[GeoStL] Re: Rechargeable Batteries

  • From: Weymouth <wey6567@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: geocaching@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Sat, 14 Jul 2007 15:56:41 -0700 (PDT)

-
Be rechargeables have outlasted my alkalines.  I also
bought the energizers from Sams/WalMart.  The first
time I used them in the GPS they did not last as long
as I thought they would.  I had to change my GPS from
Alkaline to Rechargeable.

Jeff
JC_Geo
--- Mike Lusicic <lusicic@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:


---------------------------------
-    The secret to long rechargeable battery life is
the charger itself. Youneed one that is designed for
the type of battery you are using. Notall rechargeable
batteries are the same, and the voltage varies. Thatis
why the rechargeable batteries may not last as long.
They haveslightly lower voltage, so for the same power
output, they have to makeit with more current.

Anyway, all rechargeable batteries have to have some
sort of vent. Itis usually a one way job. That is
because when you charge a battery, itcreates heat.
That creates pressure inside the battery case. Too
muchpressure and the battery will explode. Thus they
have a vent to preventsuch a catastrophic event.

If the battery gets hot and does vent some gas, the
gas that it isventing is actually part of the
electrolyte inside the battery. Youlose too much, and
the battery loses capacity. The most heat isproduced
after the battery is done charging and you keep it on
thecharger. If the charger "knows" what voltage
represents a full charge,it can stop charging the
battery, or only feed it a tiny current tokeep it from
heating up. Dumb chargers, or ones made for
differentbattery types with different fully charged
voltage levels canovercharge and overheat the battery.
That is when you shorten the lifeof the battery.

I hope this helps.

Roger Barnes wrote:  
-My experience is that some last a year or two and
some last severalyears.  I did not mark my batteries
so I could pair the same twotogether all the time. I
think that helps.  The next time I open newones, I
will do that.  The ones that last several years have
beenrecharged dozens of times, even the ones that
haven't lasted as longhave been recharged maybe a
dozen time or more.  They charge OK, theyjust don't
last very long.  Anyway, I think they have been well
worthit.  Of course, YMMV.Rogerps - YMMV = Your
Mileage May Very, in case anyone is wondering.  
      
Andrew Senger wrote:Thanks everyone for your
information.  I have a couple of
follow-upquestions.Have you ever had the batteries go
"dead" (i.e. won't recharge, orwon't stay charged for
long)?  If so, approx how long did that take(in
recharges or months/years)?At Sam's, I bought a
recharge kit with 8 AA batteries and 4 AAAbatteries. 
It was the same price as (I believe) a 32-count AA
case.Eric mentioned that he was getting about 3/4 of
the time withrechargeables, so I would need at least 5
recharges to be worth thevalue.  Will the 8 batteries
will last 5 times longer than a typicalAA over its
life?  If so, is the charge still good after that 5th
use?Thanks again!Andrew    
    
  
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