Dear LPG,

There is more than one way to be overcharged and many of us do quite a lot of overcharging ourselves these days.  Our victims are our rechargeable batteries.

My Aunt has a laptop, which she usually uses when at home.  A few members of our family took in a tour of Scotland earlier this year.  We chose to go by coach and we all knew that there was going to be quite a lot of time when we were just driving around.  My aunt decided that bringing her lap top with her would be a good idea so that she could do some stuff if the mood took her. So she left it on charge overnight and off we went, but it ran out of charge really quickly even though the indicator said that it was good for three hours.   The problem is that every time she uses it at home she plugs it in so the battery never gets a chance to ‘discharge’. 

There are so many things in our homes that work by battery and many of those don’t require you to replace them; all you have to do is plug them into a charger.  Rechargeable batteries have crept into our lives together with our mobile phones, electric tooth brushes, camcorders, lap tops, wireless headphones, fitness trackers, Bluetooth headsets, digital cameras, vacuum cleaners and so many more. 

We need to remember that all these appliances have batteries and they can be overcharged.  It is important to remember that, even if they can be used when plugged in, you need to let the batteries get some exercise.  Most of these appliances have interchangeable power packs but the latest mobile phones often can’t be opened anymore which means when the batteries stops working the phone has stopped working and needs replacing.  It will be interesting to find out if owners of electric cars will overcharge them because I understand that their batteries can be changed but at quite a cost!

But back to the point I was trying to make when I started to write this piece. 

My advice; please readers can I remind you to check how your batteries are doing as you are charging them.  There is a school of thought that advises, from time to time, that we should let the charge completely run down to zero before recharging.   The simple message is don’t overcharge.  

KT, Eltham.

LPG found some information …

(►►►)   (►►►)     (►►►)    (►►►)