TL;DR

You cannot charge tools directly — you charge the batteries inside them.
Press R then right-click to eject a battery from any tool into your inventory.
Place depleted batteries in a Battery Terminal in your base to recharge them for free.
Scan 2 Battery Terminal fragments in the Old Habitat to unlock the blueprint.
Battery Terminal recipe: 2x Titanium, 2x Quartz, 1x Copper Wire. It does not drain base power.
Power Cells for the Tadpole use a separate Power Cell Terminal (3x Titanium, 3x Copper, 1x Wiring Kit).
Never throw away empty batteries — the Terminal recharges them for free.

Tool batteries drain fast in Subnautica 2. Power-hungry tools like the Wakemaker, Sonic Resonator, and Flashlight burn through a battery quickly, especially on long dives. A lot of players don’t realize you can recharge batteries for free — instead they keep crafting new ones and burning through Copper and Acidic Raion Pouches every session. That’s completely avoidable. This guide explains exactly how the recharging system works, where to unlock it, and how to manage power for both your tools and your Tadpole.

Table of Contents

How Battery Power Works in Subnautica 2

Almost every handheld tool in the game is powered by a Basic Battery. The Scanner, Flashlight, Sonic Resonator, Wakemaker, Repair Tool, and more all use the same battery type. A small power bar appears above each tool on your hotbar, showing how much charge is left.

The key thing to understand: you do not charge the tool itself. You remove the battery from the tool, charge the battery separately in a Battery Terminal, then slot it back in. Tools are just housings. The battery is the thing with the charge.

The Air Bladder is the only handheld exception — it doesn’t run on a battery at all, so it’s always ready to use.

You can swap a battery at any charge level. You don’t have to wait until it’s fully drained. Before heading out on a long dive with a power-heavy tool like the Wakemaker, swap in a fresh battery first and leave the partial one in the Battery Terminal to top up while you’re gone. By the time you return, it’s fully charged and ready for the next run.

How to Eject a Battery from a Tool

To remove a battery from a tool on PC:

Equip the tool you want to swap out (it must be active in your hand or on your hotbar).
Press R to open the reload/swap menu.
Right-click to eject the current battery. It goes directly into your inventory.

On console, press up on the D-pad to begin the battery swap, then press X to unload the battery into your inventory.

To reload a charged battery back into the tool:

Make sure a charged battery is in your inventory.
Equip the tool and press R.
Left-click (or press A on console) to insert the battery from your inventory automatically.

The tool’s power bar refills immediately and any lights on the model turn back on to confirm the swap worked.

subnautica 2 how to use battery terminal 2

How to Build the Battery Terminal

The Battery Terminal is the base module that recharges your batteries passively using your base’s power. It holds up to 6 batteries at once and works on any battery — fully drained or partially depleted. It does not draw dedicated power from your base supply, so as long as your base has any positive power balance, it keeps working in the background without affecting other systems.

Step 1 — Scan 2 Battery Terminal Fragments

Before you can build a Battery Terminal, you need to scan two existing Battery Terminal units in the world using your Scanner. Both are found in the Old Habitat, roughly 370 to 400 meters north of the Lifepod at around 45 meters depth. This is a location you’ll pass through during normal story progression following NOA’s early black box missions, so you may already have been here.

The two scannable terminals are:

Terminal 1 — On the sunken floor of the Old Habitat, in the same area as the Quaker Blackbox Signal. Re-toggle the Quaker signal on your HUD to navigate back to this section if you need to.
Terminal 2 — In a ground-floor room next to the long corridor that connects the two halves of the Old Habitat.

Scanning both registers the blueprint automatically. If you haven’t crafted your Scanner yet, see our guide on how to craft a Scanner in Subnautica 2. The Scanner requires a Basic Battery to operate, so bring a charged one.

Step 2 — Gather the Materials

The Battery Terminal is one of the cheapest base modules in the game. Everything you need is found close to the Lifepod:

2x Titanium
2x Quartz
1x Copper Wire

Titanium is everywhere on the seafloor. See our guide on how to get Titanium in Subnautica 2. Quartz spawns near coral formations in the early areas — see how to get Quartz. Copper Wire is a processed item made from Copper ore at the Fabricator. For Copper locations, see where to find Copper in Subnautica 2.

Step 3 — Build and Place It

Open the Habitat Builder, navigate to the Power section under Interior Facilities, and select Battery Terminal. Place it on any interior wall or corridor segment inside a powered base. That’s all it takes.

Once placed, interact with it to open the battery slots. Drag any depleted battery in and leave it to charge. Charging is gradual — it takes time to fill up, so the habit is to drop your dead batteries in when you return from a dive and pick them up fully charged before your next one.

If you don’t have a base yet, read our guide on how to unlock the Habitat Builder and start building a base. The Battery Terminal should be one of the first interior modules you build after the Fabricator — it saves Copper and Acidic Raion Pouches that would otherwise go toward crafting replacement batteries constantly.

How to Use the Battery Terminal

Using it is simple:

Eject the battery from your tool as described above (R + right-click on PC).
Walk to the Battery Terminal and interact with it.
Drag the depleted battery into one of the six slots.
Close the menu and go do something else — explore, craft, eat, sleep.
When you return, the battery is fully charged. Take it out and slot it back into your tool (R + left-click).

One important note: the Battery Terminal has an on/off toggle button on the top of the unit. It’s easy to hit it accidentally while interacting with the interface. If your batteries aren’t charging even though they’re inside the terminal, check that the button is set to enabled. That’s the most common reason charging stops working without explanation.

Your base also needs to be powered. The terminal uses your base’s power grid passively. If the base loses power, the terminal stops charging. Keep your Solar Panels or Hydroelectric Turbines in good shape to avoid this. See our guide on what to build in your base first for power setup tips.

The Best Battery Management Habit

The most efficient approach is to keep a rotation of spare batteries running. Here’s how it works:

Craft 3 to 6 spare Basic Batteries early in the game.
Keep them sitting in the Battery Terminal at all times when not in use.
Before a dive, pull a fresh battery from the terminal and slot it into your most power-hungry tool.
When you return, eject the used battery and put it back in the terminal to recharge.
You always have charged batteries ready and never have to craft new ones again.

Six terminal slots is more than enough for a solo player and comfortably handles two players in co-op. See our Subnautica 2 multiplayer co-op guide for tips on shared base management.

Never throw away an empty battery. Basic Batteries cost Copper and Acidic Raion Pouches to craft — both of which you’ll want for other recipes. A dead battery put in the terminal costs nothing. Crafting a new one has a real material cost. Always recharge, never replace.

For Acidic Raion Pouches, see our guide on how to get an Acidic Raion Pouch.

Which Tools Use the Most Battery Power?

Not all tools drain at the same rate. Here’s a rough priority guide for which tools need battery management most urgently:

Wakemaker — High drain. Uses a battery continuously while active. Always swap in a fresh battery before a long swimming session. See our guide on how to make the Wakemaker.
Sonic Resonator — Moderate drain. Each blast consumes charge. On heavy mining runs it can die mid-session. Carry a spare battery in your inventory during resource-gathering dives — especially when farming Creature Enamel or large nodes. See our guide on where to find Creature Enamel.
Flashlight — Slow drain. Lasts a long time but you’re often using it on longer cave dives where a dead light is genuinely dangerous. See our guide on how to get the Flashlight blueprint.
Scanner — Very slow drain. One battery lasts through many scanning sessions. Low priority for constant swapping.
Repair Tool — Low drain under normal use. Only burns power when actively repairing. Keep it charged before Tadpole dives. See our guide on how to get the Repair Tool.

How to Recharge the Tadpole — Power Cells Explained

The Tadpole doesn’t run on Basic Batteries. It uses a Power Cell, which is a larger power unit that sits at the top of the submarine. Power Cells and Basic Batteries are completely separate systems. The Battery Terminal does not charge Power Cells. They require their own dedicated module: the Power Cell Terminal.

Method 1 — Tadpole Dock (Passive Recharge)

The simplest way to recharge your Tadpole is to dock it at the Tadpole Dock inside your base. As long as the base is powered, the Tadpole Dock automatically recharges the Power Cell while the vehicle sits docked. No manual action required — just park it and let it fill up overnight or while you’re doing base work. This is the preferred method for regular recharging between dives. See our full guide on how to build a Tadpole and set up the Tadpole Dock.

Method 2 — Manual Power Cell Swap

You can climb on top of the Tadpole at any time and manually pull out the Power Cell. Bring a freshly crafted or charged Power Cell in your inventory, swap it in, and your Tadpole is fully powered immediately without waiting for passive charging. This is the fastest option when you need to get back in the water quickly.

Method 3 — Power Cell Terminal (Base Charging)

The Power Cell Terminal is the base equivalent of the Battery Terminal, but specifically for Power Cells. It holds up to 2 Power Cells and recharges them from your base’s power supply.

Power Cell Terminal recipe: 3x Titanium, 3x Copper, 1x Wiring Kit.

The blueprint is found by scanning the Power Cell Terminal inside the Cicada Wreck — Lander Garage, located northeast of the Lifepod. This is also one of the Tadpole Fragment locations, so you may have already been there.

Important: Unlike the Battery Terminal, the Power Cell Terminal draws a significant amount of power from your base while operating. In the current Early Access build, it appears to draw the same power load even when it’s manually disabled or has no cells inside. Factor this into your power generation capacity before placing one — make sure your Solar Panels or Turbines can support the extra drain.

For Wiring Kits you’ll need Silver and Copper — see our guide on where to find Silver in Subnautica 2.

how to recharge tools with basic batteries

How to Craft a Basic Battery

If your battery supply runs low before you have a Battery Terminal set up, you’ll need to craft new ones at the Fabricator. The recipe is:

Basic Battery recipe: 1x Copper + 1x Acidic Raion Pouch.

Copper is found in cave systems close to the Lifepod. Acidic Raion Pouches are the purple sacs found on plants inside the caves directly below the Lifepod — harvest them with your Survival Multitool equipped. Once you have both, the Basic Battery appears in your Fabricator under the Electronics section.

See our full guides on where to find Copper and how to get Acidic Raion Pouches for more detail. That said, once the Battery Terminal is built, you should rarely need to craft new batteries. Recharging is always better than replacing.

Common Battery Problems and How to Fix Them

Batteries Aren’t Charging in the Terminal

Two causes. First, check the on/off toggle button at the top of the Battery Terminal — it may have been accidentally switched to disabled during normal interaction. Second, check your base power. The terminal needs a positive power balance to work. If your base is draining more than it’s generating, add more Solar Panels or Turbines to bring it back into surplus.

Can’t Swap the Battery Mid-Dive

You need a charged spare battery in your inventory before you can swap. If no battery is available in your inventory, pressing R won’t give you anything to load. Carry at least one spare in your inventory on longer dives with power-heavy tools. This is especially important on mining runs with the Sonic Resonator far from base.

Power Cell Still Low After Docking

The Tadpole Dock recharges passively but not instantly. If you undocked quickly after a long dive, the cell may not have had time to fill. Either wait longer with the Tadpole docked, or use a manual Power Cell swap for faster turnaround before the next dive.

Tadpole Dock Not Recharging

The dock only works when the base is powered. Check your power output and confirm the Tadpole is fully docked — not just nearby but actually locked into the dock’s interface. If the dock itself needs repairing after damage, use the Repair Tool on it before expecting it to charge.

Quick Summary — Battery and Power Cell Recharging

Tool batteries (Basic Battery): Press R + right-click to eject → place in Battery Terminal → collect when full → press R + left-click to reload.
Battery Terminal blueprint: Scan 2 terminals in the Old Habitat (370-400m north of Lifepod).
Battery Terminal recipe: 2x Titanium, 2x Quartz, 1x Copper Wire. Does not drain base power.
Tadpole Power Cell: Recharges at the Tadpole Dock passively, or via manual swap, or in the Power Cell Terminal.
Power Cell Terminal recipe: 3x Titanium, 3x Copper, 1x Wiring Kit. Blueprint found in Cicada Wreck — Lander Garage. Draws significant base power.

More Subnautica 2 Guides

Subnautica 2 is available now in Early Access on Steam and Xbox, including Xbox Game Pass.

How to Recharge Your Tools and Batteries in Subnautica 2

How Battery Power Works in Subnautica 2

How to Eject a Battery from a Tool

How to Build the Battery Terminal