Battery beware

[snowswamp]

Batteries can cause corrosion, that white, powdery nasty stuff we’ve encountered in the battery compartments when we open it after years. My ThermoWorks IR-IND has befallen to such a fate. I use it occasionally over years and yesterday after pulling it out it blinked and went dead. I noticed the signature white coming out of the handle, swelling and cracking the plastic.



I opened the battery compartment and the batteries looked alright and there was minor corrosion inside.



Most of it had occurred inside the device and it no longer works. Thermoworks suggested cleaning with alcohol and we both think that’s not gonna help considering the damage. They did offer me 20% towards a new one. I’m sad it broke. It has come in REALLY handy and was an educational toy when my kids were little to get them into cooking and safety. I’d recommend one if you’re looking and check those battery compartments regularly.

[jfmorris]

Don't like that this happened to your thermometer, but like your PSA. I need to go through things like thermometers and even TV/stereo/etc remote controls and swap batteries on occasion. I found a Wii in a box, and all the controllers had leaked AA batteries in them. I was able to resurrect it, but took some cleaning.

Something folks don't think about, but I had a nice Citizen watch that had a dead battery in it in a drawer for 15-20 years, and sadly, it was not repairable. The battery did not leak - apparently if you leave a quartz watch sitting idle too long the works can freeze up. Another watch I recently worked on did have a leaked battery though, but the leak was on the inside of the back, and not onto the watch workings.

[jfmorris]

HawkerXP haha. Yeah, I hear ya. I've always worn a watch of some sort, transitioning to a Garmin GPS running watch, then eventually an Apple watch. But lately I've been wearing more often a Seiko 5 automatic I bought in 2017 for $69, that now goes for something like $229. I like knowing what time it is, but don't always need to count my steps or know what text messages are coming into my phone.

My son in law is a collector, and inspired me to start going through drawers and evaluating mine.

[Mosca]

Son of a gun, I had that happen with an old Seiko that I really liked. It was day/date with an alarm. It was just a really nice looking watch that I enjoyed wearing. I looked in to getting it repaired, but it would have been cheaper to just buy a used one. When I took that thought to the guy who was looking at it, he said not to bother. I have a nice watch anyhow, so I blew off the idea.

[jfmorris]

Mosca yep - best to keep those things ticking with a fresh battery, than to sit dead. Not something I was aware of as an issue.

I am more into mechanical watches now, and really like my Seiko 5 with the crown at 4 o'clock. It's either that or the Apple watch to count my steps.

I did resurrect 4 quartz watches recently, including a Seiko I bought my wife 20+ years ago, for $300-400 at the time. She isn't wearing it, as she likes her Apple watch, but at least it is working in her jewelry box!

[Dan Deter]

This is why all of the small battery powered tools in my shop (stud finders, moisture meters, etc) are kept with the batteries sitting in the drawer until I need them. When the boy was younger I used to find myself removing old batteries and cleaning out corrosion on a regular basis to keep them working.

[Alan Brice]

That is my OCD, I take the batts out of everything and keep used ones separate to be used first.
My Battery Daddy helps with this.

[HawkerXP]

"Who's your Daddy?"

[Alan Brice]

In Indiana it is Hoosier Daddy?!?

[jfmorris]

I love my Battery Daddy, and its battery tester too.

[MBMorgan]

That is my OCD, I take the batts out of everything and keep used ones separate to be used first.
My Battery Daddy helps with this.

Same here.

In addition and where possible, I've recently quit using alkaline batteries and switched to the newer lithium versions. They currently cost more, but they last longer, have better temperature tolerance, and (with any luck at all) I'm hoping that they won't have that nasty alkaline leakage tendency.

[Michael_in_TX]

I switched to a lithium for my chest freezer and it did make a significant difference in battery life.

[Michael_in_TX]

I'm sure we've all tried to find a consumer brand that does not leak. I've had Amazon Basics batteries last for years beyond their shelf life.....and name-brand ones that leaked after just a few months. It seems almost random. I wonder if these batteries are like car batteries; there are countless brands but only two or three plants actually make them.

Anecdotally, the brand I have had the most success with over nearly 30 years is the Energizer Professional ones. I use these exclusively for my audio gear in my conference work. We had a conference in New Orleans in October of 2019 and we were very rushed packing up. I neglected to remove a great many of the batteries, but I didn't worry that much about it as the next conference was in March of 2020.

Oops.

We didn't have another Face-to-Face conference until March of 2022! And all that (relatively expensive) mic gear sat in storage with the batteries installed!

Not a single problem, thankfully. Whew.

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7-ghrTqA44

As far as not leaking, the only way is rechargeable or lithium

As to manufacturers, I was hoping to find a cutting open video comparison but was unsuccessful

[HawkerXP]

I've found vinegar on something like a Q Tip is good for cleaning battery leakage on connections.

[smokenoob]

yes, then neutralize with baking soda and water

I dip my trailer connect plugs in white vinegar and salt solution for three minutes then neutralize with baking soda and water…..makes em like new!

[HawkerXP]

Vinegar! The miracle cleaner!

[Murdy]

I've only had this happen once. Unfortunately, it was on a Garmin Oregon, which is one of the more expensive things I owned where it could have happened.

[dpearce]

The electronics repair group I belong to probably posts about this once a week. We call Duracell's, Duraleaks for a reason. I set a calendar entry to remind me every couple of months to go through anything with a D, C, AA, or AAA cell battery in it.

Button cells and 9 volts, don't seem to have the same fate, at least not so far as I've seen. I've been using the cheap (relatively) Harbor Fright (yes, I spelled that right) variety for awhile now. They don't last quite as long as the bigger name brands, but I have yet to see one leak.

[radshop]

My PSA for your PSA is this:

Switch to AllMax brand batteries. They are sealed, and I've never had one leak.

[Michael_in_TX]

Interesting! Amazon carries them and they don't seem to be expensive. May have to check them out.

[ItsAllGoneToTheDogs]

All alkaline batteries have a potential to leak, even the "sealed" ones. Significantly less likely, but not 100% leak proof and them and the other manufacturers with "sealed" models specifically cite they are not immune to the issue (some hide the disclaimer better than others). We ultimately just decided to keep buying Amazon ones or when there's a sale at Sams on a bulk buy of name brand and then check once a month. Fewer things in our house have batteries these days.

[wu7y]

Try cleaning the battery contacts with a mixture of baking soda and warm water using a toothbrush taking care not to get the liquid past the battery compartment and then once dry put new batteries. It might not work but if not all you lost was a little water and baking soda.

[jfmorris]

That is my solution for cleaning battery terminals on my cars too. Well, it was until I just bought a hybrid for my wife! That thing has no battery under the hood…

[Alan Brice]

Sody Pop works as well.

[RolfTaylor]

Alkaline batteries are not what they used to be, at least as far as leaking. I read that the recipe changes made to eliminate mercury is the reason. That adds up because as far as leakage they began to get worse around that time.

As a tinkerer I have had pretty good luck repairing stuff that has been damaged as described. Alcohol is the first step, then you need to use something mildly abrasive (green scotch brite pad works well, or just scrape with a blade). Once it is working I treat with a small amount of de-oxit, a very expensive contact preservative that, fortunately, you use sparingly.

Recently I learned of a glass fiber pen that works really well for this process. It is called a "Spot Sanding Pen". I have to go through this cleaning on the igniter for my gas grill every year or two. The problem there is not leakage but just corrosion.

[snowswamp]

Thanks everyone for the advice, tips, and tricks. I was able to dismantle the handle and the corrosion, although it looked bad, was surficial and not into the electronics. I cleaned up the battery terminals and other corrosion. It’s back up and running!

[smokenoob]

I clean with white vinegar and then neutralize with baking soda and water.
if the plating is still intact they usually work