I opened my SOLO radar detector and found the 2 AA CopperTop batteries had leaked even though the unit was still working. This prompted me to open two other devices that used AAs CopperTop batteries and found that they all leaked to some degree. I was really surprised. Maybe worth checking your device that used the same batteries. Ed
Leaking AA batteries
- Thread starter Eddie
- Start date
JHZR2
Staff member
Good point. Ive found batteries leaking more these days too. Have been issues with Costco, rayovac and duracell.
On garage journal there is a long thread spanning several years where people are complaining about Duracell Copper Top batteries ruining their electronics. I have had Duracells leak, I don't buy them anymore.
Another formerly great product cheapened to the point of being worthless.
Another formerly great product cheapened to the point of being worthless.
Yes this has happened to me as well. A battery powered clock stopped and I found that the battery had leaked. So I checked various pieces of battery powered equipment and found several leaking batteries of various sizes and brands. I was really surprised.
Fortunately the leakage wasn't very corrosive so I was able to get everything working again.
I've been running eneloops and energizer lithiums in my stuff now since I've had to clean up acid leakage so many times already.
Eneloops are used in devices that require alkaline batts.
Lithiums for low power/high standby devices since it's these devices where I'm finding most corrosion.
Eneloops are used in devices that require alkaline batts.
Lithiums for low power/high standby devices since it's these devices where I'm finding most corrosion.
I agree on the eneloops. I have about 28 AA eneloops (8 are Japanese made Amazon Basics that are supposed to be rewrapped eneloops). I have a couple of flashlights that take 9 AA batteries and a 6 AA spotlight that I keep in my truck and use all the time. The AA eneloops are only a little over $2 each, I figure that if I only get 4-5 recharges, they have paid for themselves, an Energizer alkaline AA is close to $0.50.
I have about 16 eneloop AA’s that are about 3 years old and have probably 30 cycles on them, I haven’t noticed any capacity loss yet. I have never had an nimh battery leak or vent and destroy any of my electronics.
I also use 3xAA to D battery adapters and use 6 eneloops in my 2D Maglites, be careful with those adapters, some of them put the batteries in series instead of in parallel.
I also use AAA rechargeables in my headlamps (I work outside at night a lot). I recharge (or replace if using alkaline) my headlamp batteries about 2-3x per week. So my rechargeables keep at least 9 alkaline batteries out of the landfill and save me a little cash every week. I have also had this set of AAAs for about 3 years and some of them are starting to get high resistance and won’t charge on my Panasonic BQ-CC17 any more. I still consider this a win, 3 years at 1 recharge per set per week has saved me a ton of money.
That’s 450 sets of 3 AAA alkaline batteries, or 1,350 batteries. AAA energizer batteries are $0.43 each on amazon if you buy the 48 pack, so those 1,350 alkaline batteries would have cost me $580.
An 8 pack of AAA eneloops is $16.99 or ~$2.12/ battery. If I only get 150 recharges out of each battery, it has cost me less than 2 cents per cycle, saving me over $0.40 per battery each time I recharge them, not accounting for electricity, which is almost too minimal to account for. If you tossed them out and replaced them annually, you would still be way better off than buying alkaline batteries all the time. Alkalines do have their place, but if you use a lot of batteries like I do, rechargeables are the way to go.
The pictured Rayovac AAAs are around 10 years old and still kicking. They have been in storage for about 5 years, I left them in an LED candle and forgot that I had them. I got them back out and they are still going strong and used regularly in my headlamp. I have 16 AAAs and 9 of them are dedicated to my headlamps and get rotated out every time I recharge a set.
I keep a Maglite solitaire on me most of the time and it always has a rechargeable in it too. I actually have a Harbor Freight rechargeable in it, the battery in it is around a year old and gets charged 1-2 times per week. Those HF batteries have been surprisingly good so far.
I think the important thing with rechargeables is having a smart charger that charges batteries individually and terminates charging when the battery is full. I have 3 Panasonic BQ-CC17 chargers and I keep a LiitoKala Lii-202 in my truck in case I need to recharge on the go. They also make a 4 bay version of that charger, which is what I wish I had bought instead of the 2 bay. They LiitoKala will also recharge lithium batteries.
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I have started putting Energizer Lithiums in things I don't check often. I haven't had leakage damage yet with those in devices. One downside to lithium batteries, They don't get progressively weaker, they die rather suddenly without warning. Worst issue I had was with a wireless computer mouse. I started getting mysterious crashes and thought the computer was going bad. Turned out the lithium batteries I was using in the mouse were dying during transmit bursts and sending corrupted information to the computer. I only use alkaline batteries for that now, but since it's in daily use, I should detect any leakage quickly.
Its amazing how we have gone backwards in how batteries once again leak.
Once alkaline batteries are used up and voltage gets low, certain brands will leak, more so then ever.
Once alkaline batteries are used up and voltage gets low, certain brands will leak, more so then ever.
I too have stopped buying the copper tops. Other brands don't leak nearly as bad.
I've not had any issues with the Coppertop batteries leaking but this thread will make me keep an eye on them.
I stopped buying Duracells years ago becasue of this. 4 kinds and countless battery operated toys, etc..
Had better luck with Rayovac, but then switched to amazon basics. Have yet to notice leakage from amazon basics.
Had better luck with Rayovac, but then switched to amazon basics. Have yet to notice leakage from amazon basics.
I have even had Energizers leak. Leave any battery in a device long enough and it will eventually leak.
I have had the Duracell Copper tops leak also. Costco Kirkland are repackaged Copper tops. I started using Energizers and my problems went away.
As inconvenient as it may be I store quite a few items with the batteries beside them - such as seldom used remote controls. I've had too many experiences with leakage. I've found that the brand doesn't much matter. Big name brands leak as often as off-brands. My current go-to AAs and AAAs are Amazon Basics. I've also found it's better to replace them before they get too weak.
Probably one of the best scenarios of using alkalines is in regularly used devices where you can see/monitor the power level of the batteries. I still use them in remotes.
I have not had ANY brand of alkaline battery that hasn't leaked.
I have switched to using old-fashioned zinc-carbon batteries in all of my remote controls because of leaking alkaline batteries. They used to be much cheaper than alkaline batteries but now they are about the same price.
I have switched to using old-fashioned zinc-carbon batteries in all of my remote controls because of leaking alkaline batteries. They used to be much cheaper than alkaline batteries but now they are about the same price.
