Testing double-A batteries: dollar stores vs. major brands (Marketplace)
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- Опубликовано: 31 мар 2022
- We tested double-A disposable batteries to find out whether major brand names like Energizer and Duracell deliver on their marketing promises to be long lasting. Our test reveals some surprising results about batteries from dollar stores. Watch our investigation to find out which batteries you should buy - and which ones you might want to avoid.
To read more: www.cbc.ca/1.6403542
#Batteries #DollarStore #CBCMarketplace
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I use rechargeable batteries and I haven't bought alkaline or any disposable ones for more than a decade now. My rechargeables are still with me and still going strong. They cost more initially, but you can save in the long run. Save the planet.
Yep. They do degrade and get weaker over time. But they work great in remotes even if you need to charge them every 6 months as opposed to every year. Heck I have a 30 year old rechargeable that still holds about 1 volt. Fine for a flashlight.
@@superchuck3259 Smart chargers that cycle and condition NiMH rechargeable batteries can keep them healthy. Many people misuse or improperly charge them or leave them at a discharged state and damage them or throw them away when they get too depleted to receive a charge from a cheap charger. I have four AA NiMH batteries I bought in 2016 that get heavy daily use and they`re still going strong.
@@baneverything5580 I thought the need to fully discharge was only for Ni-Cad batteries, not NiMH...
Even have usb chargeable lol
@@superchuck3259 exactly. I'm not a photographer that needs it in their flash to make money. I use it in my harmony remote. It I recharge them every 3 months or every 5 months it literally doesn't make a difference to me. Plus I have an extra set that I just rotate them when needed.
I’ve had the same 8 rechargable (4 duracell) (4 energizer) for almost 5 years now and they’re going strong
The damn charger itself has had to get replaced before any of my batteries actually 😂
Damn😂🔥
Good to hear, just bought some Energizer rechargeables at Costco
Ive had problems with those chargers too. Now i swear by my panasonic bq cc55 charger and my good ol amazon basics nimh batteries
going on 12 years now for me lol
Lucky your Duracell rechargeable batteries lasted, all of mine stopped working in less then half a year (used Duracell charger too), my Energizer rechargeable batteries still are working with a random charger, the Duracells are heavy af where as the energizers after normal weight. Feel like Target sold me bricks for batteries
NEVER leave a Duracell in something that could sit awhile unused - like a flashlight or such. Duracells leak WAY more than Energizers and have destroyed several of my high cost flashlights!
My dad still has an old school mag lite with the row of Duracells basically welded to the inside of the handle lol
@@robertpaulson8790 I lost 2-3 Mini-Mag Mag Lites due to Duracells... I decided I was going to get those batteries out of one no-matter-what! I ended up pretty much completely destroying the flashlight... but to my satisfaction, got them out. I do NOT buy Duracells any more.
@@rangerrick8220 You know, I don't usually buy either 2 of these anymore. I have been using Rayovac for many years. When I first started using them, I got batter capacity, not sure if its the same way or not. But I saved a lot more money and honesty, I haven't had the leakage issues as I do with other brands. Wall.... goes through a lot of these so they are always fresh in the store.
I had a $45.00 device damaged by Duracell leakage. I got my replacement info and price together and gave them a call No fuss from them at all. Sent a full replacement cost check promptly.
i stopped buying duacells ..they leak ..sad part the used to be the best
My mother worked at a battery company back in the 60’s (Brightstar) and she always kept batteries in the fridge. For me now, every battery in my house is rechargeable.
The good old days with the older chemistry. You can't do that with lithium now as they are more temperature sensitive.
@@philc.9280 "Good Old Days" yeah back in the Days of lead pipes, aluminum wiring, asbestos ceilings, asbestos siding, cars with no seat belts that tear bodys up when it accidents, lead in gasoline for everyone to breath..... yep the "Good ol Days"...
@@trxtech3010 not much worse than today.... pollution (air & water), global warming, overpopulation, waste disposal problem, deforestation, and genetically modified organisms (GMO)
@@philc.9280 Naw, not at all. Things are still 100 times better then "Back in the old days"
Both of you guys are right and wrong. There are many things that are sooooo much better now than then, and there are sooooo many things that are far worse than they were. The thing is, we can't go back, only forward. It would be nice to benefit from past mistakes, but I can plainly see that we as a species are incapable of that sort of reasoning. I am 75 years old, to watch some of the happenings of the modern "world" is really disheartening.
Duracells are the absolute worst for leaking. 80% of the ones I use end up leaking. I constantly clean my devices due to this problem. It's atrocious.
I have a battery from 1989 that still works not as much voltage as it had 33 years ago but still works it's at 6 volts out of 9volts
@@punker4Real A 9 volt battery contains six cells. They're going to be tougher just from having multiple shells, and they leak internally.
That's the thing I hate about Duracell, they leak too much. Energizer leaks too, but nowhere near as bad. Duracell and Energizer are good if you're constantly using a device. If something isn't commonly used, it's probably best to get Rayovac or Panasonic. I've used all 4 brands and if you get the Alkaline version of Panasonic or Rayovac, you can't tell the difference between them and the big names. And they're a fraction of the price too.
I had some of those expensive duracells in the resealable package and they all corroded even though they were neber opened. I bought them on clearence and they didnt keep at all.
Buy Amazon batteries, check the reviews👌👌
I am a believer in rechargeables. Cost about the same, and last MUCH longer in the long run!
lithium ion......
Cost alot more
@@christianflores3437 Not as much. I've been using the same rechargeables for 2 years! The one-time fee has saved me a lot!!!
And they don’t leak.
Was going to say the same thing! Remember, though, there are different power rechargeables, that hold different amounts of power.
Would be interesting to know what the recycler in Michigan does with the batteries... Issue is many recyclers do some recycling on site (tick in the box) but if low revenue and high expenses then export to other countries. Turns out those countries intermediaries will just pocket a bit of money and bury the materials that have no value in the first local landfill hurting the local people with pollution.
They take the money from us and then throw them in the trash because USA that's what.
@@djdarq6311 that is what I fear, but i think it is not only the USA, most "rich" countries have been caught dumping their Rubish in other , not as well of, countries. In this case the Canadian company most probably found a cheaper alternative, got some written assurances of the disposal process then they washed their hands...
For decades manufacturers have resisted calls for the capacity to be printed on the batteries. They say its not possible because it depends on the current draw. That's true but it also applies to rechargeable cells and they can mark them.
I live in the US but I wish this series was available to watch on TV in the US it always comes on my recommended and I always enjoy them
Kirkland batteries are 90% as good as the top brands and cost less than half the price.
@@cbot375 And they make some damn fine cookies and snacks, too!
You was able to pick up channel 9 in the great lakes area and mid west but in 2000 you could not pick up channel 9 the Canadian channel I agree they had good programs
That's what iptv is for!
I haven't bought disposable batteries in years, I Changed to Panasonic Eneloop Pro years ago from Enegizer rechargeables, i use them in power hungry devices like camera flashes and RC Toys and they last much longer, also I still have batteries that i bought in 2013 that still work. Its worth the Money to upgrade and stop waiting money on cheap disposable batteries.
Same... my first pair or AAA's I got sometime before 2009... & they're still going. Not much reason to get disposables anymore, and it's just as well.
Same here. It's saved me a ton of disposables.
Problem is that the vast majority of rechargables only rate at 1.2V (not sure of enerloop) but devices are designed around 1.5V.
Not good on the device, not good on the batteries.
@@zybch 1.2V is the nominal/average voltage of NiMH battery cells. They range from 1.45V freshly charged to 0.9V at the end of charge. Typically they hover over 1.25V to 1.3V for the majority of its discharge. Also many devices (unfortunately not all) tend to tolerate a wide voltage range since even alkaline cells will drop in voltage as they're used up.
I'm assuming you are talking about NiMH and not Lithium. I bought a bunch years ago, but recently started switching back to alkaline for many applications. The rechargeables aren't bad, but far from perfect. First is the upfront cost. Second their voltage (as previously mentioned) is lower. Third - It's almost impossible to find good C or D cell NiMH.....and those AA conversion shells just don't cut it. Four- many brands the batteries are physically larger.....making it a problem when they get stuck inside something like a pen flashlight. Five- the biggest drawback is their short shelf life. You have to top them off every 6 months or so because they lose power sitting on the shelf. I have a ton of battery powered devices and don't have time to recharge 3 or 4 dozen batteries twice a year.
Wait, if the manufacturers are "responsible" for funding the recycling facilities (per government decree, I assume, at least that's how it sounded), then how is that not a tax? Also, the consumer pays for it either way, whether it's built into the price of a cell or itemised on the receipt.
Thanks so much! I always buy the Panasonic alkaline but questioned the e-circuit brand. Now I know that I can choose either one and keep saving money.
Disposable batteries should be required by law to state how much usable energy they contain - for example how many watt hours (or how many milliwatt hours) they can deliver until their voltage drops below some usable threshold. Everything else has to state exactly how much product you are getting for your money - if you buy a chocolate bar, loaf of bread, petrol or can of beans, it always says how much weight or volume of product there is. Even rechargeable batteries usually say how much they can store. Why don't single use batteries have this packaging requirement? Even better would be if they stated both watt hours(ie. energy) and the rate at which they can deliver that (ie. power)
The usual standard is to rate the capacity at “1C”.
For example if a battery is 2800 mAh, that’s 2800 mA for 1 hour.
That’s 1C
If you discharge that same battery at 2C, you would draw 5600 mA, and it will last less than 30 minutes.
If you discharge it at 0.5C, you draw 1400 mA and it will last a little more than 2 hours.
@@lumberjackdreamer6267 lol. You just answered his question. The unit is mAh, and the value is written on the battery for standardized formats like AAA, AA, C, D, 9 volts.
most any battery i've purchased here in Canada has the mAh on the side. related - the rechargable Panasonic AA 2pk that dollarama sells are great @ about 3 bucks with 1000mAh per cell, and are a corporate relative to the Enloop Rechargables, but their 4pk AA rechargables are 2100 mAh for $26 on amazon. with the per cell cost, the Dollarama wins again!
@@DaiAtlus79 The forgotten factor is how many charge cycles it lasts for.
@@DaiAtlus79
Yes. Rechargeable are now much better.
Why didn’t you test the lithium AA batteries they ask you to put in cameras?
never use anything else. expensive in the short term, but saves money in the long term!
Chocolate rain!
Man, I just want to say, Chocolate Rain is one of those songs that helped DEFINE what RUclips and the Internet was in the 2000s. What a great time to be a part of, the beginning of the internet culture.
Probably wouldn't be a meaningful test. You'd get very different comparison results depending on how much power the machine draws.
@@emissarygw2264 except you can use lithium aa batteries in place of alkaline in all your devices. I do.
What Duracell and Energizer missed was that they can come down on their price and still make a profit by being competitive with the cheaper brands, especially now that people know that the cheaper brands are just as good. And the 2 that leaked were name brands. The cheaper ones didn’t leak
They didn't miss a thing, goofball, their profits are very high--in what way do you think reducing their profits would benefit them?...because people like something they can depend on, and no-name batteries are always going to be a gamble, no matter what the test today says. Yeah, so the abuse they put the batteries through caused a couple to leak...but the test is not real-world results, but lab results, and there's often a great difference between the two.
In our business we used rechargeable batteries in our paper towel dispensers. They were great. D cells that we would recharge 2 maybe 3 times a year. Saved us lots of money with 4 machines taking 4 batteries. Never had to buy new ones in the 9 years we ran the place. Still have them using them in flashlights now.
The bounce test works more or less and that voltmeter should not be used to test the battery - and here's why: digital voltmeters have what is called high impedance inputs. High impedance inputs behave like open circuits so they'll show the voltage of the chemical setup without considering the internal resistance. The best way to test that is to put some resistor (50 ohms, perhaps) between the battery's terminals and then measure the voltage - that's why the battery tester is the best device for that.
What is the "voltage of the chemical setup"? If we go back a few centuries to Italy, Alessandro Volta (the guy that lends his name to Voltage) built the first galvanic battery. That was zinc and copper places with salt water soaked cloth between them. That battery has 1.10V because that's the the difference between the two metals "will to get or give electrons". Copper wants to get electrons at +0.34V while zincs wants to give electrons at -0.76V. (it might be the opposite but ... that's the idea: it's a property of the metals and if I use a device that draws no current from the battery I'll read 1.10V regardless of how well the chemical reactions are happening.)
Yeah when they pulled out the Digital meter, I knew that was wrong. Thanks for typing all that out.
The best test of batteries is measuring their AC impedance. This will tell you the condition of the internal electrodes and gives a very good indication of the actual capacity too
I did this exact tests as a science fair project in grade school 18 years ago, and my findings were the same - dollar store was the best bang for your buck, but duration wise Energizer and then Duracell were best.
I dunno. Energizer tends to leak
Did this with my kid a couple of years ago, name brand mostly the best, rechargeable still better ad they are rechargeable surprising dollar store Panasonic was the best for long life low drain.
@@KH-fv3vq Leak? Do you mean corrosion? That green and chalky stuff?
That's from leaving the batteries in the device and not using it. Possibly humidity, too.
Tape them to the item with gaffer's tape.
Or have a small box for such.
the take way here is the 25% more power you get from name brand worth the 100% more cost? i have rechargeable too but after years of use they are a hassle not holding power nearly as long as the alkaline, and the rechargeable are 200% more in cost.
@@windsofmarchjourneyperrytr2823 From what I notice, Energizer batteries (Triple and Double As) would leak the clear odorless fluid from the positive and/or negative poles. Always happens to me.
The leak batteries thing is highly depends on how you use and store the batteries. I know many people don’t, but I do check the batteries when I buy them, unless it’s not in a plastic case which you can’t check at all. Also store them using plastic seal bags, remove them from devices if you aren’t going to use them for a long period of time.
Home Depot always seem to have the best prices on AA, C ,D & maybe 9 volt batteries at Christmas. Purchase the 40 oak of AA then I'm good til next Christmas. Purchased a $20 double sided battery holder that came with a cheap battery tester. Very convient to have all the batteries in one handy see thru box.
I really appreciate this video, and all the details, like including the recycling portion of a battery’s life.
Cheers.
I just use rechargeable batteries. I've been using the same double A's and triple A's for at least 6 or 7 years, with a few new ones here and there.
My Rechargeable batteries lasted from 2008 - 2020 in constant use before they started to rust from overuse & slowly over time last charge, used about two chargers overtime, GP Rechargeable batteries are the best I’ve ever used 💯🔥
I've still got some NiCd rechargeables that I bought in the 1980s ... still working!
I think this was a great and very informative test, thank you! I’m pretty sure I won’t be buying those EXPENSIVE name brands again. Have you done any testing for the other size batteries? C, D etc? Thanks again
No, the “bouncy test” does work, it’s just you don’t understand what the expectation is. It is to differentiate new batteries from used batteries, and a bouncy battery doesn’t necessarily mean it is completed drained, it only means it is used. The more used it is the more bouncy it is. But with no comparison, you won’t be able to tell if a bouncy battery has 0.99 volts or 1.32 volts left. You just know it is used.
Not only that but _significantly_ used. I think that 1.3v is a cut off for a lot of electronic devices to function, so it's misleading to say that the battery is still good. It's lost most of it's energy, and will only run specific devices, likely a flash light or other primitive device.
@@MsHojat I consider 1.2V to be the cut off for most devices, as "completely drained". However, some smaller devices such as optical mice, can go as low as 0.99V before calling it done.
For devices that need a lot of power, these bouncy batteries shouldn't be used anyway. When my high power devices stop working I put their batteries in my remotes and get a few more months out of them.
I'm not great at math so you'll have to explain how 1.3v left in a battery that started out 1.5v has lost MOST of its energy or is significantly used?
1.3v is still plenty good since it's likely not the only battery powering the device.
When she said 1.32v fine and the bounce test was not good I laughed out loud. Most devices will not run with a 1.32v, im not sure what experts they have been talking with but try it yourself.
Back in the sixties my grandpa had a very expensive Geiger counter that ran off of some brand of battery that offered to replace any device damage by the battery. Well, the battery leaked and seriously damaged it. He sent it in and they replaced it a newer and even more expensive model. I forget the brand, but he was ecstatic about it and had nothing but praise about that company for the rest of his life.
that is impressively good customer service. Nowadays the company would say that it isn't there fault and your on your own.
😂😂😂😂Good to hear.
They won’t do it anymore. Too many bean counters at the top.
That brand was Rayovac. My father had a good quality flashlight and it was a Rayovac that leaked inside it, he wrote to the supplier and a brand new replacement duly arrived.
@@HighVoltageMadness now most of the cells and battery manufacturers clearly mention that the company's liability is limited to free replacement of cell / battery, and that the original purchase bill is required. Company is not responsible for any personal or property damages.
I agree with the use of rechargeable batteries. Having said that, I have used Duracell/Energizer standard cells in an Oregon weather station I own both in the sensor and receiver for 10 plus years. I stick a note inside the compartment with the date that I installed new ones. Up until say three years ago, I replaced them roughly one a YEAR. Now they last me one to two months. Why I wonder?
They alter their cells quality, maybe. I use Duracell alkaline AAA cells in my laser. Earlier they used to last for 3 months straight before showing any sign of losing charge. Now they get fully depleted within 3 weeks, with occasional and minimal usage !
When kept idle for few weeks, these cells do leak and catch rust. So, we need to stay alert and careful.
I used to go caving and the energizers lasted 12 hours in my light, Duracells only lasted 8 hours. These were consistent numbers.
my experience exactly
Although Alkaline is the leader for holding a charge, it is for low drain devices only. For high drain devices, you should use NiMH batteries. They hold 90% of a charge for 1 year. I have had good experience with Sanyo Enloop NiMH battery kit.
Enloop is now Panasonic.
I wish that were the norm. I have some that after awhile do loose their charge faster, or don't hold as much.
Or just buy rechargables....
Lithium work best for high drain devices
Sanyo Eneloop here for me
(Yes, now Panasonic) have used 8 of them for the last 10+ years quite regularly in fact.
The current Eneloops also have a Pro option not too much more money that are designed for high demand electronics, camera flashes etc.
The performance of mine are still quite acceptable after a decade of use. They are bought fully charged and retain the charge for quite some months after.
Anyhow, they've been great for me and certainly worth the bucks.
Thank you, very informative and straight to the matter. I don’t think we’d get an honest report like this in the USA. Too much advertising dollars to worry about.
Consumer Reports already did a video on batteries ten years ago. All that without stretching the information to 12 minutes and 33 seconds.
At least in NYC, these reports have been pretty common, especially on Channel 11. Recently, they reported that many of the brand name batteries at discount stores are counterfeits-and some may even be “rebadged” (i.e., putting the brand name labels and packaging on cheap, generic products) right here in New York.
@@VieleGuteFahrer Just fast forward it but some people like the detail.
@@VieleGuteFahrer
Consumer reports is a nonprofit that requires a subscription to access all their info.
Not a news agency
@@merlinious01 The video I‘m talking about is free to watch, right here on RUclips.
I did a test on Eveready, Energizer, Duracell, and Rayovac Maximum when they first came out. I tested them in a flash light and recorded the time for each. Duracell lasted the longest, while Rayovac was nearly identical minus a minute for like 25% less at the time. I still buy all 3, but thought they just rebranded Duracell under another name to get marketshare.
In India we have had a lot of brands of battery namely Estrala Ever ready Tudor And so on it was a
It was an era of small transistor radios The penlight types were doing well later Japanese models of Panasonic Sony Nippon National Toshiba came like a flood to compete with Ever ready. Because we have hot summers most of them has tropicalised models Duracell was s late entry The main problem of these small power packs are time these to retain power for a longer period. Rechargeable ones are relevant now Once a battery that lasts for a 100hrs is available for a device The world would see a good product in future
I used to go caving. Energizers lasted 12 hours in my light, Duracells lasted 8 hours.
Speaking of Panasonic, their Eneloop rechargables (formerly Sanyo Eneloop, before the company was acquired by Matsushita [now Panasonic]) are pretty good in my experience. Even my sister's 2009 Toyota Corolla LE came with an OEM Panasonic 12V car battery.
As for disposables, I typically buy the Energizer lithium-based cells.
Toyota used a Panasonic lithium 3V coin for key fobs. It read 3.125v when I took it out.
After 17 years. I transfered it to a computer with a bad 3V. A KTS that failed in 2 years.
Thank you! Very interesting to compare standard alkaline, the old fashion one, to the hype of 'new ' batteries. What about rechargeable batteries? How are batteries recycled?
The main reason why Duracell and Energizer is more expensive than the other brand is all due to advertisement. Duracell and Energizer have ads on TV, periodicals, webpages, and video streams. A large piece of that price chunk goes to the marketing department.
Energizer and Duracell will actually replace your electronics IF they are damaged by their batteries. Not so from the Dollar Tree...
Great look at batteries. All I use are rechargeables these days and avoid disposable batts when I can.
I remember a few decades ago Albertsons supermarket had store brand batteries and on the back of the packaging was the Duracell address and phone number for customer service inquiries.
I used to work on Savin copy machines & thought they were the best brand. Then I found out that Richo ( another copy machine brand that we were in competition with owned Savin). 😢
Ok they established over and over that the alkaline has more energy, but is the price worth it for the zinc carbon if you are going to use it in a remote? they never even answered that question. their test of continuous use of the remote is also flawed because that isnt the real world use. what if the battery dies from old age rather than over use.
Yep I knew it, I've been buying Dollartree tore alkaline batteries for years and had a feeling they were just as good and lasted just as long that's such a lower price
This is VERY INTERESTING. I shop at DOLLAR TREE and at Walmart and buy batteries. I always thought Duracell (the copper top battery) were the best. But, now... I'm changing my thinking. The alkaline batteries from Dollar whatever might be a better deal. I NEVER see a battery recycling plant in the US and whenever I do, it's super costly to send it via mail and pay for the recycling. I LOVE RECYCLING AND WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH OF IT IN THE US. ❤. Thank you for doing this battery comparison test. I really appreciate it. I had a rechargeable battery, but it was very expensive and it lost charge quickly after a while and the batteries spent more time in the charger than in the contraption.
Go with the Dollar Tree store alkaline. Not the junk "heavy duty" ones, the alkaline. I took a digital camera on vacay for 10 days, with 10 Energizer AA size and 10 Dollar Tree AA size alkaline. I used 2 batteries each day. 1 pair from Energizer, then the next day, 1 pair of Dollar Tree batteries. There was no difference between the 2 types of batteries at the end of each day, and the temperature was in the 80's each day. Harbor Freight carries rechargeable batteries, they're NiMH, not Lithium-ion though.
I'm surprised that they didn't talk about how the energizer and Duracell batteries will make the discount brands themselves sometimes. Its also funny that they complain about the eco fees then get upset that they needed to go with the cheaper option out of country. You get one or the other and personally wouldn't mind paying a little more to have them processed locally.
I suspect that's the case with Amazon Basics or Kirklands brands which seem respectable compared to the cheaper device endangering batteries. :)
Then that means Panasonic might be the Dollar tree supplier. They do not seem to have a major presence in other stores.
I wish you would have included Kirkland Signature batteries to the test.
I read it from somewhere that Costco sourced them from Duracell
those are rebadged Duracells, sir!
Kirkland also made car batteries. I had good luck with them. They cost about half what a real brand name battery cost and lasted just as long.
As mentionned, they are made by Duracell - so yes their performance is excellent and ALSO yes, they leak like crazy :)
@@sikchan5834 I'm not sure what the specific manufacturer is, but all of the Kirkland Signature products are produced by somebody else. Usually that somebody is one of the name brands.
"Best" depends on your metric. The metric generally depends on your use case. For example, you might prefer a battery with more total power for your smoke detector, even though you are paying more for the power you're getting. You would want it to last until your next scheduled battery change.
For the most part, no, a battery is a battery. The only measure that typically matters is the number of mAh that are in the battery. A 9v battery is a 9v battery, as long as the mAh is the same, you shouldn't see any meaningful difference.
There is some variation in how well they do with cold and how flat their discharge curve is, but chances are that any differences that you're seeing are the result of the placebo effect. If you want to see a significant difference, you have to jump to something like NiCad or NiMH which do have significantly different characteristics.
Sometimes I forget other people don't know things I experimented with as a child. I take for granted this kind of info is not well known. Well done educating others.
Um yes other people have different experiences than you...? It's not that difficult of a concept.
As for me i prefer using energizer max . The energizer lithium is great but take note of its initial high OCV ( open circuit voltage ) that might damage some circuity such as clock. you may discharge till nominal range of 1.5-1.6v . Duracell or panasonic will do fine too . For quartz watches or button cell , go for the SR ( silver oxide ) not LR ( alkaline ) . They have longer discharge rate and performs better . Lastly , always check the shelf life of any battery . Once the EL ( electrolyte ) leaks and its gonna be a hassle to clean off . Had that experience before so yeah ..
Eco fees are a tax period. The fact she can say with a straight face they are not is an indicator of government rot.
The alkalines have a major problem with leaking. So in a low drain device, like a TV remote, I use carbon cells. When you find out how much the original remote will cost to replace, then you see why an alkaline is a bad option.
What about using a Lithium-Ion battery instead?
I have switched almost entirely to rechargeables for this reason. There are a few different types and you have to learn a bit about their differences, but it has been worth it.
TV remotes here are replaced for free by the cable company. No worries from xfinity
Try lithium batteries they will last for more than a year they also will not leak
Iv never had a battery leak. Just a car battery. I use recharge energizer been useing them for years.
An important aspect of this investigation would be to look at the manufacturing processes of all these companies. It’s much cheaper to produce products in countries or facilities that don’t follow best practices when it comes to dealing with chemicals and safe work environments for their employees. The price of more responsible production COULD be built into the price of the bigger companies. Cheaper brands often cost cut when it comes to environmental considerations in their supply chains and processes.
Been using rechargable Japanese Eneloops and IKEA Laddas along with a smart charger for years now. Will never go back. They also have a long storage life so they won't be empty in a few months when not used unlike cheaper alternatives.
Better for your pocket. Better for the environment. A win-win in my book
As far as long lasting, I have to put into my Blink Cameras, Lithiums. All alkalines don't seem to last near as long, like maybe 1/2 as long. So test of Lithiums would be awesome to see how well they perform. Also a bit of graphing like how they lose their power over the time they are being used, and if there is any recovery time after they have been in use. Rechargeable batteries would be good to see too. Not that I expect them to last very long, but a better range of usage.
Flashlights are not low drain devices...
Also carbon zinc batteries are important for people such as my self. 4 AAA name brand batteries dont run nearly as long as the 56 dollar store batteries (in a cost comparison). Cost is my major deciding factor when buying batters for myself.
Yeah they know that but the point was most people don't know the difference or read the label
A really nice and informative video that tells a lot about batteries.
I reside in India and here the advantage is that each and every device including basic ones like clocks and flashlights too come with built-in Lithium Ion batteries and I have barely purchased any AA batteries in the past 5 years.
Besides, even getting a replacement Li-Ion battery is much more inexpensive compared to a pack of AA batteries.
Hard and fast rule on batteries: "heavy duty" do not last as long as alkaline in most devices.
12:31 👈🏼😂 Even the video run out of battery 🤦🏻♂️ and ended abruptly !! 🤣
bounce test means they are heavily past their prime which is a quick way to determine if it is a new or used one.
This is super heavy duty journalism right here!
The best AA & AAA batteries I have ever used were the Everactive batteries that Walmart sold until about 7 years ago. I recommended them to a number of people and when I would go to Walmart to get batteries they were gone because lots of people were buying them. They realized they were great batteries.
The best batteries on the market actually comes from harbor fright there the blue ones not the yellow ones can’t remember there name it’s lightning something, great value are good though that’s what I’m using atm in my KB, mouse and ps3 guitars
I love the IKEA rechargeable AAA&AA’s. They last a real long time in between charges.
Same here, we use IKEA and ALDI rechargeables. We have 13 remote controls around the house for electronics, air conditioners and garage doors.
Fun fact... I have 4000 NiMH batteries they are for powering my garage , they was destined for scrap :( not as good as Lithium but better than them going into scrap for sure....
@@Phantoma3 My gosh that sounds like a bunch of laziness. 13 remotes?
I’ve had these questions as a little kid. Glad I got many of them answered. Great content. Thank you for sharing
Good report. The one additional think that would be good to know is the quality of the cheaper batteries. You'd have to run a test on multiple batteries to see if you get consistent results. The thing about cheaper batteries is that you can get a lot of duds because the QA just isn't as good.
Do you have any actual test data to backup that statement ?
@@900stx7 Don't need any test data. This is well known. And anyone that's used cheap batteries, knows this from experience.
@@dafly46543 For someone who's been a cheap SOB all my life, I use nothing but bargain alkaline batteries.
They may not last quite as long, but duds are not a problem.
One thing that wasn't mentioned when comparing those batteries was risk of leaking/bursting and whether the guarantees from the more expensive brands make up for the extra cost. One of the reasons I favor the more expensive brands is those anti leak guarantees give a perception that they're less likely to damage my electronics.
I hope you are not talking about Duracells because they have ruined more flashlights, remotes, power packs then I can count. I go through LOTS of batteries and will NEVER EVER buy Duracells again. Energizers, EBL and Amazon Basics have yet to leak.
@@tc1uscg65 I've seen other brands leak (in the plastic tub of old batteries) but duracells must be an SCP or something because they AUTOMATICALLY leak as soon as you put them in something.
Personally I stick to rechargeables and zinc carbons.
@@qwertykeyboard5901 good suggestion. Thanks.
@@tc1uscg65that's probably why they excluded them it's probably gonna be mostly down to chance.
If you actually care about consumers show them how rechargeables will cost much less in the long run (even when owning a bunch of extras so some are always charged when needed), not to mention keeping SO many more batteries out of landfills. This entire story was a lost opportunity. Eneloop, or other good brands, will quickly pay themselves off and they take a beating (I know because I use Eneloops in high drain devices on stage).
Do you REALLY think these leftists give a big GODDAMN about society? LOL!
Thanks for doing this. A great video. RUclips suggested this quickly. Only 18 minutes since it was posted. 🙂
Interesting end and unfortunate that they send them to Michigan when we have a recycling company in Canada doing in.
This. I think someone has a sales call to make on Monday morning 😉
I quit using Duracell batteries recently after I got tired of leakage ruining several expensive of electronic test equipment. I have switched to Kirkland brand from Costco, although I will certainly try the ones at Dollar Tree. I also have purchased a number of rechargeable AA units to see how they hold up.
Forgot to add that use of a digital multimeter to test a battery is useless. As the multimeter places almost zero load (
Years of camping using Duracell changed my mind of the copper top brand. I have stopped using them as I've not had one device they were in where they didn't leak. If I removed them for log term storage, no problem, but I have had some leaks, while new, just like @6:30. IT's not IF they will leak, it's when. I've been using EBL's, Amazon basics, and Energizers and never had one ruin my device.
They didn't do a value test on Rayovac alkaline batteries that are normally on the bottom shelf at Walmart. (Rayovac 9 volt batteries work great in smoke detectors.)
Surprisingly the great value brand also seems to work a long time for the price in smoke detectors..
I've noticed that off brand batteries don't work in my smoke detectors.
The AAA Ray-O-Vac batteries that I bought from Lowes, with an expiration date of 2/2028, are complete rubbish. They leaked and ruined some of my items in less than 1 year. I'd NEVER trust them in a smoke detector that's designed to save my life in the event of a fire.
@@parkerbohnn Yes I went back to Walmart and saw those Great Value brand 9v alkaline batteries. I will try them in smoke detectors.
I use carbon/zinc in wall clocks and TV remotes, and rechargeables in everything else. When it comes to flashlights, 18650 Li-ion is the _only_ choice.
Wall clocks have more constant drain than a low use remote (besides the main TV). I remember an alkaline lasted nearly 10 years before it started leaking (still powered the clock and didn't damage it). It lasted well past its shelf life/storage date. A carbon/zinc would last maybe a year or two maybe before the clock wouldn't keep the proper time anymore...
Eneloops are the way to go. They are low discharge and are rated for 1000 charges. I have Sanyo Eneloops still going strong and Sanyo sold that division to Panasonic 10+ years ago.
I recently used a multimeter on some batteries we thought were drained . I found that most of the batteries still had either above 1.5 or just below 1.5 . only 2 of about 10 were drained too much to use. Surprised by the out come of my own little test. Some of the batteries were duracell & others were cheap or came with a remote.
Need to load test
It's a sad state of affairs when this stuff isn't taught by parents or the schools, but you have to rely on a tv news show to get a clue about this.
Yea I learnt about this stuff when I was about 7-8 years old my granddad taught me :):)
I'm still using an "intelligent" battery charger I bought back in the eighties.
It can even re-charge "non re-chargeable" batteries a few times!
Back then it was all nickel cadmium tech.
Now I use nickel metal hydrides. The latest "precharged" type are great.
Same charger works fine.
You do get the odd battery that stops taking a full charge from time to time but having a good charger helps as they charge in a way to prolong the life of the batteries and can identify faulty ones.
Single use batteries are always my last choice.
Car batteries are rechargeable too... used past their useful life they will explode and burn the skin clean off of you with sulfuric acid. Ask anyone who has lived foolishly to attempt to charge and jump start a car battery. DON'T CHARGE BAD BATTERIES OR INCOMPATIBLE TYPES.
I have 6 of these intelligent battery charger devices. I bought these during the late 1990’s for something like $2.00 each at an electronic discount store. The trick was to recharge and to top off these alkaline batteries before it gets heavily drained based on the instructions and it worked. I stopped using them when I bought Eneloop NMH batteries. After that I’ve never looked back.
Bear in mind that a NiCd charger will overcharge NiMH cells, reducing their overall lifespan. A good modern NiMH charger will get the most out of your batteries.
(Proper NiCd and NiMH charging work on the same principle: once the battery is full, the excess energy being pumped in turns to heat and the battery heats up, which in turn causes the voltage to drop. So the charger looks for the peak voltage, and once it starts to go down, it ends. However, in NiCd, the voltage drop is much larger than in NiMH. By the time a NiMH cell’s voltage drops to the point a NiCd charger can detect it, the battery has been significantly overcharged. Many old “intelligent” chargers actually weren’t that smart. What you want is a modern one with “-dV/dT” charging.)
I use great value AA’s and Panasonic from dollar tree they all work great I was very surprised by the Walmart AA’s they were a-lot better than I thought they would be
You *should* have pointed out the crucial factor of *expiration dates* -- that box pictured at 3:29 for example reads "best before 3/24" which, in 2022, means that package has been sitting in some warehouse unopened and unused for about EIGHT YEARS. That expiration date is typically ten years when new. Further, while remotes and clocks are low-drain devices, a flashlight is definitely NOT.
As far as recycling I'm not convinced there is such a thing. I used to take my spent batteries to Batteries Plus .... until one of them confided to me that they just throw them in the trash.
Truth
Very interesting, very useful. Now, please do the same for rechargeable batteries.
Project farm on RUclips has done such tests. Very well done. He has similar videos for single use batteries as well.
@@alpoulin1 Cool, thanks!
Thanks. I have been buying batteries according to price and I find the cheap batteries work just as well most of the time.
This is great, my whole family now knows how to buy batteries, thank you and keep this great work up!
Oh contraire... the bounce test is a very accurate way to determine usable or not..
On rechargeable batteries, people say the amazon brand was the same manufacture as the eneloop (name brand kinda)
Putting those energizers and duracell under the sun is still the best way to recharge.
-every kids in the 90s
ive used rechargeable once too expensive . I then went to the dollar store for that cost they did great by me. walmart had could good deals for about a 1.00 but they soon pull them off the shelf cause they were selling better.
When you use a meter you have to use a resister in parallel because of load effect. They are not doing it right.
Recharging is the way to go. The upfront costs rivel the name brand companies prices, but there are some lower use batteries that have last over a decade of use with a monthly recharge.
Rechargeable batteries have a self discharge rate of 1% per day. Not sure I'd use them in an emergency flashlight.
@@familyhelfert2036 Not Eneloops.
The e circuit says for low drain device. So they are being COMPLETELY honest on their packaging
Great work on doing this test, but at 2:37 you reinforce the important myth that simply measuring the voltage on a battery tells you if it is still good. You need to place some load on the battery, and then see what the voltage reads. The comparatively primitive looking 'battery tester' you use a few seconds earlier will almost certainly be reading the voltage under load, meaning it gives a more accurate result than the digital voltmeter. Some voltmeters have a battery test setting, but many don't.
To test this, measure the voltage across your car battery with the ignition off. Now look at the voltage when the engine starter is turning. With a good battery it will drop a volt or two. With a dud battery it may drop to 5V or less, despite a good and a bad battery reading over 12V without load (I forget the exact values you want to see in a car battery).
Yea, but we are talking low capacity vs high capacity batteries and different battery technology. Yes a car battery you have to put a load on it to test it. I don't know if the same is true for small batteries like this. Besides, who wants to drain the capacity out of such a small battery just to test it. That's kind of silly. The voltage test on these is good enough. Heck, who even test batteries anymore. Unless a device doesn't work with new batteries, is wasting your time worth it? Heck, any weak batteries out of some high drain items, I would sometimes finish up in a remote and use fresh batteries in the device that benefit from it.
@@dafly46543 The principle is still the same between large batteries and small batteries. The only difference is the load under which the voltage should be tested. A digital multimeter will be putting on an absolutely tiny load which is effectively no load at all. The battery tester is putting on a more typical load (although still small by many current equipment needs) and so gives a more accurate result.
@@gnuthad I'm referring to the battery type as to whether a load needs to be placed on the battery for testing. Car batteries are generally lead acid batteries. You also need to have a charged battery to load test it. You do not or should not charge disposable batteries. I have never had issues using a voltage meter when testing disposable batteries. It is more than suitable for someone to tell if the battery is good or not. These batteries are very low capacity to start with. So why would you use a portion of it just to test it? Again if you power on a device and it doesn't work, then by all means check its voltage if you wish. But why even go through that. Toss in a set of new batteries and see if it works with fresh batteries. If it don't, try a other set of batteries as maybe someone placed old batteries with fresh batteries. I personally don't mix them. As you should never mix fresh with used anyways. Disposables are cheap. But again, as far as load testing, why? A car battery makes sense as your plates build up sulfate. But again, if the battery is not charged, you can't do a proper load test. If you don't get a proper reading after charging for so long, consider the battery junk. This is the reason we are load testing car batteries, due to sulfarication that happens over time. I guess instead of saying to use a digital voltmeter, I should have said voltmeter, or more preferably an analog volt meter as this was what was originally used to test disposable batteries with and uses more current to get your reading. But I would not call this load testing. You will see the meter drop if the battery is bad. If it is good, the needle will shoot up instantly and hold. I use to test disposable batteries all the time when I was a kid as this was installed into me from my cheap grandfather. I also tested many automotive batteries as I was a licensed mechanic.
@@dafly46543 The load you use to test a car battery is much higher than the load you use to test a AA cell which is much higher than the load you use to test a tiny button cell. The load varies depending on the claimed capacity and cell chemistry. The principle of load testing is, however, the same.
An analogue multimeter set to 2V or so is ideal for testing these disposable cells because the load is about 20kΩ. The digital multimeter has a typical load of 10MΩ. The load you need to test a 12V car battery is fractions of an ohm.
@@dafly46543 Yes, you absolutely have to measure small batteries with a load for the result to be meaningful. The open-circuit voltage of a battery can be fairly high, but the voltage plummets under load. That’s what battery testers do. Of course, different batteries behave differently under different types of loads, so it’s always going to be a generalization of the battery state of charge.
However, you’re confusing car battery load testing (i.e. determining the state of health of a rechargeable battery by seeing how much current it can push) and rechargeable battery capacity testing (determining how much energy the battery is capable of holding) with state-of-charge testing, which is what the segment of the video was about: determining how much energy is still left in the cell _right now._ The point is that a battery’s open circuit voltage is not in any way a reliable indicator of state of charge. This is true for every type of battery, whether primary (disposable) or secondary (rechargeable). In fact, for some battery types, the voltage tells you almost nothing, because the voltage remains constant right until the end, where it just suddenly plummets. For standard AA alkaline and carbon zinc, voltage is a decent indicator, but they must be tested with a load. You don’t have to discharge the battery to do that. You just attach the load, measure the voltage, and then disconnect the load.
A flashlight is one of the most demanding jobs for a battery... calling it a low drain device is far past nonsense!
Unless LED perhaps
It's high drain very occasional use. In most cases the batteries leak long before they're even partially discharged
Carbon zinc does not leak, and that’s more important for a remote controller
I remember that they do leak. The Ever Ready ones used to.
As with a lot of your commenter's I use rechargeable batteries. What we need is the device manufactures installing a switch in their devices, so you can switch between disposable and rechargeable batteries. My main problem using rechargeable's is their only 1.2 volts, where disposable are 1.5 volts. If you have a device that uses 6 batteries, you have 7.2 volts vs 9.0 volts, some things won't run well.
When I lived in the States I used to take my batteries and empty ink cartridges to Best Buy for recycling since I worked there for some years and there was always one nearby. I don't ever remember being charged anything for buying batteries, or for that matter charging anyone for buying batteries. I'm assuming Best Buy paid for that service, but I don't know.
Depending on the state, the eco cost would either already be incorporated/hidden in the initial price, or the retailer would get an over-generous tax rebate.
In your case, it was likely treated the same as other customer-costed “charitable donations” in the US. Exactly like the promised $1 for $1 donation matching at a Wal-Mart checkout. That they get to count as a $2 write-off on their business taxes.
The eco fee is yet another useless cash grab... As for alkalines, Duracells are absolutely the worst in terms of leaking - they are simply awful. Energizer ultimate lithiums are outstanding in hi drain devices and outperform alkalines in cold temperatures as well, won't leak BUT are expensive. Rechargeable NIMH are the absolute best value for your dollar as they can be recharged hundred or thousands of times. They will work as well as alkalines - and even better in some devices, such as cameras as they maintain a more constant voltage. They do start at a lower voltage than alkalines (roughly 1.3 V vs 1.5 in alkalines), but stay in the 1.2V range for most of the time, while alkalines drop quickly from 1.5V to 1V...
Duracell used to be good in regards to leaking but the quality is gone down hill
Yes it’s a tax lol. That lady is wild for saying no
Rechargeable and you are looking at 7-8 years of reusable life.... what`s the point of the others ??
I think the idea behind charging the eco fee at the point of purchase is to encourage proper disposal of environmentally hazardous products (batteries, electronics, solvents, etc.,), In this arrangement there is no fee to dispose of hazardous products because there is a fee to purchase a product that requires special disposal at the end of its use.
The government gets most things wrong, but I think it got the disposal fee right.
Over 60 years ago, my grandfather used to store new single use dry cell batteries in the freezer. Said they'd stay like new for years. Thaw out and put in service. That was back in the zinc/carbon days before all the newer chemistry. I don't know if Alkalines would still behave like that.
Lol my grandma kept em in the fridge.
They do and it's still a valid storage method
I found one use for zinc carbon cells, I work with an MRI camera and to use a flashlight near the powerful magnet these cells are the only ones that can be used since they are much less magnetic.
years ago i tried rechargeable alkaline batteries. after maybe 30 cycles they are gone. other types don't have the correct voltage.
What you should compare is rechargable vs disposable ones... encouraging something that's single use (no matter how efficient) is still bad.
Also for high power draw application, rechargable will last longer than alkaline one, as they maintain the voltage better.
Why didn't you include rechargeable batteries that are actually much better to use than single-use? This is an old video idea in a new era. Single-use batteries in a pinch, sure, but otherwise, rechargeable is where it's at, for many reasons.
I would indeed say it's a bit of an outdated concept. They could have probably found footage from the '70s explaining the difference between carbon zinc and alkaline.
those two pack Panasonic AAs are great, good amount of power (1000mah) for a ultra cheap rechargable (like 3 bucks a pack for two) and are made by the same company that makes enloop (enloop is a Panasonic brand).
For analog clocks, I think the Zinc Carbon work fine, and since the batteries are a lot cheaper at Dollar stores, I don't mind changing them a little more often. For electrionics, on the other hand, I always try to use Alkaline.
At about 6:50 to 7:00--were those Energizers not the newer ones that say "Max" on them?
I've been doing this for a long time, and there is clearly a huge difference with actual good batteries
Clearly and huge, but you're not very clear and you don't specify how huge or in what way.
@@realSamAndrew I'm assuming he means the different types of batteries, not so much the brands. As seen in this video, alkaline batteries are clearly superior to carbon zinc. Why the latter is still being sold is beyond me.
@@4seeableTV well, you're guessing since he hasn't said. But when one makes a sensational claim, one should back it up with evidence and details.
There's a big difference between zinc and alkaline, but the difference between expensive alkaline and cheap alkaline is minimal.
rechargeable prices wipe everything off the map that isnt a tv remote
I used double AA eveready on my CD player back in the day. One CD and it was done. 😄
What is this a Progressive Insurance commercial?
The thing I don't know about the batteries I buy is when were they made and how long have they been sitting on the store shelves or back in their warehouses.
I guess it is a hit or miss on getting good batteries and at a reasonable price tag.
Thanks for the video.
I once had a whole big package of Duracell batteries that were bad. I don't know what happened, but many were expanded (larger than they should be), so they might have gotten extremely hot somewhere in the supply chain.
Twins! I once had a carton of eggs that consisted of ALL double yolks. I looked it up, and apparently the extra weight sorts them different, and they all end up together. I realize this barely relates to what you're saying haha.
@@JunkBondTrader Happened to us too, years ago.
Sometimes I wonder if some of the Duracell batteries are counterfeit. The packaging that has a pink rabbit on it, might not be the real thing. Energizer uses a bunny so I would think that Duracell wouldn't because maybe Energizer might sue them. Of course I could be wrong.
@@alizahalon the ones I got were from Sam's Club and Duracell did refund me, so at least in my case, they weren't counterfeit. But they may have been handled improperly during transit. They probably had gotten too hot and that is what caused them to swell.
Looking at the prices $30 for 10 of the Energizer $3 each gives 27 hours of low drain. $1.25 for 8 of a the carbon zinc batteries using 7 hours per battery yes, you'll need 4 batteries for equivalent low drain use 28 hours but it'll cost you less than a dollar compared to $3 for energizer. Sorry, how exactly is $3 more cost effective for low drain uses than 63 cents for the dollar store carbon zinc?
this. they never addressed the actual cost. the panasonics are way cheaper than the name brand and work fine in remotes just as it says on their box.