Feedback on NiMH Batteries

Hello,

I’m a relatively new member who thanks to recommendations on a different thread about Li-Ion batteries is now the owner of an XTAR VP4 along with genuine Panasonic 3400 mAh NCR18650B batteries.

I have in the past tried to use NiMH batteries for things like my son’s Xbox controllers with limited success. I am wondering if some of the same issues with Li-Ion batteries also holds true for NiMH? With this in mind I want to see if there is a better solution for rechargeable AA and AAA batteries.

Do NiMH batteries go bad if they sit for a few years and are never charged?
Once a good NiMH battery is charged, how long can it sit on the shelf unused before it needs to be re-topped off?

My past experience with NiMH is that they hold their charges for a short amount of time. Also, if they sit too long they seem to lose power fairly quickly. Here is a list of various batteries and chargers I have tried over the years. Most of these batteries were purchased 3-6 years ago and after being used a few times have sat in my desk for many years. All but the last group are rarely used.

1.2V AA Batteries:
NexCell energyON 2100 mAh (quantity=10)
Sanyo eneloop 1900 mAh (quantity=6) (*Update: Model HR-3UTGA) ChibiM in 2013 said these keep 75% capacity after 3 years. Wondering if I can test capacity and see if worth keeping?
Duracell DC1500 2650 mAh (quantity=3)
Duracell DC1500 2050 mAh (quantity=3)
Ignition enercell 23-746 2500 mAh (quantity=3)

RadioShack HR6 2500 mAh (quantity = 12, brand new purchased this week)

1.2V AAA Batteries (5+ years old, rarely used)
Duracell DC2400 1000 mAh (quantity = 7)
Ignition enercell 23-747 850 mAh (quantity=6)

Which of these batteries are worth keeping and which should I dump?

I will post a related question in the Chargers thread.

Thank you!!

* Is there some way to test battery capacity on VC4 to see if these are worth keeping? If any are obvious to toss, let me know.

Keep the batteries that test out to still have 75–80 of their original mAh capacity. I don’t know if the VC4 can determine NiMH capacity.

SubLGT - thanks for the suggestion. When the VC4 says a battery is full it reports the Voltage and Amps. Here is the surprising (and likely disappointing) results after “fully” charging the RadioShack HR6 2500 mAh the VC4 is showing the following range of mAh - 1,280, 1,644, 1,216 and 1,100.

The VC4 do not show the mAh capacity of the battery, but how much it fills into the battery. That means you have to start from an empty battery to get anywhere near the real capacity.

I think you need to dump those non-Eneloop old batteries and get NiMH batteries with low self discharge.

I use Eneloops on wireless Xbox controllers and have no issues.

Me too. Never an issue.

You have old unused/abused crappy batteries. Likely most are pretty much junk. The charger you have is of limited use in testing them for FUNCTION. It will charge them, it will give you ……some….information, but not what you REALLY need.

Charge them up and test them in the device they are required to work in. If they don’t work, recycle and move on.
Get a better charger and test them with that (Opus).

The Eneloops should be fine.
There are a number of good LSD NiMh batteries available that don’t have the problems of the old ones. Read HKJ’s reviews on charger and batteries to become enlightened.

I have some really old NiMh that work fine in low output LED light. If I put them in something requiring more draw they fall on their face. Much of it depends on what your expectations and requirements are.

But using low self-discharge cells also means using smart chargers — read the reviews for warnings about chargers that will damage LSD cells but may still be OK for the older type. This will get you started:
http://budgetlightforum.com/search?q_as=hkj%20nimh%20overheat