every Duracell I've ever owned (in the last decade of so) has leaked. Almost NONE of the other brands have. It's simply astonishing that they're still in business
I will NEVER buy another Duracell battery EVER! I had some sitting in a bag that I removed from my metal detector just in case they leaked... GLAD I did!
One thing I learned as an electronic technician in the Air Force: if a battery-powered device is going to be "on the shelf" for more than a month, you must remove the batteries first. I still do that with my personal equipment ... usually.
"Copper top" batteries used to be all I would buy up until several years ago, after they decided to cheap out and started using thinner metal for the outer can. For me, they've slimed the innards of at least half a dozen remote controls, a wii-mote, two really nice LED flashlights, ruined a vintage HP-48SX calculator and corroded the inside of an aluminum 5-D Maglight beyond recognition. Yet I've found freebie throw-away batteries labelled "Alkaline Cell" sitting dead for _years_ inside various items that were perfectly fine. So yeah, F**K greedy Duracell and their premium priced, goop leaking shiite cells.
Me too! I trusted Duracells for a long time, but foolishly. I've had so many leak and ruin things, but as they know, it's usually not worth the trouble to make a claim for reimbursement.
Be sure to have safety glasses on when removing leaking cells. I had a friend whose daughter had to be rushed to a local hospital due to the KOH (or K2CO3) popping into her eye when removing a leaking cell. The doctor said that she nearly had to have a cornea implant due to the damage caused by the electrolyte. Also - always be near a sink for emergency eye-wash and/or to wash hands after the leaking battery is removed.
Bought a 36 pack of duracell AAs from Sam's club. Couple months later went to grab a couple and found 10 leaking in the package. Returned them to Sam's for full refund.
My AA Duracells leaked while still in the package. I had them stored in cool dry place for about a year. I found them all immersed in liquid with the wrappers fallen off.
I won't buy duracell anymore. At least 5 -6 times over the last year or two, I have found AA's leaking straight out of the brand new package. Of course there's no way to check for leaks through the packaging. haha, Fran just mentioned this as I write this!!
Early in my electronics career I spent a few years reparing consumer electronics and began a collection of those weird-brand batteries. It was very common for people to bring in radios, cassette players and other portable devices for service and the only real problem was "flat batteries". As often as not, the device still had the original cells in it and they were some unheard-of brand that came with the product. As a result, I had a wall with over 100 different brands of primary cells that always attracted a lot of attention from people who'd only ever heard of EverReady and Duracel. Ah... happy days when I had hair on my head :-)
In the 70's and 80's I used to judge the quality by how many spelling mistakes were on the sleeve, My favourite craptastic ones were marked 'Hig power' (obviously years ahead of the game and powered with Higgs-Bosons!) Now of course with Lithium batteries they do at least give you a fighting chance, who wouldn't want to charge a set of 'Ultra-Fire' cheapo's from eBay? Mmmm, toasty!
@@sofa-lofa4241 There was one brand I always hoped I could add to my collection and I was super-surprised that I never saw any of them in all my years at the bench. This brand was often "standard euquipment" for portable electronic devices, even mentioned on the box. It was the "not included" brand -- virtually all the gear you bought had a big bold label that said "Batteries: Not Included" yet, when you looked inside, they'd forgotten to put *any* batteries (let alone those bearing the branding "Not Included") in the box :-(
Duracell has been banned from my company and my home. Just say no. Interestingly, my experience is that the grey-market Duracells that usually come with devices from China aren't as bad as the domestically-sourced ones. Maybe they are just cheap knock-offs with less electrolytes. Either way, we just get rid of them.
Based on continually finding corroded "DuraLeak" batteries, I'm now avoiding them. Recently I found an old non-Duracell alkaline battery in a long-forgotten device. And it was fine!
100 % correct... while cleaning out my late father's home of 45 years, found almost all Duracell batteries had leaked at 5 to 8 years. Garbage batteries ! Do not use....no others had. I recommend baking soda if you need to clean
Back in the day, all the major brand batteries had a lifetime warranty against leakage. It instructed you to send them the device and they would either repair or replace the whole thing. They even paid the postage. Ahh, those were the days!
Never buy Duracell, I've had so many fail in this manner that I've never buy them again... I made this decision years ago. Energiser are usually great, as are GP or Panasonic.
Duracell in now just a brand name lapped on any random cell, they stopped actually making batteries years ago, and are now, just like many household names, a brand applied to stuff from some other OEM manufacturer.
I had an entire package of brand new Duracells leak all over each other in a new UNOPENED package so I will never buy another one ever again. I hope they go out of business.
To repair corroded terminals I've found that cleaning them with a dremel and then coating them with silver solder almost always saves the day as long as it didn't get the board. You can use regular solder in a pinch, but the harder silver solder holds up a lot better.Also sometimes it takes a little acid flux to get the solder to stick but I've used this to salvage the unsalvageable.
Hi, Fran, and Fran Fans - I recently found that Duracell alkalines had ruined my Zoom Z4 sound recorder, but then noticed that Duracell guaranteed that their batteries wouldn't leak. I contacted Duracell through their Customer Service page, and they sent me a check for the replacement value of the recorder! If something like this happens to you, give it a try. They did recommend removing batteries from devices I don't frequently use. My personal record for battery persistence was for an HP-15c scientific calculator, same set of batteries since I got the calculator in the mid-1980's.
I kind of wonder what the limit for that is. Will they honor it even if it's mostly drainage and extreme temps (outdoors from +35 C for -20C) and a $1500 data logger?
@@WorBlux For really expensive kit, I'd take good care of it. I don't leave my Fluke scope in the car over the week end, try and park in the shade, keep the scope covered with a thick old towel from the sun.
@@trespire It's kind of unavoidable. We have dozens if not hundreds of them scattered in some very remote places all over the continental US for years at a time, protected only by a thin metal box and internal dissecant pack. Paying someone to go check on them even once a month would cost a lot more than loosing one every now and then to battery slime.
@@WorBlux Sorry, I was presuming your data logger was used as a hand held service tool. For long term in-situ applications don't they have a solution that draws / trickle charges off the mains power being measured ? Or is it not permissible to parasitically feed off the mains in any way ? I know an engineer with a Dranetz power monitor that does.
I started using NiCd AA cells when I started my Undergraduate University course in 1978. Ive been using Low Self Discharge NiMH cells from the time that the Sanyo Eneloop came on the market. I have 6 brands of NiMH and always use these in any product that I purchase discarding any supplied Alkaline Batteries. I regularly change the NiMH batteries and recharge them. I have never experienced any leakage issue with NiMH batteries.
Me too. I got a good chinese nimh/li ion charger (liitokala brand) with current control and a very good display and I use Sony/eneloop batteries for almost everything, even for remotes.
Nickel metal hydride self destruct rate is just way too high, alkaline batteries in a TV remote can last years while even if their unused, they will discharge themselves in six months if they are rechargeable. Rechargeables are for everything except for things that last a long time like clocks and smoke alarms.
@ungratefulmetalpansy exactly, when you put such small amount of load on the cells, not only do they actually output the energy less efficiently and therefore reduce the capacity in half, their self discharge rate is so high that you end up replacing them after a month where alkaline would last you 6 months
Indeed, the name is standardized, as is probably also “Super Heavy Duty”. At the time those names were invented, they were probably better than whatever came before them, but their power output is poor compared to alkaline. The good quality ones do have the advantage of keeping their voltage for very long, as shown in this video with Kermit.
5:29 Holy Crap !!~! I've concluded that recently that Duracells are LEAKERS big time ! I thought they were the best , now I'm on the hunt for the 'New Best' ...
Dave from EEVBlog recently tore down some Duracells, turns out it's overpriced to pay for all the research in marketing, not manufacturing. ruclips.net/video/5Q1MPrgea1M/видео.html
They (alkaline) ALL have troubles with leakage, regardless of brand. I've been using the Lithium-Irons for some years: not a single trouble. They are yet a bit expensive, but, IMHO, worth the cost.
@@pyromen321 Kirkland leak as bad as Duracell. Kirkland batteries are made by Duracell. I had both batteries leak in the original package and they were less than two years old.
Fran, one strategy I use is to label things I need to keep long-term track of with a QR code sticker. I bought sheets of 1/2" square labels and used Google Sheets to dynamically generate UUIDs and turn them into the codes. Then I use AirTable to keep track of that item. Works great for warranties, batteries, borrowing, lending, service, etc.
A lot of the old discontinued American brands are coming back stamped onto undeserving product these days. These are not your parents' or grandparents' last-forever shavers (toaster ovens, TVs, record players, stereos, and apparently, batteries).
I decided to check some of my batteries after watching this and would you know it I have an "Energizer Advanced" AAA alkaline battery “made in U.S.A.” with a 2023 expiry that has just started to leak (the 2nd battery of the pair isn’t leaking). Luckily I stopped trusting all alkaline batteries a while ago after I've had dozens of them leak so I never leave them in devices I value so it has only ruined a plastic battery tray and the adjacent alkaline battery (my last two alkaline AAAs). I now mostly use Japanese Panasonic & SANYO rechargeable Ni-MH cells and various lithium primary cells, they’re more expensive but much cheaper in the long run, the price of Ni-MH cells also motivates you not to let them get over-discharged and ruined. I have Ni-MH & lithium cells just over 10 years old and none have leaked. Primary lithium cells are often guaranteed 100% leakproof with no expiry date (although they will still vent if short circuited/overheated). I can also attest to the advantage of serializing your batteries and having an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of them, although it is a fair amount of effort.
Be sure to check Panasonic batteries for country of origin. They also have cheap Chinese ones, although I must say I have not had any issues with them (yet.)
@@RuneTheFirst All of mine are made in Japan, haven't encountered any Chinese made ones although I've heard conflicting rumors they have lower cycle life. I do have ones from before SANYO was acquired by Panasonic and they've gotten better since. I bought the original SANYO super-lattice alloy batteries (now branded Eneloop Pro), they made a big trade off for cycle life to get higher capacity, haven't bought them since.
Indeed - if I don't use it daily I remove batteries now, which sucks for devices that use batteries for backup power only. The battery is never used, but still leaks all over.
WOW! Thanks Fran. This was a very helpful video. We've never had such a problem with leaking batteries as we started having, once we moved to this humid part of the world. Our leaks however are a liquid. I can't tell you how many devices I've trashed or had to clean out over the past 15 years. We've always thought Duracell was the best, so we exclusively use the copper top. We will definitely change and probably to Energizer. Thanks again.
I sold Duracell for decades, mostly Procell, Recently I was looking at some really old equipment that I was getting rid of and found Duracells with expiry dates from the 2000's and they hadn't leaked. Lately a lot of Duracell and Procell haven't even made the one year mark before leaking. Thanks for the Energizer recommendation. A side point, when Procell first came out, we used to sometimes pull the Procell cover off and find a Coppertop cover underneath.
I have Duracells from 2000 that are still fine, where I've had new ones leak in the package. The same is true for Energizers. I suspect some change in formulation was made that makes them far more prone to leak.
They always bought Procell's for the battery powered instruments at work. We had a Honeywell communicator rechargeable battery pac last ten years, don't know what brand it was!
I cleaned up an old remote airplane remote today. 8 Copper-Top AAs. I posted on Facebook how I used vinegar, not the old advice to use baking soda. Along the way I mentioned that I know that Energizers are better at not leaking than Duracell. One of my friends asked how I knew. I dug up this video and told him “Everything I know I learn from Fran.” ;) Thanks, as always. I *love* your show and your style!
My record was my Casio fx-7 calculator from high school with, ironically enough, Duracell Coppertops. They were probably installed ca 1986 and expired in 1993, only to continue working until about 2015, so just about 30 years. I did always use the hard power switch, so that might have helped.
I have just found an old torch that belonged to my parents in a drawer. The battery is an Ever Ready "Blue" No.8 made in France. It is a 3 volt battery, reads 3.17 volts off-load and still gives a good light. With it is a Boots brand SP8 battery which appears to be an unused spare. That one reads zero volts. Neither are leaking, but both bulge a little at their negative ends. I'm pretty sure these batteries have been out of production for many decades.
Great video, in my experience Duracell leak the worst. In my fluke MM with remote display I have to remove the batteries everytime I'm done using it or they will leak.
I have a Boots branded calculator from December 1980 (Xmas present) which untill about 6 months ago was still working on the original AA batteries. I threw them out, just in case, as they were looking a bit suspect.
From my experience, those batteries like the ones you had, contain a small amount of mercury. They could last for a very long time. I have some "D" cells in a flashlight from the 1980's that still light the bulb quite well. I keep it around just to see how long it will go. BTW, they are Duracell. (The old chemistry).
One of the things that people have noticed when it comes to these batteries is that those with some mercury in the cells lasted for much longer and there are people with such from the 1980s that not only haven't leaked but are still holding a charge.
Most fun leak I had was in a logitech mouse. One day the mousepad was kind of wet and slippery in a spot. One of the batteries had leaked (a LOT) and the KOH had drained out the bottom of the mouse. First time I've had a leak escape the battery compartment. Had to disassemble and wash the case & PCB separately with a pretty good amount of water. A complete success except for losing the on/off switch plastic bit.
This has happened with every set of duracells I've purchased in the last 20 years. Learned my lesson, I'll never again buy any Duracell batteries. Owned by THE GREAT ORACLE, Warren Buffet.
At a flea market I was in a pinch for some batteries and saw a pack of like 20 Duracell AA batteries. So I bought them, went home and opened them up then actually looked closer at the name, "Duraking". Needless to say they didn't last too long. I always look closely now.
Thanks for the heads up young lady!! I just remembered that I had four Duracell AA's in my $1000 metal detector!! Yikes- I just hot footed it upstairs to remove them, thankfully no leakage- but if you hadn't done this video- I might be looking for a new machine. You have just justified your Patreon subscription ad infinitum. Thank you.
Decided to check a bunch of toys I had that all used AAAs, and all had switches that disconnect the power from the battery holder. My results were: ThinkGeek: 6/6 leaked (after 5 years storage) Duracell Coppertop: 2/9 leaked (after 4 years storage) Energizer Eco Advanced: 0/6 leaked (after 6 years storage) Energizer Max: 0/2 leaked (after 4 years storage) Energizer Lithium: 0/2 leaked (after 2.5 years storage) I've cleaned out all of them successfully with vinegar and restored the contacts, bringing all of them back to life. Only very minor cosmetic damage to two of the toys due to the electrolyte leaking through. I've now switched all of them over to Energizer Max for the cheaper ones and Energizer Lithium for the more expensive ones, as the chemistry is completely different. Thank you for this video!
"super heavy duty" batteries aren't alkaline, they also aren't designed for the same loads. they are designed for very low current draw over a very long time. these kinds of conditions kill alkaline batteries dead, but alkaline batteries survive high current loads that would kill super heavy duty batteries dead.
low current draw over an extended time (such as smoke detectors), or pulse draws, such as in a remote control. Transistor radios, clock radio, etc. If you know you're going to have a radio and use it a LOT, then use alkaline. If you're going to use it very occasionally for short times, then park it in your glove box, or drawer, then the carbon zincs are better.
I made a light thingy by soldering two AA alkaline cells I got from disposable cameras in series to a green 5mm LED and a 20k ohm resistor. Its been 7 years and the LED its still glowing and the batteries haven't leaked. So i think its more about how well they are made though its true "super heavy duty" batteries suck at high current discharge.
My "favourite" off-brand battery was the Dureday Extra Super, featuring 0% Plumbum. As far as everyday alkalines go, I like the bigclive approved Poundland ones.
I've no expert opinion on battery types, just wanted to comment and say thank you for the videos. Not all of them are interesting to me, but the presentation and information are always top notch. This was recommended after the uh, green goo in the amp video, I think. When I was young and always taking things apart, I encountered the goo. Flash forward some 40 years and now I know what that was all about. Thank you, Fran. You're different in that you don't waste time and effort trying to "fun up" the content. That often means dry and dull, but that isn't the case with your work. It means a lot to even be able to have access to this type of quality material. Between your channel and Technology Connections, I learn a great deal, even about things I thought I had a firm grasp on. My gratitude. Most sincerely.
2 years ago I found a motorcycle intercom. This had been left in a box somewhere for at least 25 years. But the RadioShack AAA alkaline batteries that were in it did not leak yet. No voltage was measurable anymore.
That's why I only use rechargeable Eneloops. Yes it's much bigger upfront investment, but it's far less wasteful than those hopeless alkaline batteries.
I checked to see if anyone else was saying this. I have Eneloops that are well over a decade old and have never had any leak. The upfront investment pales in comparison to having an irreplaceable remote for a vintage CD player or similar ruined. Even a replaceable remote will cost more than a pair of Eneloops. Unfortunately a very few of my devices won't work on the 1.2V of NiMH cells but most do.
Hi Fran - Our volunteer fire department had to send out several damaged air packs for repairs due to leaking Duracell batteries that destroyed the electronic boards inside. The manufacturer recommended Energizer Industrial batteries because they are designed to resist leaking. We've made the switch and so far so good. They've already outlasted the Duracell batteries. Oddly enough, the price of Energizer Industrial was comparable to brand-name alkaline batteries and a little cheaper than the Duracell batteries we threw out. Expensive lesson learned.
Thanks Fran for the information. My “solution” is to remove the batteries, place them into a sandwich bag. Attach the bag to the device using a rubber band. If there is a leak at least the device is still functional.
My late grandad ran an AM radio with crocodile clips on a massive Ever Ready PP9 battery. He would religiously label new batteries with the date it was bought. They averaged 9 years, feeding a radio which was switched on for 10 hours a day every day.
Yes, I have heard of Kingkong batteries. I work for a high-end hifi company and certain products that were manufactured in Vietnam had Kingkong batteries both zinc carbon and alkalines!
From some reason batteries "hate" parallel connnected capacitors (bridging the internal AC resistance when batteries are exhausted). For expensive devices, lithium or rechargeables highly recommended.
I've lost so many flashlights to leaking Duracell batteries! Now there is a new one called 'Energizer MAX' and it is fairly cheap and so far after a few years of use (5 years) I have not had any of them leak in any of my 'emergency' flashlights. There is also Energizer LITHIUM that is double the price and even more leak-proof. If you use your devices a lot, I suggest you go for rechargeables as those never leak, but they do parasitically drain down pretty fast.
I had a horrible experience with these when I was 9 years of age. I don't know how , the batteries leaked a fluid and somehow, that fluid got into my mouth and it was horrible and more or less gave me a horrible taste in my mouth. After learning how dangerous that stuff is, it makes me know that I'm lucky to have been able to make it to 35 years of age.
This is why I now use the Lithium-Iron AAA, AA cells, and also the Lithium-Manganese 9 Volt batteries. No more alkalines here. Too many devices damaged. And those 9 Volt alkalines? The cells within (6 of 'em) have NO VENTING MECHANISM. As in *BOOM* as they gas. Not anecdotal. Many occasions.
@@englishrupe01 I am so sorry. I jumped the gun and just assumed you had confused iron with ion. I had never heard of Lithium-Iron cells before, so it was my ignorance and not your spelling. I consider myself castigated and educated. Neil :-)
If a battery/cell is labelled (Super) Heavy Duty, it almost exclusively means it's of zinc-chloride chemistry. Batteries devoid of Alkaline or Heavy Duty branding are often using more classic zinc-carbon designs such as more ammonium chloride, or poorer quality materials (you may see these labelled General Purpose in some regions). Love the videos Fran!
I, too, once trusted Duracell above all other brands and have, in more recent years, had to clean out leaky Duracells from numerous electronic devices. I've switched to -- of all things -- Amazon batteries, and they have yet to leak in anything. I was stunned.
I switched to rechargable batteries 10 years ago and never bought disposable one ever again. Still today I use the original Duracell rechargeables from 10 years ago and still going. Very economic and environmentally friendly in the long run.
@@VideoArchiveGuy How long it takes for rechargeables to charge does depend on the charger. I do have GP Powerbank v800c charger and it fully charges 4 discharged Eneloop AA cells in around 30 minutes.
I've been replacing battery contacts in things for years, it's usually possible to get something in even if it's a 4mm wide strip of quarter mil brass. In fact, a strip of quarter mil brass is usually the fix for evil battery compartments that don't want to be fixed. Easy to form, you can punch a button in it, you can make a "spring" out of it, and solder sticks to it good. Of course, these days, rechargeable cells are quite the thing. Those low self discharge NiMH are FANTASTIC. I use them in everything except things that have monochrome LCD displays because i find them usually very voltage sensitive. Those tend to take Zinc-Carbon cells in my house, which i think are what you call "acid". Decent enough for low drain stuff, commonly recycled (to my knowledge) and i dont think i've had one leak in 35 years
"heavy duty" is the marketing term for improved zinc/carbon batteries, called "zinc/chloride" batteries. It doesn't seem to be especially a Chinese thing, as i've seen this term quite often on low-cost batteries from european manufacturers, too. Wikipedia has a short paragraph on them: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc%E2%80%93carbon_battery#Zinc-chloride_%22heavy_duty%22_cell . They are still worse than cheap alkaline for (nearly?) all application. I don't think they manufacture any non-"heavy duty" carbon/zinc batteries since 30 years... It's kind of ironic to have the label "heavy duty" on the battery type with the lowest capacity and worst handling of high discharge rate currently on the market, just because 50 years ago there were even worse batteries on the market.
It's been common to use the "heavy duty" labeling on carbon/zinc batteries in the USA at least since the early 80s, when those batteries were still made in the USA.
@@tw11tube Until a few years ago I could find Panasonic "General Purpose" carbon/zinc batteries in dollar stores alongside the "Heavy Duty". You would get more "general purpose" batteries for the dollar, but obviously, less capacity than "heavy duty"
Heavy Duty is the household name for Zinc Chloride----they are better than the old Carbon-zinc. The name was to differentiate it. Not nearly as good as Alkaline though.
Lithium AA cells are a different chemistry from coin or CR123 cells. They have never leaked in my experience and are also more tolerant of heat in storage. They're the only kind that can really survive summer in a car. The problem is that they hold 1.6-1.8V even under load so will kill or stress some devices (incandescent flashlights, though who uses those any more...). For 4xAA devices (like a radio) that will comfortably run down to 4V or so, it often makes sense to use 3 lithium AA and a dummy cell.
FRAN, I PURCHASED IN 1987 A CASIO DW-5600C-9B DIGITAL WATCH. THE WATCH HAS NOW BEEN OPERATING ON THE ORIGINAL FACTORY BATTERY FOR 33-YEARS, ALL FUNCTIONS WORK PERFECTLY. I RESEARCH THE BATTERY TYPE AND THE WATCH USES A MATSUSHITA- CR2016, I WONDER HOW LONG THE BATTERY WILL LAST, WELL TIME WILL TELL!
Crazy too, 10 years ago and back into at least the 90s and 80s Duracell were the batteries you could rely on to not leak. I had a childhood toy that had batteries in it for 15 years, Duracells, didnt leak at all.
i've come across leaky energizers as well, a local garage in the 90s had a batch with them leaking and rotting in the packs, still well within 'install by' date
In recent years, I've found alkalines leaking when they're still not dead. Ooze getting on my fingers, when I'm flipping channels. So, when possible, I've gone back to zinc carbon types. Yes, they only last a 3rd as long. But they tend to only leak, well after they're dead, so out of my device. If I'm not going to use it for a while, I remove the batteries. Most of my gadgets have a power cord, or wallcube. My calipers are old school, and contain no electronics.
For a remote control, you'll never notice the 'reduced life'. I have a remote control that I've replaced the batteries in, maybe five times, in thirty years. Each time, I use Carbon Zinc (SHD), and I've never had them leak. Considering a lot of my devices travel in my car, I'd be replacing them the same amount no matter what the chemistry - so I use the carbon zinc much of the time.
Through the years I've concluded that elevated temperatures seem to greatly accelerate alkaline deterioration... for instance a flashlight stored in the car. Batteries marketed as 'Heavy Duty' & 'Super Heavy Duty' are typically zinc-chloride, and are about the absolute cheapest available... and only a marginal cut over the old time zinc-carbon batteries. Zinc-chlorides are often found in Dollar stores and are typically much lighter in weight than Alkaline. Wikipedia has a pretty good overview. Cool videos, Thanks!
GP is Gold Peak. During the period when the oil companies were buying up the electric car technology they had some involvement in continuing the production of larger format NiMH technology and I am still thankful for that.
Don't worry. Potassium carbonate is pretty safe but it is slightly basic so wash your hands after a few minutes. Potassium hydroxide is worst. It is a strong base. it reacts with the oils in your skin and make soap and glycerol. Don't ever touch leaked NiCd batteries. Cadmium is poisonous.
Totally agree, used Duracell on my expensive collection until I found them leaking through the seams. I Change to the energizer. Luckily I was able to save the items that got damaged. Thank you for explaining the cause.
I've never had carbon zinc batteries leak. Maybe the newer 'heavy duty' versions are just made differently than the old ones; while though the outside can corrodes over time I didn't know there was any liquid to leak. I've even dismantled dead cells for the carbon rod and haven't encountered anything wet.
@@eDoc2020 i've never come across 'leaking' zinc carbons, corroded outer casing, yes, but they hadnt leaked anything, zinc chlorides a different matter, i've had them leak a lot, and some i had it sounded like liquid was slooshing around in them when shook 😲
I had a pair of C cells that expired in 1941 on display with my antique cameras and radios for years and years. Never leaked. Also various Japanese brands going way back into the early days. There are several listings on eBay for old Panasonic radios and tape recorders still in the box with the batteries that they were shipped with still in pristine condition. (Lead, of course.)
I'm sure it is not always on. It has a momentary switch that powers it up, then a mosfet that the chip triggers to keep power on until it is done saying its phrase then it shuts down
Good question. I assumed that there would be a microprocessor that had a microamp draw waiting for the button press. But I suppose it could be possible to design a circuit with no power draw waiting for the button. Sort of a semi-conductor version of a latching relay.
I'm not entirely sure if that makes sense, but my experience with Duracells is that yes, years ago they were great (but expensive), then they started leaking at an alarming rate (while still being expensive), and now that I live in another country (moved to the UK a few years back), I bought a few Duracells that seem to be of a better quality than the other ones. I believe my old ones started coming out of some country that doesn't always manufacture quality goods, and the ones sold here in the UK seem to come from France, so maybe the manufacturing site has something to do with that. Another comment, I'm migrating to rechargeable batteries as well, with the Sanyo Eneloops and respective IKEA ones (that apparently are rebranded Sanyos) currently being my choice, but some devices (like my wireless doorbell) do not accept well the lower voltage produced by NiCad cells, accusing low battery charge after a few days, so unfortunately that is not always a choice.
With all my occasional-use devices like the CAP ESR meter, etc., I leave the batteries out until I want to use the thing. Yes, it adds a few seconds to the job, but I don't worry about them leaking. I keep the batteries in a purpose-made battery-storage container to prevent them making contact and shorting out in storage. Other devices such as the portable DMM, I leave the batteries in, and I swap old for new during the annual "spring forward" DST clock dance. It's the perfect reminder because I do the same for several AA-powered wall clocks. Cheers and be well!
Good and informative video Tnx. My personal experience with batteries is that I've been using Duracell Pro and Industrial grade (ONLY!!!) for years and not even once have I had any problems with it whatsoever. I've also used Panasonic batteries of all sorts and again. zero problems. In my experience if you regularly take the batteries out of any device that doesn't gat used often you wont have problems. On the other hand I've always had trouble with coin cells literally drain over night (while the device was decently off or even worse leaking ! And, Oh.....did I tell you that I simply cannot get enough of your end of video song of yours ??? It is so good that in my eyes it could be a number one hit or something.... :) I love it to bits...:) Thank you.
Ive been enjoying a lot of your content. RUclips has been recommending it to me a lot and its been helping me learn about electronics for projects i make. Subscribed! Thanks for the info Fran and keep it up!
Hi Fran, i have just found your channel and believe it or not you must be me and my brother's long lost sister! It is too scary! When we were small boys in the 1950's every time dad bought us something we either had to tear it apart to see how it worked or try to change it. For instance the small reel to reel tape recorders were just loads of fun. Chemistry kits, and model airplanes were routinely destroyed to see what would happen when we applied changes to their mechanical parts. Erector sets and telephone parts and yoke wire from the picture tube guns were used to do a million things like motors and radios out of the popular electronics and mechanics magazines. Sky and telescope and other magazines kept us interested in everything we could build. Did you ever read about the flame speaker? Anyway you are fun to watch...oh btw I repaired a couple of speakers with cones that were all but gone and put a 15 second video on FB just to have it removed due to "possible copyright infractions!"....I suppose next they will remove my shots of Saturn with the music "fly me to the moon"....well being is there is no tune with the title fly me to Saturn....anyway I hate these copyright lawyers that are buying up everything in sight so nobody will be able to post anything without offending someone....Anyway thanks for your channel.....As they say in the USAF..."Simply Fly!" (ok I made it up but watch a copyright attorney steal it)
That is the reason we've called them Duraduds. I have seen Duracell batteries that corroded in their original packages while still on the shelf in the store. What a lot of people don't know, Duracell was originally Mallory and they were known to make very cheap batteries and never trusted the company's batteries since I was a teenager in the 70's after I purchased a few cells and they didn't work and returned them to the store and tried replacing them but we (the clerk and myself) determined that most of the Mallory batteries in their inventory were dead or almost dead. According to the clerk, these batteries were not old stock and were recently received (less than 6 months) in stock.
i've started making the change to Li-Ion 9V cells and round cells, which come with a USB connection for recharging. I love em, the 9Vs especially. I drilled a hole in a couple of my 9V toys so i could plug them up while in-circuit.
GP is great. Here in Israel the larger brands, such as Energizer and Duracell, sell B-grade batteries as we are considered MENA (Middle East North Africa). Only GP sells A-grade batteries here. Oh, and nice EEVblog multimeter!
The thing about the "super heavy duty battery" is that it does not put out as much voltage as alkaline batteries. It was designed for much older devices that required less voltage. Sometimes you can blow up an old device by putting alkaline batteries in them. (Because of the higher voltage.)
Speaking of tv remotes, I don't know if anyone else has said it on here, about a quick & dirty check. If you have a smartphone with a camera (who doesn't), you can point your tv or dvd player's remote at the camera, press any button on it, & if your camera "sees" white light flickering or solid ON, from the remote's IR led, then the batteries are likely ok in the remote. Your naked eyes can't see this, but yet the camera's CCD can. I haven't yet tried this with a regular digital camera, but it should work also.
Great idea labeling each product with date battery installed and type or label stating batteries removed.... I have gone to doing that for years. Saved a lot of head aches. My wife buys a lot of toys at garage sales for grandkids and most of them have dead batteries but few are corroded. Amazing.... maybe “green cells”. Dave K8WPE since 1960
I finally figured out what the blinking letters was in the back I figured Fran but I didn't catch the last part You've kind of become my new superhero scientist
Duracell feels it is better to pay the customer for the damages than to make a reliable battery. Duracell has bought me: 1. Microsoft wireless keyboard & Mouse 2. A alarm clock 3. Several flash lights costing over $40+ dollars each. They always ask where are the batteries being stores? I tell them "In a Cool Dry Place". They send me coupons to buy more Duracell Batteries and give them away at Christmas along with things that run on those batteries. I have started buying Sam's Club batteries. They seem to hold up.
every Duracell I've ever owned (in the last decade of so) has leaked.
Almost NONE of the other brands have. It's simply astonishing that they're still in business
I have the same results you did. I had an entire package of Duracells leak inside an UNOPENED package. I will never buy another one.
Yes, the Duracells are way worse than any other brand as well as being more expensive!
I will NEVER buy another Duracell battery EVER! I had some sitting in a bag that I removed from my metal detector just in case they leaked... GLAD I did!
Same here since about 2000 before that never noticed. Energizer maybe once
When the tv remote starts to go who on here opens up the back and rolls the batteries backwards and forwards a few times 🤣
I always do !!😊
My Samsung's remote frequently stopped working, even with new batteries. It helped to roll them, but it was so often, I had to change the remote.
In a real pinch, warm them with your hand (without extracting them) to get a little more power out.
Yup. I do that with many battery-powered devices. It helps to scrub oxides off the contacts.
I simply press the buttons harder.... 🤣
I've never said, "Oh, no, the humanity!..." when finding leaky batteries -- but I will from now on!
Me neither, I usually go into a wild cursing fit. 🤣
I say it every time I see a huge zeppelin crash and when I find leaky batteries. It's not very often nowadays.
I will not.
I usually go with "Well, ffff..."
I thought maybe she meant to say humidity.
Humidity stops battery watches from working.
One thing I learned as an electronic technician in the Air Force: if a battery-powered device is going to be "on the shelf" for more than a month, you must remove the batteries first. I still do that with my personal equipment ... usually.
Whenever I forget to remove the batteries, it's guaranteed that those batteries will leak.
fortunately it takes like 3 years for this but remotes tend to suffer in my household
"Copper top" batteries used to be all I would buy up until several years ago, after they decided to cheap out and started using thinner metal for the outer can. For me, they've slimed the innards of at least half a dozen remote controls, a wii-mote, two really nice LED flashlights, ruined a vintage HP-48SX calculator and corroded the inside of an aluminum 5-D Maglight beyond recognition. Yet I've found freebie throw-away batteries labelled "Alkaline Cell" sitting dead for _years_ inside various items that were perfectly fine. So yeah, F**K greedy Duracell and their premium priced, goop leaking shiite cells.
Me too! I trusted Duracells for a long time, but foolishly. I've had so many leak and ruin things, but as they know, it's usually not worth the trouble to make a claim for reimbursement.
Be sure to have safety glasses on when removing leaking cells. I had a friend whose daughter had to be rushed to a local hospital due to the KOH (or K2CO3) popping into her eye when removing a leaking cell. The doctor said that she nearly had to have a cornea implant due to the damage caused by the electrolyte. Also - always be near a sink for emergency eye-wash and/or to wash hands after the leaking battery is removed.
Good advice
Bought a 36 pack of duracell AAs from Sam's club. Couple months later went to grab a couple and found 10 leaking in the package.
Returned them to Sam's for full refund.
I had the same but contacted Duracell and they sent coupons to replace them 2x over.
Don’t buy them at Walmart or sams club,,every other store is ok
When you find big deals on batteries it's often because they're very old. Especially dollar store batteries.
My AA Duracells leaked while still in the package. I had them stored in cool dry place for about a year.
I found them all immersed in liquid with the wrappers fallen off.
Wow!🤬
I bought a bulk carton of Energizer, and 3 out of the 20? Leaked. Powder not liquid. The Duracell piss out it's contents inside.
I won't buy duracell anymore. At least 5 -6 times over the last year or two, I have found AA's leaking straight out of the brand new package. Of course there's no way to check for leaks through the packaging. haha, Fran just mentioned this as I write this!!
spicy pillows more like spicy smarties
Early in my electronics career I spent a few years reparing consumer electronics and began a collection of those weird-brand batteries. It was very common for people to bring in radios, cassette players and other portable devices for service and the only real problem was "flat batteries". As often as not, the device still had the original cells in it and they were some unheard-of brand that came with the product. As a result, I had a wall with over 100 different brands of primary cells that always attracted a lot of attention from people who'd only ever heard of EverReady and Duracel. Ah... happy days when I had hair on my head :-)
xjet did you loose your hair because of all those rotting batteries? 😂
@@ghiagoo :-D
In the 70's and 80's I used to judge the quality by how many spelling mistakes were on the sleeve,
My favourite craptastic ones were marked 'Hig power' (obviously years ahead of the game and powered with Higgs-Bosons!)
Now of course with Lithium batteries they do at least give you a fighting chance, who wouldn't want to charge a set of 'Ultra-Fire' cheapo's from eBay? Mmmm, toasty!
@@sofa-lofa4241 There was one brand I always hoped I could add to my collection and I was super-surprised that I never saw any of them in all my years at the bench. This brand was often "standard euquipment" for portable electronic devices, even mentioned on the box. It was the "not included" brand -- virtually all the gear you bought had a big bold label that said "Batteries: Not Included" yet, when you looked inside, they'd forgotten to put *any* batteries (let alone those bearing the branding "Not Included") in the box :-(
Omg, I would love to see that board! Did you take a picture of it at some point?
Another thumbs down on Duracell, especially the AAs - I stopped buying them.
Duracell has been banned from my company and my home. Just say no.
Interestingly, my experience is that the grey-market Duracells that usually come with devices from China aren't as bad as the domestically-sourced ones. Maybe they are just cheap knock-offs with less electrolytes. Either way, we just get rid of them.
I also had a lot of problems with Duracell so I no longer use them.
Based on continually finding corroded "DuraLeak" batteries, I'm now avoiding them. Recently I found an old non-Duracell alkaline battery in a long-forgotten device. And it was fine!
Agreed, I stopped using Duracell years ago. Out of all the various brands Duracell were the ones that invariably leaked.
100 % correct... while cleaning out my late father's home of 45 years, found almost all Duracell batteries had leaked at 5 to 8 years. Garbage batteries ! Do not use....no others had. I recommend baking soda if you need to clean
There's a very easy way to prevent damage from leaking batteries: coat the battery holder contacts with dielectric grease (best) or petroleum jelly.
Back in the day, all the major brand batteries had a lifetime warranty against leakage. It instructed you to send them the device and they would either repair or replace the whole thing. They even paid the postage. Ahh, those were the days!
Never buy Duracell, I've had so many fail in this manner that I've never buy them again... I made this decision years ago. Energiser are usually great, as are GP or Panasonic.
I just had this happen, and yup… Duracell! Turns out they ain't so durable?
You pay for the brand, pure scam
I've had plenty of Energizers fail like that over the years as well
@@TheJunky228 Same. my lil mart mostly has energizers and they leak just as good. Almost lost a line6 wireless mic with them.
Duracell in now just a brand name lapped on any random cell, they stopped actually making batteries years ago, and are now, just like many household names, a brand applied to stuff from some other OEM manufacturer.
OMG I'm so glad someone spotlighted my favorite battery to hate for the leaking. Been preaching against leaking Dur.. for decades. Thanks Fran!
I had an entire package of brand new Duracells leak all over each other in a new UNOPENED package so I will never buy another one ever again. I hope they go out of business.
Glad you mentioned the GP cells, they are surprisingly trouble-free and often supplied with better quality devices as "starter" batteries.
To repair corroded terminals I've found that cleaning them with a dremel and then coating them with silver solder almost always saves the day as long as it didn't get the board. You can use regular solder in a pinch, but the harder silver solder holds up a lot better.Also sometimes it takes a little acid flux to get the solder to stick but I've used this to salvage the unsalvageable.
DuraLeak are the worst
Hi, Fran, and Fran Fans - I recently found that Duracell alkalines had ruined my Zoom Z4 sound recorder, but then noticed that Duracell guaranteed that their batteries wouldn't leak. I contacted Duracell through their Customer Service page, and they sent me a check for the replacement value of the recorder! If something like this happens to you, give it a try. They did recommend removing batteries from devices I don't frequently use.
My personal record for battery persistence was for an HP-15c scientific calculator, same set of batteries since I got the calculator in the mid-1980's.
I kind of wonder what the limit for that is. Will they honor it even if it's mostly drainage and extreme temps (outdoors from +35 C for -20C) and a $1500 data logger?
@@WorBlux For really expensive kit, I'd take good care of it. I don't leave my Fluke scope in the car over the week end, try and park in the shade, keep the scope covered with a thick old towel from the sun.
I have had the same HP calculator battery experience, with an HP-16C... the original batteries lasted more than 30 years...
@@trespire It's kind of unavoidable. We have dozens if not hundreds of them scattered in some very remote places all over the continental US for years at a time, protected only by a thin metal box and internal dissecant pack. Paying someone to go check on them even once a month would cost a lot more than loosing one every now and then to battery slime.
@@WorBlux Sorry, I was presuming your data logger was used as a hand held service tool. For long term in-situ applications don't they have a solution that draws / trickle charges off the mains power being measured ? Or is it not permissible to parasitically feed off the mains in any way ? I know an engineer with a Dranetz power monitor that does.
I started using NiCd AA cells when I started my Undergraduate University course in 1978. Ive been using Low Self Discharge NiMH cells from the time that the Sanyo Eneloop came on the market. I have 6 brands of NiMH and always use these in any product that I purchase discarding any supplied Alkaline Batteries. I regularly change the NiMH batteries and recharge them. I have never experienced any leakage issue with NiMH batteries.
Me too. I got a good chinese nimh/li ion charger (liitokala brand) with current control and a very good display and I use Sony/eneloop batteries for almost everything, even for remotes.
Nickel metal hydride self destruct rate is just way too high, alkaline batteries in a TV remote can last years while even if their unused, they will discharge themselves in six months if they are rechargeable. Rechargeables are for everything except for things that last a long time like clocks and smoke alarms.
@ungratefulmetalpansy exactly, when you put such small amount of load on the cells, not only do they actually output the energy less efficiently and therefore reduce the capacity in half, their self discharge rate is so high that you end up replacing them after a month where alkaline would last you 6 months
@ungratefulmetalpansy that more depends on the quality of your cells
@@pilotavery ever tried the low self discharge NiMH? They keep charge for years
Friends don't let friends use Duracell.
I started buying Duracells because I had too much equipment destroyed by leaking Energizers.
@@jamesslick4790 I've had several Maglites destroyed by leaking Energizers.
At the end of the day, ALL alkaline batteries leak. It's an inherent flaw to the technology.
Use Eneloops. If your device doesn't support rechargeable batteries it's crap. If you disagree with this statement...
I opened up an 80s boss flanger yesterday I got for a bargain and it had a green cell! Expired sep 2000! No charge left though. Love you're work Fran.
Heavy Duty means it’s Zinc Chloride, not Alkaline
Indeed, the name is standardized, as is probably also “Super Heavy Duty”. At the time those names were invented, they were probably better than whatever came before them, but their power output is poor compared to alkaline. The good quality ones do have the advantage of keeping their voltage for very long, as shown in this video with Kermit.
5:29 Holy Crap !!~! I've concluded that recently that Duracells are LEAKERS big time ! I thought they were the best , now I'm on the hunt for the 'New Best' ...
Dave from EEVBlog recently tore down some Duracells, turns out it's overpriced to pay for all the research in marketing, not manufacturing.
ruclips.net/video/5Q1MPrgea1M/видео.html
That's damn right! Duracell is the king of leakers. I neved had any other brand leaking, only the frigging Duracell.
They (alkaline) ALL have troubles with leakage, regardless of brand.
I've been using the Lithium-Irons for some years: not a single trouble.
They are yet a bit expensive, but, IMHO, worth the cost.
Kirkland have been my go-to for the last 10 years. I’ve only had one leak in that time.
@@pyromen321 Kirkland leak as bad as Duracell. Kirkland batteries are made by Duracell. I had both batteries leak in the original package and they were less than two years old.
Fran, one strategy I use is to label things I need to keep long-term track of with a QR code sticker. I bought sheets of 1/2" square labels and used Google Sheets to dynamically generate UUIDs and turn them into the codes. Then I use AirTable to keep track of that item. Works great for warranties, batteries, borrowing, lending, service, etc.
GP greens are pretty common to be included with TV remotes. Pretty sure they often outlast the TV with the quality of cheap TV's these days 😂
I wanted to see Kermit the Frog with the GP batteries talking, would have been nice 🙂
Fran - re Sunbeam make - see Technology Connections' vid about the 50s Sunbeam toaster - you won't be disappointed :o)))
I have a Sunbeam electric razor! It was my dad's in the late 60's or early 70's.
The auto toaster is pretty neat
I grew up with that toaster and was always fascinated by it - really enjoyed learning how the mechanism operated!
I am thinking motorcycles or cars.
A lot of the old discontinued American brands are coming back stamped onto undeserving product these days. These are not your parents' or grandparents' last-forever shavers (toaster ovens, TVs, record players, stereos, and apparently, batteries).
I decided to check some of my batteries after watching this and would you know it I have an "Energizer Advanced" AAA alkaline battery “made in U.S.A.” with a 2023 expiry that has just started to leak (the 2nd battery of the pair isn’t leaking). Luckily I stopped trusting all alkaline batteries a while ago after I've had dozens of them leak so I never leave them in devices I value so it has only ruined a plastic battery tray and the adjacent alkaline battery (my last two alkaline AAAs).
I now mostly use Japanese Panasonic & SANYO rechargeable Ni-MH cells and various lithium primary cells, they’re more expensive but much cheaper in the long run, the price of Ni-MH cells also motivates you not to let them get over-discharged and ruined. I have Ni-MH & lithium cells just over 10 years old and none have leaked. Primary lithium cells are often guaranteed 100% leakproof with no expiry date (although they will still vent if short circuited/overheated).
I can also attest to the advantage of serializing your batteries and having an Excel spreadsheet to keep track of them, although it is a fair amount of effort.
Yuassa I pretty good too
Be sure to check Panasonic batteries for country of origin. They also have cheap Chinese ones, although I must say I have not had any issues with them (yet.)
@@RuneTheFirst All of mine are made in Japan, haven't encountered any Chinese made ones although I've heard conflicting rumors they have lower cycle life. I do have ones from before SANYO was acquired by Panasonic and they've gotten better since. I bought the original SANYO super-lattice alloy batteries (now branded Eneloop Pro), they made a big trade off for cycle life to get higher capacity, haven't bought them since.
Indeed - if I don't use it daily I remove batteries now, which sucks for devices that use batteries for backup power only. The battery is never used, but still leaks all over.
WOW! Thanks Fran. This was a very helpful video. We've never had such a problem with leaking batteries as we started having, once we moved to this humid part of the world. Our leaks however are a liquid. I can't tell you how many devices I've trashed or had to clean out over the past 15 years. We've always thought Duracell was the best, so we exclusively use the copper top. We will definitely change and probably to Energizer. Thanks again.
I sold Duracell for decades, mostly Procell, Recently I was looking at some really old equipment that I was getting rid of and found Duracells with expiry dates from the 2000's and they hadn't leaked. Lately a lot of Duracell and Procell haven't even made the one year mark before leaking. Thanks for the Energizer recommendation. A side point, when Procell first came out, we used to sometimes pull the Procell cover off and find a Coppertop cover underneath.
I started buying Duracells because I had leaking Energizers destroy several devices.
I have Duracells from 2000 that are still fine, where I've had new ones leak in the package.
The same is true for Energizers.
I suspect some change in formulation was made that makes them far more prone to leak.
They always bought Procell's for the battery powered instruments at work. We had a Honeywell communicator rechargeable battery pac last ten years, don't know what brand it was!
Dave Jones also did a few videos on batteries, and trying to measure when they would leak.
That was one of your most interesting/educational videos in a while.
Fran talking about alkaline batteries was something I didn't know I needed in my life until now. Don't ever stop being you Fran :)
I cleaned up an old remote airplane remote today. 8 Copper-Top AAs. I posted on Facebook how I used vinegar, not the old advice to use baking soda. Along the way I mentioned that I know that Energizers are better at not leaking than Duracell. One of my friends asked how I knew. I dug up this video and told him “Everything I know I learn from Fran.” ;)
Thanks, as always. I *love* your show and your style!
Welcome back to the lab!
My record was my Casio fx-7 calculator from high school with, ironically enough, Duracell Coppertops. They were probably installed ca 1986 and expired in 1993, only to continue working until about 2015, so just about 30 years. I did always use the hard power switch, so that might have helped.
Yep, in those days they were the best! Sadly not any more. A good name wasted.
I have just found an old torch that belonged to my parents in a drawer. The battery is an Ever Ready "Blue" No.8 made in France. It is a 3 volt battery, reads 3.17 volts off-load and still gives a good light. With it is a Boots brand SP8 battery which appears to be an unused spare. That one reads zero volts. Neither are leaking, but both bulge a little at their negative ends. I'm pretty sure these batteries have been out of production for many decades.
I love you especially when you say "the humanity" 🤣😂 like the reporter veiwing the burning up of the Hindenburg. Great statement.
Great video, in my experience Duracell leak the worst. In my fluke MM with remote display I have to remove the batteries everytime I'm done using it or they will leak.
I have a Boots branded calculator from December 1980 (Xmas present) which untill about 6 months ago was still working on the original AA batteries. I threw them out, just in case, as they were looking a bit suspect.
From my experience, those batteries like the ones you had, contain a small amount of mercury. They could last for a very long time. I have some "D" cells in a flashlight from the 1980's that still light the bulb quite well. I keep it around just to see how long it will go. BTW, they are Duracell. (The old chemistry).
One of the things that people have noticed when it comes to these batteries is that those with some mercury in the cells lasted for much longer and there are people with such from the 1980s that not only haven't leaked but are still holding a charge.
Most fun leak I had was in a logitech mouse. One day the mousepad was kind of wet and slippery in a spot. One of the batteries had leaked (a LOT) and the KOH had drained out the bottom of the mouse. First time I've had a leak escape the battery compartment. Had to disassemble and wash the case & PCB separately with a pretty good amount of water. A complete success except for losing the on/off switch plastic bit.
This has happened with every set of duracells I've purchased in the last 20 years. Learned my lesson, I'll never again buy any Duracell batteries. Owned by THE GREAT ORACLE, Warren Buffet.
At a flea market I was in a pinch for some batteries and saw a pack of like 20 Duracell AA batteries. So I bought them, went home and opened them up then actually looked closer at the name, "Duraking". Needless to say they didn't last too long. I always look closely now.
Thanks for the heads up young lady!! I just remembered that I had four Duracell AA's in my $1000 metal detector!! Yikes- I just hot footed it upstairs to remove them, thankfully no leakage- but if you hadn't done this video- I might be looking for a new machine. You have just justified your Patreon subscription ad infinitum. Thank you.
Decided to check a bunch of toys I had that all used AAAs, and all had switches that disconnect the power from the battery holder. My results were:
ThinkGeek: 6/6 leaked (after 5 years storage)
Duracell Coppertop: 2/9 leaked (after 4 years storage)
Energizer Eco Advanced: 0/6 leaked (after 6 years storage)
Energizer Max: 0/2 leaked (after 4 years storage)
Energizer Lithium: 0/2 leaked (after 2.5 years storage)
I've cleaned out all of them successfully with vinegar and restored the contacts, bringing all of them back to life. Only very minor cosmetic damage to two of the toys due to the electrolyte leaking through. I've now switched all of them over to Energizer Max for the cheaper ones and Energizer Lithium for the more expensive ones, as the chemistry is completely different.
Thank you for this video!
"super heavy duty" batteries aren't alkaline, they also aren't designed for the same loads. they are designed for very low current draw over a very long time. these kinds of conditions kill alkaline batteries dead, but alkaline batteries survive high current loads that would kill super heavy duty batteries dead.
So, like for a clock? TV remote?
@@lachlan1971 Lower even than that, more like the standby power.
Pandaren Death Knight
Alkaline batteries work fine under low load. Manufacturers use whatever is cheapest in remotes and such.
low current draw over an extended time (such as smoke detectors), or pulse draws, such as in a remote control. Transistor radios, clock radio, etc. If you know you're going to have a radio and use it a LOT, then use alkaline. If you're going to use it very occasionally for short times, then park it in your glove box, or drawer, then the carbon zincs are better.
I made a light thingy by soldering two AA alkaline cells I got from disposable cameras in series to a green 5mm LED and a 20k ohm resistor. Its been 7 years and the LED its still glowing and the batteries haven't leaked. So i think its more about how well they are made though its true "super heavy duty" batteries suck at high current discharge.
My "favourite" off-brand battery was the Dureday Extra Super, featuring 0% Plumbum.
As far as everyday alkalines go, I like the bigclive approved Poundland ones.
Kodak alkaline batteries, I've had a few of the AA & AAA versions leak whilst still in the packet & years before the expiry date.
It has to be said, FRAN, YOU ARE GORGEOUS!!!
I've no expert opinion on battery types, just wanted to comment and say thank you for the videos. Not all of them are interesting to me, but the presentation and information are always top notch. This was recommended after the uh, green goo in the amp video, I think. When I was young and always taking things apart, I encountered the goo. Flash forward some 40 years and now I know what that was all about. Thank you, Fran. You're different in that you don't waste time and effort trying to "fun up" the content. That often means dry and dull, but that isn't the case with your work. It means a lot to even be able to have access to this type of quality material. Between your channel and Technology Connections, I learn a great deal, even about things I thought I had a firm grasp on. My gratitude. Most sincerely.
2 years ago I found a motorcycle intercom. This had been left in a box somewhere for at least 25 years. But the RadioShack AAA alkaline batteries that were in it did not leak yet. No voltage was measurable anymore.
That's why I only use rechargeable Eneloops. Yes it's much bigger upfront investment, but it's far less wasteful than those hopeless alkaline batteries.
I checked to see if anyone else was saying this. I have Eneloops that are well over a decade old and have never had any leak. The upfront investment pales in comparison to having an irreplaceable remote for a vintage CD player or similar ruined. Even a replaceable remote will cost more than a pair of Eneloops. Unfortunately a very few of my devices won't work on the 1.2V of NiMH cells but most do.
Hi Fran - Our volunteer fire department had to send out several damaged air packs for repairs due to leaking Duracell batteries that destroyed the electronic boards inside. The manufacturer recommended Energizer Industrial batteries because they are designed to resist leaking. We've made the switch and so far so good. They've already outlasted the Duracell batteries. Oddly enough, the price of Energizer Industrial was comparable to brand-name alkaline batteries and a little cheaper than the Duracell batteries we threw out. Expensive lesson learned.
Thanks Fran for the information. My “solution” is to remove the batteries, place them into a sandwich bag. Attach the bag to the device using a rubber band. If there is a leak at least the device is still functional.
My late father always stuck a label on battery compartments saying when he changed batteries.
My late grandad ran an AM radio with crocodile clips on a massive Ever Ready PP9 battery. He would religiously label new batteries with the date it was bought. They averaged 9 years, feeding a radio which was switched on for 10 hours a day every day.
Yes, I have heard of Kingkong batteries. I work for a high-end hifi company and certain products that were manufactured in Vietnam had Kingkong batteries both zinc carbon and alkalines!
From some reason batteries "hate" parallel connnected capacitors (bridging the internal AC resistance when batteries are exhausted). For expensive devices, lithium or rechargeables highly recommended.
I've lost so many flashlights to leaking Duracell batteries! Now there is a new one called 'Energizer MAX' and it is fairly cheap and so far after a few years of use (5 years) I have not had any of them leak in any of my 'emergency' flashlights. There is also Energizer LITHIUM that is double the price and even more leak-proof. If you use your devices a lot, I suggest you go for rechargeables as those never leak, but they do parasitically drain down pretty fast.
Very interesting.
Sunbeam makes small appliances. Or they did.
Thanks!
I love to use rechargeable batteries for my devices, no leaking and great for my photo gear.
I had a horrible experience with these when I was 9 years of age. I don't know how , the batteries leaked a fluid and somehow, that fluid got into my mouth and it was horrible and more or less gave me a horrible taste in my mouth. After learning how dangerous that stuff is, it makes me know that I'm lucky to have been able to make it to 35 years of age.
One thing I haven’t heard much discussion about is counterfeit batteries.
This is why I now use the Lithium-Iron AAA, AA cells, and also the Lithium-Manganese 9 Volt batteries.
No more alkalines here. Too many devices damaged.
And those 9 Volt alkalines? The cells within (6 of 'em) have NO VENTING MECHANISM.
As in *BOOM* as they gas. Not anecdotal. Many occasions.
Lithium-Ion lol.
@@TazR6
No. I meant Lithium/Iron Disulfide (Li/FeS2)
Non-rechargeable.
Look it up.
"LOL" back at ya'. ;-)
@@TazR6 Oops! A little quick there. Now ya gotta apologize!
@@englishrupe01 I am so sorry. I jumped the gun and just assumed you had confused iron with ion. I had never heard of Lithium-Iron cells before, so it was my ignorance and not your spelling.
I consider myself castigated and educated.
Neil :-)
@@TazR6 Lol, very well done there! Good apology and well castigated. Shows your mum taught you well!
I think Duracell AA is of lower quality since shifting production to PRC , (China).
If a battery/cell is labelled (Super) Heavy Duty, it almost exclusively means it's of zinc-chloride chemistry. Batteries devoid of Alkaline or Heavy Duty branding are often using more classic zinc-carbon designs such as more ammonium chloride, or poorer quality materials (you may see these labelled General Purpose in some regions). Love the videos Fran!
I, too, once trusted Duracell above all other brands and have, in more recent years, had to clean out leaky Duracells from numerous electronic devices. I've switched to -- of all things -- Amazon batteries, and they have yet to leak in anything. I was stunned.
I switched to rechargable batteries 10 years ago and never bought disposable one ever again. Still today I use the original Duracell rechargeables from 10 years ago and still going. Very economic and environmentally friendly in the long run.
Rechargeables don't last as long and it takes way too long to charge them.
I use Eneloops in a camera and they take about three hours to recharge.
@@VideoArchiveGuy I use rechargable batteries for remotes/clocks/wii controllers. Cameras are power hungry devices lol
@@VideoArchiveGuy How long it takes for rechargeables to charge does depend on the charger. I do have GP Powerbank v800c charger and it fully charges 4 discharged Eneloop AA cells in around 30 minutes.
The funniest AA's name I ever came across was...."Lusty".
Flying Bomb is my favorite bad battery
I've been replacing battery contacts in things for years, it's usually possible to get something in even if it's a 4mm wide strip of quarter mil brass. In fact, a strip of quarter mil brass is usually the fix for evil battery compartments that don't want to be fixed. Easy to form, you can punch a button in it, you can make a "spring" out of it, and solder sticks to it good. Of course, these days, rechargeable cells are quite the thing. Those low self discharge NiMH are FANTASTIC. I use them in everything except things that have monochrome LCD displays because i find them usually very voltage sensitive. Those tend to take Zinc-Carbon cells in my house, which i think are what you call "acid". Decent enough for low drain stuff, commonly recycled (to my knowledge) and i dont think i've had one leak in 35 years
I have a simple continuity tester with an Energizer AA battery that I got when I was 21, which was 47 years ago. I rarely use it, but it still works.
Heavy Duty usually refers to carbon-zinc cells.
"heavy duty" they seem to always stick on the carbon/zinc batteries.
Exactly ! Especially in Chinese batteries
"heavy duty" is the marketing term for improved zinc/carbon batteries, called "zinc/chloride" batteries. It doesn't seem to be especially a Chinese thing, as i've seen this term quite often on low-cost batteries from european manufacturers, too. Wikipedia has a short paragraph on them: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc%E2%80%93carbon_battery#Zinc-chloride_%22heavy_duty%22_cell . They are still worse than cheap alkaline for (nearly?) all application. I don't think they manufacture any non-"heavy duty" carbon/zinc batteries since 30 years...
It's kind of ironic to have the label "heavy duty" on the battery type with the lowest capacity and worst handling of high discharge rate currently on the market, just because 50 years ago there were even worse batteries on the market.
It's been common to use the "heavy duty" labeling on carbon/zinc batteries in the USA at least since the early 80s, when those batteries were still made in the USA.
@@tw11tube Until a few years ago I could find Panasonic "General Purpose" carbon/zinc batteries in dollar stores alongside the "Heavy Duty". You would get more "general purpose" batteries for the dollar, but obviously, less capacity than "heavy duty"
Heavy Duty is the household name for Zinc Chloride----they are better than the old Carbon-zinc. The name was to differentiate it. Not nearly as good as Alkaline though.
Lithium AA cells are a different chemistry from coin or CR123 cells. They have never leaked in my experience and are also more tolerant of heat in storage. They're the only kind that can really survive summer in a car. The problem is that they hold 1.6-1.8V even under load so will kill or stress some devices (incandescent flashlights, though who uses those any more...). For 4xAA devices (like a radio) that will comfortably run down to 4V or so, it often makes sense to use 3 lithium AA and a dummy cell.
FRAN, I PURCHASED IN 1987 A CASIO DW-5600C-9B DIGITAL WATCH. THE WATCH HAS NOW BEEN OPERATING ON THE ORIGINAL FACTORY BATTERY FOR 33-YEARS, ALL FUNCTIONS WORK PERFECTLY. I RESEARCH THE BATTERY TYPE AND THE WATCH USES A MATSUSHITA- CR2016, I WONDER HOW LONG THE BATTERY WILL LAST, WELL TIME WILL TELL!
I’ve had nothing but trouble with Duracell’s. But have had much better luck with Energizers....
Crazy too, 10 years ago and back into at least the 90s and 80s Duracell were the batteries you could rely on to not leak. I had a childhood toy that had batteries in it for 15 years, Duracells, didnt leak at all.
The Gillette Duracells where great. The P&G ones (or after), especially the Chinese-made ones, are not so good.
i've come across leaky energizers as well, a local garage in the 90s had a batch with them leaking and rotting in the packs, still well within 'install by' date
In recent years, I've found alkalines leaking when they're still not dead. Ooze getting on my fingers, when I'm flipping channels. So, when possible, I've gone back to zinc carbon types. Yes, they only last a 3rd as long. But they tend to only leak, well after they're dead, so out of my device. If I'm not going to use it for a while, I remove the batteries. Most of my gadgets have a power cord, or wallcube.
My calipers are old school, and contain no electronics.
For a remote control, you'll never notice the 'reduced life'. I have a remote control that I've replaced the batteries in, maybe five times, in thirty years. Each time, I use Carbon Zinc (SHD), and I've never had them leak. Considering a lot of my devices travel in my car, I'd be replacing them the same amount no matter what the chemistry - so I use the carbon zinc much of the time.
Through the years I've concluded that elevated temperatures seem to greatly accelerate alkaline deterioration... for instance a flashlight stored in the car.
Batteries marketed as 'Heavy Duty' & 'Super Heavy Duty' are typically zinc-chloride, and are about the absolute cheapest available... and only a marginal cut over the old time zinc-carbon batteries. Zinc-chlorides are often found in Dollar stores and are typically much lighter in weight than Alkaline. Wikipedia has a pretty good overview. Cool videos, Thanks!
GP is Gold Peak. During the period when the oil companies were buying up the electric car technology they had some involvement in continuing the production of larger format NiMH technology and I am still thankful for that.
"duracell claim non leak" yeah right
"It's like table salt. Holy crap don't let it touch you!" This seems like advice for snails.
Don't worry. Potassium carbonate is pretty safe but it is slightly basic so wash your hands after a few minutes. Potassium hydroxide is worst. It is a strong base. it reacts with the oils in your skin and make soap and glycerol. Don't ever touch leaked NiCd batteries. Cadmium is poisonous.
I've had Duracell batteries that are 9 years old and still going. Energiser are my favourite batteries too. Good video.
Totally agree, used Duracell on my expensive collection until I found them leaking through the seams. I Change to the energizer. Luckily I was able to save the items that got damaged. Thank you for explaining the cause.
I too remember the carnage of zinc carbon cells. :-(
I've never had carbon zinc batteries leak. Maybe the newer 'heavy duty' versions are just made differently than the old ones; while though the outside can corrodes over time I didn't know there was any liquid to leak. I've even dismantled dead cells for the carbon rod and haven't encountered anything wet.
@@eDoc2020 i've never come across 'leaking' zinc carbons, corroded outer casing, yes, but they hadnt leaked anything, zinc chlorides a different matter, i've had them leak a lot, and some i had it sounded like liquid was slooshing around in them when shook 😲
I had a pair of C cells that expired in 1941 on display with my antique cameras and radios for years and years. Never leaked. Also various Japanese brands going way back into the early days. There are several listings on eBay for old Panasonic radios and tape recorders still in the box with the batteries that they were shipped with still in pristine condition. (Lead, of course.)
@@RuneTheFirst Lead?
the outer cases of zinc carbon and zinc chlorides are zinc, not lead..
Kermit ... always on, really ? Can you measure the current draw always on state ?
I'm sure it is not always on. It has a momentary switch that powers it up, then a mosfet that the chip triggers to keep power on until it is done saying its phrase then it shuts down
Good question. I assumed that there would be a microprocessor that had a microamp draw waiting for the button press. But I suppose it could be possible to design a circuit with no power draw waiting for the button. Sort of a semi-conductor version of a latching relay.
Glad you displayed Duracells. I learned the hard way not to use them. Yup, leak city. Energizers don't leak nearly as often.
I'm not entirely sure if that makes sense, but my experience with Duracells is that yes, years ago they were great (but expensive), then they started leaking at an alarming rate (while still being expensive), and now that I live in another country (moved to the UK a few years back), I bought a few Duracells that seem to be of a better quality than the other ones. I believe my old ones started coming out of some country that doesn't always manufacture quality goods, and the ones sold here in the UK seem to come from France, so maybe the manufacturing site has something to do with that.
Another comment, I'm migrating to rechargeable batteries as well, with the Sanyo Eneloops and respective IKEA ones (that apparently are rebranded Sanyos) currently being my choice, but some devices (like my wireless doorbell) do not accept well the lower voltage produced by NiCad cells, accusing low battery charge after a few days, so unfortunately that is not always a choice.
I started buying the Lithium batteries by Everready Energizer. They don’t leak..
With all my occasional-use devices like the CAP ESR meter, etc., I leave the batteries out until I want to use the thing. Yes, it adds a few seconds to the job, but I don't worry about them leaking. I keep the batteries in a purpose-made battery-storage container to prevent them making contact and shorting out in storage. Other devices such as the portable DMM, I leave the batteries in, and I swap old for new during the annual "spring forward" DST clock dance. It's the perfect reminder because I do the same for several AA-powered wall clocks. Cheers and be well!
Good and informative video Tnx. My personal experience with batteries is that I've been using Duracell Pro and Industrial grade (ONLY!!!) for years and not even once have I had any problems with it whatsoever. I've also used Panasonic batteries of all sorts and again. zero problems. In my experience if you regularly take the batteries out of any device that doesn't gat used often you wont have problems. On the other hand I've always had trouble with coin cells literally drain over night (while the device was decently off or even worse leaking ! And, Oh.....did I tell you that I simply cannot get enough of your end of video song of yours ??? It is so good that in my eyes it could be a number one hit or something.... :) I love it to bits...:) Thank you.
Ive been enjoying a lot of your content. RUclips has been recommending it to me a lot and its been helping me learn about electronics for projects i make. Subscribed! Thanks for the info Fran and keep it up!
Hi Fran, i have just found your channel and believe it or not you must be me and my brother's long lost sister! It is too scary! When we were small boys in the 1950's every time dad bought us something we either had to tear it apart to see how it worked or try to change it. For instance the small reel to reel tape recorders were just loads of fun. Chemistry kits, and model airplanes were routinely destroyed to see what would happen when we applied changes to their mechanical parts. Erector sets and telephone parts and yoke wire from the picture tube guns were used to do a million things like motors and radios out of the popular electronics and mechanics magazines. Sky and telescope and other magazines kept us interested in everything we could build. Did you ever read about the flame speaker? Anyway you are fun to watch...oh btw I repaired a couple of speakers with cones that were all but gone and put a 15 second video on FB just to have it removed due to "possible copyright infractions!"....I suppose next they will remove my shots of Saturn with the music "fly me to the moon"....well being is there is no tune with the title fly me to Saturn....anyway I hate these copyright lawyers that are buying up everything in sight so nobody will be able to post anything without offending someone....Anyway thanks for your channel.....As they say in the USAF..."Simply Fly!" (ok I made it up but watch a copyright attorney steal it)
That is the reason we've called them Duraduds. I have seen Duracell batteries that corroded in their original packages while still on the shelf in the store. What a lot of people don't know, Duracell was originally Mallory and they were known to make very cheap batteries and never trusted the company's batteries since I was a teenager in the 70's after I purchased a few cells and they didn't work and returned them to the store and tried replacing them but we (the clerk and myself) determined that most of the Mallory batteries in their inventory were dead or almost dead. According to the clerk, these batteries were not old stock and were recently received (less than 6 months) in stock.
i've started making the change to Li-Ion 9V cells and round cells, which come with a USB connection for recharging. I love em, the 9Vs especially. I drilled a hole in a couple of my 9V toys so i could plug them up while in-circuit.
GP is great. Here in Israel the larger brands, such as Energizer and Duracell, sell B-grade batteries as we are considered MENA (Middle East North Africa). Only GP sells A-grade batteries here.
Oh, and nice EEVblog multimeter!
The thing about the "super heavy duty battery" is that it does not put out as much voltage as alkaline batteries. It was designed for much older devices that required less voltage. Sometimes you can blow up an old device by putting alkaline batteries in them. (Because of the higher voltage.)
It happened to me for sure, with Wittekat, Panasonic and white brands, but never ever with Duracells. So I am rather stunned.
Speaking of tv remotes, I don't know if anyone else has said it on here, about a quick & dirty check. If you have a smartphone with a camera (who doesn't), you can point your tv or dvd player's remote at the camera, press any button on it, & if your camera "sees" white light flickering or solid ON, from the remote's IR led, then the batteries are likely ok in the remote. Your naked eyes can't see this, but yet the camera's CCD can. I haven't yet tried this with a regular digital camera, but it should work also.
Great idea labeling each product with date battery installed and type or label stating batteries removed.... I have gone to doing that for years. Saved a lot of head aches.
My wife buys a lot of toys at garage sales for grandkids and most of them have dead batteries but few are corroded. Amazing.... maybe “green cells”.
Dave K8WPE since 1960
I finally figured out what the blinking letters was in the back I figured Fran but I didn't catch the last part
You've kind of become my new superhero scientist
Duracell feels it is better to pay the customer for the damages than to make a reliable battery.
Duracell has bought me:
1. Microsoft wireless keyboard & Mouse
2. A alarm clock
3. Several flash lights costing over $40+ dollars each.
They always ask where are the batteries being stores? I tell them "In a Cool Dry Place".
They send me coupons to buy more Duracell Batteries and give them away at Christmas along with things that run on those batteries.
I have started buying Sam's Club batteries. They seem to hold up.
No Fran, I've had Energisers LEAK a number of times & your right about Duracell is THE WORST. I been buying Panasonic & not 1 leak for years.
I use vinegar on a swab to clean out the dried alkaline (it reacts with vinegar), and isopropyl to remove the vinegar.