Okay, i can't figure this one out... (ZTS test results)

I just got my Mini-ZTS from Lighthound today, and the first set of batteries i put on it it tested out fine....

2 AAA Energizer Lithiums; 100%, should be, as they're brand new, still show 1.7 volts on my multimeter

the Sanyo 123's in my Brinkmann Maxfire also tested 100%, the Maxfire lives in the car center console and had seen a lot of hot weather recently, i was expecting worse

the SureFire 123's in my 6P W/HOLA, also 100%

I caught my first mismatch!!
Inova X5; battery 1 (near the LED's) 80%, battery 2, 100%, it came from the *factory* that way...
Battery 1 voltage; 2.97V, battery 2; 2.98V

now the wierd ones....

the 123's in my G2 that still give decent brightness to it's G&P 3W module; 0%, the chaser lights went back and forth, but no reading, so that either means 10% or 0%..., voltage reading is 2.7V for one, 2.8 for the other

the single 123 in my Inova 24/7; 2.76V, tested at 0% on the ZTS, but still could drive the 24/7...

a misc. Duracel 123 voltage tested at 2.97, but ZTS'ed at 20%

all my other batteries were about what i expected, typically around 80-60%, it's just the wierd ones i can't figure, near as i can tell, they're "dead" according to ZTS, but they voltage test showing some power left...

still glad i caught the mismatch in the X5, i would have missed it with the DMM, as it was only a .01V difference....

I think i've got a decent battery usage strategy as well, the SureFire 6P, G2, and Fenix P1 will be fed fresh batteries, when the 6P is "finished" with the batteries, they'll be placed, paired, in the X5 for futher draining , when the X5 is finished with them, the individual batteries will be used in the X5 to completely drain them dry, the "corpses" will then be thrown out/recycled

The LEDs won't do the chase sequence if it reads the battery at less than 1%, so those dead ones still have a bit of life in them.

Hello MacTech,

As you have noticed, open circuit voltage is not a good indication of the state of charge of a Lithium battery. It works reasonably well on Li-Ion cells, but not on Lithium cells.

The ZTS tester pulses a load on the battery and checks the voltage under load. We think the load represents close to an 800 mA draw. If your light draws less than that, it will light up, but will probably be at a reduced brightness, and will not last as long as it would with a new cell.

In multi cell applications, it is not unusual for one battery to die before the others. NewBie has shown that if you drain around 40% out of one battery and couple it with another battery at 100%, run the lamp until it goes out, leave the circuit connected for an additional amount of time, you can end up with a "rapid venting with flame" incident that will ruin your light.

When using a multi cell light, when the light dims, shut it off and replace the batteries.

You can take your "used" batteries and use them in single cell lights to drain them. There has only been a very limited amount of testing with ZTS matching cells that are used and using them as a matched set in multi cell lights. I have done several tests with used batteries that tested at 10% in 2 and 3 cell lights, and other than having to put up with a dim light, have had not problems with cells heating or venting. However, I need to point out that when the light went out or got very dim, I shut it off and dumped the batteries out of it.

Tom

I guess i'm just not used to the efficiency of LED's, before i became a Flashaholic, my be-all-end-all "Ultimate" flashlight was my Mag 6D, i thought that was the most awesome light out there, just too bad it had such an appetite for batteries, i figured once the light got sickly orange that the batteries were truly *dead*

now, with LED bulbs, i can take those "dead" D-cell batteries, pop them in my 3D Mag and continue to suck them dry....

I decided to perform a little test, i took a pair of AAA Duracells that tested at 40% on the ZTS, put them in my Trek Disco Inferno bicycle LED blinkie, and set it to "on" with all 5 LED's lit (there's a choice of 3 or 5 led illumination) for maximum battery drain

8 hours later, i ZTS'ed the batteries again, this time they tested 0%, but the LED's awere still lit, just slightly dimmer....

it's now been 19+ hours, and those same 0% ZTS'ed batteries are still powering the TDI, however. looking at it with the pushbuttons facing you and the clip facing down, from left to right....

LED 1; very dim (50% dimmer than LED 2)
LED 2; still reasonably bright, brightest one of the five
LED 3; 25% dimmer than 2
LED 4; 60% dimmer than 2
LED 5; about the same as 2

both batteries still ZTS at 0%, voltage tests read 1.11V, still capable of powering the TDI or enix E1 and producing usable light

I guess that means that even if the ZTS reads the load percentage at 10% or 0% (can't tell due to the lack of a 10% LED), an efficient LED can still pull some power from the cell

and as long as i'm on the subject of the ZTS Mini, i wonder how much money they saved by not including a 10% status LED, after all, the big ZTS has one, it can't add all that much money to add one more red surface-mount LED to the circuit board....

ideally, what would make a lot more sense would be to replace the LED "chasers" with a simple LCD panel (backlit with an EL sheet) that could display the numeric percentage of charge remaining, ideally in 5% steps

ideally, what would make a lot more sense would be to replace the LED "chasers" with a simple LCD panel (backlit with an EL sheet) that could display the numeric percentage of charge remaining, ideally in 5% steps

Click to expand...

Heck, with an LCD display, they could display results in 0.1% steps!