Batteries in the Freezer

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

Do you store new/unused batteries in your freezer?

 

[beowulf]

wut?......why?....putting batteries in a freezer will kill them stone dead!

 

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

Storing batteries at freezing or near freezing temperatures will greatly extend the amount of time they hold a charge.



...allegedly. Ive always kept batteries in my freezer & they last a long time when I finally use them.

 

[beowulf]

never heard that one.................so why when its very cold does a car take more of an effort to start?

 

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

Not car batteries.. Like AA, AAA, C, D, etc..

 

[beowulf]

but its still a battery.....a device for storing a charge...............my experience has always been keep batteries warm to help them keep a charge....but if im wrong then fair enough

 

[Nebulous's iconNebulous]

but its still a battery.....a device for storing a charge...............my experience has always been keep batteries warm to help them keep a charge....but if im wrong then fair enough

That makes them go dead quicker.

 

[Jazzy]

Putting batteries in the freezer or refrigerator doesn't necessarily prolong their life.



Alkaline batteries stored at room temperature self discharge at a rate of less than two percent per year. So normally refrigerating or freezing them will only help maintain their charge by a tiny amount. Hardly worth the effort of chilling them. However, if alkaline batteries are stored at higher temperatures they will start to lose capacity much quicker. At 85 degrees F they only lose about 5% per year, but at 100 degrees they lose 25% per year. So if you live in a very hot climate or are storing your batteries in a very hot location, it may be worthwhile for you to store your alkaline batteries in a refrigerator instead.



NiMH and NiCd batteries self discharge at a MUCH faster rate than alkaline batteries. In fact, at room temperature (about 70 degrees F) NiMH and NiCD batteries will self discharge a few percent PER DAY. Storing them at lower temperatures will slow their self discharge rate dramatically. NiMH batteries stored at freezing will retain over 90% of their charge for full month. So it might make sense to store them in a freezer. If you do, it's best to bring them back to room temperature before using them. Even if you don't freeze your NiMH batteries after charging them, you should store them in a cool place to minimize their self discharge.

Link: http://www.greenbatteries.com/batterymyths.html#Freezer



In answer to the question asked, I do not keep any batteries in my freezer.

 

[Durandal]

Regular batteries do work slightly better if you chill them, I've been involved in actual scientific tests of this; alkalines as said above, don't gain much from it, but where you can get an advantage is not really for regular use, but actually near end-of-life. If you really need to say...power up that camcorder that has some incriminating evidence you need to wipe, toss those suckers in the freezer, you might be able to squeeze out a little more juice outta' 'em enough to get the job done. The same goes for the latter, as stated, and for computer, cell phone, etc. batteries, though you have to be careful not to expose them to excessive mositure and condensation when you take them out, because you can destroy them and render the effort all for naught. preferably if you can seal them (even in a vaccuum seal), and render them cold, the performance will work better without the condensation risks. I knew someone who was an extreme gamer/computer builder similar to me, and he actually used a freezer (you can get more commercial units called 'phase-change coolers' online), to act as a cooling device for his computer - it was basically a chassis unit. Kinda' cool, kinda' hobo, kinda' weird all in one.



With damaged or just old and dying hard drives, the same principle can be used - toss them in the freezer, and you can get them to work just good enough for just long enough to get what data you need off the thing onto a stable device.

 

[Ashley]

I have never heard of this method before. That's actually really interesting.

 

[MrMetroid]

I have never heard of this method before.

Same here

 

[TheHostBox]

Never done it before.