toolboy's Corner: Ryobi 18v Chargers

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Main Page 18v Batteries Battery Chargers Cordless Tools Battery Rebuilds, etc.

Model	Chemistry Supported	Appearance	Charge Time	Features	Comments
P110	Nickel Cadmium		1 Hour	6 foot power cord Charges NiCad packs in 1 hour or less Diagnostic LED lights help indicate the status of the battery pack	Lithium Ion batteries cannot be charged on the P110 charger P110 Manual (238 KB)
P111	Nickel Cadmium		Overnight	6 foot power cord Charges NiCad packs overnight	This is NOT a 1-hour charger! Lithium Ion batteries cannot be charged on the P111 charger P111 Manual (611 KB)
P113	Nickel Cadmium, Lithium Ion		1 Hour	6 foot power cord Charges NiCad or Lithium Ion packs in 1 hour or less Diagnostic LED lights help indicate the status of the battery pack	P113, P114, P117, P118, P125, and P131 are the only chargers that can charge Lithium Ion battery packs (P102, P103, P104, P105, P107, P108) P113 Manual (1,522 KB) Update 12-Jul-2010: In May 2010 Ryobi started distributing new P113 chargers WITHOUT the built-in strain relief boot on the power cord (shown in photo). NOT cool, Ryobi! Update 14-Aug-2010: It seems that the newer chargers will charge ALL Ryobi batteries, but that the older chargers might not. See the "Why won't my charger charge my battery?" section below for details. This is really sad, it's no longer true that a P113 will charge any 18v battery.
P114	Nickel Cadmium, Lithium Ion		1 Hour	6 foot power cord Charges NiCad or Lithium Ion packs in 1 hour or less Diagnostic LED lights help indicate the status of the battery pack	IntelliPort design won't overcharge a pack and saves energy, like the P125 P113, P114, P117, P118, P125, and P131 are the only chargers that can charge Lithium Ion battery packs (P102, P103, P104, P105, P107, P108) P114 Manual (2,292KB)
P115	Nickel Cadmium		1 Hour	6 foot power cord Charges NiCad packs in 1 hour or less Diagnostic LED lights help indicate the status of the battery pack	IntelliPort design won't overcharge a pack and saves energy, like the P125 Lithium Ion batteries cannot be charged on the P115 charger P115 Manual (2,194 KB)
P116	Nickel Cadmium, Lithium Ion		Overnight	6 foot power cord Charges NiCad or Lithium Ion packs overnight	This is NOT a 1-hour charger! IntelliPort design won't overcharge a pack and saves energy, like the P125 P113, P114, P117, P118, P125, and P131 are the only chargers that can charge Lithium Ion battery packs (P102, P103, P104, P105, P107, P108) P116 Manual (1,672 KB)
P117	Nickel Cadmium, Lithium Ion		30-Minute?	6 foot power cord Charges NiCad or Lithium Ion packs in 1 hour or less Diagnostic LED lights help indicate the status of the battery pack LED to indicate if battery is too hot or too cold to be charged	IntelliPort design won't overcharge a pack and saves energy, like the P114 and P125 P113, P114, P117, P125, and P131 are the only chargers that can charge Lithium Ion battery packs (P103, P104) P117 Manual (1,063 KB) Ryobi now refers to this model as a "30-Minute" charger, but it's just as fast as all the others (except the P118)
P118	Nickel Cadmium, Lithium Ion		1 Hour?	6 foot power cord Charges NiCad or Lithium Ion packs in 1 hour or less Diagnostic LED lights help indicate the status of the battery pack	IntelliPort design won't overcharge a pack and saves energy, like the P114 and P125 P113, P114, P117, P118, P125, and P131 are the only chargers that can charge Lithium Ion battery packs (P102, P103, P104, P105, P107, P108) Ryobi refers to this model as a "1-Hour" charger, but it's charge rate is 1/3 slower than other "1-Hour" chargers P118 Manual (2,450 KB)
P120	Nickel Cadmium		1 Hour	Dual Bay charger -- charges two battery packs at once! 6 foot power cord Charges NiCad packs in 1 hour or less Diagnostic LED lights help indicate the status of the battery pack	Lithium Ion batteries cannot be charged on the P120 charger P120 Manual (457 KB)
P125	Nickel Cadmium, Lithium Ion		1 Hour	Power On-Demand, Up to six charged - 18V ONE+ batteries available on-demand. Maximizes Battery Life - Charges stored batteries only as needed, which protects the batteries’ cells and maximizes life. Conserves Energy - EnergyStar® qualified system enters Energy Save Mode to conserve energy when not charging or maintaining batteries. Indicator lights show battery and port status as batteries are charged and maintained or when status button is pressed during Energy Save Mode. 6 Port Supercharger - reduces workspace clutter. Quick-release wall mount bracket (included) securely mounts to wall, organizing and maximizing work space. Batteries lock securely into place for easy transport. 1 HR CHARGE - Charges each 18V ONE+ battery, one at a time, in one hour or less. Maintenance Mode - Batteries stored on charger are conditioned for peak performance. Energy Save Mode - EnergyStar® qualified system saves energy, protects battery cells, and maximizes life 6 foot power cord Charges NiCad or Lithium Ion packs in 1 hour or less Diagnostic LED lights help indicate the status of the battery pack	P113, P114, P117, P118, P125, and P131 are the only chargers that can charge Lithium Ion battery packs (P102, P103, P104, P105, P107, P108) Charges ONE BATTERY AT A TIME. So if you plug in six depleted batteries at once it will charge the first in under an hour, then charge the second, and so on. It would take up to 6 hours to finish charging six completely drained batteries. Not at all bad, just don't think that it will fully charge six depleted batteries in one hour, 'cause it won't. P125 Manual (2,057 KB)
P130	Nickel Cadmium		1 Hour	In-Vehicle charger Plugs into vehicle's 12V DC outlet for flexibility to charge batteries when power is limited Charges NiCad packs in 1 hour or less Protective circuitry audibly warns you and shuts down charger if vehicle's battery is too low Diagnostic LED lights help indicate the status of the battery pack	Lithium Ion batteries cannot be charged on the P130 charger This charger is actually rated for battery packs 7.2v to 18v, so it can be used to charge packs at other voltages. (I once owned a P130 and used it to charge both 12v and 18v packs.) P130 Manual (873 KB)
P131	Nickel Cadmium, Lithium Ion		1 Hour	In-Vehicle charger Plugs into vehicle's 12V DC outlet, giving you the flexibility to charge batteries while driving or when access to power is limited Compatible with all Ryobi 18v One+ batteries Charges battery packs in 1 hour or less Protective circuitry gives audible warning and shuts down to prevent draining your vehicle's battery ChargePlus technology provides battery and charging status feedback using LEDs	P113, P114, P117, P118, P125, and P131 are the only chargers that can charge Lithium Ion battery packs (P102, P103, P104, P105, P107, P108) P131 Manual (1,532 KB)

Why won't my charger charge my battery?

Sometimes a perfectly good battery won't charge in a perfectly good charger. Here are some tips:

Make sure the battery and charger are at an appropriate temperature.

Sounds easy, but you'd be surprised how often folks are caught by this one. Remember, each battery contains some sort of temperature sensor, that's what the third lead is on the "neck" of the battery. There's also some other sort of two-contact sensor near the base of the Lithium Ion cells. These are safeguards that help make it safe for consumers to charge highly dangerous cell technologies in their own homes.

If a battery is TOO HOT, the charger will continue to blink RED and refuse to charge until the battery cools down. Ryobi manuals indicate that a battery must be below 122 deg F before a charger will charge it, and they further recommend that the charger be operated at a maximum ambient temperature of 100 deg F.

If a battery is TOO COLD, the charger will also refuse to charge the battery until it's been warmed up. Ryobi manuals recommend that the charger be operated at a minimum ambient temperature of 50 deg F. If you keep your charger in your garage, you may find that during the winter months it gets too cold to charge a battery!
Make sure your Lithium Ion battery is seated firmly and "clicked" in!

Remember the sensor connections near the base of the battery's neck. If the battery is not seated firmly on the charger these contacts may not be making a solid connection, and the charger will refuse to charge the battery.
14-Aug-2010 Update: Some new P104 batteries show as DEFECTIVE in older P113 chargers!

I've now encountered two new and good P104 batteries that report as DEFECTIVE in a P113 charger. I plug one of these batteries into a P113 and the red light flashes ("Testing"). Then the red light goes solid and the green light flashes ("Charging"). Then after a few seconds, both lights flash ("Defective").

I tried using my P125 SuperCharger and the batteries take a charge just fine! So I whipped out a new P113 charger and tried again. Voila! No problem. The new P113 charger works like a charm! I've never had a problem with my trusty old P113 before. For fun, I tried my oldest P113 with date code BD0745, and it reported the P104 as defective,

So I gather that "older" P113 chargers may incorrectly report some newer P104 batteries as DEFECTIVE. My older P113 charger has date code CS0850 (50th week 2008, or December 2008) and the newer P113 that I tried has date code EA 1011 (11th week of 2010, or March 2010). I've observed that all of the P113 chargers with an "EA" date code are missing the strain relief boot on the power cord, and the red and green lights on top are obnoxiously bright.

After further investigation I have determined that I can only charge one of the new and "defective" P104 batteries on a P113 charger with a date code that begins with "EA". Older P113 chargers beginning with a "BD", "CS" or "AX" date code will not work. The newest "AX" P113 charger I've tried had a date code beginning with AX1010, and the oldest "EA" P113 charger I've tried had a date code of EA 1011. Interestingly, my P125 SuperCharger has date code of CS0917 and it will charge a "defective" P104 just fine,

I do not know how to identify a "newer" P104 battery that will show as defective on an old P113 charger other than to stumble across one when trying to charge it. The two P104 batteries that have shown this behavior have date codes CS1021 and CS1022, but this isn't enought to identify a "defective" P104 as I've successfully charged several other P104 batteries with these date codes on an old P113 charger.

How long will it take my charger to recharge my battery?

There's no straight answer to this question. Recharge time depends your battery's capacity, it's age/usage, how much it was discharged, temperature, and even which model of charger is used.

The "1-Hour" chargers tend to charge a fully depleted battery at a faster rate than a nearly fully charged battery. The data I have suggests that the charge rate can be a little faster at the beginning of the cycle than near the end of the cycle. But for the rest of this section let's simplify the description of how battery capacity affects charge time by assuming that the all chargers operate at a constant charge rate. Let's also assume that all batteries are fully depleted before starting the charge cycle and fully charged at the end of the charge cycle, and that the battery and charger are at room temperature.

Battery Capacity
I have actually timed how long it takes to charge a P102 battery (1200mAh) on P114, P117, P118, P125, and P131 Chargers. (I no longer own a P113 or a P116.) The data indicates that the P118 is the slowest of these chargers, taking about 51 minutes. The P114, P117, and P125 gave very similar results and each took about 33 minutes. I had difficulty getting consistent results with the P131, where charge times ranged from 30-37 minutes. This may because I performed the P131 testing under normal driving conditions, including stops where I turned off the engine, so I guess the fluctuating input voltage affects the charge cycle. But still, it seems to perform at about the same rate as the P114, P117, and P125. Therefore the P118 delivers an average charge rate of 1200mAh/51min*(60min/1Hr) = 1412mA/Hr, and the P114/P117/P125/P131 chargers deliver a charge rate of 1200mAh/33min*(60Min/1Hr) = 2182mA/Hr. We can therefore extrapolate the charge time of a 4000mAh P108 battery. On a P114/P117/P125/P131 charger this would take 4000mAh/2182mA/Hr*(60Min/1Hr) = 110 min, and on a P118 charger this woudl take 4000mAh/1412mA/Hr*(60Min/1Hr) = 170 min.

Testing this theory, I clocked the charge time of P108 batteries on P114 and P118 chargers. Testing two P108 batteries with a P118 charger, the times were 166 and 161 and minutes, very consistent and very close to the 170 minute estimate. (Yes, that's just under THREE hours!) On the P114 charger, the times were XX and YY minutes. I created the following table to estimate the charge time for all of the Ryobi 18v batteries on various chargers:

Battery	Rated Capacity (mAh)	Charge Time (Minutes) for models P113, P114, P117, P125, and P131	Charge Time (Minutes) for P118
P102	1200	33	51
P103 (old)	1300	36	55
P107 P103 (new)	1500	41	64
P100	1700	47	72
P105 P104 (old)	2400	66	102
P104 (new)	2600	71	110
P108	4000	110	170

As a rule of thumb, one could say that the P118 is 1/3 slower than Ryobi's other "1-Hour" chargers (or that others are 50% faster). Some may ask why the P118 charger is slower. I sure don't know. But I actually appreciate this difference. In most cases I'm in no hurry to recharge a battery, and it's "healthier" for batteries to be charged at a slower rate because doing so means less heat/less stress and greater longevity. If you need your battery charged as fast as possible so you can get back to work, then use a P114, P117, P125, or P131 charger. (Note that I don't recommend the P113 as it lacks the IntelliPort feature.) In all other situations, the P118 is probably a better choice.

It should be noted that the times in the above table are not only approximate, but that typical charge times will be shorter. Why? The testing I performed was using new or nearly new batteries. I tested each battery to ensure operation at full capacity (all measured 98-99% of rated capacity), and each was carefully discharged down to 14v prior to measuring the charge cycle time. Unfortunately, battery capacity decreases with age and use, and for most users a battery is recharged before it has been completely discharged (commonly called "depth of discharge"). These factors will result in a nearly proportional decrease in charge time. For example, a battery that was discharged only 50% will require half the time in the table above to reach a full charge. And an older/used battery that can only attain 85% of its original charge level will require 15% less time to reach a full charge after being completely discharged.

Ryobi has started advertising the P117 as a "30-Minute" charger. The table above ad the preceding paragraph suggest that for the P102 battery this claim is true (and it's arguably true for the other compact Lithium Ion batteries). However, Ryobi's full-size batteries will take about an hour to charge, and the P108 will take nearly two hours.

Main Page 18v Batteries Battery Chargers Cordless Tools Battery Rebuilds, etc.

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Last revised 14-Jun-2014
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