Battery drain on an M6

[Colin Corneau]

Why on earth would anyone store batteries in an environment that drains power from them.
Every winter here in Canada, peoples' cars don't start because -- you guessed it -- their battery is drained by the cold.

You're not extending the life of your batteries, you're just inconveniencing yourself while you wait to warm them up.

 

[Steve_F]

Why on earth would anyone store batteries in an environment that drains power from them.
Every winter here in Canada, peoples' cars don't start because -- you guessed it -- their battery is drained by the cold.

Can they not store their car batteries in the fridge. Darn sight warmer than a Canadian winter I reckon.😀

Steve.

 

[ddutchison]

Why on earth would anyone store batteries in an environment that drains power from them.
Every winter here in Canada, peoples' cars don't start because -- you guessed it -- their battery is drained by the cold.

You're not extending the life of your batteries, you're just inconveniencing yourself while you wait to warm them up.

The logic goes like this...

Batteries use a chemical reaction to produce electricity.

This chemical reaction occurs all of the time, whether or not the battery is in use. This is why un-used batteries will discharge over time, albeit much slower than batteries in use.

Chemical reactions slow as the ambient temperature is lowered.

So, cold batteries, in use, produce less power; but cold batteries, in storage, discharge slower.

Cold is bad for use but good for storage.


Are there any chemists or physicists reading this thread?

 

[Rob-F]

I'm in Florida, no cold here. I keep spares in a drawer on my shelf in an A/C room.

Yeah Right. I grew up in Miami. It can easily get down to 40, and I've personally known it to go below freezing. I live in St. Louis now, and for the past 43 years. It gets a little colder here (minus 18, twice, since I've been here). But I think for you to say that Florida doesn't get cold, you must be from St. Louis, or maybe Minnesota?

Some Batteries do fail in St. Louis.

 

[borrel]

Classic M6 is using up batteries too quickly.
Possible reasons:
1. Not putting shutter speed dial at B when not in use
2. Old batteries (about a year old before using)
3. ???

May or may not be applicable to M6 'Classic', but my M6TTL decide to eat batteries like candy the minute it came out of the shop. The dealer was not very helpful and the price was low, so the camera went to Solms. I had tried everything. Insulating the diagnostic contacts in the battery compartment well, setting the speed dial to OFF, rewinding only before shots - all of which were very inconvenient for a camera which is supposed to be very convenient. After coming back from Solms, (along with other mechanical adjustments) the shutter release had been tightened so as not to turn on the light meter at the touch of a feather, the original circuitry replaced and its price doubled. But now the camera can be used like any other. The battery that barely lasted a day if I wasn't careful, now shows no sign of giving up. There's a comment somewhere that the original electronics for the M6 received a serious upgrade somewhere through the model production life. Replacing them was the diagnosis I received with the price estimate from Solms. Decaying parts, software bug - we may only know when they really stop making analog cameras.

 

[raid]

The cold slows down the chemical process in a battery.
This is not a hidden secret.
Even in very cold weather,and when batteries seem to die, after warming them up in your pocket, they come back to life.

 

[Roger Hicks]

The logic goes like this...

Batteries use a chemical reaction to produce electricity.

This chemical reaction occurs all of the time, whether or not the battery is in use. This is why un-used batteries will discharge over time, albeit much slower than batteries in use.

Chemical reactions slow as the ambient temperature is lowered.

So, cold batteries, in use, produce less power; but cold batteries, in storage, discharge slower.

Cold is bad for use but good for storage.


Are there any chemists or physicists reading this thread?

You are of course absolutely right. I would advise those practising what I call 'arts graduate science' to Google 'Arrhenius'.

The reason car batteries 'die' in the cold is also very much related to oil viscosity. Turning the engine over when the oil is thick and sticky is harder work.

Cheers,

R.