Cheap AA/AAA trickle charger?

[36\01RSAW]

I'm trying to get started on this new flashlight addiction and all this battery stuff is making it difficult to get hooked. I've been drooling over the Nitecore D10 tribute edition on batteryjuction and am about to pull the trigger but I need to figure out what batteries and what charger to buy.

I don't care about charging batteries fast so I think I would like a trickle charger since that seems to be a safe and reliable way to charge batteries. Batteryjunction seems to have one AA/AAA trickle charger (CH-V2833 NIMH/NICD CHARGER) and I was wondering if this would be sufficient. This charger is soooo cheap compared to some of the smart charger suggestions i've read about on this forum that I'm worried about how effective it will be.

Also, I was thinking of getting some AA and AAA rechargeable eneloop batteries (since they seem to be good) as well as some lithium AA and AAA primaries for emergencies. Are the eneloops really worth the premium for a noob?

Thanks

 

[SoCalDep]

I'm mostly replying to bump this, since I'd like a simple answer as well...I've been searching the past few days for a simple charger. From everything I've read, eneloops/duraloops are the way to go, but I'm also looking for a charger that I can put the batteries in and go get 'em later. Maybe 8hrs, maybe 16hrs, and if possible, maybe two or three days. Independent charging would be good since I use one battery and two battery lights, and it seems you would probably be doing something similar. I'm not thinking so much a trickle charger as one that has a good shutoff circuit. I'm thinking there'd be no need to trickle a LSD beyond a full charge, so if it has a good shutoff the batteries should be able to sit in the charger for a while?

 

[Mr Happy]

I think I would like a trickle charger since that seems to be a safe and reliable way to charge batteries.

It has to be asked: on what evidence does this seem to be so?

Because the evidence available suggests that trickle charging is not the best way to charge NiMH batteries and that repeated trickle charging over time will probably reduce their performance and shorten their life.

Eneloops are a very good choice of battery. When selecting a charger for them, look for one that takes from 1 to 4 hours to charge a set, and one that has individual charge control for each slot (usually such chargers can charge 1, 2, 3 or 4 cells).

Alternatively, you can use a charger made by Sanyo that comes with an Eneloop bundle. These don't always match the above specifications but since Sanyo has designed them to charge Eneloops they can be trusted.

 

[SoCalDep]

Alternatively, you can use a charger made by Sanyo that comes with an Eneloop bundle. These don't always match the above specifications but since Sanyo has designed them to charge Eneloops they can be trusted.

Darn it! I was at Fry's today and looked at the bundle but passed on it because it didn't look like it charged independently! I use a Fenix TK20 with 2 x AA and a couple 1 x AA lights so I was concerned about charging batteries with different charge levels.

 

[36\01RSAW]

It has to be asked: on what evidence does this seem to be so?

Because the evidence available suggests that trickle charging is not the best way to charge NiMH batteries and that repeated trickle charging over time will probably reduce their performance and shorten their life.

Eneloops are a very good choice of battery. When selecting a charger for them, look for one that takes from 1 to 4 hours to charge a set, and one that has individual charge control for each slot (usually such chargers can charge 1, 2, 3 or 4 cells).

Alternatively, you can use a charger made by Sanyo that comes with an Eneloop bundle. These don't always match the above specifications but since Sanyo has designed them to charge Eneloops they can be trusted.

I have no good evidence as to why I thought that lol, I just thought that slowly charging batteries was good and that you wouldn't have to worry about overcharging. Now I know better. I'll look at the sanyo eneloop combo. I'd like to order everything from the same place cause I hate shipping charges.

Thanks

 

[Mr Happy]

Darn it! I was at Fry's today and looked at the bundle but passed on it because it didn't look like it charged independently! I use a Fenix TK20 with 2 x AA and a couple 1 x AA lights so I was concerned about charging batteries with different charge levels.

The common Eneloop charger MQN06 does indeed charge in pairs, but as long as you put two empty cells in each pair of slots you need not be too concerned about it. This would not be considered a perfect charger but it does the job.

 

[wisconsinray]

For the past handful of years I have used both fast, and trickle chargers successfully. I have found that the fast chargers work very well with good quality batteries, but trickle chargers worked with all rechargeable batteries; and when a fast charger rejected a battery as un-chargeable, I could often bring it back to life by leaving it on trickle charge for a few days.
The instructions for most fast chargers for Ni-Cd and Ni-MH will tell you that they switch to trickle charge after the circuit detects the battery voltage reaches a preset level, and they advise that "the charger switches to "trickle" mode. Leaving the batteries on charge up to 2.5 hours the batteries will be at maximum capacity."
The biggest destroyer of rechargeable batteries is excess heat. Excess heat can be generated from extremely fast discharge (shoring out the battery), or overly aggressive charging. Ni-Cd and Ni-MH rechargeable batteries have a rating of mAH (milliampere-hours), and a fast charge would be 50% to 100% of this value, and no more. Trickle charging does not exceed this mAH rating of rechargeable batteries, and so it is safe. It is best however to remove batteries from your trickle charger after a few days.
There are many trickle chargers available, and many have built in timers that stop charging after a preset time. I prefer chargers that do not turn of automatically so I can control the time myself. Ideally a 1600 mAH battery charging at 100 mA will take 16 hours (1600/100 = 16), but because charging efficiency may be as poor as 50%, you should double this to be conservative; so 1600/100*2 = 32 Hour). The biggest disadvantage to trickle charging is that the charger will not tell you when the battery is done, you need to time it, and the time may be calculated in days (2000 mAH/100mA*2 = 40 Hours, or about 2 days). But if you have time, and a good supply of batteries, I don't find this to be a problem.
The instructions for the La Crosse BC-9009 charger states "•All Modes Automatically Default to 200mA Charge (the optimal setting for prolonging battery life)".
So, I say, use a trickle charger with confidence.

 

[Lynx_Arc]

The instructions for the La Crosse BC-9009 charger states "•All Modes Automatically Default to 200mA Charge (the optimal setting for prolonging battery life)".
So, I say, use a trickle charger with confidence.

The Lacross is NOT a trickle charger and care should be used at such low rates as with some batteries termination may not be properly detected causing the charger to overcharge batteries.

 

[Wrend]

Charging an empty cell at 0.1C/h for up to 16 hours (though often a little less time will do for cells in good condition) is fine, and won't significantly damage the cell if it is overcharged at this rate, though it isn't good to charge a full cell if you can help it. That's 190mA for AA Eneloops and 80mA for the AAAs. An inexpensive solution for a charger with these characteristics are the wall wart style "hobby" chargers, but they will often require charging 4 or more cells in series. (Not very convenient if you only need to charge one cell.)

Having a maintenance/float charge applied to cells is doable, but not really a good idea if you're concerned with the longevity and performance of your cells.

An independent port charger that charges each cell individually is best for loose cells (cells not in a battery pack). The MH-C9000 in particular is a great charger for Eneloops. It has a conservative termination then slowly tops them off to help balance them at a more full level.

In my opinion, having a good charger and Eneloops is the most cost effective solution for your general AA and AAA battery needs in the long run. (How do you reasonably expect to match your cells' levels of charged capacity to use them in series to charge or discharge them so that they aren't overcharged or reverse charged, especially if you have any devices that don't use an even number of cells, have different minimum operational voltage levels per cell, and have different drain rates?)

The non-independent port Sanyo chargers (and all other non-independent port chargers that charge at a faster rate than 0.1C/h) should be avoided. It is unfortunate that they make them and sell them to unsuspecting consumers that don't know any better.