This was posted 8 years 13 days ago, and might be an out-dated deal.

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Charger for Disposable Batteries (?) $3, Dimmey's, Heidelberg, VIC

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Charger for Disposable Batteries (?) $3, Dimmey's, Heidelberg, VIC
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GnarlyKnuckles on 09/11/2016 - 13:30 files.ozbargain.com.au (504 clicks)
Last edited 09/11/2016 - 15:19 by 1 other user

I was in Dimmey's in Heidelberg (VIC) a couple of days ago and I saw these chargers. Let me say that I am not endorsing this product in any way, all I'm saying is that it's cheap. It's the only charger I've ever seen that proudly states that it can be used for recharging disposable alkalines… all other chargers state the absolute opposite; that they should never be used for that purpose. What do all you battery experts out there think about that claim? Surely, if I had some crap quality alkalines and I recharged them repeatedly in this, erm, 'questionable quality' charger (I'm basing that assumption purely on the price), after not too long there would be some kind of disaster (minor explosion/fire/corrosive leak)?!? So yeah, I'm posting this 'bargain' more as a conversation point than a recommendation.

Electrical & Electronics Battery Charger

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  • j4ck on 09/11/2016 - 13:32

    That doesn't sound safe…

    • dlovep on 09/11/2016 - 13:34

      Just another Sam-Sunk product….

  • Verse on 09/11/2016 - 13:34
    -2

    Hey mate maybe think about posting this in the OzB forums instead of deals?

    • GnarlyKnuckles on 09/11/2016 - 14:23

      Why? It's the cheapest 4-battery charger I've ever seen for sale in a shop, so in that sense it's a 'deal'… I can't vouch for the product personally, but some may be interested in trying it.

      • Verse on 09/11/2016 - 16:00

        You literally said it yourself.

        So yeah, I'm posting this 'bargain' more as a conversation point than a recommendation.

        • GnarlyKnuckles on 09/11/2016 - 20:51

          While garnering opinions on the product was my primary motive for creating the post, that does not change the fact that at this price (i.e. possibly the cheapest four-battery/12V battery charger ever posted on this site that is available in a bricks-and-mortar-shop?) many would consider it a bargain. That's why I posted it here. As it turns out, some of the posts/reviews alluded to above suggest that it may in fact be a decent product. If that is so, then the price/deal is positively remarkable.

  • AMLagonda on 09/11/2016 - 13:35

    they dont charge per say, you can't charge a flat normal battery but they do regenerate the power a little of a used battery.

    • turbodude on 09/11/2016 - 13:41
      +3

      how is "regenerating" any different to charging?

      • GnarlyKnuckles on 09/11/2016 - 22:45

        'how is "regenerating" any different to charging?'

        Hmmm… actually 'regenerate' makes no sense with regard to an existing battery. It is a term more apt for describing the recreation of a character or an enemy in a video game. I'm guessing that something was 'lost in translation' here, and that the word they were going for (in their effort to avoid the use of the word 'recharge', and any rules/regulations associated with the use of that word on such a product) was actually 'rejuvinate'.

  • Iggemo on 09/11/2016 - 13:35

    i think they used to sell chargers for ordinary batteries about 25 years ago when i was a kid

  • shapers on 09/11/2016 - 13:36
    +3

    Actually has decent reviews

    • GnarlyKnuckles on 09/11/2016 - 14:25
      +1

      Wow great find shapers, I must say I'm (pleasantly) surprised!

  • turbodude on 09/11/2016 - 13:40
    +1

    This http://www.radioparts.com.au/product/03611050/lcd883-rezap-u… has been around for a long time. I have one and it does work if you don't wait until they are completely flat. I haven't used it enough to know how many times it will charge. A number of batteries I tried would not successfully charge. I have not done any testing to see how far off new capacity they are. I don't use it much as I am loaded up on eneloops.

    • Iggemo on 09/11/2016 - 13:50

      says about 10 times in the article posted above

    • quop on 09/11/2016 - 14:21

      Yup I've had my rezap since 2010, and have charged numerous alkalines since then. Don't have any specific numbers, and some batteries have failed to charge, but in general it does work.

  • [Deactivated] on 09/11/2016 - 13:43

    This isn't a new concept. You can get about 50% charge the first time, about 25% for 5 or so times and then the show is over.

  • rekabkram on 09/11/2016 - 13:44
    +2

    If you want to do rechargeable batteries on the cheap (ish) then get Turnigy from hobby king or wait for a eneloop pack. They're low self discharge so you can use them when you need to and you'll get a much longer charge.

    • GnarlyKnuckles on 09/11/2016 - 14:26

      The whole point of this is it does non-rechargables reka.

      • Russ on 09/11/2016 - 15:15

        But is there any advantage to charging non-rechargeable batteries?

        The only advantage I can think of is that some devices don't like the lower voltage supplied by NiMh batteries. For those I recommend using NiZn rechargeable batteries, which are moderately new: https://www.amazon.com/UltraCell-Plus-NiZn-1-6v-Rechargeable…

        The disadvantages are:
        - alkaline batteries are more likely to leak if you recharge them, possibly damaging whatever they are powering
        - decreasing battery life starting at the very first recharge
        - In most cases, no economic advantage, as Aldi sell good LSD AA batteries for $1.50 each (in a pack of four)

      • rekabkram on 09/11/2016 - 16:58

        They're non rechargeable because they aren't designed to be, $4 per average device requiring rechargeables (2x AA's).

        The problem being we don't always know the quality of the battery and if you're paying for energisers or duracells then a rechargeable isn't much more.

        • GnarlyKnuckles on 09/11/2016 - 20:45

          Notably, it's pretty easy to rock into 'Savers' and the like (op shops etc.) and buy a toy for $2 that has four Duracel, Energiser or Eveready batteries in it. They don't care at all if you take a wee screwdriver in with you so that you can open up the battery compartment to check for leakage/stuffed contacts. Sometimes the batteries are half dead, sometimes they're surprisingly full of charge. Methinks this $3 charger might come in handy in conjunction with that tactic, given that the reviews/some of the posts above suggest that (unexpectedly) this charger is OK/safe to use. I think I will buy, one based on those reports/reviews. That said, I reckon I will only ever charge 'non-rechargeables' in it when I am at home/awake/can keep a bit of an eye on it… I just can't get past that niggling feeling that there might just be a catastrophic event of some sort! Lol

  • Tiggrrrrr on 09/11/2016 - 13:46
    +7

    I don't see the issue, these are made by the same people who make the Samsung Galaxy Note.

  • slackme on 09/11/2016 - 13:57

    You can use the normal charger for NiMH rechargeable battery. I used many times for the 9v alkaline batteries because they are expensive.

    • Tiggrrrrr on 09/11/2016 - 15:46

      I did that once when I was 10. It ended with exploding batteries. Well not so much exploding as the inside ended up on the outside.

      • slackme on 09/11/2016 - 16:01

        You need to control the time. For 9v batteries I only charge 2-3 hours with a 10-year old slow charger.

        • Tiggrrrrr on 09/11/2016 - 16:05

          Yeah, I was ten. Seemed like a good idea. Also I forgot about it to go ride my rad BMX bike.

  • doogiechap on 10/11/2016 - 00:14

    I bought this alkaline charger in the days before Oz Bargain and eneloops.
    https://www.jaycar.com.au/alkaline-ni-cd-ni-mh-battery-charg…
    It did charge them but they also leaked through my kids toys and made them unsafe :-(

    • GnarlyKnuckles on 10/11/2016 - 00:20

      With all due respect doogs that is a completely different product, that was quite a long time ago, and technology has moved on a fair bit since then. Also, may I ask if you adhered carefully to the times stipulated for recharging the batteries? Or may it have been the case that sometimes the old 'non-rechargeables' were left sitting in the recharger for quite a while after they should have been removed?

      • doogiechap on 10/11/2016 - 18:58

        Thanks Gnarly, valid points :-)
        TBH I was probably guilty of leaving them on charge for too long (it was about 7 years ago so memory is a little hazy). That said, the charger advertised microprocessor controlled overcharging protection as well as a safety cutout timer.
        These days I'm kitted up with about 50 AA Eneloops at work and 20-30 at home with mainly Maha C800s and Nitecore D4 Chargers and have had a very good trouble free run.
        Cheers!

        • GnarlyKnuckles on 11/11/2016 - 00:34

          LOL, so you're all sorted then :) Nice one :)

  • cranny on 10/11/2016 - 13:18

    I have been using my WattsClever alkaline battery charger for several years now without any real issues.
    I tend to buy multipacks of Varta brand batteries, from Bunnings usually, and the biggest headache is keeping track of how many times each has been charged to try and use similarly re-charged batteries together!
    I would note, that from a quick search, WattsClever don't seem to be selling a battery charger any more.
    I use re-charged alkalie more than my Eneloops.
    For what its worth….

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