4 ms·

This is an actual life pro tip! How reliable is this method?

by aidos 3y ago

tomatocracy 3y ago
I've been doing it this way for years, and it works pretty reliably as long as they're alkaline batteries. Since decent rechargeable AA and AAA batteries came out (Eneloop was the first), I've been replacing a lot with those though because (at least in my experience) the rechargeables seem much less prone to leaking and corroding whatever device they've been left in.
- stavros 3y ago
  Eneloop are fantastic! IKEA carries their branded version with them, for half price, along with their high-density version. I got a bunch of IKEA rechargables and I'm sorted.
  - op00to 3y ago
    Get a good smart charger that can do a charge/discharge/charge cycle every once in a while!
    - stavros 3y ago
      Ah, my hobby is RC planes, so I have tons of chargers. I'll have one cycle them, thanks!
      - op00to 3y ago
        Very cool! Consider sharing a nerdy part of your hobby here some day! I’d love to hear.
        stavros 3y ago
        Hmm, I should, it's a great hobby, and there's nothing like watching a live HD feed from a plane 10km away! I just don't really know what to share, hm.
deleted 3y ago
[deleted]
londons_explore 3y ago
doesn't work with cheapo zinc-carbon batteries. You can normally tell those though because they are lighter and if you squeeze them firmly they dent.
londons_explore 3y ago
Very reliable for telling brand new vs 100% depleted batteries. But if you want to separate 1.4 volt batteries from 1.5 volt batteries, use a multimeter.
- xen2xen1 3y ago
  Or the $1.50 tester from Ebay.
  - horsawlarway 3y ago
    Yes - but why when you can get a multimeter for $10 (incl shipping)? So much more useful for so little extra money (since those $1.49 battery testers on ebay cost $2.50 to ship anyways, and they take 20 days to show up).
    - tuatoru 3y ago
      A multimeter doesn't put any load on the battery. A (decent) tester will have an appropriate load for the type of battery of about 0.05 to 0.1C, so for a 2200 mAh AA NiMH, about 110 mA to 200 mA. 10 - 12 ohm resistor for 1.2V nominal. This shows you the cell's internal resistance, an increase of which is a sign of impending doom for a battery. If you use your batteries at high currents, test at those currents.
      - horsawlarway 3y ago
        Sure - but a multimeter also doesn't require the battery to be inserted into it - you can test the voltage while the battery is under load in most devices. Not saying you can't buy a really good dedicated battery tester if that's what you want - but that dolla-fiddy version from ebay ain't gonna be it :)
    - xen2xen1 3y ago
      Because it's much simpler to have a 1.50 tester sitting with the batteries that's fixed function than dealing with the leads, the proper setting, finding the right band of numbers if it's analog. There's something to be said for fixed function.

This is an actual life pro tip! How reliable is this method?

by aidos 3y ago

This is an actual life pro tip! How reliable is this method?

I've been doing it this way for years, and it works pretty reliably as long as they're alkaline batteries. Since decent rechargeable AA and AAA batteries came out (Eneloop was the first), I've been replacing a lot with those though because (at least in my experience) the rechargeables seem much less prone to leaking and corroding whatever device they've been left in.

stavros 3y ago
Eneloop are fantastic! IKEA carries their branded version with them, for half price, along with their high-density version. I got a bunch of IKEA rechargables and I'm sorted.
- op00to 3y ago
  Get a good smart charger that can do a charge/discharge/charge cycle every once in a while!
  - stavros 3y ago
    Ah, my hobby is RC planes, so I have tons of chargers. I'll have one cycle them, thanks!
    - op00to 3y ago
      Very cool! Consider sharing a nerdy part of your hobby here some day! I’d love to hear.
      - stavros 3y ago
        Hmm, I should, it's a great hobby, and there's nothing like watching a live HD feed from a plane 10km away! I just don't really know what to share, hm.

deleted 3y ago

[deleted]

londons_explore 3y ago

doesn't work with cheapo zinc-carbon batteries. You can normally tell those though because they are lighter and if you squeeze them firmly they dent.

londons_explore 3y ago

Very reliable for telling brand new vs 100% depleted batteries. But if you want to separate 1.4 volt batteries from 1.5 volt batteries, use a multimeter.

xen2xen1 3y ago
Or the $1.50 tester from Ebay.
- horsawlarway 3y ago
  Yes - but why when you can get a multimeter for $10 (incl shipping)? So much more useful for so little extra money (since those $1.49 battery testers on ebay cost $2.50 to ship anyways, and they take 20 days to show up).
  - tuatoru 3y ago
    A multimeter doesn't put any load on the battery. A (decent) tester will have an appropriate load for the type of battery of about 0.05 to 0.1C, so for a 2200 mAh AA NiMH, about 110 mA to 200 mA. 10 - 12 ohm resistor for 1.2V nominal. This shows you the cell's internal resistance, an increase of which is a sign of impending doom for a battery. If you use your batteries at high currents, test at those currents.
    - horsawlarway 3y ago
      Sure - but a multimeter also doesn't require the battery to be inserted into it - you can test the voltage while the battery is under load in most devices. Not saying you can't buy a really good dedicated battery tester if that's what you want - but that dolla-fiddy version from ebay ain't gonna be it :)
  - xen2xen1 3y ago
    Because it's much simpler to have a 1.50 tester sitting with the batteries that's fixed function than dealing with the leads, the proper setting, finding the right band of numbers if it's analog. There's something to be said for fixed function.