How to Test My Cordless Drill That Stopped With a Multimeter

Plug the drill's battery charger into a 110-volt wall socket.

Remove the battery from the base of the drill. Removal of the battery may vary depending on the model cordless drill you have. However, on most cordless drills, there is a plastic latch that is depressed by hand, which will free the battery from the handle.

Place the battery on its charger and charge it for the charge time specified for your model of cordless drill. Charge times will differ for different model drills, so consult the owner's manual for your specific cordless drill. Three to four hours, though, is usually long enough to achieve a sufficient charge to simply test the battery.

Remove the drill battery from its charger.

Power up the multimeter and adjust it to the volts setting. Also set the voltage test range on the meter by turning the dial on the front to the correct position. For example, if the drill battery is 18 volts, you want the meter's test range to be set at 18 volts or higher.

Place the meter's red (positive) test lead to one of the metal terminal posts on the drill battery and connect the black (negative) meter test lead to the other terminal on the battery. If there is no voltage reading at all, or if the voltage measures extremely low (2 to 4 volts), the rechargeable cordless drill battery needs to be replaced.