We charge the batteries. How to properly charge rechargeable batteries Which battery can be charged

For normal operation of any battery, you must always remember "The Three P's Rule":

1. Don't overheat!
2. Do not recharge!
3. Do not overdischarge!

You can use the following formula to calculate the charging time for a NiMH or multi-cell battery:

Charging time (h) = Battery capacity (mAh) / Charger current (mA)

Example:
We have a battery with a capacity of 2000mAh. The charging current in our charger is 500mA. We divide the battery capacity by the charging current and get 2000/500=4. This means that at a current of 500 milliamps, our battery with a capacity of 2000 milliamp hours will charge to full capacity in 4 hours!

And now in more detail about the rules that you need to try to follow for the normal operation of a nickel-metal hydride (Ni-MH) battery:

1. Store Ni-MH batteries with a small amount of charge (30 - 50% of its rated capacity).
2. Nickel-metal hydride batteries are more sensitive to heat than nickel-cadmium (Ni-Cd) batteries, so do not overcharge them. Overloading can negatively affect the battery's current output (the battery's ability to hold and release its accumulated charge). If you have a smart charger with " Delta Peak"(interrupting the battery charge when the voltage peak is reached), then you can charge the batteries with virtually no risk of overcharging and destruction of them.
3. Ni-MH (nickel metal hydride) batteries can (but not necessarily!) be “trained” after purchase. 4-6 charge/discharge cycles for batteries in a high-quality charger allows you to reach the limit of capacity that was lost during the transportation and storage of batteries in questionable conditions after leaving the manufacturing plant. The number of such cycles can be completely different for batteries from different manufacturers. High-quality batteries reach their capacity limit after only 1-2 cycles, while batteries of questionable quality with artificially high capacity cannot reach their capacity limit even after 50-100 charge/discharge cycles.
4. After discharging or charging, try to let the battery cool to room temperature (~20 o C). Charging batteries at temperatures below 5 o C or above 50 o C can significantly affect battery life.
5. If you want to discharge a Ni-MH battery, do not discharge it to less than 0.9V for each cell. When the voltage of nickel batteries drops below 0.9V per cell, most chargers with "minimal intelligence" cannot activate the charge mode. If your charger cannot recognize a deeply discharged cell (discharged less than 0.9V), then you should resort to using a “dumb” charger or connect the battery for a short time to a power source with a current of 100-150mA until the battery voltage reaches 0.9V.
6. If you constantly use the same battery assembly in electronic device in recharging mode, then sometimes it is worth discharging each battery from the assembly to a voltage of 0.9V and fully charging it in an external charger. This complete cycling procedure should be performed once every 5-10 battery recharging cycles.

Charging table for typical Ni-MH batteries

Element capacity	Standard size	Standard charging mode	Peak charge current	Maximum discharge current
2000 mAh	A.A.	200mA ~ 10 hours	2000 mA	10.0A
2100 mAh	A.A.	200mA ~ 10-11 hours	2000 mA	15.0A
2500 mAh	A.A.	250mA ~ 10-11 hours	2500 mA	20.0A
2750 mAh	A.A.	250mA ~ 10-12 hours	2000 mA	10.0A
800 mAh	AAA	100mA ~ 8-9 hours	800 mA	5.0 A
1000 mAh	AAA	100mA ~ 10-12 hours	1000 mA	5.0 A
160 mAh	1/3 AAA	16mA ~ 14-16 hours	160 mA	480 mA
400 mAh	2/3 AAA	50mA ~ 7-8 hours	400 mA	1200 mA
250 mAh	1/3AA	25mA ~ 14-16 hours	250 mA	750 mA
700 mAh	2/3 AA	100mA ~ 7-8 hours	500 mA	1.0A
850 mAh	FLAT	100mA ~ 10-11 hours	500 mA	3.0A
1100 mAh	2/3A	100mA ~ 12-13 hours	500 mA	3.0A
1200 mAh	2/3A	100mA ~ 13-14 hours	500 mA	3.0A
1300 mAh	2/3A	100mA ~ 13-14 hours	500 mA	3.0A
1500 mAh	2/3A	100mA ~ 16-17 hours	1.0A	30.0 A
2150 mAh	4/5 A	150mA ~ 14-16 hours	1.5A	10.0 A
2700 mAh	A	100mA ~ 26-27 hours	1.5A	10.0 A
4200 mAh	Sub C	420mA ~ 11-13 hours	3.0A	35.0 A
4500 mAh	Sub C	450mA ~ 11-13 hours	3.0A	35.0 A
4000 mAh	4/3 A	500mA ~ 9-10 hours	2.0A	10.0 A
5000 mAh	C	500mA ~ 11-12 hours	3.0A	20.0 A
10000 mAh	D	600mA ~ 14-16 hours	3.0A	20.0 A

The data in the table is valid for completely discharged batteries

Many people know that portable energy sources can be rechargeable or conventional. There is an opinion that if you knock the batteries against the wall or slightly change their shape, you can extend their life by several hours. And this is the absolute truth. However, there are other proven and original ways to charge a battery with your own hands at home.

How to know if you can recharge

The battery differs from an ordinary battery in capacity - mAh. Often the manufacturer makes this inscription in large letters. The higher this indicator, the longer the battery will last.

If, when purchasing, you saw the inscription “do not recharge,” then the item cannot be recharged. Another difference is the cost. Battery devices cost much more than conventional energy cells. Moreover, the cost is formed from recharging and power cycles.

It is noteworthy that folk craftsmen have learned to charge ordinary devices. They came up with a lot of ways to do this.

You should immediately pay attention to the fact that you can only recharge alkaline (alkaline) cells yourself. Saline ones are not suitable for this. In addition, recharging them can be dangerous and lead to to very undesirable consequences: explosion, electrolyte getting into the eyes, etc.

Charging can be done different ways. Therefore, there is no need to throw away the device immediately after it has become unusable.

Using special devices

Today there are many special charging devices on sale, for example, Battery Wizard. With the help of such a device you can charge ordinary finger devices several times. Consumers speak of this device as a profitable and economical purchase.

To recharge the batteries, they are placed inside a special structure, which may have different shapes: square, rectangular, round, etc.

Then the device is connected to a 220 V power supply. After the elements become slightly warm, they need to be pull out immediately. If overheating occurs, it will lead to dire consequences.

It is better to buy special rechargeable batteries and a charger included. Also pay attention to the manufacturer.

Danger of charging batteries

A large number of companies produce galvanic cells. You can buy them at any electronic goods and household equipment store. AA batteries contain caustic alkali. In a confined space, when electric current passes, the device can easily explode.

If the battery easily survived the charge/discharge cycle, then its capacity will decrease significantly during subsequent recharges. In addition, electrolyte often begins to leak, which can cause damage to the device installed in the battery.

Is it possible to extend the service life

Ordinary salt-type batteries do not function very well in cold and heat. Therefore, it is better not to use them in such weather conditions. The electrolyte inside is converted to gas or freezes, which has a detrimental effect on its conductivity.

A dead battery will last a little longer if its housing lightly press with pliers. But this must be done as carefully as possible to prevent damage.

Reagents often form into small lumps, which prevent the reaction from proceeding smoothly. inside the battery. To make the process easier, you can tap the AA battery on some durable surface. This will add about 6-7 percent power to the element.

You should also pay attention to the fact that alkaline devices tend to self-discharge. Therefore, when purchasing, you should take into account the date of manufacture. Old elements will quickly become unusable.

To achieve maximum battery life, should not be installed on one device different types. The same applies to installing new elements to old ones. It is better to always have an extra set in stock. When one loses its charge, it can be quickly and easily replaced. In this case, you will not need to think about whether the batteries can be charged.

1. Recharging of secondary batteries (batteries) must be carried out only in the charger that is intended for this purpose!

The ideal option is when charging is specially selected for battery power sources in the store.

2. Fast recharging (30 minutes - 2 hours) with modern powerful chargers is not supported by all types of batteries. The slower the energy charge is delivered, the better.

3. Before you begin recharging, it is important to carefully read all included operating manuals and instructions in advance.

Moreover, such instructions must be attached to both the charger and direct rechargeable batteries.

4. Any new or old rechargeable battery must undergo so-called “training”. In fact, “training” is 3-4 full “discharge/charge” cycles.

Those. new rechargeable batteries must be recharged to the maximum and discharged to the minimum possible level (in this case, the battery charge should not be reduced to “zero”).

If your charger is really high-quality, then the “training” function is pre-installed in it. Such a charger is capable of independently carrying out the “training” process when selecting the appropriate option in the menu (read the instructions for the charger).
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If the “training” option is not provided in the memory, this process must be performed in manual mode, controlling all its stages. Three or four full cycles (automatically or manually) will be enough.

5. When recharging batteries, it is important to monitor the temperature of the batteries. This indicator (temperature) should not exceed 55 degrees Celsius (very hot to the touch).

Important nuance!

IMPORTANT: modern “smart” and programmable chargers that perform “fast” charging of batteries are able to automatically monitor the temperature of the charged elements, turning on the overheating protection system in time!

The battery should warm up, but not “boil”, which can lead to electrolyte leakage.

Those. Having plugged the batteries into the cheapest charger, the temperature must be controlled manually, periodically checking the heating level with the back of your hand.

6. If the battery has undergone “training”, it can be recharged without waiting for it to “go to zero”. In this case, it is worth talking about partial recharging during operation.

When working with lithium batteries, it is worth knowing that recharging is a natural procedure for them. And even storage lithium batteries performed fully charged.

Partial recharging is insurance against caking of the chemical composition of the battery!

7. There are no between nickel-cadmium and nickel-metal hydride battery chargers. Older models of Ni-Cd chargers are quite suitable for modern Ni-MH batteries, although the duration of the energy supply will increase slightly.

As for recharging Ni-Cd secondary current sources in a Ni-MH specification charger, this is possible, but not advisable, because High charging currents can reduce the service life of older battery models.

At the same time, old chargers are unlikely to be able to supply a modern battery with the required supply in less than 3-4 hours.

It is difficult to imagine the life of a modern person without the so-called “helpers” - technical devices, which are powered by batteries or rechargeable batteries.

A camera, a laptop mouse, a key fob for a car alarm - all these things cannot function without batteries, and a person, at least once a month, has to worry about buying a new battery for one or another household appliance.

However, not everyone knows that some batteries can serve as a battery, that is, they can withstand repeated use - to do this, they just need to be recharged.

In this article we will look at the main differences ordinary element powered by a reusable battery, completely identical in appearance to a standard battery. It will also talk about the main criteria when selecting a charger for batteries and accumulators.

Battery selection

At first glance, choosing a AA battery that can be charged using a charger may present some difficulties, because outwardly such an element is no different from a disposable one.

However, when purchasing, it is not necessary to resort to the help of sales consultants; it is enough to understand the labels on the product.

For example, the voltage value of a conventional battery will be 1.6 V. For a battery, this parameter is lower and is 1.2 V.

A little knowledge of English will also not hurt in such a situation. Inscription rechargeable on the element in translation means “rechargeable”, which speaks for itself.

And vice versa - the phrase do not recharge will tell the potential consumer that the battery cannot be alternately charged.

Another difference is the manufacturer’s indication of the battery capacity, which is expressed in mAh (milliampere hour). You will not find such a parameter on a regular one-time element.

Rechargeable AA batteries, which receive “new life” from a charger, are divided according to the type of material that is their basis.

Nickel-cadmium battery

They are the cheapest compared to other varieties. Despite their low cost, such rechargeable batteries are not without advantages, the main one of which is the ability to retain a charge at subzero temperatures.

There are several disadvantages– inability to accept a charge until completely discharged and its loss even without using the element in the device.