Why is it important to not mix brands of batteries in a device (whatever kind of device)
Asked by
flo (
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)
July 9th, 2017
Why do instructions say to never use with other brands? I’m not suggesting it’s ok to do. I just want to know what is it that is supposed to happen?
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2 Answers
It is the type of battery not the brand. Types of batteries include: Carbon Zinc, Alkaline, Rechargeable Alkaline, Li-Ion or NiCD.
The product engineer designed, built, and tested the product with a specific set of power requirements. Depending upon the product, durability and safety tests were run using a certain set of power cells and a specific recharging circuit (if applicable). A lot of time and resources were spent validating the performance of the product with those batteries.
Now, let’s look at batteries. We say a AA battery is 1.5 volts, but there is so much more to it. Here is a Spec sheet for a typical AA Battery. How much current does it deliver and what voltage? What is the initial full charge voltage? What is the voltage decay curve? How quickly does it self discharge?
If you mix batteries you do not know what you are getting. It might be ok. It probably will be ok. But one of them might be old or a different chemistry or have a different discharge rate. That can cause an imbalance that might reduce performance or produce extra heat.
It is safer to keep them all the same.
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