Ever have trouble finding batteries when you really need them? Don’t know what you have in stock and what you need to get at the store on your next visit? Do you know how to store your batteries so they can have the longest life?
Ever since I saw a pin on Pinterest with batteries organized in a crafty caddy, I knew I needed to do something different with my batteries. Prior to this post I used to store all my batteries in a Ziploc container in the freezer. Why a ziploc container? At least I knew they were all in one place. Why the freezer? Well, to be honest, it was just what my mom used to do. Who knows….
Not that my system was a bad system but when searching for batteries, I never knew what I really had in stock. Often I would be seen dumping the entire container out onto the kitchen counter just to find one triple A battery, only to return the rest to the mesh pot of the Ziploc container. And, sometimes when I put the battery in the destined object the battery wouldn’t work because the battery fluid was frozen. Duh!
So, I decided it was time to try something different. The first thing I did was purchase a cheap craft organizer from Walmart (I think it cost me around $2). I then organized the batteries by placing one type of battery in each compartment. Now I know exactly how many batteries I have of each type and I don’t have to dump them all out in the search any more.
Secondly, I needed to figure out a better place to store them. After doing a little research, here’s what I found out:
1. Batteries should be kept in a cool place but never frozen. It was suggested by one site that you could store them in the refrigerator as long as you keep them in a sealed plastic bag to prevent condensation. Another site said to avoid both the freezer and refrigerator all together. Summary: cold and/or wet batteries do not operate at full strength and warm batteries have a shorter lifespan. Ideal weather: 59 degrees at 50% humidity. Now, where in the world, am I going to have a place to store batteries in my house like this?!
2. Keep their negative and positive ends away from each other to keep them from conducting idly. Who knew?!
3. Store new and old batteries in separate containers–old batteries near new batteries will shorten the new batteries’ life. How does it do that?! Are you serious?!
Well I don’t know about you but my research definitely put a new spin on battery storage for me. Now I store my batteries in a cool storage closet and try to remember to put all the negative and positive ends away from each other. Of course, this is not always possible, but its a start. At least with this storage method maybe my batteries will last 10 years like they say…or at least until next week when I need to replace the batteries in the baby swing again. 😉
For more info about battery use and storage, be sure to check out these sites: