I finally gave up trying to keep my old Ryobi 18 volt flashlights working or converting them to LED. Ryobi sells a 20 watt LED worklight, model # P721 that is really slick and uses their 18 volt batteries. I bought one at my local Home Depot and used it all summer while working on cars, plumbing and electrical work. I must say that I am impressed.
The light has two settings, low and high. When I was working in a room or under a car, the high setting was great. Inside a bathroom vanity it was way too bright and the low setting worked much better. They say the high setting is 2,400 lumen — let me tell you, it’s bright.
The problem I used to run into with incandescent bulbs is that the filament would burn out and I would need to install a new bulb. LED lights do not have that problem. Ryobi estimates the bulb will last 50,000 hours. To put that in perspective, if you ran the light for one year, it would run for 8,760 hours non-stop. Of course you would drain the battery over and over but the point is that it will be a long time before the LED gives out.
The legs are an interesting design and can hang on a two by lumber such as framing or a floor joist.
They claim 34 hours on one of the big Lithium Ion batteries and I suspect that is the low setting. When I was doing plumbing and electrical work at my mother-in-law’s house, I killed a big battery in less time than that on full power.
All in all, it is a great light. Since I have Ryobi tools and batteries, this purchase was a no-brainer and I plan to buy a second one for ever better coverage while working and the occasional power outage.
2/17/20 Update: Both lights are still going strong. I have used them a ton and it is so handy to have a ton of light available on demand. I still strongly recommend these.
5/30/2019 Update: I did buy a second one and these things are great. For example, I just used them the other night to light up an area outside where my wife and I were working. The batteries last a surprisingly long time on the lower power setting but I can’t tell you for sure how long. Also, that base is so well thought out. You can attach it to two-by lumber or even use the hook to dangle it – which I did from a rope.
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