just add water flashlights?

Illum

Flashaholic
Joined
Apr 29, 2006
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Location
Central Florida, USA
I've seen this somewhere...long ago about a type of one time use flashlight with a dry battery, when you need it, add water or even urine to the chamber for the battery to function....this was supposely best selling before the dynamo kryptons bounced their way into the market [and even thats been replaced by LED shake lights]

anyone have info on this?
 
Pee power..... now that's what I call going green.... or should I say.... yellow. :laughing:

Sorry, I just couldn't resist.
 
Illum_the_nation said:
I've seen this somewhere...long ago about a type of one time use flashlight with a dry battery, when you need it, add water or even urine to the chamber for the battery to function....this was supposely best selling before the dynamo kryptons bounced their way into the market [and even thats been replaced by LED shake lights]

anyone have info on this?

I think you might of been sniffing too much Lithium Odors. :lolsign:

Never heard of such a thing.
shrug.gif
 
I thought that I had read about this on Slashdot lately, unfortunately I cannot find the article.

The real power comes from the metals, not the fluid (just like the potato battery).
 
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There are plenty of elements and chemicals you can add to water which produce energy in the form of heat or gas. The problem would be harnessing this energy safely and turning it into electricity in a small enough package. I expect someone has tried it - I'd be interested to know.

Maybe it would have an application for emergency military use, but I rather doubt it could be done economically enough to compete with mainstream technologies.
 
I believe there are lights called "Wheatlights" that work by putting water into the battery cells. My cousin had one that was a headlamp with a battery pack and wire that attaches to your belt. I think it is used by miners, hunters, and others who need a LOT of light for long periods of time.
 
I remember a friend back in elementary school had a water watch, that you just had to put in water every now and then to keep running..
 
The military use salt water batteries to power various stores, like the marker marine Mk25 (a phosphoros smoke marker sdropped at sea from P3 Orions), but I"ve never heard of one in a flashlight, no reason why not, except perhaps the gasses given off.
 
Why would a phosphoros smoke marker need batteries? Phosphoros burns like crazy by itself just on contact with water.
nzgunnie said:
The military use salt water batteries to power various stores, like the marker marine Mk25 (a phosphoros smoke marker sdropped at sea from P3 Orions), but I"ve never heard of one in a flashlight, no reason why not, except perhaps the gasses given off.
 
Recently on TV over here we had someone trying to sell shares in just such a technology to entrepenuers on a show called 'Dragon' Den'.(He failed as he was only an agent with limited distribution rights and he had overvalued the business to a large degree).

He had a variety of products that can be powered by his AA sized water batteries. I believe his products were China based.

Searching on the web I found an article on engadget.com about a japanese inventor with similar sounding batteries. There is even a picture of a battery going into a torch, an Led Lenser by the look of it.

I'll don't really know how to link but look up:

japanese-inventor-touts-water-powered-battery

...and you should find the page.



Be lucky...
 
socom1970 said:
I believe there are lights called "Wheatlights" that work by putting water into the battery cells. My cousin had one that was a headlamp with a battery pack and wire that attaches to your belt. I think it is used by miners, hunters, and others who need a LOT of light for long periods of time.

Those wheatlights use wet lead-acid batteries which require the occasional addition of distilled water. Sorta like miniature car batteries worn on a waistbelt with a cable to the headlamp.

Wheatlights are rechargeable with good runtime and decent light output. But, they are fairly heavy and will self discharge and damage the battery if not topped up frequently.


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