battery question - thinking of getting eneloops?

[WhoBeDaPlaya]

I use them in remote controls

Other NiMHs are not _that_ bad (for the most part), provided you have a decent charger.
Get a LaCrosse and don't look back

 

[ViviTheMage]

that is where I got my Enloops batteries.

I also got the la crosse chargers, what is the best option settings for charging the enloops using the la crosse charger?

curious about settings as well, anyone chime in? est method to charge em? Just slow and easy?

 

[sygyzy]

curious about settings as well, anyone chime in? est method to charge em? Just slow and easy?

I have plenty of batteries so I am never in a hurry. I choose CHARGE then look at the capacity and divide by two. So if it's 2000 mAh, I charge at 1000. That's a charging rate of 50%. You can go 100% but I feel that it's less stressful on the battery to charge it at a slower rate.

If I start noticing an issue like a battery is holding less and less of a charge, I'll do a Refresh

 

[Train]

curious about settings as well, anyone chime in? est method to charge em? Just slow and easy?

The slower the better. I use the lowest setting (200 ma) which can take something like 12-18 hours for a full charge of a 3000 mah battery

The idea is that the more juice you feed into a battery, the warmer it is. And heat is the enemy of batteries. Only use the fast charge setting if you really need something charged fast.

The other cool thing about the Lacross chargers is that they can nurse dead NiCD and NiMH batteries back to life. I've had some cheap AA's from solar lights in my front yard that were up against the elements for at least 3 years, showed up as dead on my old energizer charger. The Lacrosse brought them back to full strength, I was pleasently surprised.

 

[ViviTheMage]

so doing it at 200mah, on a 1500mah battery will just take a bit longer? It will still 'fully' charge?

I actually picked up one of these : BC700

and a set of these : http://slickdeals.net/f/3761894-8-P...Rechargeable-Ni-MH-Batteries-15-Free-Shipping

 

[Jeff7]

so doing it at 200mah, on a 1500mah battery will just take a bit longer? It will still 'fully' charge?

I actually picked up one of these : BC700

and a set of these : http://slickdeals.net/f/3761894-8-P...Rechargeable-Ni-MH-Batteries-15-Free-Shipping

Yup. You could charge a car battery at 200mA; as long as you charge it at a rate that's higher than its internal leakage losses, which on these LSD cells is quite low, it will fully charge. Eventually.
(Well...thinking about it a bit more, I think there may be some minimum voltage requirements for a battery to get a proper charge. And different chemistries - NiCad, NiMH, lead-acid, li-ion, and a few others - have very different charging requirements. But a good quality charger should know what it's doing.)

My experience, at least with an ElectriFly Triton battery charger, is that charging at a higher rate results in a less-than-full charge. This particular charger seems to be more cautious when it's at a higher rate, or else it's just the way its state-of-charge detection algorithms work. For example, (some very rough numbers here) I can charge a AA at 1A until the charger ends the cycle, but then I can put another 100mA into it if I charge it at a 100mA rate.

It needs to boost its output voltage higher to push more current into the battery. I think that's what makes it think the charge cycle is done.
In my mind, a better charger would charge fairly rapidly at first, but then taper off gradually, and then go down to a very low top-off level. Some of them on the market might already do this; the chargers I've seen seem to go from full-tilt rapid charge right to the trickle charge, with nothing in between. (With the exception of that old GE charger. It was just plain low-current all the time, up until the trickle charge state.)

 

[ViviTheMage]

I definitely plan to charge at a lower rate.

I might wait for some AA eneloops to go on slickdeals, i'll just watch and wait on a good deal.

 

[Rifter]

they are awesome, been using them for years. you will be happy!

 

[Rezag3000]

get this charger: http://www.amazon.com/Sony-BCG34HLD4...5137756&sr=8-5

read the review by NLee to find out why.

The charger in the kit you posted isn't good.

 

[Caveman]

Just wish Eneloops came in Cs and Ds as well...

Does anyone know if the spacers can be made the same capacity as a real D or C wih multiple AAs or AAAs? Or... Is it just one AA per C or D?

 

[the DRIZZLE]

Just wish Eneloops came in Cs and Ds as well...

Does anyone know if the spacers can be made the same capacity as a real D or C wih multiple AAs or AAAs? Or... Is it just one AA per C or D?

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/soshine...rtor-case-3228

That D cell converter takes two AA in parallel. I don't think you can fit two AA into a C size body.

 

[Soundmanred]

I'm using the Eneloops I got 41 months ago (with some I bought a few months later, after realizing how good they were).
I've always just used the included charger.
I use them for remotes, wireless KB/M, Xbox 360 controllers, cameras, you name it.
I'll never use "normal" batteries again.

 

[bigi]

I was thinking of getting this kit :

link

Is this the best bang for the buck? I need AA's and AAA's, and D's would be nice to have.

I am sick of having to replace/buy my batteries all the time!

If you have Costco nearby, check them out. This kit used to be for $25.

Now, they have new Eneloops kit for $20 or so.