Can you overcharge a battery?

[HayGan]

Last year I bought several Kodak rechargeable batteries for my digital camera (along with the recharger.) Now when I go to use these batteries they won't even power on my camera. I have tried recharging them and they seem to work for a few minutes but then they go dead. If I let them sit for any length of time (days or weeks), they are completely dead.

DH thinks that I probably overcharged them and probably killed them. My charger shuts off (at least the light goes off when they are done charging.) I'll admit I don't get around to unplugging it as soon as the light goes off but I didn't think that it would be possible to damage the batteries in this manner

So, did I kill my batteries?

 

[RadioNate]

that is a common Kodak battery problem. do you have one of the chargers where you can discharge the batter and then recharge it. I know the 3 series dock will do that.

if you have the manual it should say how.

 

[BunsenH]

Are they AA size? Can you try them in a flashlight or other device?

Batteries have a certain amount of discharge/recharge cycles that they can go through, but if they're only a year old they should be OK.

I don't think that it's possible to 'overcharge' them. If they are 1.5V batteries, they will charge up to 1.4-1.5V maximum.

 

[Towncrier]

A common mistake with NiMH batteries is to charge them when they are already fully charged. Due to the way that most inexpensive chargers detect when a battery is fully charged, it is quite easy to overcharge, overheat, and kill a battery in this manner. If you used the charger that came with the Kodak batteries, it is possible that this is what happened. I purchased a $50 charger for my AA and AAA batteries that monitors not only voltage, but battery temperature in order to avoid overcharging. If you did kill them and if they are AA batteries, the only consolation is that they are much less expensive to replace than specialized battery packs.

 

[cardaway]

DH thinks that I probably overcharged them and probably killed them. My charger shuts off (at least the light goes off when they are done charging.) I'll admit I don't get around to unplugging it as soon as the light goes off but I didn't think that it would be possible to damage the batteries in this manner

We have the same system and you can't damage them by leaving them plugged in after the light goes off. Sounds like one of the two cells (it's really two cells molded together) went bad for some reason.

 

[HayGan]

The charger was actually purchased seperately (for about $30!!!) It is actually 3 sets of batteries that are giving me trouble - grrrrrr They all seem to have "died" at seperate times.

I didn't think that I could overcharge them either. I'm going to have to call Kodak tonight to see if they can give me any more info.

 

[cardaway]

The charger was actually purchased seperately (for about $30!!!) It is actually 3 sets of batteries that are giving me trouble - grrrrrr They all seem to have "died" at seperate times.

I didn't think that I could overcharge them either. I'm going to have to call Kodak tonight to see if they can give me any more info.

It's possbile the charger is the problem and it's actually not charging the batteries to the full capacity. Did your camera come with a camera dock? If it did, try charging one of the batteries in the camera while it's in the dock.

It's also possible the batteries need to be cycled. Let them run full dead by leaving them in the camera with the power on till long past the camera's battery light goes on. I usually do this by recording and playing back video until it doesn't run anymore. I do this with each battery pack (we have three) before any long trip. Then just charge each one normally.

 

[MareQ]

It's possible that they are just "dead". Have you ever fully discharged them and left them for awhile before you recharged them? If so that could have done it - rechargable batteries should not be stored in a discharged state. In addition NiMh batteries will slowly discharge while being stored. You can sometimes "bring them to life" again by charging - fully discharging - charging again - fully discharging etc- do this 3-4 times and see if you have improved capacity.

 

[pfishgirl]

well it states in my Cell Phone as well as My Digital Camera that you shouldn't over charge batteries.. wait til they are completely dead then charge them, it protects the life of the actual battery...