Eneloop Batteries and Charger

[yogestee]

I've ordered a couple of sets of Sanyo Eneloops to power my 430EX.. I've tried charging my Eneloops using my old NiMH charger but they take forever to charge and get quite warm.. Do I need the dedicated Eneloop charger??

[doidinho]

I've ordered a couple of sets of Sanyo Eneloops to power my 430EX.. I've tried charging my Eneloops using my old NiMH charger but they take forever to charge and get quite warm.. Do I need the dedicated Eneloop charger??


My Enloop charger takes a while and the batteries get quite warm too; sounds like you are getting the same results from your charger. I can't say for sure, but it sounds like you will be fine. after my batteries charged there is even a bit of a bunted electronics smell on the batteries.

[Technician X]

I've ordered a couple of sets of Sanyo Eneloops to power my 430EX.. I've tried charging my Eneloops using my old NiMH charger but they take forever to charge and get quite warm.. Do I need the dedicated Eneloop charger??

Those are great batteries. I got the charger kit from Eneloop but ended up dumping it for a better charger as it took way too long. I purchased the La Crosse BC-900 charger. (Love it and recommend it) Oh and yes the batteries got warm no matter which charger I used.

[yogestee]

Ok,,thanks guys.. Guess I'll persevere with my old charger..

[agedbriar]

The Sanyo charger I purchased a few days ago is their new Quick Charger, labelled as a "2 hour" device.

The specs say it will charge 1 or 2 AA eneloops in 100min and 3 or 4 in 220min. There is a pilot LED that goes off when the charging is finished. The batteries are supposed to become warm during charging, so far that the user is warned to use caution upon handling them.

I haven't used the charger yet, as the precharged eneloops really work straight out of the package. Thanks to the forum members who recommended them.

[DSMITH131]

I use the La Crosse BC-900 charger and they do get a little warm. And when drained pretty low does take a little time to charge when trickle charging(200mah) From what I read it is better to slow charge than fast charge

[agedbriar]

From what I read it is better to slow charge than fast charge

I found some conflicting opinions about that. As I gathered in the end, fast charging will only slightly reduce the useful life of the batteries if it is controlled well. It has to be based on voltage drop detection (negative Delta) and the temperature must be monitored. I checked that this Sanyo MQR02NW does both.

Simple fast chargers, which are only timed (like the slow ones), should be avoided.

[DSMITH131]

I found some conflicting opinions about that. As I gathered in the end, fast charging will only slightly reduce the useful life of the batteries if it is controlled well. It has to be based on voltage drop detection (negative Delta) and the temperature must be monitored. I checked that this Sanyo MQR02NW does both.

Simple fast chargers, which are only timed (like the slow ones), should be avoided.
Ok you lost me here I said from what I have read it is better to slow charge that to fast charge and you said "As I gathered in the end, fast charging will only slightly reduce the useful life of the batteries if it is controlled well" and " Simple fast chargers, which are only timed (like the slow ones), should be avoided." sound like the same where is the conflict

[DSMITH131]

I found some conflicting opinions about that. As I gathered in the end, fast charging will only slightly reduce the useful life of the batteries if it is controlled well. It has to be based on voltage drop detection (negative Delta) and the temperature must be monitored. I checked that this Sanyo MQR02NW does both.

Simple fast chargers, which are only timed (like the slow ones), should be avoided.
Ok you lost me here I said from what I have read it is better to slow charge that to fast charge and you said "As I gathered in the end, fast charging will only slightly reduce the useful life of the batteries if it is controlled well" and " Simple fast chargers, which are only timed (like the slow ones), should be avoided." sound like the same where is the conflict
And I wasn't refering to your sanyo as a fast charger theres nothing fast about 2 hours I was just stating that to the OP

[agedbriar]

There is none, as that is my own resumee of the various opinions that I've read ;)

Edit: Talking of conflict, that is.

[HarrisonClicks]

Good timing.

I just received my recharge goods yesterday. After reading 247 posts on the subject on POTN, so I can save you the time, I ordered a MH-C9000 charger from here:

http://www.thomas-distributing.com/maha-mh-c9000-battery-charger.php

I ordered two Eneloop AA 8 packs from Amazon here:

http://www.amazon.com/Sanyo-Eneloop-Pre-Charged-Rechargeable-Batteries/dp/B000LNI5VC/ref=pd_bbs_sr_4?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1227701624&sr=8-4

(Amazon was the cheapest I could find for 8 packs - - and free shipping (for now). Why so many, for the 580 EX II (4 batts) and the externar battery pack (8 batts). And I have 4 extra now for the kids.


This is an AWESOME combination and the POTN posters are right. COMPLETE control. I am breaking in the new eneloops now with the "Break in" mode. Great instructions with the charger.

Good luck!

Adam

[bobbyz]

Costco was selling 8 AA eneloop along with 2 AAA eleloop and the charger for $26.

[Technician X]

Good timing.

I just received my recharge goods yesterday. After reading 247 posts on the subject on POTN, so I can save you the time, I ordered a MH-C9000 charger from here:

http://www.thomas-distributing.com/maha-mh-c9000-battery-charger.php

I ordered two Eneloop AA 8 packs from Amazon here:

http://www.amazon.com/Sanyo-Eneloop-Pre-Charged-Rechargeable-Batteries/dp/B000LNI5VC/ref=pd_bbs_sr_4?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1227701624&sr=8-4

(Amazon was the cheapest I could find for 8 packs - - and free shipping (for now). Why so many, for the 580 EX II (4 batts) and the externar battery pack (8 batts). And I have 4 extra now for the kids.


This is an AWESOME combination and the POTN posters are right. COMPLETE control. I am breaking in the new eneloops now with the "Break in" mode. Great instructions with the charger.

Good luck!

Adam

Wow. That MAHA charger look pretty close to the La Crosse BC-900 I have. I know they did not have it when I purchased the La Crosse BC-900. (Either that or I just didnt find it.) I was having a tough time deciding between the La Crosse and the MAHA MH-C801D. I chose the La Crosse cause it was smaller. I wonder if they copied it due to the success of the La Crosse BC-900. Not to say that their chargers aren't any good. They make great chargers. How does it work for you?

[nightlife-shooter]

I use the Eneloop batteries and have had nothing but luck. If you want to get the most out of them then use them on a low voltage slow charger. The LaCross one mentioned is great. It monitors the batter as it charges and stops once each cell has been peak charged. I like to discharge and refresh mine after every 7-10 charges. My Eneloops have yet to get more then a little warm with proper charging. If they are getting hot or smell you are using a charger with too much power. That is a good way to kill the life of the battery.

[HarrisonClicks]

Wow. That MAHA charger look pretty close to the La Crosse BC-900 I have. I know they did not have it when I purchased the La Crosse BC-900. (Either that or I just didnt find it.) I was having a tough time deciding between the La Crosse and the MAHA MH-C801D. I chose the La Crosse cause it was smaller. I wonder if they copied it due to the success of the La Crosse BC-900. Not to say that their chargers aren't any good. They make great chargers. How does it work for you?


I dont know how its working so far. I only got it yesterday. I opened up the first 8 pack of eneloops and placed 4 in the charger, read the manual, and selected breakin, selected 2000 mah, and let it do the breakin, which the manual states will take 36-48 hours. jeez. At 4 per breakin, thats like 8 days to breakin all 16 batteries. All good however. Not like I sit there and watch it. But i like the flexibility i have to select charge rates, refresh, etc.

[zagiace]

I purchased the La Crosse BC-900 charger a grip of Eneloops and absolutely love the combo. The batteries do get a little warm to the touch but not hot. I have used them now for probably 10 months and have not noticed any performance degradation. I will usually just charge them at a medium rate and every month or so discharge them.
Can't go wrong.

[H2OSkier]

With all the batteries I have I ended up getting two of the MAHA chargers. So far they have worked great. I've heard complaints about having to press too many buttons to get the thing going but I don't find it much of a bother.

I use the MAHA Imedion low discharge AA batteries and have had good luck with them. I went with these due to my good experience with the Powerex that I have used in the past.

Ken

[yogestee]

My Eneloops don't really get hot,, just warm when charging... Thanks for the tips people..

[tim]

If you want good information about charging NiMH cells read this article (http://www.batteryuniversity.com/partone-11.htm) on www.batteryuniversity.com . It includes this


Nickel-metal-hydride should be rapid charged rather than slow charged. Because of poor overcharge absorption, the trickle charge must be lower than that of nickel-cadmium and is usually around 0.05C. This explains why the original nickel-cadmium charger cannot be used nickel-metal-hydride.

It is difficult, if not impossible, to slow-charge a nickel-metal-hydride. At a C?rate of 0.1-0.3C, the voltage and temperature profiles fail to exhibit defined characteristics to measure the full charge state accurately and the charger must rely on a timer. Harmful overcharge can occur if a partially or fully charged battery is charged with a fixed timer. The same occurs if the battery has aged and can only hold 50 instead of 100% charge. Overcharge could occur even though the battery feels cool to the touch.


Just buy a good brand of charger, La Cross or Maha, and you'll be fine. I charge at 1000mah as that's the default on my Maha C-9000, though with 2700mah cells I should probably be charging at 1500mah.

[Lotto]

Thanks for the info link, tim. I have C-900 0and been using 500-600 as the charge rate for 2500mah. Guess I could use 1000 for my new Enoloop.

Just FYI, Costco currently has the $9 off coupon, so their Enoloop + charger is now $19.99.

[ean36]

Where would one obtain this $9 Costco coupon?

[Rock31]

If you are a Costco member they send you coupons in the mail. With the $9 off coupon you get a charger, 8 AA's, 2 AA's and 4C + D adapters for $20.

[MagikTrik]

I don't know if anyone mentioned this yet about the Lacrosse charger (i tried reading but it's all starting to blur together, must be that damned A.D.D.) but I've heard some reports of them melting the batteries due to the shut-off temperature set by the charger (it's already too late by the time it shuts itself off basically). Apparently LaCrosse is aware of the problem.

I know I saw a post about it somewhere too, now if I could just find it.

*Edit:* here's one, but not the one I was looking for...
http://www.stevesforums.com/forums/view_topic.php?id=79311&forum_id=51

on the other hand though, I suppose someone is always going to have trouble with a particular setup, it's like software (not every program can run absolutely perfect on every single imaginable system setup, that's why there is updates & bug fixes).

[canondslr]

I really want to "treat" my battery properly, but I just dont have time to do that proper procedure.
So, I Just charge my Eneloops with their charger and have no problem whatsoever and never experienced any differences in the usage as far as more than a year doing wedding using my Eneloops.
Do we really need to do more than this ?
From practical standpoint, I think if the batteries are good for a year, thats good enough, and if you dont feel good about it, you can toss them out and get new set of battery every year.

[Sean]

I'll be getting Eneloops when I need more AA's. Right now I have second Gen Energizer NiMH (2400 Mah) and they are working nicely. My last set of 2500's wouldn't hold a charge for very long.

[S-Man]

Anyone know how long these bad boys last? I've been using them in my 430's, and wonder "when will I know it's time to buy new ones?"
I charge them with my Energizer slow charger. It takes like 10-14 hours or something. I put them on over night and forget about them. I have to plan accordingly if I have a shoot coming up though...

[tim]

NiMH cells last around 1000 charges. A good charger will let you set the rate then switch to trickle charge when it's done.

[bohdank]

I have batteries that have been in constant use for up to 8 years. I haven't used 1 up, yet (over a dozen batteries in various devices).

[I26]

I got 2 of those Eneloop kits for a mere $.50 a piece. My wife got them at work when they sold off all the sample items. I seen the same kit in the store yesterday for $50!!

[tim]

The C-9000 can tell you the capacity of the cells using a refresh and analyse charge - it takes between 4 hours and a day, depending on the condition of them and the parameters you set up.

[Technician X]

I don't know if anyone mentioned this yet about the Lacrosse charger (i tried reading but it's all starting to blur together, must be that damned A.D.D.) but I've heard some reports of them melting the batteries due to the shut-off temperature set by the charger (it's already too late by the time it shuts itself off basically). Apparently LaCrosse is aware of the problem.

I know I saw a post about it somewhere too, now if I could just find it.

*Edit:* here's one, but not the one I was looking for...
http://www.stevesforums.com/forums/view_topic.php?id=79311&forum_id=51

on the other hand though, I suppose someone is always going to have trouble with a particular setup, it's like software (not every program can run absolutely perfect on every single imaginable system setup, that's why there is updates & bug fixes).


I would assume La Crosse would have that fixed by now. That thread dates back to 2006. I have not had any issues with mines.

[rklepper]

The Maha chargers are excellent. I have -->THIS ONE (http://thomasdistributing.com/shop/-maha-mhc801d-aa-aaa-battery-chargerbrdeluxe-8-cell-professional-battery-charger-w-full-lcd-displaybrbrfree-accessory-bag-2-free-eight-cell-battery-holdersbrspecial-price-6897-p-437.html?SP_id=&osCsid=pdbcnh82npnf51m91odtluvc46)<-- and it is really nice.

[MeNiS]

Where would one obtain this $9 Costco coupon?

just go to checkout and tell them you forgot the coupon. they should have the coupon book handy at their register, and should be able to scan the coupon for you.

[MagikTrik]

I would assume La Crosse would have that fixed by now. That thread dates back to 2006. I have not had any issues with mines.
oh i use them too but just for the record I heard this a few weeks ago, when i tried to do an online search to see if it was documented online anywhere that's just the first thing that popped up (sorry, i didn't realize how dated it was), apparently it was never enough of an issue to have much internet coverage so it's certainly not a huge issue. Just something little to keep an eye on just in case, ya know...

[Ray Marrero]

If you are a Costco member they send you coupons in the mail. With the $9 off coupon you get a charger, 8 AA's, 2 AA's and 4C + D adapters for $20.

Or just go to customer service and ask for the coupon book.

[Snow001]

I purchased a set this afternoon after ordering a new set of tires for the winter (used a coupon as well!). Thanks for posting this as the eneloop coupon post led me to the tire coupons.