What To Do With An Old Cordless Drill

What to Do With an Old Cordless Drill?

Staring at your old cordless drill, you might wonder about its fate. It’s a common dilemma many DIY enthusiasts face.

27/12/2023 – Update

In a Nutshell:

An old cordless drill offers a wealth of repurposing possibilities. Convert it into a household tool, such as a cleaning brush, by attaching a scrubber. Ingeniously, it can also power a bike or small vehicle with some mechanical modifications. Another creative idea is to use it for winding kites or similar hobbies. If repurposing isn’t feasible, donate it for educational use or recycle it, particularly the battery, at an electronic waste facility. These actions ensure your old drill is either given a new, imaginative life or disposed of in an eco-friendly manner.

If you’re curious about learning how to turn your old drill into a kitchen marvel with actionable steps, keep reading. Discover the detailed steps, ensuring your retired tool finds an exciting new purpose. Let’s get to it!

What to Do With Old Drills: Creative Ideas for Your Retired Tools

Are you brimming with imagination? Then you’ve probably already envisioned unique ways to repurpose your old drill, making everyday tasks easier or adding a spark of excitement to your routine.

If you’re on the lookout for some fresh inspiration, we’ve got you covered. We’ve compiled a list of innovative ideas to reassign your old cordless drill to a new, less demanding role within your home.

Dive into these intriguing concepts that promise to transform your retired tool into an exciting new project:

1 | Transforming an Old Drill into a Dynamic Cleaner

Who knew that my old cordless drill could revolutionize cleaning at home? I discovered it’s perfect for tackling tricky, time-consuming cleaning tasks, like scrubbing a bicycle’s intricate parts.

How to Do It:

  1. Choose the Right Brush: Find a brush attachment that fits your drill chuck. I prefer a medium-bristle brush for versatility.
  2. Secure Attachment: Firmly attach the brush to the drill chuck, checking that it’s secure. Safety first!
  3. Start Cleaning: Turn on the drill and let the bristles work their magic on those hard-to-reach spots. It’s amazing how much effort it saves!
Make A Fast Cleaning Device

2 | A Kitchen Helper from the Toolbox

At first, using an old drill in the kitchen seemed odd, but it turned out to be a game changer. It’s great for tasks like whisking eggs or grinding pepper.

How to Do It:

  1. Fit Kitchen Tools: I attached a metal whisk for eggs and a grinding attachment for pepper.
  2. Ensure Safety: Always ensure the attachment is secure to avoid kitchen mishaps unless you want to make a complete mess of those pancakes.
  3. Explore and Enjoy: I even found a way to chill beers quickly by spinning them in ice with a custom-made suction cup attachment. The possibilities are endless!

3 | An Engineered Ride: Drill-Powered Vehicles

Transforming any old drill into a bike’s power source is a bold move, blending DIY enthusiasm with a touch of Evel Knievel spirit. It’s a project that demands creativity and technical prowess. Here’s how I approached it, keeping things as straightforward as possible.

How to Do It:

  1. Gather Materials: You’ll need some mechanical parts and a clear guide (found online).
  2. Assemble Carefully: Follow the instructions meticulously for safety and efficiency.
  3. Enjoy the Ride: The thrill of a drill-powered bike is unmatched, especially when you zoom without pedaling!

4 | Effortless Kite Flying with a Drill

Gone are the days of laborious manual winding of kite strings. When I stumbled upon the idea of using an old drill for this task, it felt like a lightbulb moment. It transformed kite flying from a chore to a delight, adding a dash of cleverness to a classic pastime.

How to Do It:

  • Attach the Spool: It starts with securing the kite’s spool to the drill’s chuck. I made sure the fit was snug and stable – it’s the foundation of this nifty setup.
  • Get Creative: This is where your inner inventor shines. Depending on the type and size of your drill and spool, there’s a whole playground of possibilities for how you attach them. I experimented with a few methods before finding the perfect fit.
  • Wind and Unwind: Now, the real magic happens. With a press of a button, the once tedious task of winding the kite string becomes a spectacle of efficiency. Watching the drill do all the work, effortlessly winding or unwinding the string, brings a whole new level of satisfaction to kite flying.
Winding Kite String

5 | Empowering Education with Old Tools

Transforming my old drill into a valuable educational resource was an incredibly rewarding experience. Donating it to schools or workshops fosters practical learning and benefits the community.

How to Do It:

  • Identify Recipients: I sought out local schools and workshops that could use the drill for educational purposes, focusing on those with hands-on learning programs.
  • Prepare and Contact: After ensuring the drill was in working order, I contacted these institutions to discuss the potential use and benefits of the donation.
  • Arrange the Donation: Finally, I organized the handover, adhering to their guidelines for tool donations. It was a simple yet impactful way to give my old drill a new lease on life.
Innovative Experiments: Transforming Old Drills into Learning Adventures
ExperimentDescriptionEducational Benefit
Motor MechanicsStudents disassemble and reassemble the drill to understand its motor mechanics.Enhances understanding of basic engineering principles.
Power GenerationUsing the drill’s motor to generate electricity in small-scale experiments.Teaches principles of electromagnetism and energy conversion.
Robotics and AutomationIncorporating the drill into simple robotic arms or moving mechanisms.Introduces concepts of robotics and mechanical automation.
Alternative UsesModifying the drill for non-traditional uses like a paint mixer or a simple lathe.Encourages creativity and innovative thinking in practical applications.
Speed and Torque AnalysisTesting the drill’s speed and torque capacities in different settings.Provides practical insights into physics concepts like force and motion.
Battery TechnologyExploring the drill’s battery to study rechargeable battery technology and care.Offers knowledge about energy storage and battery maintenance.
Material ScienceUsing the drill on various materials to study their properties and resistance.Helps understand material properties and tool-material interaction.
Ergonomics StudyAnalyzing the design of the drill for user comfort and efficiency.Introduces the importance of ergonomics in tool design.

Just take a peek at this table! It’s like a treasure map showing all the cool ways old drills can get a second life in classrooms and workshops. It’s not just about taking them apart and putting them back together – there’s a whole world of science and engineering fun for students to dive into.

Considerations Before You Butcher Your Drill

What Motor is Used in a Cordless Drill?

There are two types of motors you’ll find in cordless drills. Brushed motors and or brushless motors. These two types of motors while in principle they are similar, they are distinctly different as they utilize dissimilar components to produce vastly different results in terms of both performance and control.

Cordless drills with a brushed motor are inexpensive and although they are subject to wear, they are very dependable, and the right cordless drill can deliver a high torque or inertia ratio. 

A brushed motor operates by which a carbon brush and a commutator rotates on a shaft that is physically connected to the motor rotor. Due to this friction, both the brushes and the commutator wear out over time.

Which Motor Is Used In Cordless Drill

One thing you’ll have noticed about brushless drills and power tools, in general, is that they are more expensive than their counterparts.

Brushless motors are up to 90% more efficient than brushed motors, with this increased efficiency translating into more of the total power used by the motor being converted into rotational force, rather than being expelled as heat.

A brushless motor produces this increased efficiency as the rotor of a DC brushless motor is a permanent magnet that houses the stator. Once each of the coils is energized, this creates an electromagnetic field due to the opposing poles being attracted to each other.

As there is no friction throughout this process, the motor operates by generating a high amount of torque and at a lower decibel than a brushed motor.

Service and Restore Your Old Cordless Drill

If you still have a little faith in your old drill and aren’t interested in purchasing a replacement model just yet, it’s always possible to bring back to life your old cordless drill.

As long as the battery is still intact or you’re willing to buy new replacement batteries for your cordless drill, you’ll be able to give your old faithful cordless drill a new lease on life. 

This also might be a worthwhile DIY pursuit if you’re into sustainability as it will ultimately be one less hunk of plastic added to the pile.

In Conclusion

Some of the other ideas you will find online include using it to mix things, as a light source, to remove weeds, and to dig holes.

Key Takeaways:

  • Versatility of Old Drills: Old cordless drills can be creatively repurposed for various tasks around the house, from cleaning to cooking, proving their versatility beyond their original purpose.
  • Innovative DIY Projects: Engaging DIY projects such as transforming an old drill into a dynamic cleaner, a kitchen helper, a drill-powered vehicle, an efficient kite string winder, or even using it in educational settings demonstrate the potential for innovative reuse.
  • Educational Value: Old drills can be donated to schools or workshops, where they serve as valuable educational tools, aiding in the teaching of motor mechanics, power generation, robotics, and more, thus contributing to practical learning and community benefit.
  • Technical Considerations: Understanding the type of motor (brushed or brushless) in your cordless drill is crucial for its effective repurposing, as each type offers different benefits in terms of performance and control.
  • Sustainability and Restoration: Reviving old drills, either through DIY repairs or by finding new applications, promotes sustainability and prevents adding more waste to the environment, offering a fulfilling alternative to discarding them.

All in all, there are plenty of excellent ways to make sure that your old cordless drill carries on being interesting and useful. There is certainly no longer any need to think that throwing it away your matured tools has to be the only option once you buy a replacement.