Batteries and survival preps.

bdcochran · 01-10-2012, 09:28

Batteries
I have been accused of being pedantic. So, one size does not fit all. And, there is no escaping making mistakes.
The last shtf was in about 1994. Earthquake at night. The Maglights were corroded or dead. Of course, I had enough spares, so working in daylight I had everything up to stuff for the next evening. Fast forward about 20 years and there have been advancements in technology – and more items use batteries, almost a bewildering assortment.

I contemplate battery survival for one day/ one week/ and a month. Frankly, I will never have enough.
20 years ago, the rechargeable batteries were garbage and required house power to be on to recharge them.

1. I bought snap-on brand, high quality see through plastic storage cases. Unopened ten year packs of standard size aaa,aa,c,d and 9 volt batteries go into one. The exotic batteries go into a separate one. Do I have enough? No.

2. I bought a couple of solar chargers and rechargeable batteries suitable for my needs and packaged them with 2 sets of ziplocked manuals a piece in snap on containers. Do I have enough? NO.

3. I took the sophisticated (I am low technology) items like range finders and communications gear and packaged them with extra sets of batteries. At one time I didn’t. Then I realized that when shtf, you have to go with what you have and having batteries stored in a separate location might be a problem. Do I have enough batteries? No.

4. Battery testers. I checked a girl friend’s favorite battery tester. It was dead and went into the trash. I absolutely loved my discontinued Radio Shack unit. I finally bit the bullet and bought battery testers for the bug out kits in the cars and in the house.

5. The loose batteries are stored with tape on the ends to prevent problems.

6. The previously purchased rechargeable batteries are about to be separated out and stored separately.

7. Today I spent the time reviewing wall battery charges and finally ordered one. I gave the last one to a stepmother 20 years ago because as I mentioned, they were garbage at that time.

8. I have had to identify the flashlight and control units that gobble up the disposable batteries and will use only rechargables in them in the future and maybe save a bit of money.

9. If you have dealt with these problems, your suggestions are quite welcome.

Bolster · 01-10-2012, 09:37

Batts = A very important part of prepwork, indeed. Don't have all the answers, but:

- Highly recommend ZTS battery testers.
- Highly recommend Eneloop rechargeables for AA and AAA. Wish they made actual C and D (not just the adaptors).

Please share your thoughts about the solar chargers you bought. I'm in the market.

TN.Frank · 01-10-2012, 09:45

For flashlights I not only have my MagLite but a crank up flashlight and a shake flashlight. I'm not a huge fan of batteries since they're normally dead when you need them the most. I'd suggest picking up a couple good crank up flashlights for emergency/long term use. Some even have the ability to charge your cell phone if service is still up and running.
http://www.21st-century-goods.com/ca...k-Flashlights/

Tango 1Zero · 01-10-2012, 09:55

I bought a couple of solar charging flashlights. They are expensive and kinda hard to find look up BoGoLight. They also take the regular non chargeable batteries in a pinch. I wanted something thats always ready. I keep them in a window.
We have had some windstorms that knocked out lines for a week and seems like every winter something knocks power out for a short time.
I use to have all kinds of lights around but with little kids they get them and play with them and kill the batteries.

Babynine · 01-10-2012, 11:10

Im just on my way out the door to do some camping, but I have finally made the switch to LSD NiMh rechargables, and I'm not going back to alkalines although I have over well over 100 alkalines.

CPF has some threads about Duracell buying and re-branding the Sanyo Eneloop and marketing them as the Duracell "Stay Charged" batteries. The going nickname the CPF guys have given them is the "Duraloop"

A local supermarket has these Duracell "Stay Charged" 4pk AAs for only $6.99, and they have coupons good for $1.50 off a pack. I bought two more packs to add to my stash at only $5.87 each pack after tax!

These Eneloop and the Duracell branded "Stay Charged" hold a charge well over a year, and they operate in cold temps down to 0F degrees, something very important for Wisconsin winters.

Search Duraloop on CPF for more info, the suns out and I'm going camping!

Bolster · 01-10-2012, 12:45

And, Babynine, the Eneloop/Duraloops don't leak into your electronic gear like alkalines, so your chances of losing gear to leaking cells is exponentially lower. That's actually one of the main reasons I converted to Eneloops. Rechargeable cheap energy is nice, but no damaged electronics is priceless.

Generally the Costco prices on Eneloops are unbeatable, when they have their near-Christmas sales.

Interesting about the "Duraloop." I caught this review on Amazon:

"The name of this product has been changed to Duracell Rechargeables StayCharged [from Duracell Pre Charged] AAA Batteries.... I was only half-right when I boldly proclaimed that "Duracell Pre Charged AA are rebranded Sanyo eneloop cells" in my original review. It turns out that the first batch of Duracell AA cells I bought from Amazon are made in Japan, and those are identical to eneloop (both mechanically and electrically). But lately I bought some more Duracell AA from a warehouse club. Those are made in China, and they are identical to the Rayovac Hybrid."

And this:

"They [the Duracell StayCharged] are stlll available in either 'white top' (made in Japan) and 'black top' (made in China) versions."

cowboy1964 · 01-10-2012, 13:07

Lithiums are awesome, especially for BOBs. It's unbelievable how light they are. 10 year shelf life and high/low temps are irrelevant to them.

***RWBlue*** · 01-10-2012, 15:16

First thing is a headlamp beats a flashlight most of the time. As far as which headlamp, it depends.

Second thing is finding the right lights. I am not a fan of C and D batteries, so I chose flashlights that are not C and D. I decided I like AA and CR123 batteries. And rechargeable AA and 18650.

I get my batteries from batteryjunction.com. I get my recharger from them also. I am happy with the batteries (Tenergy & Ultrafire), but the chargers are hit and miss.

I think my best bet for a AA charger is a solar powered sidewalk lights. I used these for a couple years and basically replaced the batteries every year. If you don't have a need for sidewalk lights, you could keep a box of these around and set them in the yard as needed.

I also like the charger than works from the vehicle plug. If you are running around it will charge your batteries from the night before.

One more thing, I run rechargeables in most everything and keep the non-rechargable lithium batteries in stock for those times when I can not recharge. This means I have several batteries in remote controls, hair trimmer, tape recorder, gadgets, toys.....that should be partially charged if the SHTF.

Syclone538 · 01-10-2012, 16:56

People seem to really like eneloops. Do you have to get them online or would anyone local carry them?

Does it matter what kind of charger you get? Is there an eneloop charger?

Bolster · 01-10-2012, 17:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by Syclone538

People seem to really like eneloops. Do you have to get them online or would anyone local carry them?

Does it matter what kind of charger you get? Is there an eneloop charger?

See post #6 - Costco has some of the best seasonal specials on sets, but Eneloops are available in many stores. Also you can find deals on Amazon. Many Eneloop sets come with their own charger, but Eneloops can be charged on certain other chargers as well. I also purchased an Eneloop-branded charger for my car (12volt).

I have yet to purchase a solar eneloop charging device, but that's next.

http://search.store.yahoo.net/thesho...horelinemarket

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...=SPM6071291501

Amazon.com: Sanyo Pre-Charged Rechargeable Batteries: Electronics

Akita · 01-10-2012, 18:01

Eneloops + MAHA chargers.

I deal with Thomas Distributing for all my battery needs. Great and fast service.

5.11 Light For Life for flashlight needs. NO BATTERIES!

UneasyRider · 01-10-2012, 18:29

So anyone have an idea on a good solar charger for some AA eneloops?

Bolster · 01-10-2012, 19:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by UneasyRider

So anyone have an idea on a good solar charger for some AA eneloops?

Here's an interesting thread that might apply...

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/...Will-This-Work

I haven't pulled the trigger yet, but when I do, I will get a setup that has a mediating battery pack. Everything I've read so far says that you want the on-again-off-again power from sunlight going into an intermediary battery pack that is designed for interrupted power. I've been told that most battery chargers don't like interrupted power, thus the need for the mediating battery.

Note the GoalZero mentioned in the linked thread is of this type. Check it:
http://www.goalzero.com/small-guide.html

Syclone538 · 01-10-2012, 19:31

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bolster

See post #6 -
...

My bad, I did read that post, thinking about how I know the duracels are everywhere and if the amazon review was accurate. Somehow I missed the Costco mention.

edit

I have energizer AA and AAA, that have all stopped working suddenly. I think it's the charger. Energizer has a 15 minute charger that I was thinking about getting, but I think it might be better to just switch and get what I hope is a higher quality setup.

UneasyRider · 01-10-2012, 19:48

I think that I will order one of these 7w Goal Zero units.

***RWBlue*** · 01-10-2012, 20:00

Why are Sanyo Eneloop AA better?

It would appear that the Tenergy 10308 2600mAh AA NiMH is better than the Sanyo Eneloop AA 2000mAh.

quake · 01-10-2012, 20:18

Uneasyrider - I have the one-panel-smaller version of that goalzero unit (two panels instead of three), with the same Guide-10Plus 4-AA carrier/charger. Works pretty well, but I only trust it for very small stuff - mainly to ensure that I always have a way to charge AA's, and can always charge & use my cell phone. The ability to charge four AA batteries on most any given day - even very-low-sunshine days - makes it VERY neat for camping flashlight/radio use. Kill your flashlight or radio batteries tonight? No problem, all good & recharged by tomorrow night.

Besides the AA charging, the ability to direct-charge any small USB-connectable device could be very useful. Phone, gps... I've even seen direct USB-rechargeable LED flashlights, but never looked into them. With a good LED flashlight, gps, radio, etc, in your pack and the Goalzero charger strapped to the top of your pack, you could have light, comms, and navigation for a REALLY long time with no resupply worries.

On batteries in general, I'm pretty much on board with BDCochran, especially on the improvements of the last 20-30 years. (The nicad's of the late 70's & early 80's... oy.

)

Bolster · 01-10-2012, 22:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by RWBlue

Why are Sanyo Eneloop AA better? It would appear that the Tenergy 10308 2600mAh AA NiMH is better than the Sanyo Eneloop AA 2000mAh.

I think the Tenergy would have the edge for fast discharge applications where you use all the energy quickly, but it's not advertised as an LSD (low self discharge) battery, so it would not store as well; not as good for intermittent use, etc. The technological advance of Eneloops and other LSD batteries is that they'll last a reasonably long time in storage or disuse. Also they're better than Alkalines in delivering a lot of current quickly...as required by bright LED flashlights, etc.

***RWBlue*** · 01-10-2012, 22:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bolster

I think the Tenergy would have the edge for fast discharge applications where you use all the energy quickly, but it's not advertised as an LSD (low self discharge) battery, so it would not store as well; not as good for intermittent use, etc. The technological advance of Eneloops and other LSD batteries is that they'll last a reasonably long time in storage or disuse. Also they're better than Alkalines in delivering a lot of current quickly...as required by bright LED flashlights, etc.

I can not think of an easy way to test the LSD idea.

M1A Shooter · 01-10-2012, 22:47

i still just buy lots of AA batteries. i havent moved to rechargables yet. i did buy a set of solar garden lights but they all didnt last 6 months but then again, for 1.99ea, what should i expect.

last year, home depot was having a decent deal on batteries and i bought about 300 of them. i just found one of the cases in my garage, no climate control, this last week and they still worked.

that said, i still buy more premium type batteries designed for electronics and such for my EDC lights.

Bolster · 01-10-2012, 22:49

Quote:

Originally Posted by RWBlue

I can not think of an easy way to test the LSD idea.

I don't understand?

***RWBlue*** · 01-10-2012, 23:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bolster

I don't understand?

I have Tenergy batteries. I don't have Sanyo batteries.

I have not seen any issues with my Tenergy batteries. I am not sure there is an easy way to test to see if there will be an issue.

wjv · 01-10-2012, 23:27

The Eneloops will stay charged for 3 years.

They also make a new XX version which is a 2500 mAh battery.

UneasyRider · 01-11-2012, 05:33

Quote:

Originally Posted by quake

Uneasyrider - I have the one-panel-smaller version of that goalzero unit (two panels instead of three), with the same Guide-10Plus 4-AA carrier/charger. Works pretty well, but I only trust it for very small stuff - mainly to ensure that I always have a way to charge AA's, and can always charge & use my cell phone. The ability to charge four AA batteries on most any given day - even very-low-sunshine days - makes it VERY neat for camping flashlight/radio use. Kill your flashlight or radio batteries tonight? No problem, all good & recharged by tomorrow night.

Besides the AA charging, the ability to direct-charge any small USB-connectable device could be very useful. Phone, gps... I've even seen direct USB-rechargeable LED flashlights, but never looked into them. With a good LED flashlight, gps, radio, etc, in your pack and the Goalzero charger strapped to the top of your pack, you could have light, comms, and navigation for a REALLY long time with no resupply worries.

On batteries in general, I'm pretty much on board with BDCochran, especially on the improvements of the last 20-30 years. (The nicad's of the late 70's & early 80's... oy.

)

I'll order the charger and some eneloops this morning then since I want to do exactly what you describe.

I'll have another post on batteries after I place my order (limited quantity item) that you may be interested in. Hopefully this hour.

UneasyRider · 01-11-2012, 05:52

Todays Woot special for $15.00 is a pair of li-on batteries configured as chargers with cables. I got a pair.