I have a B&D Grass Hog cordless trimmer which I like... One battery isn't enough to do my entire yard (it came with 2 batteries, but only 1 charger) so I figured I'd order a second charger - have both batteries charged before I started the yard, and I'd be in 'hog heaven'. So, I ordered this charger from Amazon.
Long story short: It simply doesn't work.
It will not fully charge either of the two batteries that came with the trimmer although the charger that came with the unit charges the batteries just fine. It makes no difference how long you leave the battery on this charger - it won't fully charge it. In fact (get this!) I can take a fully charged battery from the original charger, put it on this charger and within a couple hours it will deplete the charge to roughly 1/2 strength - it takes the charge OUT of a fully charged battery!
This will only charge the batteries to about 1/3 charge. Sorry, but this is junk.
I've tried to get my money back, but Amazon (which I'm usually pleased with) but they're obviously better at selling items than accepting returns, even defective items. They've refused a refund, although I've only had this 'doorstop' 3 weeks...
Wish I didn't have to give it any stars at all, but Amazon won't allow that, and they have no 'negative' start, so this gets a really undeserved 1 star - it really should be minus 3 stars.
I can't recommend which charger you buy - but don't get this one.
Hope this helps someone as I just wasted my money.
John
Saint Louis MO Black and Decker 18 Volt Battery Charger 5103069-12
Found the product use life about 2 seasons of cutting lawns and trimming. I have an array of B&D tools, have several chargers & half dozen batteries. Found that batteries & chargers last about the same and I find it difficult to determine if it's the charger or the battery that is bad. I guess I expected more from the B&D accessories as I find the power tools a great help in maintaining my home and lawn.
Like the other reviews here, these 2 chargers that came with my B&D tools malfunctioned at about the same time. Then I bought the fs2400dc charger that has an indicator light to tell you if it's charging, completed or faulty(battery, that is). I found out that one of my batteries was faulty. I can't be sure if the faulty battery was the cause of both chargers going out but the bottom line is they did go out after relatively short use which I find unacceptable whatever the reason.
This charger is not worth a hoot. I bought the Black & Decker 3 lawn tool combo. It came with a triple battery charger. After that I have bought a battery chain saw and a extended hedge trimmer. They came with this little rinky-dink battery charger. I have had one of them for about 2 years and the other for 3 years and they both went out at the same time. Black & Decker should give away the tools because the ICAD batteries don't last and they make a fortune of the price of the useless batteries. They should make the batteries NIMH type so you can charge thm at anytime and not have to wear down the battery. I get about 15 minutes out a battery charge when using my weed trimmer. I like the battery operated tools it's just the sorry batteries and battery chargers I don't like.
I suggest if you buy any battery operated product that you make sure it comes with NIMH batteries not NICAD. You can read about the difference between batteries on the internet.
I have four B & D chargers. Three are model 5103069-12 and one is a 2009 model T180859. The other three chargers are 2005,2006, and 2007 models. All four of these chargers quit working within the last few months. All of them are out of warranty so I didn't attempt to contact B & D about them.
The failures of these chargers made me curious as to what actually happened to cause them to stop working. I cut open the cases on two of the chargers and found that both had a failure of the same diode in each unit. The bad diodes are easily spotted because of a darkened area around them from heat build up. At Radio Shack I purchased two replacement diodes for about $1.04. I replaced the diodes in both chargers and they now work ok. I have only used each to charge one battery so don't know how long the repair will last. Perhaps the original diode didn't have enough capacity, but that's only a guess. When I cut open the two remaining chargers, I am confident that they also will have burned out diodes.
Needless to say, I am unhappy with the quality of B & D chargers. The charger cases can be resealed using epoxy such as JB Weld.
Don"t buy this!!! It is unreliable!!
I have only used this charger three times to charge the batteries that came with my grasshog weedeater. Now it has died and I have three batteries and a weedeater that I can't use because B&D puts out such a horrible charger with their tools. What a collossal waste of my money!
I thought it would be nice to be able to just throw a battery on my grasshog and trim the lawn whenever convenient but I have learned my lesson. Anyone need three 18 volt batteries for their trimmer?????
I have three and they worked for over a year; then all went bad at about the same time. I have three because I own Black & Decker circular saws, recip. saws, drills, a sander, a weed trimmer, etc., all using the 18 volt system.
Two of these OEM units failed within a couple weeks. One was about three years old; the other about four months. The newer was replaced under warranty with a different model that is supposed to be more reliable: ETPCA-180021U2.
This charger and a battery came with my trimmer. I have had the charger for about 18 months now and it has stopped working. My experience is consistent with the other reviewers regarding how short the life of this charger is. I just checked B&D's Web site and I don't see this charger listed. Hopefully that means they have stopped making it! - 18 Volt - Black And Decker - Charger - Cordless Lawn Tools'
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