That's it! No more Rayovacs
- Thread starter Al
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where were they made?
all the leakers i have seen were made in china.
i have seen very few rayovacs leak in the past but plenty of the new china made cells are leaking.
cant complain too much as i got a 25.00 light free from a neighbor who didnt think to wash it out.all 4 rayovac china cells were leaking.
all the leakers i have seen were made in china.
i have seen very few rayovacs leak in the past but plenty of the new china made cells are leaking.
cant complain too much as i got a 25.00 light free from a neighbor who didnt think to wash it out.all 4 rayovac china cells were leaking.
Yipes! I have some Rayovacs I bought a couple years ago, some in use and some still being stored, which have seemed to be great so far. This prompted me to go check their packages... phew! All of them say they weren't made in China (all "Made In The USA", actually), so hopefully they aren't at risk for this.
By some coincidence, I have unintentionally managed to buy batteries that all say "Made In The USA" -- Duracell, Rayovac, and Kroger store brand. I had never really paid attention to where the batteries were made before, but apparently I should do that from now on. Just a few days ago, I commented to someone that it seems like batteries leak a whole lot less often nowadays than they did 15-20 years ago. If this is indeed a widespread situation, I guess some of the battery factories in China are going back to lower standards. :sigh:
I wonder how the failure/leakage ratio of batteries compares among brands and origins (USA, Japan, China... are they making batteries anywhere else too?).
Black Rose
Flashlight Enthusiast
I haven't purchased any Rayovac alkalines for a couple of years, but the ones we still do have are all Made in USA. No problems with those ones.
Sounds like Rayovac has changed battery suppliers, which is too bad. They used to be really good cells for the money.
Sounds like Rayovac has changed battery suppliers, which is too bad. They used to be really good cells for the money.
Don't know where made ... gone now ... BUT ... I don't feel like wasting my time examining packages or enduring a "I wonder if ...?" situation after I buy & install batteries. The ones I found leaking were bought & installed at different times during the year. I DISCOVERED the leakers in my variety of equipment during the last month which finally led me to the conclusion used to title this thread.
jayflash
Flashlight Enthusiast
My experience has been the opposite, although my ROVs are still from the USA.
I've had brand new, unused, leakers of all major brands. My guess is the occasional bad batch or poor storage plagues them all and it's only a matter of time.
I've had brand new, unused, leakers of all major brands. My guess is the occasional bad batch or poor storage plagues them all and it's only a matter of time.
NeonLights
Flashlight Enthusiast
Good luck with the Duracells, but I've used a pretty even mix of Energizers, Duracells, and ROV's in flashlights (and other items too) over the last 20 years, and have had just as many (if not more) leaks from Duracells and Energizers as I have from ROV's.
Wattnot
Enlightened
I like the Rayovac CR123's that I have but I've never liked their alkalines. I put them well behind Energizers and I don't like those much either. I've had Energizers leak and ruin several things of mine over the years. I've never once lost an item to a Duracell. If you HAVE to use alkalines (yuck), use Duracell.
MrAl
Flashlight Enthusiast
Hi there,
I've had the same problem with Rayovac alkalines over the years. More of them
have leaked than i can count ha ha.
I just checked three of mine that had leaked out of a pack of 8. I kept these
for reference so it's possible to post a pic here too. All three made in USA.
They leaked so bad you can see 1/8 inch thick rings around the negative
end of the cells, made of white chalkie stuff (the guts).
I've had the same problem with Rayovac alkalines over the years. More of them
have leaked than i can count ha ha.
I just checked three of mine that had leaked out of a pack of 8. I kept these
for reference so it's possible to post a pic here too. All three made in USA.
They leaked so bad you can see 1/8 inch thick rings around the negative
end of the cells, made of white chalkie stuff (the guts).
NeonLights
Flashlight Enthusiast
Just give it time, you've apparently been lucky so far if the only alkalines you use are Duracells. Many of us have had Duracells leak in flaslights and other items. I've seen no major differences in the "big 3" brands as far as leaking goes, they all can leak if the conditions are right. Cheap off-brand are worse, but any alkaline can leak given the right conditions, including Duracells.
What are the right conditions that encourage leaking, and vice-versa? I haven't really seen much of a pattern myself yet.
NeonLights
Flashlight Enthusiast
I've had more Maglites ruined by alkalines than every other kind of device. In those cases it was a combination of the batteries being in the lights for a long time (usually a year or more), extreme temperature variation, and a metal-bodied flashlight. Several of them were left in the trunk or glovebox of a car for long periods of time, others were left in an unheated garage.
Last year I opened a drawer in my (unheated) garage that I had forgotten about, inside were a Maglite and three plastic-bodied flashlights. I hadn't opened the drawer in at least 2-3 years, the batteries in all of the lights were well past their expiration dates. The only flashlight that had leaked batteries was the Mag.
IME long periods of time, temperature variations, and often a metal bodied device all contribute to alkaline batteries leaking.
Hmm. Do you think the 'metal-bodied device' factor might be due to having less ventilation than most plastic-bodied devices? I wonder if those batteries would have been as likely to leak in those Maglites if they had been, say, left with the tailcaps off?
jtr1962
Flashaholic
The metal body probably has a galvanic reaction with the cell casing, making it more prone to leak. However, I've had my share of leaky cells in plastic devices as well. Leakage is the primary reason I'm done with alkaline cells. What good is a cell which on paper self-discharges less than rechargeables but in practice leaks after a year? I've never had a rechargeable leak on me but have had loads of alkalines of all brands.
There is no chance that Rayovac cells were originally packaged with an Energizer light. It was probably a customer return where they replaced the cells with used Rayovac ones.
All alkalines leak. I've had Energizers (the worst), Duracells (second), and Rayovacs (third but only because I've used these only in the past two years). I don't think any manufacturer is immune from leaking alkalines. Use them only in frequently serviced/used lights since they're likely to leak after a year or two.
Wattnot
Enlightened
To be fair on my Duracell claim, I've been stuck with Enegizers for the past umpteen years because I (unfortunately) am stuck with Sam's Club and they don't sell Duracells.
These days they're putting the "good until" date on all of these batteries. In fact, they've been doing that for quite some time. Since they have started doing this, I'd like to know if ANY of the leakers have occurred on a battery that has not yet reached the expiration date. I would still bet that Duracell can exceed their expiration date by the widest margin before leaking.
The batteries (all brands) that do leak prior to the date . . . what were the conditions? Extreme cold followed by extreme heat? Like in a forgotten piece of junk yellow "flashlight" in the shed?
These days they're putting the "good until" date on all of these batteries. In fact, they've been doing that for quite some time. Since they have started doing this, I'd like to know if ANY of the leakers have occurred on a battery that has not yet reached the expiration date. I would still bet that Duracell can exceed their expiration date by the widest margin before leaking.
The batteries (all brands) that do leak prior to the date . . . what were the conditions? Extreme cold followed by extreme heat? Like in a forgotten piece of junk yellow "flashlight" in the shed?
MrAl
Flashlight Enthusiast
Hello again,
Strange, i've never had an Energizer leak, at least not for as long as i can
remember. I dont use Duracell alkies, just AAA rechargeables, so i cant comment
on those. I've also found Energizers to really last longer than Rayovacs in my
wireless digital thermometer, like 33 percent longer. I was surprised.
This is what bugs me about Rayovac, is that their cells seem to leak so much.
A friend of mine gave me all his AA Rayovacs cause he got tired of this problem
too, and sure enough, there were three leaking in the pack within about 3 or 4
weeks. This happens way too much for me not to draw a conclusion about
Rayovacs.
Havent tried their rechargeable NiMh LSD cells yet though, but i do plan to do
so, as i believe the problem is only with the alkalines.
If they ever fix the problem with the alkies i will go back to buying them, but in the
mean time i am trying to avoid them when possible.
Strange, i've never had an Energizer leak, at least not for as long as i can
remember. I dont use Duracell alkies, just AAA rechargeables, so i cant comment
on those. I've also found Energizers to really last longer than Rayovacs in my
wireless digital thermometer, like 33 percent longer. I was surprised.
This is what bugs me about Rayovac, is that their cells seem to leak so much.
A friend of mine gave me all his AA Rayovacs cause he got tired of this problem
too, and sure enough, there were three leaking in the pack within about 3 or 4
weeks. This happens way too much for me not to draw a conclusion about
Rayovacs.
Havent tried their rechargeable NiMh LSD cells yet though, but i do plan to do
so, as i believe the problem is only with the alkalines.
If they ever fix the problem with the alkies i will go back to buying them, but in the
mean time i am trying to avoid them when possible.
