Life Span Of Nimh Batteries?

[Ze_ro]

Back when I bought my GP2X, I bought a set of 2500mAh Energizer NiMH batteries and a charger. They worked well, but lately they can't seem to hold a charge for any significant amount of time. I'll put them in the charger, and literally a day or two later, they'll be completely dead. I'm not talking about the GP2X killing them either... I charged four batteries the other day... put two of them in my GP2X and played for about half an hour, and the other two sat on a shelf. Two days later, both pairs of batteries were dead. How long are batteries like this supposed to last? These ones are a little over 2 years old now, but I had expected them to last longer than this. Could this be due to a bad charger or something? I've also noticed that my Xbox 360 controller battery pack (also NiMH) seems to discharge a lot faster than it used to.

Is there anything that can be done to increase the life span of batteries like this? Do slow or fast chargers work better? Would I be better off just switching to lithium ion batteries instead? I don't mind spending more for batteries as long as I know they're going to last longer.

--Zero

 

[quote]

It's not how long you have had the batterys, but how many charge cycles they have been through. How often do you recharge them? Once every 2 days? Once a week?

 

[classicgmr]

Funny I just had to replace the exact same set of batteries.

I've had them maybe a year and a half or so and they won't even keep a charge. Less than $10 USD to replace them though isn't bad and if they'll give me another year and a half of use it's worth it again.

 

[yaustar]

Read: http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/001078.html

 

[Kramy]

I'd take Sanyo Eneloop 2000mah batteries over Sanyo 2700mah batteries.

Just look for the ni-mh batteries that advertise "maintains 85% charge after 1 year". Those are the ones you want.

 

[classicgmr]

Read: http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/001078.html



See and THIS is why I can't read forums anymore... it costs me money!

I just now purchased the BC-900 charger at Amazon ($39.99 USD free shipping). I should have it within 2 weeks and then I can see how it treats the batteries I just replaced. Can't wait to check this out.

Thanks for the heads up Yauster. Very good article.

 

[Ze_ro]

Read: http://www.codinghorror.com/blog/archives/001078.html


Thanks for the link! Very informative I'll have to try and get my hands on one of those GOOD chargers, rather than the crummy Energizer one I got. Perhaps something like this can resurrect my dead batteries too.

I'm aware of the crappy self-discharge rate that NiMH batteries have, but I wasn't aware that it would get this much worse over time... Considering this, is it best to store the batteries UNcharged, and just charge them before you need them?

--Zero

 

[Squidge]

I'm aware of the crappy self-discharge rate that NiMH batteries have, but I wasn't aware that it would get this much worse over time... Considering this, is it best to store the batteries UNcharged, and just charge them before you need them?

That'll only make them worse. Store them in a charged state and recharge every month or so whilst they are not being used.

 

[Kramy]

I'm aware of the crappy self-discharge rate that NiMH batteries have, but I wasn't aware that it would get this much worse over time... Considering this, is it best to store the batteries UNcharged, and just charge them before you need them?

That'll only make them worse. Store them in a charged state and recharge every month or so whilst they are not being used.

Or if you can't be bothered doing that, get the ones that don't discharge much over time. :lol:

 

[Ze_ro]

Well, I bought myself a La Crosse BC-900, and wow. I have to say, this thing sure is a whole hell of a lot better than the crappy Energizer charger I had before. Despite the fact that I had to order it from the states, it didn't even end up being that much more expensive than my old Energizer one either (I think that one was $35 CDN)... also comes with twice as many batteries, carry case, and C/D adapters. I wish I had known about this charger before!

I have it "refreshing" some of my older batteries right now, but damn does it ever take a long time. It basically just keeps charging and discharging the batteries until they retain two identical consecutive full-charge capacities. The manual said it could take days, and it wasn't lying! Next time I try to refresh anything, I think I'll use one of the higher current settings so it doesn't take so long.

--Zero

 

[JakeK]

My Nimh batteries say to only charge them for a certain period of time and then take them out. With no OC they will probably last 4, 5 hours max.