Li-on Button battery check and storage

I've jsut received some CR2032 batteries in the standard cardboard/plastic packing and a "best before" date of 2022.

The batteries are spares which I expect to use over the next 2 to 5 years or so.

My questions are:

1) I want to check if they are full voltage now. This means breaking the wrapping. Is there anything in the way that they are wrapped which I lose eg inert gas?

2) Is there a good way to store them to ensure that they are likely to work when I come round to needing them?

3) Does the "best before" date mean that they need to be installed in whatever a couple of years before 2022?

(Yep, I really have nothing more important to worry about at the moment)

Reply to
AnthonyL
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I don't think so. Packaging sometimes has a hole in the plastic bubble anyway (although that may be some other battery technology).

Avoid touching them with your fingers. Button cells are liable to discharge through a fingerprint left on the insulator between the terminals, which becomes significant given their long shelf life and low capacity and very short tracking distance across the insulator. Plastic tweezers can be handy.

Cool and dry, I would expect, but I haven't researched it.

It's a date which they are expected to meet their specification. They won't suddenly die then, but expect a reduced specification, things like capacity and possibly internal resistance.

Reply to
Andrew Gabriel

At the price I paid for a dozen recently (with similar date), I CBA to worry. :-)

The last lot are pretty much at their expiry and work perfectly well - though I doubt they will last quite as well as when they were closer to their date of manufacture.

Reply to
polygonum

I avoided the "cheap" Chinese suppliers but and went for Panasonic. Assuming they are genuine (Made in Indonesia) they were still cheap (1 for 4) , but it is more a matter of having them work reliably when I need them instead of having to mess around getting some in.

Reply to
AnthonyL

I too went for Panasonic:

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£2.85 for 12 with "free" delivery - and very speedy that was.

(Bizarrely, not the same supplier as that link displays.)

Reply to
polygonum

I think you are right button/coin cell packaging tends to have hole in the plastic and cardboard.

Reply to
Dave Liquorice

I didn't find any but they have now. My multimeter prongs are almost like needles. All batteries reading 3.2v which is healthy.

(Doh - I think I've caught up)

Reply to
AnthonyL

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