter WILL drain the battery. I consider this a design flaw. I opened up the adapter and added a small SPST toggle switch on the ground (negative) wire between the battery & adapter. It fits well on the side of the adapter towards the front. All problems “solved”

    Reply
  36. Murray

    Jan 17, 2020

    Thanks for all the helpful comments! I received a new Dewalt 5Ah 20v battery and placed it in the my old DCB115 charger and the charger within seconds indicated the battery was fully charged, even though only one of the three LED’s on the battery would light. Taking the advice from the previous comments, I pushed down on the batttery a little harder until it “clicked” into the charger. The battery started to charge correctly! Thanks for the help !

    Reply
  37. Brandon Yates

    Feb 16, 2020

    Just got an impact driver last night (DCF887), it came with 2mah batteries x2… Date on batteries are 2019… I’m looking at a battery in the charger and the light is solid (charged), batt #1- only shows 2 lights, batt#2- same, only 2 lights. At this point I know they are fine, but I think it’s my responsibility to let DeWalt know so they can send me new ones and I can “destroy” these broken ones lol

    Reply
    • Murray22

      Feb 16, 2020

      One thing to also check : make sure the batteries are fully inserted in the charger. Slide the battery into the charger until you feel it “click” in. This may need a little extra push on your part to do this.

      Reply
  38. Derick Jeter

    Mar 30, 2020

    I have a Dewalt 60v max Brushless Grass Trimmer, it came with a Dewalt FlexVolt 60v max 20v 9.0AH battery and charger. I used the trimmer and drain the battery, I put the battery in the charger and the charger charged battery. Problem is the battery stops charge when it gets one green bar on the battery, it never charges to 100 percent (three bars). Do I need to buy another battery?

    Reply
    • Stuart

      Mar 30, 2020

      You might want to contact Dewalt customer service, as it’s possible that there’s an issue with the battery or charger.

      Reply
      • Murray22

        Mar 31, 2020

        Also, make sure the battery is fully seated in the charger. Place the battery in the charger and give it a little extra “push” until it clicks in. If you’ve done that and the battery still won’t charge fully, I would contact Dewalt about the issue.

        Reply
  39. loup68

    Mar 31, 2020

    You really should not drain a battery until it stops working. It can trip an internal
    protection and the battery will not charge.

    Reply
  40. Dave S

    Apr 6, 2020

    Same for me with the cordless drill (DCD-778) I have until I noticed the ‘shove it in the charger harder’ tip. As soon as I ‘snapped’ the battery into place it solved the problem. I did have to give it a bit of a shove but as soon as it clicked into position the charging light began to flash again whereas before it had stopped doing so and was just a solid red light.If you can slide the battery out of the charger easily without using the battery release catch, you haven’t shoved it in far enough to begin with.

    Reply
  41. steve

    Nov 1, 2020

    I have the same issues with 2 different sets of DCB203 batteries (4 in total bought 1-2 years apart) and DCB115 chargers. Always show fully charged after 5 minutes max but only 2 bars on battery. Will only run tools 5-10 minutes tops. They are the old 18V style and using adaptor. Batteries will go dead just sitting whether in the tool or not. I have a 5 tool set that is worthless and hate to discard due to cost but afraid to buy another battery set wonder i if I ‘ll end up in same boat again. Frustrating!

    Reply
  42. Bruce McDonald

    Dec 8, 2020

    Yes I have 6, 5, 4,and 3’s. I have two of each and have the problem with all but one of them. One of the 5’s always charges to three bars the others never do and they run down very quickly. The 4 and 6 amp batteries have been like this from new. The 3 amp batteries started out great then developed the problem. I have multiple chargers but it makes no difference which one I use. I would swap from Dewalt at this point but I have several thousand invested.

    Reply
    • Big Richard

      Dec 8, 2020

      I am not trying to put the blame on you, but if you are having issues with 7 of your 8 batteries, it is very possible it is something you are unknowingly doing. It also could be terrible luck, since you said the 4Ah and 6Ah have been like that from the start.

      Most often, the issue is that customers run their batteries completely dead over and over again. This reduces the batteries ability to receive a full charge. When a battery is nice and new, it can fully charge to 100% of its capacity. If you consistently run it completely dead, every time you charge it it will reach less and less of its original capacity (99%, then 97%, then 95%, and so on).

      Another issue is temperature. Heat is the enemy of lithium, if you charge them hot, i.e. right after you ran it dead on your angle grinder, that too will stress the cells. You also do not want to charge them when the ambient temperature is above 104F or below 40F.

      Lastly, no battery runs forever, most cells are rated at around 1000 cycles. If you run them everyday, 3 years is about what they will last, regardless of how good you take care of them. I would recommend using a slow charger whenever possible. I’m not sure any of this will help, and without testing the batteries in person, that’s the best I can give you.

      Reply
  43. Mike

    Mar 13, 2021

    I have the same issue. The battery will not charge. This is the 1st dewalt tool I have purchased and will be the last. To say I am disappointed is a under statement.

    Reply

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