Power Up! Ways To Get More Life Out Of Your Batteries
Batteries are such a crucial part of our daily living. They power up our remote controls for out televisions, allow our kids' toys to function, provide energy for our laptops and cell phones, and so much more. Find the right battery for the job can be challenging, but even more challenging is keeping the battery charged up so that is last a long time.
So how can you get your batteries to last longer?
First of all, make sure that the batteries you buy are fresh. This means that they haven't been sitting on a shelf for a long time. Batteries are like milk and do expire. The longer they sit on a shelf, the worse they work. So shop for your batteries at stores that have a lot of traffic, that way you know that they have to restock the shelves often and are getting new batteries all the time.
Keep in mind the saying "first in first out". Often times shelves are stocked this way, which means that they put the older batteries in the front and the newer ones in the back. So check the batteries in the back to see if they are newer than the others. If they are, buy the newer ones.
Once you have purchased your batteries and brought them home, place them in a plastic zip lock storage bag and put them in the refrigerator. This will keep your batteries fresh until you are ready to use them. Once you are ready to use them, pull them out of the refrigerator and allow them to get back to room temperature before using them.
Purchasing zinc-carbon batteries for items that have a low draw (think clocks/calculators) to make them last, and alkaline batteries for high draw items (radios/cameras) will give you more bang for the buck. The appropriate battery for the task will ensure it will last as long as possible.
Never mix old batteries with new batteries. The new ones may actually cause the older batteries to leak battery acid in the competition to keep up. This can potentially cause burns, as well as destroying the equipment it is in.
If you buy rechargeable batteries, then make sure that you are charging them up and following the instructions properly. Whatever the instructions are make sure that you follow them to the nail.
Items like your laptop that are on all the time, there are a few things you can do to reduce the battery usage. Keep your computer on defrag mode so that it runs quicker, keep your screen on the dimmest setting, and close out programs when you are finished running them.
Running multiple programs at once drains a lot of juice from you battery. So only run the programs you are using and don't multi-task with too many programs.
For laptop batteries, cell phone batteries and camera batteries, allow the battery to be used up entirely until it dies. Then recharge it. You should do this at least once a month so that the battery is brought through an entire charge cycle.
With so many expenses related to owning electronics, maintaining your batteries is a sure-fire way to save money. This is one of the best ways to keep your electronics running smoothly and preventing headaches for you!
Dorthy Weatherbush keeps lots of consumer electronics in her home for both her and her children. So she order batteries online at Batteries.com. Thanks to Batteries.com she doesn't have to leave her house to go hunting for batteries ever again.