Rechargeable batteries

[SeekerProB]

Anyone have an opinion on rechargeable batteries for at pro?

 

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[mh9162013]

Please remember to attach an insulator to the top of an exposed 9V battery. A piece of tape or the thumb of a latex glove both work well. They can start a fire in a backpack if they touch a conductor. Personal experience here. An old GF of mine threw one in to her backpack pocket to have a spare. She also had change in that pocket. And some other stuff that would burn easily. After it was all over, the thing looked like it had been hit with a phaser blast. I told her it would have been a lot more appropriate if it had been a red backpack.

I good alternative is to use a specialized battery holder, such as one made by Storacell:

https://www.amazon.com/Storacell-Po...ry+9v+holder&qid=1554645246&s=gateway&sr=8-10

I use these with my 9V and AA batteries.

 

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[mh9162013]

You have me wondering what batteries you have been using with your AT Pro? I also wonder what you consider to be "way too many batteries" related to how much detecting time. A long-period of detecting day-after-day, or a combination of days when you only detect for ±2 hours? Do you use headphones which can help reduce a certain amount of the battery drain?

I've been at this great sport for well over half-a-century...Therefore, my suggestions if you want to go rechargeable are #1.. the RnB batteries or #2.. the individual Eneloop.

Monte

I don't fully understand this post. Given how many AA battery devices you use, some of which aren't used that frequently, it sounds like AA LSD NiMH cells (such as Eneloops) would be perfect for you and you'd be ditching alkalines in most of your devices. At the very least, you'd use some Energizer Lithium primaries.

For example, you say you have 745 alkaline batteries on hand. That's a massive supply. Assuming you didn't buy any more alkaline batteries, how long would that last you? If several years, then you're oversupplied as akalines degrade over time and by the time you use them, you risk them leaking or not giving you the same capacity as a fresh alkaline. If less than year or so you would definitely save money switching over to rechargeables.

 

[Monte]

I don't fully understand this post. Given how many AA battery devices you use, some of which aren't used that frequently, it sounds like AA LSD NiMH cells (such as Eneloops) would be perfect for you and you'd be ditching alkalines in most of your devices. At the very least, you'd use some Energizer Lithium primaries.

I have a lot of devices that use AA batteries, and I use most of them often enough that I want /need an adequate on-hand supply. The cost for a supply of Eneloop batteries and enough battery chargers to maintain a peak supply would definitely cost more. Also, I've found in the past that rechargeable batteries do drop off and die quickly compared with a decent Alkaline battery, and they generally did it at the worst time, such as when I was a farther walk back to my vehicle to change them out. Alkaline batteries will start to weaken slowly as you're getting near the end of their service life which allows a good alert so you can changer them out soon or be prepared.

In my metal detectors, 9 of which rely on AA batteries, it can be an annoyance when out working an area on a long-day hunt. But when it's dark and you're relying on AA's to power a flashlight, most generally put to use when it is dark and often when you're out of the home or not immediately in camp, it can be a bigger pain-in-the-arse. I therefore prefer a decent Alkaline battery, and am prepared to change them out when alerted when they indicate they are weakening, but well before they're exhausted.

For example, you say you have 745 alkaline batteries on hand. That's a massive supply.

True, it is quite a few, but I do use batteries often enough to change them out when needed, but a battery supply I treat the same as I do gas in my vehicles. I don't wait until I run out of gas to go to a station to fill up. Instead, I use my 'supply' (gas in the tank) as needed and when it gets low (not the power level but the supply I might need) I fill my tank.

Assuming you didn't buy any more alkaline batteries, how long would that last you?

Well, first I'll address the 'assumption' part by saying I DO and WILL buy more batteries, as needed, when I come across a really good deal on serviceable Alkaline batteries. Today I have the ±745 Alkaline batteries in my supply tote. This past week I did deplete it by 4 to refill a Nokta Relic that ran down just as the rain arrived, as well as one flashlight I use a lot in the evenings for trips to the woodshed, my vehicle, or out with my dog. I just got a new blood pressure monitor so that will use up 4 more from my supply, and as the year progresses there are certainly going to be more times I'll thin out my supply so I'll want to keep it stocked up for future needs.

When I get new packs of batteries I also use a permanent marker to label them so I use them up in the order acquired so they don't get old and stale. I do have two packages of batteries in my tote that are a few of years old, and for a reason. I decided to monitor a pack of Duracell batteries against what I got in run-time from a duplicate package I acquired at the same time. On the packages and/or batteries the manufacturer shows a 'Good By:' or 'Use By:' date.

With many of the batteries manufactured in recent years, and I refer to quality batteries, that is often a healthy period of 'shelf-life' compared to what batteries used to last. So my plan for that package of Alkaline AA's is to wait until the shelf-life date and then start using them to compare their operation time. I'll know how much faith to put in a shelf-life date and see if there is a significant loss in useable run-time.

By the way, I just dug in my battery supply to double check the shelf-life on that pack of 40 AA Duracell Alkaline batteries and it reads: "Guaranteed for 10 Years." The package was made in 2013 and I have owned this package since June of 2014 so it has been in my tote for almost 5 years. The package also reads: "Best Before 2023" which tells me they were made and packaged in 2013. I acquired them and the already used-up package of Duracell's in mid-2014. And to meet the 'Best Before 2023' indication I'll open this package up sometime towards the end of 2022 ... 2½ years from now!

Today, my current detector outfit would use 4 AA's each for my four Nokta CoRe and Relic models and a Teknetics T2+. 2 AA's each for my two Fisher F44's, so that gets me to 24 batteries, and then 8 AA's for each of my White's models, making 16 + 24 and that would total to 40. If I have the same or comparable Outfit at that time, I'll open the Duracell batteries and fill ALL of my detectors, then monitor their run-time until that 10 Year Old package of batteries expires and know how good the shelf-life is.

Also, I noted the 60 count pack of Alkalines I bought at Albertsons grocery. They are manufactured here in the USA, and the package reads a 10 Year guaranteed life as well, and they should be installed by 12-2026. I bought this package in early 2017, about three years ago. I wonder how good 60 Eneloop AA rechargeable batteries would be if they would have been fully charged and packaged at the same time in 2016? Very useful or dependable when opened around Christmas time seven years from now?

If several years, then you're oversupplied as akalines degrade over time and by the time you use them, you risk them leaking or not giving you the same capacity as a fresh alkaline.

I don't think I am 'over-supplied' only 'well supplied.' I have been using, comparing and monitoring AA batteries and 9-V batteries for decades. I have only experience leaking AA Alkaline batteries on two occasions. One was in a White's Classic ID I bought used, and the 8-AA package had mixed battery brands, plus two of them were installed backwards! Not the battery's fault for time decay. The other was another detector I got from a fellow who had left the batteries in his detector, unused for a few years leaning against the wall. That's also a different example because the batteries were installed in the battery holder, making contact, and there could have been some degree of battery drain.

I have NEVER had a package of quality-made Alkaline batteries show any leakage. Besides, I do go through batteries often enough to use them up before they could go bad, with the exception of the 'time test' I am doing with the Duracell batteries.

Additionally, I don't use all of the Alkaline batteries I have in my supply. While it is my 'supply' and I stock it up with fresh batteries as it gets a little depleted, it is also for emergency purposes, such as the flashlights, blood pressure monitor, radios, etc., and not just for fun-to-use metal detectors. But I also draw from it off-and-on during the course of a year for different reasons:

• Sometimes on a Welcome-to-Hunt Outing there will be one or more participants who don't bring extra, or don't bring any, spare batteries. Their detector dies, and I have batteries to get them back-in-the-hunt.

• Often I will have someone on an Outing decide they ought to have an extra package of batteries for future use to 'be prepared' so I'll sell them a package of 30 or 48 batteries. And at the same bargain price I was able to buy them for, too.

• In most of the metal detecting seminars I do I will use one or two packages of batteries as a Free Give-Away to people who have the right answers to some questions, or a close guess of the number of coins I have in a jar on display. I also gave away a package of Alkaline batteries at some of the metal detecting club meetings when I gave a presentation.

So, yes, I have quite a supply of batteries, but as mentioned before I also have many, many devices that rely on them. I like being prepared, and I use some as giveaways/prizes so I do go through my supply during the course of a year.

If less than year or so you would definitely save money switching over to rechargeables.

Nope. In the long run it hasn't worked for me, costs too much, and I like to avoid the frustrations of the almost immediate 'Quit!' behavior of most rechargeable batteries in metal detectors. Besides, not enough $$$ in my pocket to be giving away packages of batteries, or supplying people with rechargeable batteries on an Outing. I'm just fine with good Alkaline's.

Monte

 

[ivanll]

Rechargeable Li-ion.



ivanll

 

[mh9162013]

What kind of Li-Ion cells are those? It says 1.5V on the cell.

 

[mh9162013]

Monte,

You certainly have made some good points about using alkalines. I don't agree with all of them, but it's your money and your devices and that's cool. I would like to mention a few things, though.

First, I think you would save money by switching over to rechargeables, at least in the long run. Granted, it might take a while (several years), but I think you use them enough that after a few dozen charge cycles, they will have paid for themselves. And yes, it might be a pretty expensive initial investment of several hundred dollars, but I don't think you would be losing money by switching over at least part of your AA battery supply to rechargeables.

Second, I'm still using my first generation Eneloops from circa 2005/2006 and they work just fine. I don't know how much their performance has suffered, but they're still providing performance that mirrors brand new Eneloops from what I can tell. I would estimate that I've put maybe a few dozen cycles through them, as they are usually relegated to lower used devices, like my graphic calculator or emergency flashlights.

Third, I think you make a great point about alkalines giving you some warning before they die. NiMH cells certainly do not provide the gradual decay in performance like alkalines do. However, you seem like a very organized and conscientious battery user, so one way around this would be automatically swapping out used rechargeables with fully charged ones. I'm not saying you should do this or you're lazy if you don't. I'm just stating it because it seems like you enjoy organizing and managing your batteries (as do I), so it seems like it would be an added task that you don't mind doing.

EDIT: I found some data from https://eneloop101.com about how Eneloops can get thousands (tested up to 5,000) cycles of life. Direct source of test results are here: http://www.ultrasmartcharger.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=91 A few caveats are that these aren't full charge/discharge cycles (but still enough to compare to actual use). Also, there were no rest periods between the cycles. But using a conservative number of say, 2,000 cycles - at 10 cents per alkaline cell, that means one Eneloop (which costs about $2-$3 per cell) is the equivalent of almost $200 worth of alkalines (I say almost, because it costs a few hundredths (or less) or a cent or so per charge per cell).

 

[Darke]

What kind of Li-Ion cells are those? It says 1.5V on the cell.

They're standard Li-on with a buck to bring them to 1.5v. Kentli and Tenavolt sell them. They're probably made by K2.

 

[mh9162013]

They're standard Li-on with a buck to bring them to 1.5v. Kentli and Tenavolt sell them. They're probably made by K2.

Sounds inefficient.

 

[Darke]

Sounds inefficient.

They'd be good for high draw devices. But not being shielded is a problem for some things. Aside from fast charging not really sure they'd have any other benefit for a metal detector. They seem to be about 1700 MaH and wouldn't trigger the low battery warning but they'll also die without triggering the warning. This is the buck they're using.

 

[mh9162013]

Based on some Amazon reviews, it seems like they're not the best for high current draw applications.

 

[Darke]

Based on some Amazon reviews, it seems like they're not the best for high current draw applications.

Based on the Amazon reviews they work great for high draw devices...if you get a set that actually charges lol. Almost all the bad reviews were from DOA batteries. If they were a few dollars like most Chinese Li-ions the quality control problem wouldn't be so bad but not at $10 each.

 

[SouthFLdigger]

Panasonic Eneloop and never look back, they are excellent !

 

[Digger Max]

Anyone have an opinion on rechargeable batteries for at pro?

RNB Innovations battery pack is the only way to go. They last for ever and well worth the price.
Big Boys Hobbies is the best place to purchase one. Stop wasting your money on other rechargeables.

 

[mh9162013]

RNB Innovations battery pack is the only way to go. They last for ever and well worth the price.
Big Boys Hobbies is the best place to purchase one. Stop wasting your money on other rechargeables.

Out of curiosity, what makes RNB's rechargeable packs so great?

 

[Darke]

RNB Innovations battery pack is the only way to go. They last for ever and well worth the price.
Big Boys Hobbies is the best place to purchase one. Stop wasting your money on other rechargeables.

If it's balance charging the cells then it looks to be a decent pack. If not the capacity of those 14500 cells will diminish with every charging. From some of the longer term reviews I'm going to guess it isn't or the buck they use is poor quality. The up side is being 4 14500 cells it doubles the capacity.

 

[Digger Max]

Out of curiosity, what makes RNB's rechargeable packs so great?

Asked for an opinion Just my opinion...been using mine for 2 years and no change from day one.

Your choice!!! No problem here.

 

[Digger Max]

If it's balance charging the cells then it looks to be a decent pack. If not the capacity of those 14500 cells will diminish with every charging. From some of the longer term reviews I'm going to guess it isn't or the buck they use is poor quality. The up side is being 4 14500 cells it doubles the capacity.

Asked for an opinion Just my opinion...been using mine for 2 years and no change from day one.

Your choice!!! No problem here.

 

[Bottlecapbill]

That's the thing with recharge systems. They can work great for along time......other ones die fast. I have an original ipod nano first edition that's still going strong. None of my other ipods ever came close to that lifespan, most were well under spec. It's a dice roll. Have backup and keep track of costs to see what works for you.

 

[Digger Max]

That's the thing with recharge systems. They can work great for along time......other ones die fast. I have an original ipod nano first edition that's still going strong. None of my other ipods ever came close to that lifespan, most were well under spec. It's a dice roll. Have backup and keep track of costs to see what works for you.

[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Go with what you’re comfortable with. I purchased RNB first for my E-trac and was very happy with it. Then one for the ATP. [/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Very satisfied with RNB. [/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot][/FONT]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot][FONT=&quot]Go with what makes you happy.[/FONT][/FONT]

 

[A2coins]

I used my battery pack for 2 years never an issue loved it