Para:
If you choose to go with the Eneloops, it is best to avoid the Panasonic BQ-CC55 charger which is often included in package deals. It is a fast charger and will reduce the number of times the cells can be recharged. The Panasonic BQ-CC17 charges at a slower rate and is a better choice. For optimal battery life I recommend a MAHA MH-C9000 for initial charging and reconditioning. It charges 4 batteries at a time and will really extend the life of that type of batteries. After the conditioning in the MH-C9000 I then use a MAHA MH-C800S which can charge 8 batteries at a time. I use the soft setting if time is not a restriction. FYI I have about 40 of the Eneloops that range from over six years old to fairly new and have never had to replace any of them. I use these batteries in my cameras and flash units. The flashes can rapidly draw current to deplete the batteries. I have never seen any sign of leakage from the Eneloops.
If I were only going to have one charger it would probably be either the BQ-C17 for up to 4 batteries or the MAHA MH-C800S for up to 8 batteries. The MAHA MH-C9000 is ideal for the initial form charge but is extremely slow and likely not best for general charging. The MAHA chargers are also listed as Powerex on some sites.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: bettysnephew,

During my recent trip to Ottawa, I discovered than the brand-name Alkaline cells has leaked in my rather expensive Nikon Speedlight. I was furious as the batteries were not very old and I had used the Speedlight a few months before.

I tossed the cells away and when I got home a week later, I cleaned the Speedlight further and administered some in extremis attention to it. It recovered and has been working fine since. But it now has Eneloops in it.

In fact, I am in the process of replacing all AA and AAA cells with Eneloops; they were highly recommended at another site I frequent, on photography. It seems the leaking Speedlight incident is a fairly frequent occurrence and the Eneloops are all the rage at that site.

The Speedlight is $350. Nikon would have charged me $150 for repair. From now on Eneloops all the way. I'm amazed at the cycle time with the Eneloops.

I will be on the lookout for the charger as bettysnephew described.

Here is a link to a review of the bargain chargers with specs. https://www.filterjoe.com/2017...qcc55-fct344-bqcc17/


For a more current edition of the 8 battery charger this is the one I would recommend: https://www.amazon.com/Maha-MH...tag=metaefficient-20.

The one I own and recommended in earlier post is only for AAA and AA batteries.

Eneloops only come in AA and AAA. Did I miss other sizes?

I just pulled out the charger that came with the original pack of Eneloops. It's a BQ-CC17.

The Eneloop website also shows a BQ=CC65 as their flagship charger. They also have a BQ-CC63, 8-cell charger.

And as you say, the BQ-CC51 is the basic charger.

To the best of my knowledge you are correct that Eneloops are only available in AAA and AA but C and D sizes of NiMH batteries are also available by other manufacturers. The lantern Para was looking at was available in both AA and D cell versions. I do not remember if he indicated which he obtained so the change in my recommendation. It never hurts to have more options. If there is an adequate market Eneloop might someday expand their offerings.
FWIW, the MAHA chargers (also sometimes branded as Powerex) seem to be the weapon of choice for all that use larger quantities of NiMH cells. They have proven to be very reliable and seem to promote longer service life for the batteries.

Thanks for the excellent information.

I used to have a lot of NiMH cells for my early digital camera. That puppy went through these cells like nobody's business. Voraciously is a tame word.

I hated NiMH for laptops and power drills; they drained so fast when unused for a few days. I had to recharge the cells every time I needed to used my drill and forget about having a spare battery for a laptop; it would be dead by the time you needed it.

When Li-Ion came into wide use, I was a happier camper. I recently bought a new drill simply because of the battery it uses, Li-Ion.

I could not find rechargeable Li-Ion cells in AA and AAA, so I was stuck with Alkaleaks. I just was not aware of the advances in NiMH for these cells and now I'm swapping out all the Alkaleak cells for Eneloops. What would you recommend for C and D size? Usage of those sizes is much more limited.

I just looked back at Para's lantern thread and it appears he has both AA and D versions of the lanterns and at least one radio that uses AA. In that case if he chooses to go with NiMH the MAHA charger that works on all sizes would be his best choice even though Eneloops are not presently available in C or D sizes.

quote:

Originally posted by NikonUser:
Thanks for the excellent information.

I used to have a lot of NiMH cells for my early digital camera. That puppy went through these cells like nobody's business. Voraciously is a tame word.

I hated NiMH for laptops and power drills; they drained so fast when unused for a few days. I had to recharge the cells every time I needed to used my drill and forget about having a spare battery for a laptop; it would be dead by the time you needed it.

When Li-Ion came into wide use, I was a happier camper. I recently bought a new drill simply because of the battery it uses, Li-Ion.

I could not find rechargeable Li-Ion cells in AA and AAA, so I was stuck with Alkaleaks. I just was not aware of the advances in NiMH for these cells and now I'm swapping out all the Alkaleak cells for Eneloops. What would you recommend for C and D size? Usage of those sizes is much more limited.

I suspect you had the older NiCad type cells that were giving you the cruddy performance vs. NiMH but I may be wrong. For C and D NiMH batteries I cannot give a recommendation as I have none that I have used. Perhaps there are some threads on the Candlepower Forum that can give you an educated answer. It is primarily flashlights but I have obtained much information there regarding power sources for such items. If you discover something, please post here as it would be of value.

For Low Self Discharge NiMH "D" sized batteries, I made the recommendation of the Tenergy 8000 mah "white label" low self discharge NiMH based on Amazon reviews and my experience with Tenergy as a brand:

https://www.amazon.com/Tenergy...able%2BD%2Bnimh&th=1

If you guys are searching for D sized NiMH, make sure that you are selecting low self discharge. There *are* applications for traditional NiMH (and even Ni-Cad) so those are being sold along side the newer LSD style batteries, so make sure you are selecting the correct battery type.

quote:

Originally posted by Aeteocles:
For Low Self Discharge NiMH "D" sized batteries, I made the recommendation of the Tenergy 8000 mah "white label" low self discharge NiMH based on Amazon reviews and my experience with Tenergy as a brand:

https://www.amazon.com/Tenergy...able%2BD%2Bnimh&th=1

If you guys are searching for D sized NiMH, make sure that you are selecting low self discharge. There *are* applications for traditional NiMH (and even Ni-Cad) so those are being sold along side the newer LSD style batteries, so make sure you are selecting the correct battery type.

Thanks, and I see that they have C and 9-volt size also. However, the only 9-volt batteries I use are for the smoke alarms and I have replaced the old smoke alarm units with ones with integrated Lithium cells that last 10 years. When they're done you get a new alarm. In 2027, the smoke alarms will be quite sophisticated, is my guess.

I use AA and AAA everywhere I can, and only use Eneloops nowadays but I've had success with Maha too. Almost every mouse, remote, flashlight, etc I have use these, they're great, and I have yet to experience a failure with them, nor have I had a battery leak in years. I keep chargers in my home, vehicles, and a small USB powered one with my edc gear.

Only Eneloops for me now. In everything they will fit. I did not like the Tenergys or Duracell rechargeables. At all. The Eneloops came with C & D adapters, but I've not used them in that application.

I ran out of AA's and went to WalMart to stock up. The Ray O Vacs were exactly half the cost of Energizer or Duracells. I read a few days ago that Energizer has bought Ray O Vac.

quote:

Originally posted by TAllen01:
Only Eneloops for me now. In everything they will fit.

Somebody did a test a while back and Energizer brand NiMHs did better than Eneloops. So I've got eight of those in rotation.

I don't know how many years I've been using Eneloops--must be three or four, at least. Maybe more? Haven't had one fail yet, and my main remote, which takes four AAAs, needs 'em swapped out about every other month.

I've been using the BQ-CC55 charger that came with one set. The latest set came with a BQ-CC75 charger, which I haven't tried, yet.

 
Another good charger for Ni-MH/NiCd is the Maha line, commonly branded here as Powerex. Not cheap, but lots of features for conditioning, deep discharging, and giving a final readout of the actual number of Amp hours the battery is capable of. I have found my Eneloops nominally rated a 1900 mAh to range from the low 1900's to almost 2000 mAh. This makes it possible to pair batteries of similar capacity.
 
Powerex MH-C9000
 

I've stopped buying the Amazon Basics and Engergizer brands as I've had a lot of premature failures with charging them. Now I just buy Duracell at Costco to supplement. I will put in a good vote for the La Crosse Tech. chargers though. I have one I'm very happy with.

Something also of note. Most rechargeable batteries don't have the same 1.5v of a standard AA/AAA, regardless of the mAh rating. So certain electronics may not function properly.

I know you specified "alkaline" but if they are making this size in lithium now I'd seriously consider those under the cry-once model. I've had great luck with those styles in 9V sizes and view them as essentially lifetime replacement for thinks like backup in smoke detectors, handhelds, etc.

I'm not talking rechargeables, just straight lithium battery.

{eta - holy thread necrophilia Wayne! Didn't realize I was replying to something from 5 months ago!}