Check your alkaline battery powered devices.

[Mal Paso]

I came across my Garmin GPS while cleaning out my range bag. A light went off in my head. I had replaced the alkaline batteries 4-5 months ago but 2 months ago I noticed that the batch of Costco batteries I had were starting to leak. I swapped them out for duracells bought this year but I missed the GPS. This mess happened in just a couple months. I scraped out what I could and neutralized with vinegar then distilled water. It took the plating off part of a contact. I've had a couple items destroyed, glad I caught this one. If they swell inside a tube type battery holder there's no getting them out.

[metricmonkeywrench]

Seem to be having the same run with my 2AA and 2AAA Mini Maglights.. so handy to have stashed all around but easy to forget. The sad part is that they weld themselves shut and there’s no hope of salvaging them.

[bangerjim]

Usually, the goop that comes out of GOOD HIGH QUALITY alkaline batteries is a white crystalline material that just flakes off and does not harm the contacts. It is alkaline and not acidic as in those old batteries. I have had a few Duracell batteries leak due to my neglect in storage, but no damage to the item they were in.

Now I say GOOD batteries............... which does NOT include that garbage COSTCO sells. Or HF. Or the Dollar stores. They may "claim" they are made by a name brand maker, but they are a much lower quality by all measures. I used to work for a company that sold battery manufacturing instrumentation and there is a difference of day and night in consumer-market batteries!!!!! I have been there....I know of what I speak. No comparison!!!!!

Avoid all batteries of off-brand make and stick with Duracell Coppertop.....the best on the market. Energizers are somewhat inferior also, but do not destroy tools, etc. when they leak.

Just pay the price. They last much longer in almost everything. And do not eat up your tools and items if you forget to take them out.

And ALWAYS, no matter what brand, take batteries out of stuff when storing for long periods and in heat.

[memtb]

I “UESD” to be a believer in Duracell batteries.....no more. We buy in bulk packages, and are finding many batteries failing years before the expiration date....just as you show. We have had several pieces of equipment ruined! We I contacted them....they as much as told me to “go pound sand”! There will be no more Duracell or Kirkland batteries bought by us! I see your batteries were Kirkland.....I think (not certain) that Kirkland brand is produced by Duracell!

For the last 3 years or so.....only the “Rabbit”” (Eveready) batteries for us. Until they start failing like the Duracells.....I’ll stick with the “Rabbit”! memtb

[daengmei]

I have recently had several Duracell 2A and 3A batteries leak. All from new packs bought in the last year.

[CastingFool]

I had some rayovac leak, inside the factory wrapper. Contacted Rayovac, and the sent me a coupon good for $15. Bought some more Rayovac, but use them in high drain devices, such as led headlamps. Seems like the led devices drain the batteries fast.

[Wilderness]

I had a couple of game cameras damaged by leaking alkaline batteries. After that I gave the Energiser Ultimate Lithiums a run in an attempt to avoid the leakage issue. This may be the way to go for gear that is in use all the time but not subject to frequent battery changes. The Lithiums are supposed not to leak (?).

The Lithiums are said to have a longer life. They do, but not in proportion to cost. My first Browning game camera set on Time Lapse got 16,000 shots out of a set of six Energiser Max (Alkaline) and 24,000 out of a set of Energiser Utimate Lithiums. But then what is a rotted out camera worth? The cameras I damaged were Bushnells which, unlike the Brownings, do not have a replaceable battery cage.

[brassrat]

I can't believe the junk batteries out there and the Duracells have become leakers too.

[samari46]

I've never had "leakers" with duracells but then I do check my maglites quite often. But I have noticed chinese writing printed on duracell batteries. All the duracells I have were purchased within the last 6 months. Frank

[winelover]

I also quit buying Duracell's, after ruining several Maglites. Been using Ray-O-Vac's in my game cameras. Bunny batteries in flashlights.

Winelover

[Land Owner]

If they swell inside a tube type battery holder there's no getting them out.

Have you tried soaking in Kroil or penetrating fluid, drilling the center of the battery out, screwing in an appropriately long drywall or wood screw, and pulling the corroded battery carcass out by the screw with 7-strand parachute cord?

[ohen cepel]

I love the big Maglites but won't buy them anymore as the D batteries kept failing on me. C's are hard to find and I have nothing that takes them.

Same luck with Duracell in the last few years. Their quality really has fallen.

[GhostHawk]

I'm running everything possible with Lithium 18650 batterys. Including some solar motion detector lights. Some outside and some inside.

Get within 10 feet of the fridge and it trips on, lights the whole house up at night.
They sit on a window sill and recharge on sunny days. But it is just a few screws and I can pop in a fully charged 3000 MaH battery that will run for weeks.

Flashlights are pretty much all converted to the 18650. I also use them in my vape, so I have a dual charger ready to roll at need.
No more buying battery's just for a flashlight.

[country gent]

I got lucky the other day. Seen the Hawkeye bore scope out on the shelf and checked it yep had left the batteries in the new light. but they hadnt leaked yet.

[Mal Paso]

Have you tried soaking in Kroil or penetrating fluid, drilling the center of the battery out, screwing in an appropriately long drywall or wood screw, and pulling the corroded battery carcass out by the screw with 7-strand parachute cord?

Good suggestion but this was a plastic Fluke brand voltage detector that broke during the rescue attempt.

Only recently did I discover the limited shelf life and speed with which these batteries can go bad. I was thinking the batteries I put in the GPS were new but they may have been as much as 3-4 years old, just never used. I ran the GPS only a few minutes so these were not depleted batteries.

[alfadan]

Gave up on duracells. If I catch them early enough I've had good luck cleaning with citric acid and rinse with alcohol and a slight coating of light oil to the terminals.

[RogerDat]

Talk about differences in "standards" I was told that the reason for the big spring in battery compartment is there is not an absolute specification for battery size. Spring allows for some compensation to accommodate differences in battery length.

As an example slap calipers on the batteries that come in the cheap harbor freight lights they used to give away free. The ones you have to unscrew the back to access batteries. They are skinnier and a touch short. I find if I swap those cheap batteries out the flat blue LED lights are brighter and are good for much longer service. Same for the little round metal ones that take 3 AAA batteries in a holder. Toss the original batteries before they leak and put in good quality batteries, they are pretty good lights then. Flashlight is better than batteries it comes with. Cheap original batteries always leak. Stored in car or in house.

I have some older Mag lights, had more before batteries swelled and they ended up trashed. I have one mini mag that I will try the screw and para cord approach on.

[Handloader109]

Sorry, I DON'T buy crap Duracell anything. They Leak. They leak way more than any cheap battery I've ever used. I have used the cheap, used to be free HF batteries for several years and have had 2 leak that were well over 2 years old. Now, maybe I just change them out quickly as they hold half the energy of anything else. Everready hasn't leake on me

Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk

[MaryB]

I have gone to bulk Rayovac high energy batteries https://www.walmart.com/ip/Rayovac-H...athlblid=L0100

Haven't had any leakers, order AA cells once a year at most, maybe every 18 months. AAA's I go thru like candy, order 2 bulk boxes at a time. Mouse and keyboard use them, several flashlights use them, some cheap $5 LED work lights use them(like the one I use to service the pellet stove), some portable shortwave radios use them... They are a little bit cheaper in bulk too!

[David2011]

Duracells seem to leak very quickly if they’ve been drained. I had some leak in my electronic hearing protection in just a few days when I forgot to turn it off. The batteries were fresh.