Batteries are some of the quickest items to disappear in a crisis—and for good reason. Batteries are a critical technology that can’t be manufactured easily and so many items need them when the power goes out: flashlights, LED lamps, FM radios, shortwave radios, handheld ham radios, radiation meters, GPS receivers, and many other devices. Although some electronics like handheld ham radios have their own rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, these eventually become unreliable so be sure to get the optional accessory case that accepts standard AA or AAA batteries.
Rechargeable batteries have earned themselves a bad rap over the last several decades due to the fast self-discharge qualities of conventional Ni-MH (nickel-metal hydride) batteries. Within a month they lose 30% or more of their stored power leaving users frustrated by the poor performance and dim results. The unsophisticated chargers of the past also contributed to the bad experience by failing to sense accurately the quirks of the Ni-MH units. Fortunately modern developments have improved on both of these problems. New low self-discharge (LSD) batteries retain 85% of their power for a whole year and hold at least 70% as long as 5 years later. They also perform better in a variety of devices from fast discharge (like electronics) to slow discharge like remote controls. The best modern chargers can sense sub-par batteries and often reinvigorate them.
Low self-discharge technology was pioneered by a Japanese battery company that produced the Sanyo Eneloop batteries—a brand that quickly became well respected because of the performance. But when Sanyo was bought out by Panasonic the production was switched to a Chinese factory that didn’t produce the same quality product. Cheap Chinese low self-discharge batteries are now everywhere under various brands. Fortunately, the Japanese factory is still making and improving their batteries but now under the Fujitsu brand and this brand is the best option on the market. Packs of 8 AA are available for $22. They also make AAA. The latest batteries are rated for 2100 recharge cycles.
The downside to the new low-self discharge batteries is that they aren’t rated for as much initial power as conventional Ni-MH cells so you will still see the old variety out there. Disposable alkaline batteries are also rated for higher power but after a few months the others have lost so much power that the LSD batteries become roughly equivalent in as little as 5 weeks. For easy information about everything related to rechargeable batteries read Joe Golton’s well-researched blog that concisely highlights the pertinent issues and compares the different varieties well. He also covers the best battery chargers which I will discuss in next week’s tip.
Unfortunately the improvements in technology are harder to carry over to the larger C, D and 9-volt batteries, so they are still behind. I am certain they are working on it and we will see better options in the future. Currently they are still fairly weak compared to the equivalent alkaline and self-discharge faster than the AA and AAA options discussed above. Still, if we don’t see better options in the next few years it will be worth getting some of these just to have a rechargeable option when you can’t get disposables for a time. The current Tenergy brand rechargeables are pretty good and certainly much better than resorting to the sleeves for the tiny AA cells—they just don’t have enough power to last long in the situations where you need a C or D. We maintain an updated link to the best products we have found including batteries on our recommended products page.
I recommend everyone begin the transition over to these newer rechargeable batteries for all but the slowest discharge items like clocks and remote controls. Although the new batteries work just fine in these devices the cheap alkalines are a little better so there’s no reason tying up your more expensive batteries where they won’t be used as often.
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