Jump to content

Rechargable Batteries


mlj777

Recommended Posts

Highly recommend PowerEx (Maha) 2700mAh NiMH batteries with a Maha MH-C9000 or LaCrosse LC-BC-9009 smart charger. The Maha charger is larger and more expensive but I've used both and prefer it over the LaCrosse because I find it easier to use and I like the backlight. Both do a good job charging batteries. I've purchased from http://thomasdistributing.com/ for many years and they usually have good prices and service.

 

If you want low discharge NiMH batteries which have a better shelf life then go with 2000mAh Sanyo Eneloops. The chargers above will work with these batteries as well.

 

The only time I wouldn't recommend NiMH is if you are planning to use the unit below 10-20F. In that case you'll want to look at Lithiums.

 

No matter what type you are using make sure you set the battery type properly under the Setup>System menu to get the most accurate metering on the GPS.

Link to comment

Highly recommend PowerEx (Maha) 2700mAh NiMH batteries with a Maha MH-C9000 or LaCrosse LC-BC-9009 smart charger. The Maha charger is larger and more expensive but I've used both and prefer it over the LaCrosse because I find it easier to use and I like the backlight. Both do a good job charging batteries. I've purchased from http://thomasdistributing.com/ for many years and they usually have good prices and service.

 

If you want low discharge NiMH batteries which have a better shelf life then go with 2000mAh Sanyo Eneloops. The chargers above will work with these batteries as well.

 

The only time I wouldn't recommend NiMH is if you are planning to use the unit below 10-20F. In that case you'll want to look at Lithiums.

 

No matter what type you are using make sure you set the battery type properly under the Setup>System menu to get the most accurate metering on the GPS.

 

Eneloops and LaCrosse here too. I use the Eneloops with my 550t because they hold a charge well and two sets will last me all day. The 2700mAh batteries are great but they don't hold a charge well. Be sure they are fully charged before using and pre-condition them as well.

Link to comment

There are two types of NiMH batteries on the market today, the standard ones and low-discharge types.

 

Standard NiMH batteries slowly lose power over time. It's referred to as "Self-discharge". They won't go dead in a day or two, but over time they can lose most of their charge. Low-discharge batteries self-discharge at a much slower rate and maintain their charge better.

 

Personally, I prefer low-discharge batteries for my AA devices because I don't always plan ahead. I can let my camera or GPS or whatever sit for a couple of weeks and if the urge to take some photos or go geocaching hits I can grab it and go. The trade off is a low-discharge battery has a lower energy capacity than a traditional one. It's not a huge difference (2400 mah in a good traditional vs. 2000 mah in a good low-discharge).

 

If you're the more organized sort a traditional, high-capacity battery might work better, you can charge it up the night before and be good to go all day. They're also a bit cheaper.

 

No matter which type of battery you choose get a *good* charger and avoid "15 minute chargers", they put too much strain on the battery and greatly shorten its lifespan.

 

I've had good luck with the Sanyo Eneloops and the Rayovac Hybrids (at one point I think they were made in the same factory). Both are low-discharge batteries. I'm currently using a cheap "smart" charger that charges in a couple of hours, but I'm going to upgrade to something better soon.

 

No matter which type you use carry spare batteries. I carry a second pair of rechargeables and a set of lithium (non-rechargeable) batteries. Energizer lithiums come in a nice "clamshell" plastic 2 pack (once you strip off the cardboard). I kept the "clamshell" from a set and I use it hold my spare set of rechargeable batteries. Both sets of spares fit in a side pocket on my backpack so I know where they are.

Link to comment

You're getting good advice here. I'd just put a plug in for spending the extra money on the smart chargers that have been mentioned. They offer much more information about each cell and have more charging options for maintaining battery health than do the cheap chargers. Although it may seem like a lot, it will pay for itself over the long haul in disposable battery savings. You can get by with a cheap charger, but you'll be much happier with the good 'uns.

Link to comment

The MAHA 204GT above charges batteries in pairs. That means that charging stops when one cell is fully charged. However unless you have two cells that differ greatly in capacity it is not usually a problem. For that reason, I always label my batteries and pair them up when that's the only charger I have.

 

The batteries that comes with the LaCrosse BC-9009 are pretty decent. There was a recall of a batch of power adapters a little while back. Apparently some people experienced catastrophic failure during rapid charging. Amazon is still not stocking them. The BC700 should be fairly similar but doesn't come with the batteries.

 

Anyway, for rechargable batteries, these are the types you can use in the Oregon:

 

NiMH - what everyone is talking about here

NiCD - don't bother. Lower capacity, toxic chemicals inside, memory effect.

NiZn - interesting new technology. A few forum users bought a set from Amazon and are experimenting with it. It has a higher voltage, which means you have to use the charger it comes with. Your Oregon won't know how to show the battery level indicator properly either, showing full charge until it suddenly dies.

 

There are other rechargeable types but they don't fit the Garmin so there's not much point cluttering up the list :)

 

Oh, and as one forum user (sorry, can't remember his name) pointed out, think about your kind of usage.

 

If you pick up your GPSr once every week or two, get the low self discharge / hybrids.

 

If you always know when you're going to use the batteries a day or two in advance, get the higher capacity NiMH.

 

If your use is occasional, erratic, and without warning, you may want to avoid rechargeables altogether and stick with alkaline or disposable lithium.

Edited by Chrysalides
Link to comment

The MAHA 204GT above charges batteries in pairs. That means that charging stops when one cell is fully charged. However unless you have two cells that differ greatly in capacity it is not usually a problem. For that reason, I always label my batteries and pair them up when that's the only charger I have.

You're right the MAHA 204GT charges in pairs. If you're only charging 2 batteries at a time you can put them in every other slot. I personally have the MH-C401FS which can charge 4 batteries independently but cost over twice as much.

 

http://www.thomasdistributing.com/mhc401fs_buy.php3

Link to comment
You're right the MAHA 204GT charges in pairs. If you're only charging 2 batteries at a time you can put them in every other slot.

Does that work? I seem to recall that on my Maha MH-C204F both batteries need to be in before it would charge.

 

The smart(er) chargers have a lot of nice bells and whistles. User selectable charge rate, rejuvenate batteries, measure capacity... all nice to have, but not something I use every day. Over 95% of the time all I do is plug the batteries in and let them recharge at the default setting. I think it is worth the extra $15 (comparing the 204GT to the LaCrosse BC700) but I can survive very well without it.

Link to comment

I just bought a Garmin Oregon 450t. I know nothing about rechargable batteries but hear it's the best option to go with. Can someone give me a brief explanation of the different types and recommend some specific sets with links possibly?

 

Thank you

 

Let me tell you a little secret about rechargable batteries.

Use them. Find the cheapes ones you can, and they will work for a day of geocaching. Get the most expensive ones you can fnd, and they will work for a day of geocaching.

Since NiMh batteries don't have a memory to them, recharge them after a day of geocaching.

If you KNOW you are going to go geoaching, recharge them the day before. If you go caching regularly, but not scheduled, recharge them every month or so.

Always have 2 sets. Always have a set of Alkalines as a backup.

They WILL pay for themselves after 3 uses (for the batteries) and after about 8 uses with the price of a cheap charger.

You can buy more expensive equipment, it will just take a little longer to recoup the cost.

 

Now for the batteries themselves. On the battery package there will be a number followed by MAh. The higher that number, the longer the unit can be powered on one charge.

 

I have 1800-2400 MAh batteries and I interchange them with no worries. If I were going on a caching trip beyond the length of time the 1800 would go, I would have backup batteries anyhow. So, 2 sets of 1800 are no different than 2 sets of 2400s in my usage.

 

Hope that helps

Link to comment

it also depends where in the world you are. a lot of batteries mentioned on this forum (and chargers) only seem to be available widely in the USA and not the UK. Here in the uk I use duracell 2650mah batteries which a pair will last most of the day in the cold and the whole day in the warm. I have 12 AA rechargeable, when i start on the last two pairs i will start the recharge process from the night i get home (4xAA straight away)and then four more on the following morning as we go out and the ones i use that day charged as soon as i get home (so all 12 are charged again).

 

I have heard the quicker the charger the more damage it does to the battery and a slower charger is best.

Link to comment

I started with a duracel 2 cel charger which came with 2 cels 2000 mah. Bought a 4 pack of duracel 2650, thinking the higher capacity would get me more ground time. In reality the 2650s had so much self discharge that twice i slapped them in after sitting in my bag fully charged for 1-2 weeks and were completely dead. Ended up trashing them. I now have 4 pair of enloops and they have never failed to hold a charge. I maintain 1 pair in the GPSr in whatever discharge state they're in at the moment, plus 2 pair fully charged in the bag. Also have a 4th pair sitting in the charger fully charged (not plugged in). When I come back from a day where I needed to change out batteries, the discharged pair goes into the charger, the pair in the charger goes into the bag and the charger goes into the wall. My cels are matched in pairs and numbered 1 thru 5. If I have set 3 in the GPSr when its time to change, set 4 goes in. That keeps self discharge to a miminun. For what its worth, I've seen no difference in the Eneloops 2000s vs the Duracel 2000s, they both hold a charge equally well. I believe that the higher mah batteries have thinner insulators and therefore inherently have a higher self discharge regardless of brand. That's based on what I have read on other threads here.

Link to comment

Plenty of people here that know more about batteries than I do. I use Duracell rechargeable batteries and the two Garmin rechargeables that came with my 550 and they all serve me quite well. I can get them locally and have several things around the house running on them in addition to my GPSr. They last at least as long as regular AA's running my GPSr.

Link to comment
Highly recommend PowerEx (Maha) 2700mAh NiMH batteries with a Maha MH-C9000 or LaCrosse LC-BC-9009 smart charger.

Good luck finding a BC-9009 at the moment. Due to the wall wart recall, inventory everywhere is just about zilch. Too bad. Good unit.

Anyone knows the difference between the 700 and 9009? I know the 700 is $10 cheaper and doesn't come with batteries, but not much beyond that.

Link to comment

Anyone knows the difference between the 700 and 9009? I know the 700 is $10 cheaper and doesn't come with batteries, but not much beyond that.

Firmware improvements in the 9009 and a 400mA lower charging current, primarily. But I think the comparison you'll want to make is between the 900 and the (unavailable) 9009. There appear to be no notable differences between those two units apart from the color. The 9009 has had a couple of "issues" over time that have caused it to be pulled from production for the moment.

 

The complaints I've seen on the Maha units are complication of programming vs. the MUCH fewer number of keystrokes required to set up the LaCrosse units.

 

Edit to add: The Maha units are also noted for rejecting very low charge batteries (ones you may have forgotten in a drawer for quite some time) as defective. From what I hear, the La Crosse units will start cells like this out at a low (125mA) charge current to see if they're really alive.

Edited by ecanderson
Link to comment
But I think the comparison you'll want to make is between the 900 and the (unavailable) 9009. There appear to be no notable differences between those two units apart from the color. The 9009 has had a couple of "issues" over time that have caused it to be pulled from production for the moment.

Thanks for the summary of differences between the 700 and 9009.

 

I thought the 9009 replaced the 900? I've heard speculations that the 9009 is supposed to address the problem of overheating / melting 900s. Which makes this current recall really embarrassing for LaCrosse.

Link to comment
But I think the comparison you'll want to make is between the 900 and the (unavailable) 9009. There appear to be no notable differences between those two units apart from the color. The 9009 has had a couple of "issues" over time that have caused it to be pulled from production for the moment.

Thanks for the summary of differences between the 700 and 9009.

 

I thought the 9009 replaced the 900? I've heard speculations that the 9009 is supposed to address the problem of overheating / melting 900s. Which makes this current recall really embarrassing for LaCrosse.

Indeed it does. And yes, the 9009 replaced the 900, and you can bet that somewhere under the covers, there was a change to the embedded firmware to modify the behavior a bit. I'd heard that in an overheat condition, the units would just shut off the charge until the cell(s) cooled down, then start right up again. Then again, I've heard some odd things about the 9009 in this regard as well.

 

As I say, I don't see 900 or 9009 units for sale anywhere. I do see that a couple of stores still offer the 700 (e.g., Dick's Sporting Goods).

Link to comment

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
×
×
  • Create New...