PB 12" G4 battery shelf life

Can these batteries (li-ion I believe) be stored more effectively in a refrigerator or freezer?
Keith Wiley wrote on :

Sorry this is long, but it is rather entertaining, if somewhat ironic.

I bought my PB in April 2005, not quite a year and a half ago. By the beginning of this summer, the battery was pretty dismal, so I got a new battery directly from Apple. That was about six weeks ago and I have been very pleased with the replacement.

Now Apple has recalled my original battery's serial number, but not the replacement's serial number, so they're going to send me a brand new battery for free.

But I can't return the replacement because you have to do that within forteen days of purchase.

So, basically, I completely wasted my money on this recent replacement and I doubt Apple will let me return it, so now I'm wondering how long the soon-to-be-received recall replacement will last if I just leave it in a box with the intention of taking it out as my next battery replacement sometime next year when my current battery (that is, my second battery on this computer, the one I just bought a few weeks ago) dies.

Clearly, it won't hold a charge more than a few months. I don't care about that. I want to know if it will still be able to take a charge after that much time? If so, will its capacity be half ruined by then, effectively nullifying the battery's usefulness as a replacement?

Can these batteries (li-ion I believe) be stored more effectively in a refrigerator or freezer? If so, does that only prolong stored charge (which I am not interested in) or does it also prolong lifetime capacity (which would be useful to me)?

Does anyone have any reccomendations what I should do in my situation, that being that I will soon have two batteries that are at virtually the same point in their life cycles, one being about two months ahead of the other?

Anyone want to buy a perfectly good battery for, say, $100?

Needless to say, I'm kind of annoyed by the situation.

Thanks. Cheers!


Keith Wiley kwiley@redacted.invalid http://www.unm.edu/~keithw

"Yet mark his perfect self-contentment, and hence learn his lesson, that to be self-contented is to be vile and ignorant, and that to aspire is better than to be blindly and impotently happy." -- Edwin A. Abbott, Flatland


Elliott Roper replied on :

In article Pine.LNX.4.62.0609012356230.11177@redacted.invalid, Keith Wiley kwiley@redacted.invalid wrote:

Use them both. There is nothing more satisfying than smugly watching PC owners scrabbling for power sockets after a few minutes operation. Now you can have double the fun.

You will double the useful lifespan of both batteries, since their life is measured in charge cycles rather than years.

Marc Heusser replied on :

In article 020920061301014323%nospam@redacted.invalid, Elliott Roper nospam@redacted.invalid wrote:

You will double the useful lifespan of both batteries, since their life is measured in charge cycles rather than years.

Li batteries have a shelf life, typically 3 years starting with the manufacturing date. It does not matter that much how many times you have charged them.

HTH

Marc

John Johnson replied on :

In article 020920061301014323%nospam@redacted.invalid, Elliott Roper nospam@redacted.invalid wrote:

In article Pine.LNX.4.62.0609012356230.11177@redacted.invalid, Keith Wiley kwiley@redacted.invalid wrote:

Use them both. There is nothing more satisfying than smugly watching PC owners scrabbling for power sockets after a few minutes operation. Now you can have double the fun.

Absolutely do this. I've got two batteries for my PB for exactly this reason. Of course, one of those batteries is now on the recall list, so I've only got one battery at the moment (and have to haul around the wall plug). Even if there are wall plugs available, being tethered to one is often inconvenient, and having a cord lying on the floor can be a hazard.

You will double the useful lifespan of both batteries, since their life is measured in charge cycles rather than years.

As Marc Heusser pointed out, Li-ion batteries degrade with age, independently of cycles. That degradation is typically quoted as 2-3 years shelf life (stored at 1/2 charge, in a cool, dry environment...so not a refrigerator!). They'll still work after more storage than that, but you'll start to notice capacity reduction.