Off Subject, But May Come In Handy...

That's odd. I was always under the impression that dropping a battery like that would kill whatever charge it had!
 
Hi Everyone, I showed this to our Automotive Electricity instructor, one of the smartest people I've ever met. There was a lot of doubt.

He did say, though, that alkaline batteries can develop gasses inside when they run down. He also said that the gasses MIGHT cause the flat end (negative) of the battery to bulge slightly in some cases. MAYBE that's the phenomena being demonstrated.

He also asked why weren't the batteries in the demonstration the same brand?

-VT/JeffH
 
I tried it. Same brand batteries. Same weight on gram scale. One dead, one full. It worked the same as the video. Only thing I can figure is the full battery has something elastic in it that makes it act like a dead blow hammer then hardens as it discharges.

I really wonder about people who come up with this stuff.

Lonnie
 
Neat tip, I have a meter but naturally it's not always near where you need it. I'm going to give it a try. Now for a word to the wise. Maybe I'm neglectful or just don't use my flashlights all that much but I have had two Mag-Lite C cell 'lights damaged in the past year along with a AA cell pocket sized Mag-Light, and a Stanley MaxLite that takes six AA batteries.
I hate to dis a company but I feel this is warranted as in every case the batteries were Dura Cell and they had current "use by" dates on them when I finally got them out of the flashlights. Corrosion was holding the batteries in the 'lights making the pocket Mag useless while the others did respond to cleaning, but some buildup remains which now makes removal of the batteries difficult. Proctor & Gamble has yet to respond (after an extended period) to my email regarding this matter.
If you own quality flashlights you may want to check them as I have learned to do.

Sorry if this comes off as a thread hi-jack, that was never my intention.
 
I remember when the battery companies promised to replace your flashlight if a battery damaged it but I've had several good flashlights ruined by leaking batteries in recent years
 
In the 50's I worked in a garage/gas station. Along with waxes and many other engine products, we sold a powdered product that was to be poured into each of the battery fill caps. After putting it into the battery, the instructions were to "drop" the battery a couple of times about 3 inches, on it's flat bottom. It seemed to boost the battery output, at least initially. Never did any follow up on the folks that tried it. It was for old batteries.

Milt K from Pa
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top