13 Unexpected Devices That Work With Power Tool Batteries

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You know the drill (pun absolutely intended). You pick a color — red, yellow, green — and start collecting power tools like they're Pokémon. You've got the batteries. You've got the chargers. Your workshop is a well-oiled, cordless machine. But what happens when the work is done? That's where things get interesting. It turns out your tool batteries are moonlighting. While you thought they were just for serious business, they've been secretly powering a whole world of awesome, unexpected gadgets.

This isn't just some happy accident. It's a brilliant strategy by the tool companies to make their ecosystem irresistible. They know you've already invested, so they keep designing new ways to weave their battery platform into every corner of your life. The result is a lineup of gadgets that range from "Huh, that's clever" to "Wait, they make WHAT now?" Some solve real problems. Others just make life more comfortable. All of them give those batteries something to do besides sit idle between projects. And since most come without the extra battery cost, jumping in is way easier than expected.

Let's be honest, the traditional shop vacuum is a clumsy beast. You lug it out, find an outlet, and spend half your time fighting a stiff, tangled cord. Bauer clearly felt that pain and decided to set the shop vac free with not one but two cordless options.

First up is the nimble 20V Cordless, 3-1/2 Gallon Wet/Dry Vacuum. Think of this as your "uh-oh" specialist. At a featherlight 7.6 lbs, it's the one you grab to instantly suck up a spilled drink, clean out the car before your upcoming road trip, or deal with a sudden sawdust explosion. It's a grab-and-go hero for smaller messes and even has a blower port to clear off your workbench in a jiffy.

For bigger jobs, you can call in its big brother: the 20V Cordless, 7 Gallon Wet/Dry Vacuum. This beast brings corded-level power to the party, with enough oomph to handle a major workshop cleanup. Its best trick? A super-stable, no-tip wheel design that lets it glide around obstacles without toppling over, a frustration every corded vac owner knows all too well.

Working outside when it's blazing hot is pure misery. You're sweating through your shirt minutes into the day, your water bottle's running on empty by noon, and your productivity? Melting right along with you. Makita saw the struggle and said, "Enough. Let's bring the breeze to you." And with that, the 18V LXT Lithium-Ion Cordless Fan Jacket was born, giving you your very own portable breeze machine. Pop in the same 18V battery you use for your tools, and two built-in fans start pulling in air and circulating it across your back. The snug cuffs and waistband keep the airflow swirling inside, creating a personal bubble of cool relief.

You get three fan speeds plus a turbo mode for the days when the sun feels extra vengeful. Feeling toasty? Zip the sleeves off and rock vest mode for max airflow. Bonus: The power pack has USB ports to charge your phone, because staying cool and fully charged should always go hand in hand. The best part, it's lightweight, washable, and unapologetically Makita teal, so you can stay comfortable while repping your favorite tool brand.

You know the cold-weather drill: layer up. Base layer, mid layer, outer layer, maybe another layer because you're still freezing. Congrats, you now can't move your arms properly, and you're still cold. There's gotta be a better way, right? Luckily for you, Milwaukee agrees. Instead of turning people into marshmallow versions of themselves, it just made a jacket that heats itself. Problem solved.

The M12 Heated Toughshell Jacket is your personal "No, thank you" to the cold. With the push of a button, it uses a network of carbon fiber heating elements to warm your chest and back. But the real magic happens in the pockets. Yes, the pockets are heated. Shove your frozen hands in there and rediscover the joy of having functional fingers.

Best of all, Milwaukee's comfy heated jacket doesn't lock you into stiff, robot moves. The Toughshell fabric stretches, so you can squat, reach, or swing a hammer without it bunching up under your arms. And that awkward battery bulge? Gone. The smart pass-thru pocket lets you stash the M12 battery in either the front or the back — whichever's more comfortable.

Cold mornings on the jobsite? Long, chilly drives? Freezing on the sideline at your kid's soccer games? Your days of shivering through these moments are officially, gloriously over. Meet the Makita Cordless Heated Blanket — your new best friend for on-the-go warmth. This isn't your grandmother's living room afghan; it's a serious piece of comfort technology that runs on the same 18V LXT battery you use for your drill.

The magic is in its brilliant simplicity. Just snap in a battery, and you've got a personal heating system for up to 35 hours. With three heat settings, you can choose between gentle warmth to take the edge off or a toasty blast to fight off a deep freeze. But the real genius is its versatility. Use the handy snap buttons and strap to wear it as a cozy cape over your shoulders, instantly transforming yourself into a toasty superhero of the sidelines. It even features a USB port, so you can charge your phone while the blanket charges you with warmth. And yes, it's washer- and dryer-safe. Toss it in, clean it up, and use it again. 

If your creeper is just a flattened shipping box, you know the deal — sore back, dirty clothes, and a very bad mood. It's no one's idea of a good time. Thankfully, Ryobi decided it was time for a serious glow-up. Say hello to the 18V ONE+ Dual Function Lighted Creeper/Seat. This brilliant piece of garage gear is designed to save your back, your knees, and maybe even your mood. First, it's a comfortable, padded creeper seat with a five-position adjustable headrest. When you need to sit up for a brake job, a quick-release lever transforms it into a sturdy, rolling workshop seat.

But here's where it gets really cool: Pop in an 18V ONE+ battery and watch as two fully adjustable LED lights blast up to 800 lumens into the shadowy underside of your project car. Just be forewarned: Once those LEDs light up the undercarriage, you might discover things you weren't ready to see, like last winter's road-salt carnage. And for the eternal "Who stole my 10 mm?" saga, relax — the integrated storage compartments and accessory rail keep everything corralled and within reach, rather than rolling off into the garage abyss.

Picture this: You're on a remote job site or finally off on a fun camping trip. Your phone's at 5%, and the nearest wall plug feels like it's a million miles away. This is fine. Everything's fine. Except it's not. So what do you do? Panic? Give up on modern society entirely? Nah, just look to Milwaukee for a solution. The M18 Top-Off 175W Power Supply is all you need to turn your tool batteries into a personal power grid. You simply click any M18 battery into this compact inverter, and voila, you can charge pretty much anything.

It's equipped with a standard USB-A port, a super-fast USB-C PD port, and a standard 120V AC wall outlet — yes, a real outlet you can use to plug in a laptop, a small fan, or even a TV. The best part is that it doesn't play favorites. You can charge three devices simultaneously, and it'll deliver full, high-speed power to all of them. The 45-watt USB-C port is the real hero, capable of taking a dead phone to 80% up to 75% faster than a standard wall charger.

You know what's annoying about regular portable coolers? Everything ends up swimming in melted ice water — soggy sandwiches, waterlogged containers, that weird moment when you reach in and your whole arm gets soaked. It's cold, yeah, but at what cost? That's why the Makita 18V X2 LXT Cooler/Warmer is such a game-changer. It ditches the ice entirely by using compressor cooling to hold precise temps: 15°F, 30°F, 40°F, or 50°F. Pick one, set it, and it stays there. No soggy food catastrophe — just cold and dry, exactly how coolers should've worked from the start.

But wait, there's more (had to). It also heats. Two warming modes hit 130°F and 140°F. Summer job site? Ice-cold drinks. Winter tailgate? Piping-hot chili. The 21-quart size packs plenty without being a backbreaker to carry. In fact, it's just 32 pounds with two batteries, so you don't need a buddy to lift it from place to place. And while cordless battery power is the real draw, you're not limited to it; just plug it into your car or an outlet whenever you need a bit more juice.

You know those miserably hot summer days when a regular fan just feels like it's pushing hot air around? On that kind of day, you need to supercharge the air with a fine, cooling mist. And Ryobi's 18V ONE+ Bucket Top Misting Fan promises to get the job done in style. It's a fan. It's a misting system. It's your own personal oasis that goes wherever you need it. Just pop the unit on top of any 5-gallon bucket filled with water, click in an 18V battery, and boom, instant relief.

This thing doesn't mess around. With a powerful 840 FPM airflow and a mist that reaches up to 14 feet, it cools you down 28 times faster than any plain old fan ever could. And while the bucket-top design is perfect for taking it on the go, you can also hook it straight up to a garden hose for continuous, all-day misting on the patio. You'd think that much power would be loud, but this fan is part of Ryobi's Whisper Series, making it up to 44% quieter than older models. Now that's seriously cool.

There's nothing that can ruin a perfect summer evening faster than the high-pitched whine of a mosquito on a mission. When you want to take back your backyard from the winged invaders, it's time to call in the heavy artillery. Ryobi's 18V ONE+ Bug Zapper is your personal, portable no-fly zone. It lures in mosquitoes, moths, and other annoying pests and greets them with a satisfying zap from its powerful 2,550-volt grid. This isn't some tiny tabletop device, either. This high-tech bug zapper is powerful enough to cover up to 1.5 acres, creating a comfortable, bug-free zone.

Here's a nice touch: the removable disposal tray. When it's filled with the aftermath of bug elimination, just slide it out, dump it, and slide it back in. And when the party's over, the built-in carrying handle makes it easy to move from outside to inside without fuss. You don't have to stumble around in the dark, either, thanks to its built-in LED light with three brightness settings. Who knew a bug zapper could double as mood lighting for your backyard crew?

For a huge portion of the population, the day doesn't officially start until the first cup of coffee. But when you're on a job site or out in the boonies, your options are usually pretty grim: Choke down some instant coffee-flavored dust or settle for whatever's been sitting on a gas station burner for three hours. Makita decided people deserved a better, more civilized start to the day and created the 18V LXT Coffee Maker. This is a real, honest-to-goodness drip coffee maker that you can take literally anywhere.

Its design is brilliantly simple. You don't need to remember to pack flimsy paper filters because it has a permanent, slide-out basket. Just add your favorite ground coffee, pour in some water, and hit the button. In about five minutes, you'll be sipping a fresh, hot five-ounce cup of coffee. A single 5.0Ah battery has enough juice to brew three cups, which is perfect for getting your morning started right. It's a compact, no-fuss machine that uses your tool battery to power the most important job of the day: making you a functional human being.

Let's talk about high-performance fuel. What really powers you through a tough afternoon on the job site or a chilly night outdoors? A hot, brothy, carb-loaded bowl of instant ramen. It's a scientifically proven fact (probably) that nothing recharges the batteries faster. To unlock this peak culinary experience anywhere you go, you need one critical piece of hardware: Makita's 36V LXT Hot Water Kettle.

Pop in two 18V batteries, and it boils up to 27 ounces of water in roughly nine minutes from 50°F. That's enough for multiple servings of ramen, instant coffee, tea, soup, or oatmeal — whatever requires hot water to go from packet to perfection. Its insulated walls keep the water hot, so you don't have to race to the kettle at lightning speed when the buzzer goes off. On top of all that, this kettle is practically a safety-obsessed robot. It automatically shuts off when it's done boiling, refuses to turn on if it's empty, and even has a sensor that won't let it start if it's sitting on a wobbly surface. Portable, paranoid about safety, and perfect for ramen ... honestly, what more could you want from a kettle?

Sure, you've probably got a big, beastly air compressor in the corner of your garage. It's great for running air tools, but firing that loud monster up and wrestling with a 50-foot hose just to top off a single car tire feels like using a sledgehammer to hang a picture frame.

That's where the Ryobi 18V ONE+ High Pressure Digital Inflator swoops in to save the day. It's a quick and convenient solution for all those small jobs around the house, and because it's cordless and compact, you can take it on the go, too. Just toss it in your trunk for peace of mind on a road trip, or bring it to the park to inflate a flat soccer ball.

This portable tire inflator's best feature is pure set-it-and-forget-it genius. You dial in your target PSI on the clear digital screen, hit start, and the inflator does the rest, shutting off automatically once it hits the perfect pressure. It even has on-board storage for all the little attachments you need, making it your new go-to tool for tasks where your trusty full-size compressor is just plain overkill (or stuck back at home when you're miles away).

Job site soundtrack. It's important. Terrible music ruins morale. Silence gets weird. But counting on your phone speaker to compete with power tools? Not exactly ideal. The solution? The Bauer 20V Cordless Compact Radio will do the trick. Powered by the same 20V batteries as your tools, it streams Bluetooth audio from up to 40 feet away. Simply connect your phone or tablet once, and you'll be able to control the playlist from anywhere in the workspace without staying glued to the radio.

Not into streaming or dealing with spotty service? Built-in AM/FM radio with digital tuning and 10 preset stations has you covered. The foldable antenna pulls in strong reception. There's also an aux input if wired connections are more your speed, plus onboard storage so phones or MP3 players aren't just sitting there precariously. And the speakers? Let's just say they're way better than you'd expect. The premium components produce clear, quality audio instead of tinny garbage. It's quality portable audio for the job site, powered by batteries you already have sitting around.