How can I remove ruined energizers from 2 Fenix lights and how can I clean them after?

[busseguy]

I got 2 Fenix E21's from a guy for cheap as a project. He put energizer batteries in them and left both in a bag and forgot about them, then came back and the batteries had leaked inside.

How can I remove the batteries and clean all of the acid out of them?

 

[LRJ88]

I got 2 Fenix E21's from a guy for cheap as a project. He put energizer batteries in them and left both in a bag and forgot about them, then came back and the batteries had leaked inside.

How can I remove the batteries and clean all of the acid out of them?

Had i been you i'd unscrew the head and tailcap of them, then try to gently tap the batteries out with a dowel. If that fails, see if you can drill a small hole in the one with the negative contact outwards and attempt to drag/scrape it out. Once that's done, insert the dowel again and use it to gently (read: with vigour) tap the dowel against a hard surface while holding the body. When that's all done you should be able to use vinegar to neutralise the alkaline sh*t, followed by a good scrub using isopropyl alcohol or ethanol and a toothbrush/cotton buds.

There's likely other people doing other stuff to it, but this is my preferred way of dealing with it. Also, don't forget to check the head of the flashlight, if that's caked in gunk too you might want to reconsider the process.

 

[busseguy]

Had i been you i'd unscrew the head and tailcap of them, then try to gently tap the batteries out with a dowel. If that fails, see if you can drill a small hole in the one with the negative contact outwards and attempt to drag/scrape it out. Once that's done, insert the dowel again and use it to gently (read: with vigour) tap the dowel against a hard surface while holding the body. When that's all done you should be able to use vinegar to neutralise the alkaline sh*t, followed by a good scrub using isopropyl alcohol or ethanol and a toothbrush/cotton buds.

There's likely other people doing other stuff to it, but this is my preferred way of dealing with it. Also, don't forget to check the head of the flashlight, if that's caked in gunk too you might want to reconsider the process.

Thank you for the info.

 

[alpg88]

Hydrogen peroxide disolves dried up electrolyte better than anything else i tried,

 

[datiLED]

Hydrogen peroxide disolves dried up electrolyte better than anything else i tried,

Great to know. My son left alkaleaks in a 2AA Fenix light, and the batteries are stuck in place with corrosion.

 

[bykfixer]

Hydrogen peroxide disolves dried up electrolyte better than anything else i tried,

I tried 90% isopropel alcohol in a ruined light this evening thanks to a leaking Energizer. It dissolved the paste turning it into a green goo but did not free up the battery after 2 hours. Had I been more patient it may have worked but I started rapping it against a hard object and before long the tail end was oval shaped.

It was a Bright Star 1aaa with a clicky from the 1990's. It was an attempt at an improved Streamlight incan Keymate, which was a not so good attempt at an improved Maglite solitaire. About the size of a aaa minimag but one cell length. And it used a clicky.

Anyway I read this post about perixide after ruining the light and tossing it in the trash but next time....

 

[alpg88]

If you expect to dip a light into HP and it will magically dissolve everything and batteries just fall out, it most likely wont happen, HP cleans off residue from contacts, springs, and cleans up battery slots in remotes, or anywhere where you can get to after removing a battery ,it leaves no trace of leakage, but when a cell is swollen and stock inside, or worse several cells, with electrolyte solidified between them, probably nothing will get them out easy, you can try putting battery tube, in a HP bath for 15 -20 min (longer exposure of HP to air and uv light will turn into into water, that is why bottles of HP are almost always dark) hopefully it can get between cells and a battery tube. but most likely you'll have to use force to get cells out.