Battery charging question

I have a question, I have 2 Motorola MV21CV radios and I just ordered a new battery for each 1200mah NIMH. I don't have a rapid charger just the standard plug in charger. If I use this charger I assume that it won't hurt the batterys as long as I don't overcharge them correct? (Like say leaving for 2 or 3 days straight). I know that NIMH likes to be fast charged vs slow charged but I don't have that option. Radios will only be used once in a while anyway.

Just wondering.

Thanks,
Joey

Hi Joey. It's hard to say without knowing more specifics about the charger, but if it charges at a rate of 120mA or less (14-16hrs), you don't have to worry too much about overcharging the packs. If on the other hand the charger is a 5-6 hr charger or faster, hopefully the packs or the charger can detect when the pack is fully charged. My Ham radio transceiver chargers do this, but I can't be sure about your specific charger.

While some NiMH cell manufacturers claim it doesn't hurt to charge cells indefinitely at rates of 0.1C, or below (eg. 14-16hr charge rate), I personally don't like to leave cells, or packs on charge much more than the 16hrs. If you forget, once in a while and let them go for a day or so, that's probably OK, but I wouldn't make a habit of it. In my experience NiMH cells that stay on this type of charger for extended periods (mostly cordless phones) suffer from voltage depression (lack of power under load), and in addition, don't last nearly as long.

Dave