Portables left in charger?

[chrismol1]

DO NOT use the battery charger as a radio stand; continuous charging will shorten the battery life.

I bought some radios and got a box of impres lion batteries that came with. Put them on the battery data reader to see what was up and you could tell. All were charges added in 10% or less or added when battery was already near 90% and the battery was cooked when I used them as normal, big drop in capacity vs the count cycles it shouldn't have been so. I don't know if they left them in the charger or took it out for only 10% use and then put it back in.

I've also seen some users that will utilize a portable with a speaker mic, in a charger like it's a mobile base station. I'm guessing that isn't exactly the best for the battery

 

[speedway_navigator]

When I work special events for the feds I try to hand out a portable and 2 batteries for a 12 hour event, but the conventional thinkers, which means they aren't thinking, give out a charger too. When I get to the field sites the radios are charging even though I tell the users not to, it's just habit.

Otobmark's comment about handshaking got me looking at current draw specs. Don't have APX info handy but the XTS5000 manual shows
Receive Current Drain (Rated Audio): 240 mA
Standby Current Drain: 80 mA
I wonder if standby is conventional or trunk mode, I would think decoding the control channel data draws more current than analog waiting for CTCSS, maybe it's minor enough not to rate.

Is spurious rejection anything like your wife saying "not tonight, I have a headache"

 

[merlin]

Largely depends on the charger and battery type. Since newer chargers/batteries now are the smart type, no harm in 24/7 charging.
Just be sure the charger is made for the type of battery.

 

[merlin]

I have a VHF & UHF XTS5k that are on 24/7 in their own XTVA. A used Ni-MH battery finally could not provide the power for TX on the VHF radio while in the XTVA. I’m unsure of the battery age, but at least three years since I had it running like that. I don’t expect a long life operating like that, so I have spare batteries when I use them portable. Even some time in an Impress charger will finally not bring them back and flashes Red/Green.

With an APX7k, I use a 12v battery eliminator at home and vehicle.

I'm on 5 years with my XTS, but the battery was brand new from Motorola dealer. Li-ion still behaves like new.
After a start with charging, impress will load test the batteries and charge as needed

 

[otobmark]

Maintaining a cashe of HT’s is always plagued by batteries—the weak link. The radios lightly used could sit for 20 years with occasional alignment or plug update but the batteries are Russian roulette coming out of storage. I have my own gear but for bureaucratic reasons I’m often on a cashe radio which has maybe 70% chance of usable battery (I always grab 2). I try to have clamshells for everything. Trying to figure how to put battery eliminators in the mix.
Despite suspicions of manufactures trying to sell more batteries (acceleration of wear), I feel like the smart battery/charger systems actually work to extend life. No blind trust yet..

 

[mmckenna]

I feel like the smart battery/charger systems actually work to extend life. No blind trust yet..

They should help quite a bit. More modern chargers are a great improvement of the constant trickle chargers from a few decades back. Battery chemistry has come a long way, also, and continues to improve.

For my users that wanted radios for emergency caches, I strongly discouraged them from going with rechargeable batteries since it was wasted money, and in their periodic testing would never actually stress the battery enough to expose their shortened lifespan. I encouraged them to use the clam shell cases and just purchase a brick of alkaline AA batteries from Costco once a year.

The problem with that, however, is that sometimes they forget to remove the AA batteries and then show up with a corroded mass and want me to fix it.

Most of us are smart enough to do this the right way, but for the radio that lives in a drawer for someone who doesn't know which end of the radio to talk into, it's a challenge. Ideally, I want to migrate those users to a PTT over cellular solution that ties into the trunked system. Let them abuse the crap out of their own cell phone….

 

[MississippiPI]

I was told by radio guy to take out of charger when on

 

[wbw]

From the Motorola Impress charger documentation:
1. What’s the difference between charger SW V3.4 and V3.9?
Very Little: APX batteries are fully compatible with XTS chargers (w/inserts) with SW V3.4, therefore upgrading to V3.9 is not required. However, APX radio users leaving the radio in the“on” position will experience longer charging times. V3.9 has added SW to handle this situation
if it happens occasionally. Motorola always recommends turning radio “off” when charging.

 

[PrivatelyJeff]

I —strongly— encouraged some of my users to do that. Mobile radio, power supply, RF power turned down. Most have a desk mic. It's worked out well, and paid for itself by not having to purchase batteries for a user that does not need them.

Plus the audio is a hundred times better.

Also no chance of wondering off

 

[AM909]

Also no chance of wondering off

Not exactly no chance. We recently had a 20-pound Vertex desktop repeater disappear during an office remodeling. Things get bolted down now. At least make them take a moment to think about it.

 

[MTS2000des]

Not exactly no chance. We recently had a 20-pound Vertex desktop repeater disappear during an office remodeling. Things get bolted down now. At least make them take a moment to think about it.

Yep, VXR7000s attract sticky fingers like stray M&Ms attract roaches. Our club had one walk away, but it was a planned theft by a thieving turd ARES whacker ham.

 

[GTR8000]

I've had an APX 6000 powered up 24/7 for nearly 3 years sitting in an IMPRES charger with an older IMPRES battery, and the battery still has 80% service life according to the IMPRES battery reader after a re-calibration cycle. No, I obviously wouldn't trust that battery in the field anymore, but who cares since it's 12 years old and serves the purpose. Oh and the radio even transmits twice a day when acknowledging the affiliation queries from the system, and still hasn't blown anything up after doing so over 2,000 times.

 

[K6GBW]

I was the radio guy at my agency for years. I had to contend with all the moronic behaviors such as carrying the radio by the antenna, twirling the speaker mics, using the radio as a hammer, wrapping the speaker mic cord around the antenna to take up the excess and of course, running the radio in the charger. I used to give small reminders and admonishments at briefing over these issues. I explained that the radio was hugely important to our work and that we should take care of it! I was eventually told to stop worry about it by the brass. They said they had a budget for radio repair and to just let it go. So...I spent their money like I stole it!

 

[MTS2000des]

I know an agency near me that buys IMPRES 2 batteries by the pallet load and replaces them every 18 months regardless of service life. Money grows on trees for them, so leaving radios on charge doesn't really matter to them as they get new batteries in a year and a half regardless. Must be nice to have a money tree forest to pluck from.

 

[flametamer]

I know an agency near me that buys IMPRES 2 batteries by the pallet load and replaces them every 18 months regardless of service life. Money grows on trees for them, so leaving radios on charge doesn't really matter to them as they get new batteries in a year and a half regardless. Must be nice to have a money tree forest to pluck from.

Do they need someone to "recycle" them?
Dt

 

[AM909]

Do they need someone to "recycle" them?
Dt

I have a feeling that's part of the motivation.

 

[Omega-TI]

I have all my chargers plugged into Alexa WiFi switches on a power strip. After I put a radio on a charger I tell Alexa, "Computer turn off (specific item) in 5 hours". No problems, then it can be used as a non charging holder until needed. Works for me.



https://www.amazon.com/Amazon-smart-plug-works-with-Alexa/dp/B089DR29T6/ref=sr_1_1?

 

[speedway_navigator]

K6GBW - Are you safe from the fires?

 

[K6GBW]

K6GBW - Are you safe from the fires?

Yes, I’m totally safe. I’m about 12 miles away, but thanks for asking. The smoke is what gets me. Once I hit fifty I developed a mild form of asthma and the smoke was really doing a number on me. Fortunately on day three it seems to be lightening up some.

 

[speedway_navigator]

Yes, I’m totally safe. I’m about 12 miles away, but thanks for asking. The smoke is what gets me. Once I hit fifty I developed a mild form of asthma and the smoke was really doing a number on me. Fortunately on day three it seems to be lightening up some.

I remember the smoke from fires in San Diego in 2004, I could see the sky glowing east of I805 from SR 52 just east of I5. My house was filled with gray ash for a long time after that. I miss some parts of living in San Diego, Woodstock's pizza, running barefoot on the beach at La Jolla shores, more pizza and riding my bike up Mt Soledad.

We lived just off a canyon, my insurance company was raising rates so we decided to leave California before the big one hit.