Rechargable AA batteries

[Ross]

I recently gifted myself with an Ever ready charger and four 2500 mah AA cells. The price was around 20 bucks. I have been checking the useful life a a full charge with my Garmin 72 GPS. So far I have a bit over 24 hours on one set of batteries. I had been getting about 12 hours with Duracell dry cells. Does any one have long term experience with the rechargable AA systems?1vm

 

[ConchyJoe]

I use them all the time.

I have Rayovac 1 hour chargers. I bought them because the power source is a 12V brick. I have one at my desk, and one on the boat. I don't need an inverter to run it, it simply uses a 12V DC source.They certainly don't last as long as the manufacturer would want you to believe, but you will get a good 6 months use out of them. Which is superior to Akaline.You can find 2500Mah AA batteries on the internet for less than $2 each. They are as good as the name brand batteries you buy at the store.

 

[ClownPilot]

Love them 25 mA rechargeables

Ross,Love 'em. And when it comes to boating assesories like the handheld GPS and LCD TV they last and last. Every bit as long as advertised. 4X longer than alkalines. This adds up to extraordinary savings! My charger holds 4 AA and can also be plugged into 12 volt systems but I wouldn't advise it unless you want to see you 12 volt battery get sucked down fast! These little babies can suck the juice out of a charging unit! *yks.Tom1980 MAC25sv/Insagal

 

[jackhartjr]

Hi Ross, been using them for years!

Ross I have been using them for years.When I was doing underwater photography they worked well in the cameras and strobes. I found that after a little bit you wouldn't get quite the longitivity, however that was not a problem. I would take a dozen on a dive trip, one set in the camera, the other charging, saved me tons of money over purchasing and throwing awy batteries, not to mention the weight savings on airline trips to go diving and back. (Most countries get pretty anal about throwing them away in their country.)I was using AA's and AAA's in the camera and strobes, and C's in flashlights.As I said, they worked very well.If you decide to get more, Sam's Club sells a charger with a handfull of batteries about as cheap as batteries alone.One thing to look for, years ago the AA's were rated for 1.2 volts instead of the 1.5 volts you would get on a regular battery. I think, but have not researched this lately that this is not a problem now.Hope that helps.Jack HartSEA-YA!

 

[jackhartjr]

Forgot to add...

...that as far as I have been able to observe, that when using them in little stuff like cameras they do seem to go on and on and on and on...you get the picture.I had 6 that I was using in a digital camera that lasted for over three years. (Till I dropped the camera.) In fact I figured I took 30,000 photos in that three years, the camera was $300.00, the batteries were about $12.00 at the time, so...for $312.00 plus what little electricity it took to charge them the photos were just over one-cent each!Jack

 

[Ross]

Time for an update.

at 26 hours the low battery screen came on. I can acquire a 3D fix in about 1 minute and get all of the other data I need in three or four minutes. Given that I could fix my position and course and speed more than 250 times before the batteries needed changing.

 

[Moody Buccaneer]

Yep, Good stuff

I'm not sure about how long the rechargeables hold their charge when not in use (shelf life). My experience (undocumented) is that they are not as good as their non-rechargeable cousins.It would be interesting to compare them to standard batteries after they have been fully charged, then stored for 6 months or more.Ni-Cd batteries have a history of not likely partial discharge before recharge, I haven't looked for data on the N/MH construction.In continuous use they are certainly very good. I start with a fully charged set in my portable (back-up) GPS, one set in the 12v recharger and a set of standard batteries as a back-up in case I lose the boat's 12v system and am unable to recharge the two primary sets of rechargeables.

 

[novelman17128]

AA bateries

Since I only pay 99 cents for a package of 4 AA's (as well as packages of all other sizes) at the 99 Cent stores here in California I don't sweat how long they last.Novelman

 

[Ross]

Moody, They do self discharge at what I

guess is about 1 percent per day. When I brought these back from the boat they needed charging. I had taken them down there in september. Between now and spring I will record the voltage on a pair of idle batteries and find out for certain. Standard Drycells that I have are dated; use before 2009, so they obviously don't self discharge.

 

[Stu Jackson]

Part of it is "getting in the habit"

and recharging them regularly, getting away from the disposables. Moody's right, mine seem to lose charge after about 6 months of continued use of "use-recharge-use-recharge..." I haven't put them on the shelf in an "independent lab test" but have noticed that they don't seem to hold their charge after a bit over a month, so I just keep them in the charger. Buy a few more batteries and keep cycling them through your equipment and you should do fine. Anyway, I'm not sure I understand the issue, because whether or not you use rechargeable, whatever you have in your GPS, once it runs out, will have to be replaced. If it was a pair of regulars, and you'd used them for two days, out they'd go. Summary seems to be that they last pretty much as long, and in the long run are good for the "Planet".

 

[Ross]

Since I can turn the unit on and get a fix

in about one minute and take off course and speed and enter a waypoint in two more and I don't need more than one fix per hour, I could plot my crossing of an ocean on one set of batteries.

 

[Val]

NIMH AA's are great

I have been using them in my gps, divelights, screwdriver, remote... for quite a while. I use 2300 and 2400mAh currently. Need to have several sets handy. I have a charger on my boat and at home. First thing I do when I get back from sailing is plug in the power and pop the batteries in the charger. They are recharged by the time the boat is closed up. Forget about Nicads.I have had problems with AAA nimh batteries though. I have had many fail. Just won't recharge anymore. Maybe it is the brand, need to buy some more.

 

[Ken Palmer]

All you want to know about NiMH

NiMH batteries have a voltage of 1.2 VDC. This may or may not affect the operation of your GPS receiver. My advice is to try them in your GPS and see how long they last compared to normal Alkaline batteries.If you use two NiMH batteries, the total voltage is 2.4 VDC instead of the 3.0 VDC required by the GPS receiver. If your GPS receiver uses four, the difference is 4.8 VDC rather then the 6.0 VDC required. This may cause premature auto shutdown of your GPS receiver.For all the facts about the NiMH battery, follow the link below. After that, Google nimh batteries and check out the on-line prices at the different sites listed.

 

[HukilauMike]

I love rechargables but

I don't use them in my GPS. Their suitablity for boat use is greatly dependent on how you use your GPS. If you have a way to recharge the nimh batteries on board or at the dock and you have the discipline to remember to do so, then I would definitely recommend them over alkalines. They last so much longer while in use. However, I can't recharge them on board or at the dock, and I don't use my boat more than once or twice a week during the season. NIMH batteries do not do well when not in use; then self-discharge at an alarming rate. Because alkaline batteries have a storage life measured in years, they are a better choice for me. I bought a big packet of them from Costco a couple of years ago, store a bunch in a tupperware container on board, and just replace them when necessary.