Battery chargers

Status
Not open for further replies.

catken

Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2012
Messages
38
Just purchased a 8 pack of the Sanyo batteries but not a charger yet. We have a cheap charger here at home that we have owned for 20 years. Have chargers come a long way in technology as far as optimizing the most of the batteries potential or will the cheap one do just as well. Thanks
 

catken

Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2012
Messages
38
Thanks for the quick responce. Besides the $20.00 price difference, are there any major avantages of the MAHA over the LA CROSS.
 

pathalogical

Member
Joined
Sep 24, 2005
Messages
1,305
Location
Toronto, Canada
Chargers have come a long way in 20 years. The one you have is most likely for NiCads. May not be ideal for todays NiMH batteries. I have a BC900 and has been reliable since day one. With the two brands already mentioned, you have many choices on how to charge your batts.
 
Last edited:

whooey

Member
Joined
Feb 2, 2005
Messages
1,028
Location
Gainesville, FL
I just received the 8 AA Powerex MH-C800S Eight Cell Smart Charger $46.95

I'm happy with it, has all the features I'll ever need. Plus I like charging 8 at a time instead of just 4.
 

ahearn

Member
Premium Subscriber
Joined
Aug 4, 2005
Messages
29
Location
Woodstock, GA
Have had a LaCross BC-900 for a few years and love it. Just bought a set of 8 Sanyo Eneloops since all my rechargeables were old and most could not be restored by the BC-900. The Eneloops have a super low self-discharge rate which was a major problem with older rechargeables.
 

Ensnared

Member
Premium Subscriber
Joined
Jan 24, 2004
Messages
4,436
Location
Waco, Texas
Great Batteries

Just purchased a 8 pack of the Sanyo batteries but not a charger yet. We have a cheap charger here at home that we have owned for 20 years. Have chargers come a long way in technology as far as optimizing the most of the batteries potential or will the cheap one do just as well. Thanks

Yes, I swear by the batteries you purchased regarding maintaining a charge. Initially, I bought the Eneloop batteries with their charger; however, I left it behind in a motel room.

So, I went on a quest to find a replacement in town. After buying a few that did not measure up, I returned all and bought RS's Enercell charger.

Most of the ones I found charged the batteries, but did not: a) automatically shut off when fully charged; & b) display colored lights showing charging status.

This one, found at RS, does both. I still use it. The batteries that come with this one are fair, not great.

Enercell™ Ni-MH "AA"/AAA" Battery Charger with Batteries - RadioShack.com
 

catken

Member
Joined
Mar 26, 2012
Messages
38
Just received my MH C 9000. I have the Sanyo batteries which are precharged. Do I go with the new battery charge or the charge function. What other settings would you suggest.
 

railfanguy

Member
Joined
May 9, 2007
Messages
4
I also recently purchased the Maha MH-C9000 (one week) and have charged two sets of 4 Powerex 2700 AAs using the break-in function. I have not yet run my first set down. Will report findings when they stop.
 

nanZor

Active Member
Joined
May 28, 2009
Messages
2,807
For optimal charge rates with the 9000, check out their faq:
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

With precharged Eneloops / Imedions or other LSD's, I only do one break-in cycle, and then just use them normally. Have some time on hand to perform the break-in, as the current in break-in mode is very low.

You can check the actual capacity of your existing cells by charging them up, and then measuring their capacity with a specific discharge rate of 0.2 * C and seeing what the display shows at the end of the discharge. If you do this on new cells, be sure to put them through a few complete charge/discharge cycles first - I just place them into service and know that after a few uses, they should be at the best of their capabilities.

Although mentioned in the faq, even though the display shows "Done" in the display, if you were to take them out of the charger at this point, they would be about 90-95 percent charged. For a true full charge, allow an additional 2 hours after "done" is displayed. During these two hours, a 100ma charge will be applied each hour (top off), and then it follows with the much lower 10ma trickle thereafter.

The very first voltage that gets displayed only once upon an initial charge, is the impedance check voltage. Some like to keep a record of this to track the health of the battery as it ages, beyond just measuring overall capacity.

As you can see, it is very easy to geek-out with the 9000. :)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top