Hi Dave,

It is hard to calculate the recharge cycles on a NiMH battery because there are so many variables. You can count on many hundreds if you use the battery regularly. The worst thing that folks do as far as battery life is concerned is to either grossly overcharge them with a dumb charger that cannot tell when the battery is full and just “cooks” the battery or to not use it at all and store it long term.

Rechargeable batteries will not last forever but you will rarely if ever find an actual expiration date. That is why we only carry batteries from suppliers that we know have a fast turnaround time and are certain that their batteries have not been sitting on a warehouse for a long time.

All our products are fully guaranteed for 30 days and if you are not satisfied for any reason you can return them for a refund or exchange. In addition we have a year performance warranty on all our products.

Thanks for shopping at greenbatteries.com!

Sincerely,

Curtis

Responsible Energy Corporation
Curtis Randolph - CEO
16157 Galena Meadows Drive

Reno, NV 89511

direct 775-852-3883

toll free 800-790-7866

fax 815-301-3958
cell 775-722-9901
www.greenbatteries.com

www.portablebatteries.com

Hello Curtis,

I am looking to purchase your Greenbatteries brand batteries in aa, aaa, and d cell sizes.  How many recharge cycles will these batteries withstand?

Thanks,
Dave.

Hi Ed,

What a good idea to add this to our blog. Consider it done. Your responses are below. The ULSD batteries are expected to be back in stock in the next 7-10 days. Sorry, I did not order enough last time.

Sincerely,

Curtis

Responsible Energy Corporation
Curtis Randolph - CEO
16157 Galena Meadows Drive

Reno, NV 89511

direct 775-852-3883

toll free 800-790-7866

fax 815-301-3958
cell 775-722-9901
www.greenbatteries.com

www.portablebatteries.com

Hi Curtis,

I am trying to order some of the GreenBatteries brand Ultra Low Self Discharge AAA NiMH 800mAh units, but it won't let me add them to the cart, claiming that "The item is not currently available. Please check back later."  Can you please tell me when you expect to have these batteries available?[Curtis Randolph]  approx. 7-10 days

While I'm at it, I wouldn't mind a little advice if you have the time.  I'm looking to purchase these batteries for use in a 4-bulb LED headlamp from Petzl.  Each headlamp uses 3 AAA batteries.  I saw one post in your blog that talks about rechargeable batteries often having a hard time fitting into flashlights due to the tight fit, but that this can be remedied by removing the PVC casing.  I am willing to do that in order to use rechargeables in these headlamps, but I'm curious if there are any safety issues in doing so.[Curtis Randolph]  no this is perfectly safe

Also, I have noticed that the headlamps (obviously) have a much brighter output when the alkaline batteries are brand new.  I assume I should expect to see a slightly lower light initial output from the headlamps when using the recharbeables, but the light output should be more consistent over the life of the batteries (or battery charge to be more accurate), due to the more constant drain rate.  Is this a correct understanding/assumption?[Curtis Randolph] yes this is right on target

Finally, I use these headlamps infrequently (often-times it's months between uses), but when I do use them, I use them a lot (heavily, every night, for a week or two straight).  I would prefer to leave a set of batteries in the headlamps at all times for emergency use, so I assume this is a good application for using the ULSD batteries.  Again, does this seem like a good choice?[Curtis Randolph]  yes this is a great application for this type of battery

Thanks for putting together such a great site with clear, concise information.  Perhaps you could add an entry to your blog dealing specifically with the use of rechargeables in flashlights?[Curtis Randolph]  oh OK if you insist. ;-)

Sincerely,

- Ed Ditlefsen -

Hi Bob,

You can almost always do that because chargers typically will either charge the batteries individually or in pairs. Charging one battery at a time is only possible if your charger handles the batteries individually. Look at how many LED’s are on the charger – normally there is one LED for each charge circuit.

Hope that helps.

Sincerely,

Curtis

Hi Joshua,

Thanks for the updated information from Duracell. I’ll change the verbiage to my site to reflect that generally manufacturers do not recommend an indefinite trickle charge. People have always done it anyway for convenience and although constant trickle wears out the batteries slightly the batteries are actually losing a little bit capacity just sitting on a shelf anyway and this way they are always ready to use when you need them.

Sincerely,

Curtis

On your website in the battery info section on trickle charging NiMH, you state that trickle charging is not recommended by battery manufacturers.  However, duracell recommends trickle charging at a rate of C/300 on their website as seen here: http://www.duracell.com/oem/rechargeable/Nickel/methods.asp.  You should update your website with correct information.

Hi Steve,

The best way to test rechargeable batteries is to get some and see if they perform to your expectations, but be careful about using them in flashlights. Rechargeable batteries are typically slightly larger in diameter and may not fit well (without removing the PVC wrapping) in flashlights that have very tight tolerances. The batteries that are well suited for flashlights that are used occasionally are the ULSD units that retain their charge longer for devices that are not used frequently, but are only available in AAA and AAA at this time.

The chargers are easy, we have many to choose from that will work well and charge the number of batteries that you mention.

If you are looking for a specific recommendation I would suggest that you get a ten cell charger and some AA and AAA ULSD batteries (the light green units) and a couple sets of the battery adapters to see if you like the battery performance in the devices that you mention. I think that you will. Getting D cells is not needed and is much more expensive since the batteries also need a charger that will accommodate the larger size.

Sincerely,

Curtis