Best sort of drill for garden DIY?

[Noosner]

I've just taken delivery today of a hardwood cold frame and seen that it has no pre-drilled holes so I'm gonna have to do them myself. The drill bit in our old drill is rusted in and is too thick for the screws provided anyway. Time to buy a new (rotary and probably corded) drill. I am also a bit fed up waiting for my nearest and dearest to do things and would like to tackle them myself! Has anyone got any recommendations for a not-too-heavy (think female with weedy arms) drill or could I get by with a power screwdriver?

[greenishfing]

I bought my husband a Dewalt battery hammer drill for his birthday a few years ago with 2 batteries and, until the batteries died this year, it was my favourite tool. The price of a new battery was astronomical so I bought him a battery drill from Aldi a few weeks ago. It was cheap but does the job. We have no electricity on our allotments so for me a battery drill is a must.

Husband is happy because I have bought him a gadget, I am happy because I'll get far more use out of it than him.

WIN....WIN...

[RedThorn]

Battery drills have come on a long way, and for the odd job esp if wood, that would be the way to go

[Noosner]

Thanks for the quick reply Greenishfing. Just googled the Aldi drill and see it is only £20 - wow. I hadn't thought about the allotment but of course it would be better to have a cordless one for work there as we have no leccy there either. Aldi in Shipley is still open... very tempted to drive over there now!

[Noosner]

Thanks, Red Thorn. Much appreciated.

[ButternutSquash]

Thanks for the quick reply Greenishfing. Just googled the Aldi drill and see it is only £20 - wow. I hadn't thought about the allotment but of course it would be better to have a cordless one for work there as we have no leccy there either. Aldi in Shipley is still open... very tempted to drive over there now!

I know nothing about the drill, but at that price it may well be fine for light jobs. My Aldi/Lidl coldframe is first rate, my Aldi/Lidl rotavator was fine for what it was.

I have a Bosch Lithium battery drill, which is brilliant. Far safer than corded, and far more convenient. Generally the problem with cordless tools is the battery, replacements cost a fortune. If you want a drill for general diy, and you will use it, then you might want to spend more. The sheds - B&Q et al - sometimes do very good deals e.g. Bosch drill with two batteries for the price of drill with one battery. If you can afford Lithium batteries, go for it, they are better than the old NiCd.

You probably can't go far wrong with the cheap one.

Oh, and for drill bits, the best place is ebay, much cheaper than B&Q.

[Potstubsdustbins]

It really does depend on whether you want cheapo cheapo or half decent, there's a big leap in price but a great leap in performance. We use them professionally and I would consider a £20 to £50 drill a waste of money as I know we will burn it out inside a week.

Over the years I have tried Makita good but very expensive, actually a Black and Decker in a yellow jacket. Bosch, unless you pay for the professional version not up to snuff. Hitachi very good value for money one with smaller batteries 1.5Ah which might suit you as the package only weighs 1.6Kg.

I would go for something like a 18volt combi drill rather than a drill/driver as then you can tackle masonry as well as wood and steel. Because of your slight build I would also have one with various torque settings, that way it won't get ripped out of your hand should the bit snag.

Screwfix the depots trade arm do some very good prices unless you can find what you want on offer somewhere.

For the last 8 years we have used 18 volt Erbauer with 3Ah batteries not expensive but can take the daily hammer we give them, plenty of torque but with 20 settings. We reckon to get over three years out of them and as always its the batteries that fail first.

[Alison]

I've just taken delivery today of a hardwood cold frame and seen that it has no pre-drilled holes so I'm gonna have to do them myself. The drill bit in our old drill is rusted in and is too thick for the screws provided anyway. Time to buy a new (rotary and probably corded) drill. I am also a bit fed up waiting for my nearest and dearest to do things and would like to tackle them myself! Has anyone got any recommendations for a not-too-heavy (think female with weedy arms) drill or could I get by with a power screwdriver?

If it's just the drill bit that is rusty then why don't you just get a new bit of the correct diameter rather than a full drill?

[Bill HH]

If I had to have anything less than a Makita I would only use it at night in case the neighbours saw me.

But then I am a bit of a tool obsessive.

[Potstubsdustbins]

Only until we started taking the mick Bill, Black & Decker remember.

[Noosner]

Thanks once again, folks, for all this valuable info and great detail. I am going to have a look tomorrow. It will defo be a cordless with lithium batteries, you have convinced me about that. The existing drill, Alison, is an ancient Black and Decker and although we have used it for drilling holes in masonry, it is one of the old fashioned sort where you need a key to get the bit out -and that key is long gone, to the great pile of lost keys in the sky.

[taff]

I've also got a cordless Bosch lithium with one battery 18v hammer drill.
Best present I ever bought myself in the last two years.
Got it on offer in Homebase, it was 74 and well worth every penny.
I try and find things to do just so I can use it

[taff]

A quick change key chuck and bits might be an idea too, the're about £10 ish for a small set of wood drills, masonry bits and screwdriver attachments.

[arpoet]

Having bad grip in my hands, I will only use a drill with a chuck key as I can't tighten up one of the keyless chucks.

[Bill HH]

Makita (and other inferior makes) do a set of tools for a drill, metal, wood, masonry drill bits, hole saws, screw driver bits and lots more, sometimes you can get it free with a new drill. I know I am plugging Makita but I suppose if you don't use a drill that much a cheaper one would be better, even a cheapo one has 12 months guarantee.