Hi everybody:
I’ve lost 5 flashlight to the alkaleaks.
It will be out of my range to use Eneloops in all the lights. Hundreds.
Does carbon leaks?. And is it my solution?.
Thank you for your kind replies.
Cheers.
There are a lot of rewrapped Eneloop, but rarely are they any cheaper than branded Eneloop, and just as often more expensive. Twicell is Eneloop, FDK’s own brand, and they’re friggin expensive. The only consistent bargain I know of are the IKEA Ladda 2450 which are Eneloop Pro, not Eneloop, but they’re about 1/3rd the price of Eneloop Pro and roughly 25¢ less expensive per cell than Eneloop (and IKEA takes 6 weeks to ship, and finding anything you might be looking for in an IKEA storefront is nearly impossible). Eneloop Pro will only get you 500 recharges for that extra capacity, compared to 2000+ with standard, and they are more fragile and less forgiving of over discharge. Also, Eneloop begin to overtake Eneloop Pro capacity at around 50 recharges, so I think Pro is a tough sell unless that extra capacity is really needed.
For a time, Duraloop were cheaper, but they’re not any more, and good luck figuring out today which Duracell are rewrapped Eneloop looking at online products. If you see them in a store, you can check the package for “Made in Japan,” which is a big indicator, as there is only one battery factory in Japan, FDK Corporation, where all Eneloop and Eneloop Pro are made.
What I think is really strange is buying Eneloop AA in bulk, say 500 at a time, it is more expensive per cell than buying quads.
Watch for deals where online stores are clearing stock for the next revision. Even though the number of cycles keep increasing, Eneloop hasn’t changed anything in at least a few years, but those extra years allow the manufacturer to test and figure out they have more recharges. IOW, the 1900+ cycle Eneloops are exactly the same as the 2100+ cycle Eneloops, they’re both generation 4 Eneloops. And Eneloops have excellent shelf life, probably at least 10 years, so there is no practical difference once you start using them and recharging them whether they’re a month old or 4 years old.
Another option for you in primary cells that won’t leak is Bevigor AA Lithium Batteries, same Lithium/Iron Disulfide (Li/FeS2) as Energizer Lithium, but a lot less expensive, half as much, about $1/cell. These are sold on Amazon and elsewhere.
I’m with LB. I don’t see any need for hundreds of lights already loaded. If it’s a case of extreme readiness you’re using lithium primaries or maintaining NiMH. Keep a stockpile, doesn’t need to be in every light.
I know they should be empty.
In an emergency, the Imalent battery packs are charged.
Also have 1500 lumens around my neck, and 1000+ in the key chains.
The point of having the lights with batteries is entertainment.
I go around ’em and light ’em up just for fun. For one or two minutes.
I walk around the house at night, and don’t turn on the lights.
Until my wife wakes up and spoils the fun. An old man needs a hobby.
I don’t have an idea how much a C or D cells in Eneloop can cost.
I think I would have to convert all the lights with single AA adapters.
Maybe if they leak it will be easier to get ’em out. Dunno.
I’ll check the Ikea cells too. Thank you all.
Forgot about the Ladda 900mAh AAA, those are also 500 cycle Eneloop Pro AAA.
Just wanted to mention that the brown Ladda 1000mAh AA are not made at the same FDK factory in Japan, and thus are technically not Eneloop. They are made in China, and sometimes have been referred to as “Chinese Eneloop,” but they do not have the 2000mAh capacity of Eneloop. Still, they are cheap, and should be LSD, should give more than 500 cycle, but only at that half capacity. YMMV
i would still use alkalines in lights i use regularly
that way, i would notice when the battery is dead and change it before it leaks
(currently i;ve retired all but one 1xAAA light for this reason - i don;t use them enough to detect discharge and leaks
like in the car, i use CR-123A lights)
I think you’re taking perilous risk with your flashlights if you intend to leave even fresh, brand new, never used alkaline cells in your lights. Everyone has anecdotal experience with alkaline, and the one common theme is they leak when least expected. Though there are ways to reduce the risk of leaking, I don’t think it can be predicted when an alkaline cell won’t leak.
Vinegar is useful to remove the ‘stuff’ that leaks out of an alaleak, and corresponding corrosion. I’ve saved a few lights soaking in vinegar believe it or not. It was worth a try, since light was useless anyway.
Look for deals and when you see them lay your money down . Any old alkaline is going to cost about 35cents . If you pick up a 100 Enna/dura /?? fdk loops for $1.50 you will pay for them in no time .
My average light is $18 so 5x18= that's $90 in the trash which means you have $60 in 100 NIMH batteries and there won't be a 6th ,7th or eighth light lost .. three more lights and you could have spent Zero to make sure it never happened in the first place .
Aldis AA's just went up to 35 cents ..I thought they were a quarter last time I bought them .
In 2011 I bought two 50 packs of AA's at lowes because they were like $6 each . It took almost 9 years to burn thru 100 alkaleaks because I had so many LSD nimh's.
Ebay used to be a great place to buy LSD nimh batteries . I had a flea market dealer that sold 4 duraloops for $5 and would discount them in quantities . One day I told him why one battery was better than another . The next week he raised his prices on them and didn't care that I was the one who educated him . Knowledge is power and giving someone a gun might mean you have just shot yourself in the foot .
Right when I first became interested in flashlights, experienced folks told me two things that I found were very wise: 1) get an E1e, and 2) flashlighting is as much about the cells as it is about the light. I never used to care about batteries, would have thought the idea of caring about them quite strange. But I have grown to appreciate my cells just as much as my lights.
But I don’t individually name them or anything crazy like that.
I've seen more Duracells leak prematurely than any other brand. By far. I've also seem alkies leak that will still power the device they're in, delaying being ID'd as leakers until some damage has been done. Strangely, I also have a few Japanese alkies that are over 15 yrs old that show no signs of leaks. They power my bang-around vampire pocket light until useless, but I monitor it carefully & often.