Chainsaw Battery Not Charging - Is It Dead or the Charger?

Hey all, I've got a 40V Ryobi chainsaw that's been great for a couple of years, but now the battery won't charge. Plug it in, no lights on the charger, nothing. I've tried a different outlet, but no dice. Is the battery toast or the charger? Any way to test? I don't want to drop cash on a new batt if the charger is the issue.

That sucks, Tim. First thing, check the contacts on the battery and charger for corrosion or gunk. Sometimes a little emery cloth cleans them up and fixes it. Also, if you have a multimeter, check the voltage on the battery terminals. If it's under like 30V, it might be dead. My neighbor had the same issue and it was the charger, so it's a toss-up.

I've seen this before. If the charger has no lights at all when plugged in (even without a battery), it might be the charger. But if the lights come on only when you insert the battery and then go off, that's a bad battery. Also, some chargers have a reset button or you can try leaving it plugged in for a bit – some batteries have a recovery mode. Otherwise, you can try to jump start a lithium battery, but that's risky. Might be cheaper to get a new battery IF your charger is fine – but check if it's under warranty, Ryobi has 3-year warranty on batteries.