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Get more value for money from your household batteries
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Jack Storey
RS Components is the world's leading high service distributor of electronics and maintenance products. Through operations in 32 countries and 17 warehouses, the Group serves 1.6 million customers worldwide, shipping more than 46,000 parcels on the same day the orders are received. 
By Jack Storey
Published on 02/2/2012
 
Millions of household batteries are thrown into landfill each year, polluting soil and water when they eventually break down and begin to leak toxic substances like cadmium and lead.
Millions of household batteries are thrown into landfill each year, polluting soil and water when they eventually break down and begin to leak toxic substances like cadmium and lead. Keeping your batteries alive for as long as possible helps to bring down the number of batteries thrown into land fill sites, as well as helping to make sure that you receive the best value from your batteries too.Swap to rechargeablesOne easy thing that you can do to save spending on batteries, and incidentally one of the most important things you can do for the environment, is to switch to rechargeable batteries. They can be charged up thousands of times over before they even begin to lose their energy capacity. You can now buy rechargeable lithium batteries that last as long as regular alkaline batteries before they need to be recharged.Know your battery typesThere are now many different types to choose from. Steer clear of dated Nickel Cadmium batteries as they are the most toxic of all of the rechargeable battery varieties. Nickel Metal Hybrid or NiMH batteries as they are often called have a higher capacity, but their downside is that they cannot be charged as often as other rechargeable batteries. NiCd and NiMH batteries can lose between one and five per cent of their charge per day, even when they are not installed in a device.Rechargeable Lithium battery types like Polymer and Ion are the latest in rechargeable battery technology. While they are more expensive, they can be recharged thousands of times without suffering memory effect, and have excellent capacity too.Knowing when to remove batteries from a deviceShould you have a battery powered item that you do not plan to use for a month or more, remember to remove the batteries as they can still lose power through trickle drainage. Should you have any household electrical items that can run on both battery and mains power, you can prolong battery life by removing the batteries whenever you switch to mains power mode.Avoid mixing up your batteriesUsing worn out or partly worn out batteries in conjunction with fully charged new ones will place a bigger power strain on the fully charged new batteries, draining them more easily.Use a battery testerMake sure you are not charging batteries unnecessarily and avoid mixing worn out batteries with fully charges ones by testing them. Invest in a handy battery tester so you can keep tabs on your battery power and avoid needlessly charging batteries that are already fully charged.This household battery guide was compiled for you by Ruby Steel, an eco friendly blogger and photographer. She recommends RS Components for their large selection of the latest rechargeable alkaline batteries.