Finally caved and switched to a corded drill for my deck project

I've been all about cordless tools for years, but after killing three batteries trying to sink 50 deck screws into pressure-treated pine last Saturday, I borrowed my dad's old 7.5 amp corded drill. The difference was night and day - constant power, no waiting for charges, and it ate through those 3-inch screws like butter. Cost me $40 at Harbor Freight for a basic one, and I got the whole 12x16 deck framed in one afternoon. Anyone else find corded tools still beat cordless for heavy jobs?

3 comments

3 Comments

kim1911mo agoTop Commenter

@elizabethg18 killed three batteries too, ouch. I read somewhere that corded drills actually deliver more torque because they don't have to worry about battery drain, and that matches what I saw with my dad's old one. Nothing beats that steady power for a day-long job.

elizabethg181mo ago

Rough lesson to learn, man. Killed three batteries myself on a fence job last spring before I finally saw the light with corded gear.

kevin_dixon1mo ago

Honestly, I used to be totally team cordless too. Ngl, I thought anyone using a corded drill was stuck in the past. But after my own battery disasters on a big project, I grabbed my neighbor's old corded one and it totally changed my mind. Tbh, the constant power is just way better for heavy stuff like driving long screws into treated lumber. You don't realize how annoying battery swaps are until you don't have to deal with them. Now I've got a cheap corded one sitting next to my cordless and I grab it first for any real work.