Thread: Reliable source of SR44 silver oxide batteries?

Used to use them in my Camera.
The only good ones were obtained from an old fashioned jeweller.
As you found real Sr44s last years.
But they cost.

I have been buying them at Dick Smith. Check what they give you,though.

Hi Frank,

LR44 is manganese dioxide chemistry, SR44 is silver oxide chemistry, the LR44 voltage drops away pretty quickly something like 1.3 Volts after 50% capacity, wheras silver oxide will hold up over 1.5 volts almost to the end... past 90% usage capacity at least..

Any of these brands should be ok.. quite often you will find ebay sellers pushing poor quality LR44, as SR44..

Varta V303 should be ok.
10pk Varta V303 SR44 MR44 303 Silver Oxide Watch Batteries | eBay



Regards
Ray

Not only in this thread but a lot of other threads, your electrical knowledge always amazes me Ray.

Dave

Try a hearing aid place, that's what I use in mine, it helps to be partly deaf.
Kryn

i also use same LR 44 in my mitutoyo.here in japan it's pretty easy to find.you can buy around 2 aus $ for one piece.
i never used VARTA but must be good as it made in germany

Got a couple on Maxell (made in Japan) from one of the watch battery kiosks in a shopping center yesterday. Cost was $3.50 each. Not all have them and some say the LR44 is the same, but there's lots of these places around.

Nev.

I can't speak for sourcing, but I keep them in the "shed fridge" until using them and seem to get good storage life - batteries seem to last 18-24 months in the calipers
The shed fridge is the one full of solvents, batteries, etc

Originally Posted by desbromilow

I can't speak for sourcing, but I keep them in the "shed fridge" until using them and seem to get good storage life - batteries seem to last 18-24 months in the calipers
The shed fridge is the one full of solvents, batteries, etc

If you freeze batteries it will extend the shelf life right out (slows the chemical reaction right down to not much at all).

The cheapest Silver Oxyde batteries have a typical shelf life of only 5 Years. For every year of storage at 20C, the battery may loose up to 10% of its capacity. A 5 year old battery has therefore only half of its original capacity left. Less if it was stored in a hotter environment. Whereas some top quality brand name batteries have a 10 year shelf life, and claim a yearly loss of only 2%. When buying these batteries, it is very important to check the use-by date printed on the package. I do NOT buy such batteries if there is no expiry date on the package. Serious sellers on eBay will show on the ad the expiry date and guarantee this is what you will get. If the seller does not tell you the expiry date, assume it is expired or close to be expired and therefore the battery is junk. You get pretty much what you pay for. Store in the fridge, but not in the freezer, to extend shelf life..

Silver Oxyde batteries work at very low temperatures, down to minus degrees in winter. For every size, there are two distinct types available: for high drain and for low drain applications. High drain think of photo cameras, calculators etc, low drain think of watches. The two types use a different electrolyte, the high drain type electrolite is more aggressive and more susceptible to leakage. Some makers nowdays only sell the high drain types for all applications including Watches. Whilst some watchmakers still insist only the low drain type be used.

Modern silver oxide batteries should be nearly Mercury free. They used to contain quite a bit of Mercury to prevent swelling and leaking of discharged batteries. But nowdays only about 0.25% Mercury is allowed in most countries. But please still do not dispose of in normal rubbish.

With regard to the Chinese calipers that most of us own a few, I found that these almost invariably come either with inferior alkaline batteries (LR44) that only last about 3 weeks, or with "noname brand" Silver Oxyde batteries (SR44) without expiry date that last for me about 2-3 months. Whereas SR44 batteries from well known Brands and long experiy dates seem to last about 9 months for me. I also found that my Mitutoyo calipers last about 2 years with same battery. Intersting, I recently bought from the US a new type of caliper, also made in China but with much larger LCD display and the ability do display mm, decimal inches AND fractional inches. I like these very much.... and these now use the low cost and longer shelf life "coin cell" Lithium batteries, instead of Silver Oxyde. No experience yet about battery life though. Chris

Good info Chris, thanks for that. Could you elaborate a little more on why not to store them in the freezer please? Is it just certain types that should be fridge only, or across the board?

Well, I somehow had the picture of an ice cube with a few batteries frozen inside in front of me . Seriously, I do not think freezing would hurt a silver-oxide battery, but I doubt it would increase shelf life much over simply refrigerating. Much more important would be how the battery is protected from condensation water. I would think that any condensation would be slightly conductive, enough to discharge the battery much faster then if it was stored at room temperature but dry. The package these cells come in is NOT always waterproof. I have here a strip of Energizer's, and these are welded with clear plastic onto what looks like an aluminized board, just like most medication pills. I think these are waterproof and safe to put in fridge or freezer. But all the other batteries I have here are blister packed onto a cardboard base, which is even perforated for easy removal. Those would definitely need to be sealed into a water tight plastic bag or similar before being put into cold storage. Chris

Good thinking. Yes I always give them extra wrapping and put them in a container or Vac seal them (an extraordinarily useful device for every household).