Need batteries.. whats the deal w/ rechargables (LI or NiMH) these days?

[hellhound]

Patrick, Veronica, Roger.... I'd bet you folks have tons of gadgets that use batteries... I recently had to look over hill and dale for 2 AAA batteries for the remote control on a new portable heater... found LI and NiMHs (that I hadnt used in 5 years) that I put in a charger... after 3 days they were dead... no idea if battery failure due to age, charger failure.. or what..

Or is it cheaper/cost effective to buy 100 bulk pack batteries from Walmart, Sams or CostCo? ... I'm talking cost and efficiency... not trash/landfill enviro hazards... my 70+yr old landlord saves up all the batteries he uses in all the appliances, fire alarms, etc and disposes of them thru a city program... Thing is... if can get a $ value rechargable or a battery that last long..the less cheap - acid ones are used.

this also seems to be a good segment to research and report on before the Christmas gadget season
Where batteries are concerned.... it seems to me that longevity and cost savings might go arm-in-arm with the enviromentalists.

[replica9000]

Was the charger meant for those types of batteries? If the charger was meant to charge NiCD batteries, it wouldn't work well with NiMH batteries. Same goes for Li-Ion batteries. Also with Li-Ion batteries, if the are fully depleted often, it shortens their life cycle. Storing them for a long time while depleted can damage them too.