canon Lee

Just looking for some tech info concerning what is the life expectancy of a re-chargeable battery? Recycle time for "not" new batteries, when used in a flash?

BebuLamar

I do not think the recycle time is longer for the old batteries right after you charged it but it would die much sooner than new batteries. In my experience with NiMH I think they're good for about 2 years the most. So much so I would only use them for flash and not anything else.

Skiextreme2 Loc: Northwest MA

That would depend on the type of battery (ni-cad or lithium ion), and I hate to say it but brand does matter, how often it's been fully discharged and recharged and how often it's used are all factors in life expectancy of a rechargeable battery.

Lithium ions will usually last longer but the other factors have a lot to do with it. If you have a battery and would like to know it's supposed life, it might be good to ask the company that makes them, then compare that with others reports (you'd have to give the model and brand to others first).

LFingar Loc: Claverack, NY

That's a coin toss. Like asking "how long will a light bulb last?". I had a brand new Canon battery that was junk from day one. Never would take a charge. I also have several after market batteries, 3 and 4 yrs old, that are still going strong, just like the OEM batteries I have. I rarely, if ever, let a battery go dead before recharging it. I think that no less then 40% is the manufacturer recommendation. I also try to take them off the charger as soon as they are charged. I just store them on a shelf with the rest of my gear, keeping all of it out of direct sunlight. Don't know if any of that makes a difference. Since I always carry a spare or two, if one does crap out it's not a big deal to me.
As far as flash batteries, I use Energizer Ultimate Lithium non-rechargeable batteries in my 430 EXII. Have for years. Can't seem to wear them out and they recycle quickly.

TriX Loc: Raleigh, NC

You may find this link useful: http://batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/cycle_performance_of_nicd_nimh_and_li_ion

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

I have recharged them hundreds, maybe thousands of times, so far I do not see any of them slowing down!

speters Loc: Grangeville/Idaho

I think light bulbs last longer! I all my life in Germany, I only changed a single light bulb once ( not because it burned out, but because I broke it). I lived over twenty years in one place, in another, a lot of them light bulbs were 50 years old and older!

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

I don’t have any technical info but I decided to get some cheapos when I bought my new to me film camera since it takes 8 AA’s I suddenly didn’t have enough batteries.
So I now have about 12 of the cheap batteries from Harbor Freight. Don’t know how long they will last but in my flash they seem to get about as many shots as my eneloops before I start to miss shots and I change then out.
So far so good! Will they last as long? At about a dollar each, who cares! Will they burn out my Canon 600, so far they’ve done well! Good luck with your batteries!!
SS

E.L.. Shapiro Loc: Ottawa, Ontario Canada

I though I knew something about electronics, at least photo-electronics in a practical sense, that is 'till I started to mess with batteries! After all, I ran a side business for many years that had to do with electronic flash- custom builds and modifications. I spent days designing external battery packs for speed-lights, and larger portable flash units. The idea was to extend the amount of flashes per charge and reduce or at least maintain shorter recycling times on long assignments without necessitating inconvenient battery changes and fumbling with batteries at inopportune times during a shoot. All over battery longevity was always a factor because some of the batteries that were substituted for conventional “double A” and similar cells are rather expensive to obtain. I even subscribed and still receive am ENERGY STORAGE NEWSLETTER which is all about the battery industry and have imported “state of the art” batteries from Israel that are known for incredible performance.

All in all- it's enough to drive someone NUTS! There are so many types of batteries and many variables that can affect battery performance- especially in rechargeable cells. Without getting into overly complex technology- most of which is “way above my pay rate”. Here's what I can tell you:

All batteries beside there VOLTAGE rating are rated in AMPERE-HOURS. Just for example a battery rated at 10 Ah will deliver 10 amps for 1 hour or 1 amp for 10 hours or whatever that breaks down to in mile-amps. Each time you fire the flash it draws some amperage. If that draw was the same for each flash and if you knew how much each flash draws you could do the math and figure out how many flashes you will get per charge. Especially with automatic and TTL flash gear, the light output and draw is usually different for each shot and even with a manual flash, the draw would vary at different power settings.
Although different types of of rechargeable batteries can tolerate erratic charging cycle and some are reputed to have MEMORY issues when charging cycles are not uniform and consistent, I have found that ALL TYPES OF batteries last longer if the are adequately drained before the are recharged, not left in a discharged states for long periods and are fully recharged promptly. Beginning to charge partially drained cells and topping them off can reduce their all over longevity. Perhaps this is overkill on my part but since I use many portable units, I keep to a pretty strict charging routine and I find that my batteries last longer and tend NOT to abruptly fail in the middle of a shoot or prematurely come to the end of their useful life.

A bad charger is a battery killer. I will build or invest in better chargers that will automatically drop their charging rate as the cells charge up and maintain a trickle charge until I can remove them form the charger or disconnect them. I do not keep them on perpetual trickle charge. I make certain that the batters do not overheat.

Of someone is into a bit of electronics as a hobby or profession, I suggest that the check the charging rate of there charger and battery combination with a mA meter. I do that if I suspect a problem of premature battery discharge or overheating.

The recycling time of you speed-lights will begin to increase as there is a voltage drop in the batteries. It's hard to determine this is happening prematurely and your rechargeable batteries are beginning to deteriorate or are defective, except by your own experience. If the star doing anything “funny” it is probably time to change them up. By the way- the accessory power packs (Rapid Cycler etc.) that actually reduce recycling time, do no connect to the low voltage side of your flash gear- they inter-phase with the high voltage section of the circuitry through a special port in the unit. They are usually supplied by the original manufacturer or specifically made for certain units by aftermarket manufacturers.

If you are not a frequent battery user, sometimes it is actually more economical to simply use ordinary high quality alkaline batteries. Authentic Copper-Tops and Energizers are very reliable and are not likely to malfunction for any of the aforementioned causes. Frankly, I became so tired of small rechargeable batteries and all their idiosyncrasies that I have converted all of my speed-lights to external powered packs using lead-acid sealed (Gel-Cells). A 6V. battery sets me back about 25 bucks and last for 3 or 4 years in heavy use. They pack 7 amp/hours and the fully recharge over night after a long job. The wiring is simple and I carry them in a small cloth belt pack that was a case meant for a cheap digital camera. I have also replaced all my EXPENSIVE nickel cadmium batteries in my bigger portables with 12V. Gel- Cells. When I go to shoot my grand kids birthday parties, I just throw a set double A copper tops in my Speedlight. Then I take them out and put them in the TV remote!

One thing for sure- NEVER buy cheap or knockoff batteries of any kind. Believe me, when I ran my service business, I did many serious repairs due to leaking, exploding and and physically defective cells that significantly messed up the circuitry in cameras and flash units alike. Cheap cells also unceremoniously drop dead right in the middle of important assignments. Remember that old filter TV ad- “Pay me now or pay me later”?!

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

My panasonic's are ten years old and going strong. Most manufactures will give out that info either on the box when new and you can email them.

BebuLamar

I found gelcells are good. They don't deliver as high current draw as NiMH but since you use it as external pack which is larger they can provide sufficient current draw (for rapid recycling) and would deliver more flashes per charge. Gelcells can be recharged without running them down and have slower self discharge rate. They just don't like overcharging.