396XT HOT after charging!!

[SpecialAgent]

santa was nice enough to bring me a uniden 396xt to match the 996xt i bought a few months ago. After unpackaging, it had enough battery for me go get it set up. When i was finished i put it on the charger and left it overnight. The next morning i grabbed it it unplug it and the back of the unit (battery area) was extremely warm to the touch, almost hot! Never had this probablem with a scanner or an h/t. I looked through the threads but didnt see anything on this issue. Has anyone else experienced this or does someone have any suggestions/advice??


thanks

jb

 

[k2ns]

Hot

That is why most of the people on R/R use an external charger. The heat generated by the charging batteries cannot be good for the internal components of the scanner. Get a couple of sets of spare batteries and an external charger and you can then use the scanner while another set of batteries is charging.

RON
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[k9xyz]

"Hot" is a very relative term...whats hot to me may be only warm to you etc. It is normal for some warmth from the batteries no matter how you charge them. In the radio or in an external charger some "heat" will be produced. In all my years with HT and hand held scanners charging all available ways including in the radio I have never had one item damaged from heat. My 396XT gets "warm" when charging...but not "hot". Buy yourself another set of batteries and a decent charger preferably one that charges individually and keep one set charged while the other is charging and you won't need to charge them in the radio. Although it will not hurt it to do so.

 

[k9xyz]

Here's a link to Maha/Powerex...they make some excellent chargers all mine are made by them and do excellent for NiMH.

Maha / Powerex Corporate Site : NiMh Batteries and Chargers from Powerex, Digital Cameras from Maha, Powerex 2200 Rechargeable Batteries and Chargers, AA, nimh, lithium ion, 2000 mah, 2200mah, charger, battery

 

[ilgrant]

I'm not an expert on how much charge is enough. However, my experience with the included GP cells, Energizer and Duracell is that the batteries are all toast after 2 or 3 months when the radio charges the batteries.

The batteries are charged up to 4.5 volts according to the meter on the radio. When an external charger does the task it is a little less then 4.0.

 

[ButchGone]

While I do use a Maha external charger to keep 3 sets of batteries ready to go, I have no problem charging in the 396 when I have to. It does generate heat, but that's the way all electronics behave in battery charge mode. My cellphones, iPod, cordless drill, etc, all charge their batteries with no issue. So why would a scanner be any different? It may help to leave the battery door of your 396 open when charging so fresh air can vent heat.
Has anyone ever lost a 396 because of overheated/exploding batteries?
BG..

 

[325xia]

No problem with using the internal charger used with the 396xt. I would just take it off charge when it gets warm. That's what I do. And the batteries last 11 hours of constant use. I would not invest in an external charger. You will spend more money on that than just buying new NiMh batteries when needed, (which is averages about 3 years). That Maha Charger is way overpriced and is nice if you use a lot of batteries in other devices. But using it just for the scanner is a real waste of money. You can buy new NiMh batteries for $10. Do the math.

 

[SpecialAgent]

"Hot" is a very relative term...whats hot to me may be only warm to you etc. It is normal for some warmth from the batteries no matter how you charge them. In the radio or in an external charger some "heat" will be produced. In all my years with HT and hand held scanners charging all available ways including in the radio I have never had one item damaged from heat. My 396XT gets "warm" when charging...but not "hot". Buy yourself another set of batteries and a decent charger preferably one that charges individually and keep one set charged while the other is charging and you won't need to charge them in the radio. Although it will not hurt it to do so.

ok thanks to everyone, and yes i will buy an external charger. And yes ron i agree with the term "hot". Thats why i referrered to use "extremely warm" in my paragraph. Ive had dozens of h/t's and honestly ive never had one get so warm that it actually concerned me. Again, thanks for the advice

 

[Ablice]

I have issues with the stock charger on mine. Overcharging. It's a 14 hour timeout charger, not ideal for today's sensitive electronic gear.

So I don't use it. It works fine if you are going to use the scanner for a long time but don't want to drain your batteries.

 

[torontokris]

You can change the charge time in the menu...

MENU - SETTINGS - BATTERY OPTION - SET CHARGE TIME

I have issues with the stock charger on mine. Overcharging. It's a 14 hour timeout charger, not ideal for today's sensitive electronic gear.

So I don't use it. It works fine if you are going to use the scanner for a long time but don't want to drain your batteries.

 

[ElGenio]

You can change the charge time in the menu...

MENU - SETTINGS - BATTERY OPTION - SET CHARGE TIME

What amount of charging time would you recommend?

 

[sjlamb]

What amount of charging time would you recommend?

If the sucker starts beeping at you, set it for 14 hours.....