[Premium-Rx] Re: [Test-Equipment] NiCad Battery Corrosion

[Adrian Godwin]

>
> 1.	Does everyone else suffer from the same problem?

Yes. Not just testgear - video games restorers are warned to take
them out and replace with an alkaline pack, placed away from the
PCB. Presumably any charging circuit has to be disabled.

> 2.	What are your recommendations for cleaning and neutralizing the
> corrosion?  IPA simply doesn't hack it.

IPA is India Pale Ale over here! I'm not surprised it doesn't work -
I remember scrapping a desk calculator in the 70s that had been eaten
away by a beer spillage (it had been used in a brewery).

I do use isopropyl alcohol to clear away small crystals. I also
use lemon juice to remove hardened nickel salt deposits, and
obviously clean it very carefully afterwards. Some means of
replacing nickel plating on battery clips would be very useful.


> 3.	Does anyone have a good general fix for the problem, e.g. proper charge
> circuit, replace with super-cap, Li battery etc?
>

Usually just replace it with the same thing - the equipment I'm
repairing is usually 10-15 years old and I figure it won't do muchj
more damage in the next 10 years. However, I do have a number of
HP calculator batteries with problems - since these are collectors
items, I'd like to find a long term solution.

-adrian