My drill battery died halfway through mounting a panel in a crawlspace

I was working on a retrofit in a tight crawlspace under a house in Phoenix last summer. Had my impact driver with a fresh battery to mount the main panel on a concrete wall. About halfway through drilling the third hole for the Tapcon anchors, the battery just gave out. I was wedged in there with no way to get out easy and no spare on me. Ended up using a masonry bit and a hand tool to finish the last two holes. Took forever and my arm was killing me. Do you guys keep a backup battery in your tool bag or just risk it?

2 comments

2 Comments

oscarw837d agoMost Upvoted

Three Tapcons in and dead battery, man that is brutal. I did almost the same thing last year mounting a thermostat in a garage. Drill died on the last hole for a drywall anchor and I had to finish with a screwdriver. Now I keep a second battery in my nail pouch no matter what, even for quick jobs. Learned that lesson the hard way in a 100 degree attic with no shade. Another trick I stole from a coworker is to always charge both batteries the night before so you dont end up with one dead one that sat around for months. That crawlspace tapcon hand drilling must have been a nightmare, I feel your pain on that one for sure.

rose_cooper7d ago

Oh man, that crawlspace tapcon story reminded me of when I tried to mount a heavy mirror to brick in my basement. I got halfway through the second hole and my drill just gave up. I literally sat there staring at the wall for like five minutes trying to figure out what to do. Ended up using a masonry bit with a hammer, one tap at a time, took me half an hour for one stupid hole. Now I always check the battery charge before I even grab the tool. I also started buying those multi-packs of cheap batteries for my impact driver so I have like three or four spares floating around in my truck. It feels like overkill but man, getting stuck in the middle of a job just kills your whole momentum.