Leaking battery damage

I asked this question on another forum but never got an answer to my question, so I thought I'd try here.

i have an eiger pocket light that was damaged by leaking alkaline batteries. After rinsing with vinegar and lightly scrubbing with steel wool it works, but only if I insert aluminum foil under the battery. Should I continue to use it like this, or is there a better fix available? Any help is appreciated.

Although this does not directly answer your question, the best way to prevent this from happening in the future is not to use alkaleaks. Use Eneloops or other nickel metal hydride (NiMH) rechargeable cells instead. These do not leak, do not develop memory, and provide a consistent level of power from beginning to end. You will need a good smart charger that individually charges and monitors each cell (Powerex Maha chargers are recommended) so there is some upfront investment in making the change, but you will save money in the long run by not repeatedly buying single use cells and not ruining devices with leaking cells. You will also get better performance in most devices.

I had a leak in an ARC flashlight and cut a piece of a scotchbrite pad and wrapped it around a pencil and cleaned the bore and sprayed with WD40 to slow down any more corrosion

Next time use baking soda to neutralize the acid. Battery acid(Sulfuric Acid) is acidic so you want to use a basic substance to counteract it. Vinegar(Acetic Acid) is also acidic so it will not have the desired affect.

You should probably spray the light with an anti-corrosive cleaning spray like Deoxit as well to clean the contact points and stop further corrosion.

I recommend switching to NiMh batteries if you can and stop using Alkalines. They will not leak like Alkalines do, often offer superior performance, and are much more environmentally friendly. They also offer a cost savings in the long run. I recommend Sanyo Eneloop or Eneloop Pro brand NiMh's.

THanks for the responses. I will try the baking soda. I'm switching from alkaline to rechargeable batteries in all electronics. I still wonder if continued use of the aluminum foil is safe.

Tachead said:

Next time use baking soda to neutralize the acid. Battery acid(Sulfuric Acid) is acidic so you want to use a basic substance to counteract it. Vinegar(Acetic Acid) is also acidic so it will not have the desired affect.

You should probably spray the light with an anti-corrosive cleaning spray like Deoxit as well to clean the contact points and stop further corrosion.

I recommend switching to NiMh batteries if you can and stop using Alkalines. They will not leak like Alkalines do, often offer superior performance, and are much more environmentally friendly. They also offer a cost savings in the long run. I recommend Sanyo Eneloop or Eneloop Pro brand NiMh's.

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Alkaline cells do NOT contain sulfuric acid but instead potassium hydroxide which is an alkaline, which is another way of describing a base and vinegar or lemon juice (an acid) is an appropriate way of dealing with it.

As for the OP's issue: It's possible that the leak removed enough material to where the battery no longer makes contact and you just need something to bridge the gap, careful you don't create a short.

I had a few lights that had been plaqued by leak residue stuck to places that disallowed conductivity from point A to B. I made a sorta drill but with a sheet sandpaper, and twisted it into areas to remove as much as possible with that, then q-tips loaded with Tarn-X (de-oxit works to). I determined when things were ok or not using probes on a digital volt meter checking for conductivity by using the "ohm" checker setting.

Now regarding the use of foil, if you can use copper foil. It conducts way better than alluminum.

lightfooted said:

Alkaline cells do NOT contain sulfuric acid but instead potassium hydroxide which is an alkaline, which is another way of describing a base and vinegar or lemon juice (an acid) is an appropriate way of dealing with it.

As for the OP's issue: It's possible that the leak removed enough material to where the battery no longer makes contact and you just need something to bridge the gap, careful you don't create a short.

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Good to know. I am mechanic and deal with lead acid batteries mostly which contain sulfuric so I just assumed the procedure was the same. You learn something every day. Wont be a problem for me anyway as I stopped using alkalines years ago and switched to lithium and NiMh. I suggest the OP does the same:thumbsup:

Is there a way to grab the spring(s) and pull slightly to elongate them enough to make a solid contact?

buzp said:

......i have an eiger pocket light that was damaged by leaking alkaline batteries. After rinsing with vinegar and lightly scrubbing with steel wool it works, but only if I insert aluminum foil under the battery. Should I continue to use it like this, or is there a better fix available? Any help is appreciated.

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If it works, I don't see a problem. However I don't understand where the aluminum foil is going and why its needed.

To recap: the acid has caused oxidation of the exposed metal parts creating high resistance. If you can get access to the (+) terminal and the (-) terminal, then sand them lightly or if you can't reach down to the (+) terminal then use a small straight edge screwdriver and lightly scratch off so that you see shiny metal at the contact point. Do that also at the rear (-) on the spring where it would touch the battery. Usually the damage is concentrated at one end or the other depending on where the acid leaded out on the battery.