9v Batteries

I was shocked to see the Kirkland leakage. I thought Costco chose better.

You might want to skip Maxell too -- every single one I've used has leaked, including when it was still in the package.

I also bought some of the Duracell 'Eneloop-like' batteries, which do NOT hold a charge for almost a year like they're supposed to; maybe a few weeks or months -- I use my camera infrequently now so I can't be accurate.

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I have Enloop cells and they seem to hold power a long time for me. I thin k I have put them in clocks and seen them hold up for a year. But that se ems to be a waste since a regular battery also runs a year.

I just had a self setting clock damaged by a Kirkland battery. I don't see a warranty on the box, but I'm going to take the cell back along with the clock and see what they will do.

Has anyone tried the Sunbeam cells from the Dollar Tree? You can get four packs for $1 which puts them in the lowest prices category (I think Kirklan d is maybe $0.22) I believe you get a pair of alkaline 9v batteries for $1 . I've used them, but not extensively. They have been tested online and f ound to last as long as the Duracells. Some recent reviews seem to find so me better values than Duracell/Kirkland in terms of longevity, but I don't recall the winners. Maybe it was Consumer Reports.

Rick C.

There is a youtube video on battery reviews.

Depends on your application.

3 years ago I switched to EBL rechargeable lithium 9V batteries. I use 'em in low drain devices like multimeters. Haven't had to charge any of 'em yet. They're rated at 600mAh, but I don't have any experience with high drain usage. Downside is that your device has to work down to 7V or so. More expensive initially, but can have lower cost over the long haul.

Back in the day, I tried rechargeable 7.2V NiCds. Mostly useless. The 8.4V 7-cell NiMH were better, but self discharge was an issue.

Try Dollar Tree, fifty cents each. For best battery results, ANY brand, store in refrigerator crisper. Like new 1 yr later..

I did exactly the same thing. Most of mine live in small instruments, digital clocks, and portable radios now use EBL 9V LiIon batteries. However, I have seen a few problems:

1. Some bulge when recharged. If there's expansion room in the battery compartment, no problem. Otherwise, it might jam the battery in the battery compartment.
2. I bought 10 of these batteries for about . I've only used 6 of these so far. 1 has failed the first time I tried to charge it. The other 5 have survived about 3 recharges each without incident. Reliability and quality seem to be an issue with EBL batteries:
3. Discharge test shows a bit low at 550 ma-hrs.
4. One of my cheap DVM's (Harbor Freight) quits before the battery hits minimum voltage (about 6.8V).

EBL seems to be the least disgusting of the various 9V LiIon batteries: "#45 - 9V Li-ion batteries: capacity testing"

The good news is that I no longer trash instruments and equipment with leaky alkaline batteries:

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Yep. The alkaline AA and AAA work fairly well. I haven't run them through a discharge test or had them long enough to determine if they leak. Mostly, I bought them to give to friends and neighbors who want to "borrow" batteries. Most of my collection is now either NiMH LSD (low self discharge) cells, or LiIon.

Nope. I've asked and checked the web pile. No alkaline 9V batteries. What they do have is a "heavy duty" 9V battery, which means carbon zinc. No thanks.

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Worse. While the local store still has Sunbeam 4 AAA cells for $1, the web pile is now offering only 3 AAA cells per package. Probably time to stock up on some 4 AAA per packages.

Also, the offering of 2 AAA and 2 AA cells per package with "34% more power" makes me wonder if the 4 AAA per cell devices are in some way inferior. When I find the time, maybe some discharge testing will help.

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Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com 
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If you leave batteries in the appliance and care about it, invest in LiFeS2 cells, generally used for cameras and flash units. Energizer sells AA and AAA sized "L92s" (E92s are the common alkalines). I don't believe they make 9V batteries in the LiFeS2 chemistry, though. They're about a buck a piece from Amazon but they're worth it. They have a shelf life of something like 20 years and will take heat better than alkalines. Great for emergency flashlights.

I did have a problem with the first two I bought. EBL sent me two more, no questions asked. No problem with those.

I took the bad one apart. Turned out to be a balance problem and the battery management shut it down. Balanced the cells and now it has been working fine since.

I didn't buy the charger. I just charged 'em at low current to 8.2V.

Their coin cells, CR2032 etc., have recently switched from 2/1$ to 1$ each.

I order coin cells off eBay and get maybe 10/$1. At that price it's affordable to keep them on hand just in case they are needed.

I bought some CR2354 cells just in case my key dies. They are monsters for coin cells!

Rick C.

Any battery leaks due to a spurious // resistor. When in use, there also is a spurious series resistor.

On equipment where the 9V battery is attached with a snap on connector with wire leads, I put the battery in a small zip-lock bag. Of course it can't be done in units where the battery connections are fixed to the case.

Regards, Tim

Never had a serious problem with 9V batteries.

It is the AA and AAA DURACELL and KIRKLAND batteries that leak big time.

Still looking for reliable AA and AAA.

Talking about 9V batteries is not helping !

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Want less expensive but reliable 9V, AA and AAA batteries.

Cannot use so called "9V" Li batteries.

In some cases where it will work (physical fit-wise), I use a AA battery pack carrier with the 9V snaps and get very long life battery usage.

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On a sunny day (Tue, 12 Feb 2019 09:34:22 -0800) it happened OGEE wrote in :

Same here, duracell leaked and destroyed my bike light, never used KIRKLAND.

I use Eneloop. No self-discharge. Even in this mouse... eneloop AA.

Where I need 2 AAA I use 3V lifepo4 AAA and a dummy (short) AAA battery, or 3V liion and short the other one.

The lifepo4 AAA already held out for more than a year in a wireless keyboard. Those do not catch fire, but be careful with 3V liion, when full it is a bit more volts than 2 x 1.5 (4.2 max), and those CAN catch fire. If the app has a bit bad caps....

Good idea as the prices for AA and AAA cells has dropped to under $1/ea in small quantities: I probably would do that except that I prefer rechargeable cells to throw away cells. For direct replacement, NiMH LSD (Eneloop) are about $3/ea. L92 AA are 3000 ma-hr, while Eneloop AA are 2500 ma-hr. Break even is about 5 recharge cycles, after which NiMH becomes less expensive.

Energizer Ultimate L522-BP-2 at two for $19. Hmmm... These seem to be a different chemistry. Lithium-Manganese Dioxide (Li/MnO2). Visually interpolating from the graphs, I would guess about 550 ma-hr discharge down to 7.0V (a more reasonable voltage than 5.4V). Anyway, at $8.50/ea, they're far too expensive.

Incidentally, I wrap my alkaline 9V batteries in cellophane wrap or absorbent paper covered with cellophane wrap to restrict the leaking electrolyte to only destroying the battery and not the instrument. It doesn't always work perfectly, but does minimize the damage.

If it's a real emergency flashlight, I suggest that you reconsider your suggestion. We have no way of knowing the SoC (state of charge) of the battery in storage. It could have been borrowed my some unknown person and returned to its storage location. When again needed, it would have a shorter than expected runtime. I can buy SoC meters for LiIon that measure the terminal voltage, but I haven't seen one for LiFeS2. It would be easy enough to produce a family of curves at various operating temperatures, but so far, nobody seems to have done it. So, for my emergency lighting, I use rechargeable cells that can be individually characterized, charged, and tested for SoC.

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Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com 
150 Felker St #D    http://www.LearnByDestroying.com 
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Skype: JeffLiebermann     AE6KS    831-336-2558

NiMH has too high of a self-discharge for my likes. I want the widget to work when I need it. NiMH work well for my wife's solar garden lights, though. They're dirt cheap and good enough for cycling every day.

Yes. Different chemistry.

If it's worth doing that, it's worth buying a better battery.

There are only two of us in the house an only one drives each vehicle.

LiFeS2 cells have an incredibly flat discharge curve. A SoC meter would be pretty tough to do, I would guess.