The Energizer Bunny just shot himself

OK, more info:

I just got off the phone with Russ at FujiNovel Industries:
http://www.fujinovelbatteries.com/web/contact_us.php

He's a very friendly tech that seemed to not only be thoroughly knowledgeable about their products, but aware of this Woot sale as well. He confirmed that these batteries are Carbon-Zinc cells, not Zinc-Chloride.

higgetypiggety wrote:Sure! Everyone does their duty and disposes of non-rechargeables "properly"... NOT!
99.99999% of these batteries will end-up in a landfill, decay and contaminate the soil & groundwater.
Buy rechargeable batteries. At least when you dispose of rechargeables "properly"...

At tempting as it is to roll my eyes and go all Sheldon Cooper on you, I'll try to be polite. It's not for your sake; I simply don't want my comment getting mod'ed.

Where do you live where only ONE person in TEN MILLION recycles their used batteries? I have no doubts that recycling efforts could be higher among all people, but ranting a ridiculous made-up "statistic" only destroys your credibility.
As far as the few of these batteries that wil end up in landfills, I say GOOD! Carbon-Zinc batteries make excellent fertilizer. During World War 2, the electrolyte from spent batteries was used as fertilizer in areas where soil nutrients were depleted of trace elements, especially manganese and zinc. These batteries are made of iron, carbon, zinc, manganese, and ammonium chloride; all of which are essential nutrients for plants. I'll grant you that a bucket of batteries dumped in a pond is likely to overdose that micro-environment, but not nearly so much as a few Eneloops would. Nickel-Metal Hydride batteries contain nickel, cobalt, and cerium salts (among other chemicals), and have a very corrosive potassium hydroxide electrolyte. Eneloops also contain elemental and chromium. Nickel, chromium, cobalt, and cerium compounds are extremely toxic. Just a few parts per million can render water and soil deadly to animals and plants.
Since you so strongly advocate recycling, answer this: What happens to rechargeable batteries after they get dropped into a recycling container? Don't guess, and don't bluff. I know the answer, and it ain't pretty, but it sure helps a lot of politicians and the battery industry (in North America, at least).

Oh, my. Some poor bloke is going to get a pallet of these for his Bag of Coal.

haha shipping is just as much.. so basically $11 but still a great deal

mikewbingham wrote:OK, more info:
As far as the few of these batteries that wil end up in landfills, I say GOOD! Carbon-Zinc batteries make excellent fertilizer. During World War 2, the electrolyte from spent batteries was used as fertilizer in areas where soil nutrients were depleted of trace elements, especially manganese and zinc. These batteries are made of iron, carbon, zinc, manganese, and ammonium chloride; all of which are essential nutrients for plants. I'll grant you that a bucket of batteries dumped in a pond is likely to overdose that micro-environment, but not nearly so much as a few Eneloops would.

I am intrigued. Can you tell me where I can read up more about this?

I'm assuming that, at least in comparison to disposing single-use Alkaines, a proper use of Eneloops (and other similar batteries) would still come out ahead of reducing ecological damage and waste?

higgetypiggety wrote:I am a Sanyo/Eneloop lobbyist...thank you.

I actually use a lot of these, as well. A couple years ago I bought a couple hundred Duracell AA and AAA NiMH so-called "white-top" cells that are rebranded Eneloops. I modified a bunch of my kids' toys to use 4 AA's in place of 3 C's (mostly Tonka trucks and Hot Wheels track sets). With four 1.2-volt cells they operate much better than with 3 cells, and they hold their charge for months.
Should anyone attempt the same mod, I highly recommend doing what I did: adding a potentiometer in series with the speaker. I used a tiny pc-board mount pot accessed through a small hole drilled in the bottom of the case.

Many stores will recycle old batteries for free, like Radio Shack, Staples, BatteriesPlus, most auto-supply stores, etc.

lancerc07 wrote:Got a company white-elephant gift-exchange coming up?

Fill a box with these and add a note card, "Gift not included."

kinda funny...not as good as shake weight is but a cheaper alternative

I should really remind myself to read the comments on these deals before I buy them. Still my $10 coupon from deals.woot meant these batteries cost me exactly 99 cents. I'm not complaining.

toybuilder wrote:I am intrigued. Can you tell me where I can read up more about this?

I'm assuming that, at least in comparison to disposing single-use Alkaines, a proper use of Eneloops (and other similar batteries) would still come out ahead of reducing ecological damage and waste?

1) I bought a book printed in England in the 1940's explaining a variety of alternative uses for available materials. I bought it mainly for its detailed explanation of using wood-gas (also called coal-gas) to power gasoline internal combustion engines. I don't have it here right now, but I'll try to remember to post the info tonight.

2) I'm not sure. There are many variables, such as how many primary cells one rechargeable cell replaces, materials used to make the primary cell, and how you define "damage" as to environmental impact. I'm not even sure it would be a fair comparison to contrast the impact of the 8.5 grams of Nickel and 1 gram of Cobalt in a typical NiMH cell, versus the 0.125 grams of Nickel and 3.5 grams of Zinc in a typical Alkaline primary cell versus the 5 grams of Zinc and 3.5 grams of Manganese in a typical Carbon-Zinc cell.
The other factor that make me curious is the total cost of the life cycle of one Eneloop cell, versus that of a typical alkaline cell. How much energy is actually expended in recycling NiMH batteries? Given that the entire process is heavily subsidized by the US and Canadian governments, the costs of recycling batteries can not be assumed to be incorporated into the retail cost of new NiMH batteries.
Maybe it's like that other thing - ya know - that Thing That Can't Be Mentioned on a family site. That which is made more interesting with battery-powered toys: You pay for it one way or another.

ithrowmypawsupintheairsometimes wrote:Many stores will recycle old batteries for free, like Radio Shack, Staples, BatteriesPlus, most auto-supply stores, etc.

But you waste all that fuel driving across town to drop off a few batteries.

Hmm...60 crappy batteries = ammo for full auto battery shooting airgun I saw on youtube = feral cat control. But that probably = wife killing me. Oh well.

Kanabis wrote:Never buy "heavy duty" batteries

http://michaelbluejay.com/batteries/

Thanks--I really appreciate the battery info! I'm gonna keep a copy of that chart.

I never knew there was so much to know about batteries.

seahokedrama wrote:
I would not recommend eating the Fuji batteries unless you are voting for Rick Perry.

You misspelled "Barack Obama"

WileFreak wrote:Home Depot. Energizer brand 120ct AA or 90ct AAA $7.99 & $8.99 respectively (as of this last Tuesday 12-6 when I was in buying non melting extension cords....pesky xmas lights)

Just returned from home depot. Even spoke with a manager who happened to be standing there. He says his store has never even stocked Energizers in 90 or 120ct boxes. Let alone for a hibernating bearidly low price like that.

Shenanigans.

mikewbingham wrote:
Where do you live where only ONE person in TEN MILLION recycles their used batteries? I have no doubts that recycling efforts could be higher among all people, but ranting a ridiculous made-up "statistic" only destroys your credibility.

Where I live, the recycling center has stopped taking non-rechargeable batteries. They only take rechargeables.

The reason they say is because due to federal and state laws the amount of mercury in batteries has dropped to nearly zero, so they can be disposed of with regular trash.

I've bought Fuji Heavy Duty AAs and AAAs at Big Lots recently, and at first I was like "what a deal," and then I was like "major quick landfill bummer!"

mikewbingham wrote:OK, more info:

I just got off the phone with Russ at FujiNovel Industries.........

Normally, I would see your white square and white triangle, see that you just joined woot and write you off as a newbie with a lot of free time.

However, not only did you actually make more of a valid and intellectual post than many of the activists that need to crawl back into their OWS tents, you did it with style and class.

Even though you are not a financially woot stricken lemming like myself, I'd give you 5 quality posts just for this one.

Stop mixing apples and orange juice!
These are "heavy duty" batteries. That's a marketing term, to differentiate betwixt these zinc cloride acid and the "standard" zinc carbon acid batteries.
Yup. These are the old antique style carbon post in acid paste batteries. They are cheap, so you can buy a bunch, and they're made of self dissipating materials so they're more OK to toss in the trash.
http://data.energizer.com/PDFs/carbonzinc_appman.pdf
Rechargeables are great, that's pretty much all I use, but they don't maintain a charge. I can't charge up a set, leave them on a shelf for a few months and expect any real life from them.
I'd go for the cheap alkalines. This deal comes out to what- @ five for a dollar, after shipping? I can get four alkalines for a dollar at the dollar store. Twice the power, and waay more shelf life. I used my $3 coupon from CVS to buy their $10 30 pack of alkalines for $7.

Okay, after the dust has settled from the comment storm we just had...can someone tell me whether my $22 for 180 batteries was worth it to power my two children's xmas gadgets and the house remotes??? Or will I be growing a third ear and have blisters from changing the batteries out everyday? thanks!!

Thanks for the warning posts, I almost bit on this and ended up learning something I never knew.

Anyone want some free batteries when I get them? lol

How would these batteries hold up in a Wii remote? My kids burn through the batteries from the Dollar General pretty quick.

These are great for clocks, remote controls, and other devices that are low drain and you don't want to have to change batteries for years. They have all-but-zero self-discharge. Downside: When they leak, they're acidic so do major damage vs alkalines that just leave behind crystalline crap. Upside: They almost always only leak when they're (very very) dead. I, personally, haven't seen a carbon-zinc battery leak in many many years. Alkalines, however? All the time, even if just sitting on the shelf.

But to answer: If the kid's toy has a motor or some such? These are NOT suitable, and are likely similar to what you've been buying from Dollar General. The Wiimote is a different beast 'cause it has constant IR emissions, Bluetooth, a speaker, etc, all going on at once.

I'm pretty sure after my $20 coupon... 1.65 Pennies for each battery is a good deal...

mgrangers wrote:Anyone want some free batteries when I get them? lol

This would have been me if I hadn't read the forum. Friends don't let friends buy "heavy duty" regular batteries.

I just love reading through these message threads for the educational content - it's amazing how many things I didn't know about that are discussed every day!

jsoko wrote:I'm pretty sure after my $20 coupon... 1.65 Pennies for each battery is a good deal...

Yeah but not as cool as two 0.0 Pennies each "+5 Sword of Critical Hits" T-Shirts...way to squander your coupon dude ;-)

kimvette wrote:It's been mentioned before, but I'll say it:

"Heavy Duty" is marketing speak for "Carbon-Zinc" cells, a relic dating back to the original dry cells of the late nineteenth century (1800s).

For batteries, they are completely worthless

No, Heavy Duty batteries, if honestly labeled, are not Carbon Zinc batteries. They are actually Zinc Chloride, and have a significantly different discharge profile. Not only do Zinc Chloride (Heavy Duty) batteries last longer, but the output is also more consistent (aka the drop off curve is less steep).

See this post for Energizer's own discussion of Heavy Duty batteries and why they compare well with Alkalines for certain applications when price is factored in. Notably, they compare well in solid state electronics, like radios and MP3 players. Except for high drain motorized applications, Alkalines only have a little over double the capacity of Heavy Duty's, but usually cost more than 3x the price. So they are far from useless.

http://data.energizer.com/PDFs/carbonzinc_appman.pdf

In this graph, Carbon Zinc batteries are labeled LeClanche.

DeeDee4 wrote:OK, I messed up and it won't let me order again. I wanted to order one of each and realized my mistake. Was willing to pay the extra $5.00 to get the AAA but it keeps saying that I have already purchased the batteries. It won't let me buy any more. Any suggestions? Is there anything else I can do? I really need both sets of batteries. HELP!

Go to the write us Page and send them a note . and They will Gladly Add it to your order . Woot . Customer Service ROCKS. and they are always there willing to help

axphw1 wrote:I'd say stocking stuffers, but a sock full of batteries sounds more like a weapon than a source of Christmas cheer.

Yah, great stocking stuffers AND much cheaper than coal!!

(Oh wait, did you mean for people who have been GOOD?? Nevermind.)

DeeDee4 wrote:OK, I messed up and it won't let me order again. I wanted to order one of each and realized my mistake. Was willing to pay the extra $5.00 to get the AAA but it keeps saying that I have already purchased the batteries. It won't let me buy any more. Any suggestions? Is there anything else I can do? I really need both sets of batteries. HELP!

You can only place one order with any given account. Email service@woot.com and change your order. Simply forward the receipt you received in email with a note explaining that you want to add to it. It's important that your order number be in the email.

Are these direct replacements for the ones in the Chevy Volt?

hockeyham wrote:You misspelled "Barack Obama"

Well done sir.

HikingStick wrote:At Sears, that's 48 packs with four batteries each (48 four-packs). One hundred ninety-two batteries for $40.30, or about 21 cents each. Still not as good as woot!'s price, but better than you thought.

Yeah, but then people might actually see you/him/me walking into a Sears store. The horror. The horror.

My wife said she wished they had these in 'D' size. I have no clue what she would do with that many???

Your local Ronald McDonald House (or similar) could probably make use of these. People often donate toys, but batteries for same aren't always considered.

These are 900mAh, the average alkaline batter is 3x that.

sdc100 wrote:Please read my post carefully before developing an attitude. I never said that COOLer temperatures aren't better. I said that experts differ on whether FREEZING is effective. Energizer, for example, recommends a storage temperature of 41F to 50F for their heavy duty batteries. Anything lower has no advantages and can even be harmful because a frozen battery has internal moisture condensation when taken out of the freezer, which is destructive. All that moisture can't be too good for your equipment either.

Since alkalines lose less than 2% of their capacity at room temperature, the effects of freezing is negligible -- and not recommended given the risk of internal condensation. At most, you can store them in the fridge.

Here is what Duracell and Energizer say about their alkaline batteries, courtesy of Snopes.

Question: Should I store my batteries in the refrigerator or freezer?

Duracell answers:
"We recommend storing batteries at room temperature in a dry environment. Extreme heat or cold reduces battery performance. You'll want to avoid putting battery-powered devices in very warm places. In addition, refrigeration is not necessary or recommended."

Energizer answers:
"No, storage in a refrigerator or freezer is not required or recommended for batteries produced today. Cold temperature storage can in fact harm batteries if condensation results in corroded contacts or label or seal damage due to extreme temperature storage. To maximize performance and shelf life, store batteries at normal room temperatures (68°F to 78°F or 20°C to 25°C) with moderated humidity levels (35 to 65% RH)."

It's a shame that you didn't read carefully or do your research before replying with an attitude. Of course, it's your choice whether to believe these EXPERTS.

I'm sorry. No attitude in my sentence, only a claim. Regardless, my comment still holds true. Aside from being a very corrosion resistant metal (zinc), corrosion of the electrodes is controlled in freezing temps because of impurities in H2O that form a thin layer of protection over time, even from natural moisture in the air. But it seems you cite corporations for your claims. I'm simply reciting what I've learned in my Chemistry textbook (I have a final tommorrow, do you recommend me reading a duracell manual?)