What can you do with old batteries?

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asked Jul 22, 2023 in Other-Home/Garden by Bob2C (2,560 points)
What can you do with old batteries?

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answered Jul 22, 2023 by Chambliss (53,140 points)
Old batteries can be taken to a recycler or dropped off at a solid waste facility that accepts batteries for recycling.

If they are household batteries such as AA batteries, AAA batteries, D batteries etc and you don't have any place to recycle them then those types of batteries can safely be disposed of in your household trash.

You can throw away household batteries if there's no other option for disposal in your area.

However car batteries and other large batteries should never be thrown in the trash.

You can send any old and used batteries to recycle company or check with your local or even state solid waste authority.

It is bad if you touch a battery that is leaking as the leakage from a battery is caustic and can cause chemical burns.

If you need to touch a leaking battery then you should wear gloves or use something else to touch the battery to remove it and dispose of it safely.

Duracell is not a Chinese company and instead Duracell is actually an American company.

Duracell batteries are made in the USA.

Duracell currently has three plants in the USA - Cleveland, Tennessee; Lancaster, South Carolina; and La Grange, Georgia.

Duracell batteries are worth it and are long lasting batteries and are best for high drain devices.

Energizer batteries are better than Duracell when used in clocks and low drain devices and Duracell batteries are better and lasts two times longer in flashlights and other high drain devices.

It is safe to store batteries in a Ziploc bag although it's best to store the batteries in a plastic container or even the original packaging.

You should also tape the batteries together or use some rubber bands around the batteries to prevent them from rolling around and possibly coming into contact with each other and shorting out.

The best place to store household batteries is in a cool dry place at room temperature such as in a plastic container or Ziploc bag or in their original packaging in a cupboard, drawer, shelf etc.

There's no such thing as a forever battery as no battery can last forever.

Eventually the battery no matter how well it's made or designed will lose it's charge even when unused.

Most batteries are good on the shelf or in storage for 5 years to 10 years before they lose their charge.

The 40 80 rule for batteries means to keep the battery meter between 40 to 80 percent before charging the batteries and stop charging the batteries from 0 to 100 percent to keep them from going bad too soon.

A dead battery can sit for around a month before it goes bad enough to not take a charge.

However if the dead battery sits longer than a few weeks then the chances of it recharging or holding a full charge get lower.

When you have a dead battery you want to charge it back up as soon as possible to prevent the battery from going bad.

A dead battery cannot come back fully on it's own although if you let a dead battery sit for awhile it may recoup a bit of it's charge but not a lot.

If the battery sits dead too long then the battery will go bad and not accept a charge again no matter how long you leave the battery on the charger.

The reason batteries can't be recharged forever because as you recharge the batteries each of those charge cycles degrades the batteries electrodes a little mot more meaning that the battery loses performance over time.

Over the course of several discharge and charge cycles of the batteries the batteries crystals also change in shape and also become less ordered.

Energizer batteries last longer than Duracell batteries because Energizer uses PowerSeal to and Duracell uses Duralock Power Preserve Technology.

The PowerSeal increases the lifespan of the Energizer batteries unlike the Duralock Power Reserve Technology that Duracell uses.

The best AA battery is made by Energizer and Duracell.

Powermax is also another good AA battery brand.

The longest lasting AA battery is Energizer Ultimate Lithium AA batteries.

Duracell Batteries and Powermax AA batteries are also pretty long lasting as well.

AA batteries and other batteries do eventually drain and go dead when not in use.

The time it takes for unused AA batteries and other batteries to drain and lose their charge depends on the quality of the battery.

Some brands of unused AA batteries will drain within 2 to 5 years of not being used and some AA battery brands will drain when not used after around 10 years.

Generic AA batteries are just as good as name brand for most devices.

However if you need a longer lasting battery in high drain devices then buying the name brand batteries can be a better choice.

But for lower drain devices such as remote controls, clocks etc, led flashlights etc then the generic AA batteries are just as good as the name brand and will work fine.

Some AA batteries do last longer than others.

Some of the name brand AA batteries last longer than some of the generic cheaper brands.

For example Duracell and Energizer AA batteries tend to last a bit longer than cheaper batteries do.

Cheap AA batteries last for 18 hours to 24 hours when used and when unused the cheap AA batteries last from 3 to 5 years.

Higher drain devices will drain the batteries faster than lower drain devices.

The brand of batteries that last the longest are Energizer batteries and Duracell Batteries.

You can make your AA battery last longer by keeping the batteries cool, turning off any gadgests or devices using the batteries when not in use.

You can also buy longer lasting AA batteries or use rechargeable AA batteries which cost more upfront but can be reused several times.

When it comes to the best and longest lasting battery nothing outlasts Energizer Ultimate Lithium AA batteries.

The Energizer Ultimate Lithium batteries are not only the #1 longest-lasting AA batteries…they are complete with leak resistance and performance in extreme temperatures (-40ºF to 140ºF or -40ºC to 60ºC).

If your AA batteries are draining so fast then it could be that your batteries are not good enough and you need a better longer lasting AA battery.

Some batteries have smaller amounts of power in then than others.

Or your device is a power hungry device that drains the batteries.

Also the chemicals and the plates inside the AA battery will eventually corrode over time which renders the battery powerless.

So if you have older batteries they may not last as long.

The average life of AA batteries is 3 to 5 years when unused and 24 hours when in use.

The average life of a AA battery in use is 24 hours to 28 hours depending on what it is being used in.

Unused AA batteries do eventually go bad and all batteries including the AA batteries have an expiration date.

The AA battery may still work after the expiration date but it will not have as much charge and will not last as long as a new battery.

Most AA batteries as well as AAA and C and D cell batteries will last up to 10 years unused and 9 V batteries last up to 5 years unused.

A battery is a chemical product which produces electricity by chemical reactions at its inside.

When the battery has passed the recommended usage period, the components that make up the battery will deteriorate, leading to performance degradation.

That is why there is an expiry date on the battery.

This loss of capacity (aging) in batteries is irreversible.

As the battery loses capacity, the length of time it will power the product (run time) decreases.

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