Check your batteries

Norman_Castle

In the last month I've found six devices with leaking batteries. A thermometer/humidity sensor, two sets of digital scales and three remote controls. I found two of these yesterday after finding the fourth leaking battery and decided to check everything. Two of them were still working despite having a badly leaking battery inside. The batteries are either aa or aaa of different ages and makes. The thermometer has been cleaned but is massively over reading and one set of scales doesn't work at all.

I suspect the very hot weather during the summer may be the problem. For the few minutes it takes it could be worth checking your devices.

facade

Modern alkaline batteries leak. They must be made differently now.

It used to be duracell that leaked, and energizer would be fine, but now energizer leak just as badly.

You should always remove the batteries from anything that isn't going to be used for a few weeks, and as you say, check the batteries in things you are actively using periodically, and never, never, never leave flat batteries in equipment.

You can get super premium (super expensive) "leak proof" batteries that have shelf lives of 5 years or more, these tend not to leak as quickly, they are probably made properly rather than on the cheap.

I remember in The Olden Days Duracell used to offer a guarantee to replace any equipment damaged by leaking batteries, if that hasn't long gone they'd be bankrupt!

Whitefiver

I find Amazon Basics good so far as far as leaking is concerned, and Costco's batteries the worst. My Amazon AAs have a "best before" date in the 2030's.

googler

I unearthed a couple of Everready batteries from the 1960s or 1970s in a piece of gear that was buried in my parents-in-law house.  These were the cylindrical C or D cells with the cardboard wrapping around the shell, not metal. 

No leaks. 

molerat

I don't use Duracell any more as from experience they are the most likely to leak.

Neil_Jones

Norman_Castle said:

In the last month I've found six devices with leaking batteries. A thermometer/humidity sensor, two sets of digital scales and three remote controls. I found two of these yesterday after finding the fourth leaking battery and decided to check everything. Two of them were still working despite having a badly leaking battery inside. The batteries are either aa or aaa of different ages and makes. The thermometer has been cleaned but is massively over reading and one set of scales doesn't work at all.

I suspect the very hot weather during the summer may be the problem. For the few minutes it takes it could be worth checking your devices.

Batteries tend to leak if they're left in position in things that don't get used in a month of Sundays, such as maybe TV remotes for devices that don't get used regularly.  If they're not "in" anything they shouldn't leak (or at least not visibly).  The hot weather on its own shouldn't be a problem as the 40 degree temperature was only for one day, but if it was 40 degrees for days on end then those batteries probably aren't suitable for the local environment, but since we don't have those sort of temperatures on a regular basis in this country, its relatively moot anyway.

https://www.consumerreports.org/batteries/whybatteriesleak/ might be of interest.

If a battery is leaking when in a device tthat is still working hat that suggests its either an old battery that's already on the way out, the device isn't using the battery power quickly enough to avoid the chemical reaction that causes this (which is basically a gas build-up that causes the leakage) or the device might be better off with lithium batteries rather than alkaline.

tallmansix

Norman_Castle said:

In the last month I've found six devices with leaking batteries. A thermometer/humidity sensor, two sets of digital scales and three remote controls. I found two of these yesterday after finding the fourth leaking battery and decided to check everything. Two of them were still working despite having a badly leaking battery inside. The batteries are either aa or aaa of different ages and makes. The thermometer has been cleaned but is massively over reading and one set of scales doesn't work at all.

I suspect the very hot weather during the summer may be the problem. For the few minutes it takes it could be worth checking your devices.

What brand / type of batteries?

Norman_Castle

AA and AAA, varied makes.

tallmansix

Norman_Castle said:

AA and AAA, varied makes.

Sorry, meant to ask whether they are zinc-carbon or alkaline for example?

Zinc carbon is more prone to leaking anyway, especially when nearly or completely discharged as the zinc starts to dissolve. Zinc form the outer shell of the battery, once it starts to dissolve, the electrolyte will leak out.

Alkaline (Zinc-Chloride) batteries are less likely to leak and are sometimes branded as "leakproof" but when they do it is due to the build-up of hydrogen gas that will eventually pop a seal. Mostly caused by impurities in the battery so likely to happen with cheap ones.

In both cases, it is the electrical discharge that causes the process to start which triggers the leaks, so the battery getting near to exhausted or completely discharged will be the underlying cause. Those same batteries kept as new wouldn't have leaked.

Hot summer temperatures for a few days are unlikely to be the cause of the leaking, they might accelerate it slightly, but the primary cause is as above.