Shearwater Low Battery Issue

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PR_SMITH

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Location
Cyprus
# of dives
1000 - 2499
I have a Shearwater Predator that was giving false low battery warnings. I tried a new battery, same thing. A quick look at the Shearwater support page and I found this:
You should be getting 60 to 100 hours of battery life on a Saft LS14500 battery.
Lower battery life could be caused by a few reasons:

  1. Wrong battery type. The recommended battery type is the Saft 3.6V LS14500. Other Lithium Thionyl Chloride batteries may not provide enough current for proper operation.
  2. Poor contact in the battery holder. Some holders do not squeeze the battery tight enough. These low battery warning often occur during the dive. A small kit is available free of charge to fix this problem. Please contact Shearwater (info@shearwater.com) if you think you are having this problem.
  3. Battery passivation. This is an insulating layer that grows on the lithium anode during periods of storage, especially at high temperatures. The insulating layer burns off once the Predator is turned on, but the voltage drops during this time. If you see a single low internal battery warning after installing a new battery or after a period of storage, then this may be the cause.
  4. Other damage. It is possible your Predator is damaged and may need repairs. Contact us for support.
So I contacted Shearwater support, via email, last Thursday, and received the free upgraded battery cap kit via courier Monday morning.

Shoutout to Shearwater for fabulous service!!

Old cap on the left, new one on the right. Neoprene circle goes on the spring end of the battery holder. Problem solved!
 

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This pattern was pretty typical of the Predator and Saft batteries. I hope the new cap helps out.
 
The one reason not mentioned is counterfeit SAFT batteries. Never get them from Amazon or Ebay
Darn, just ordered from Amazon.
Would you know of a more reliable source?
 
If the battery & cap replacement does not solve the problem, next suspect would be pressure sensor: if it is malfunctioning, it will be drawing a lot of current.
 
If the battery & cap replacement does not solve the problem, next suspect would be pressure sensor: if it is malfunctioning, it will be drawing a lot of current.
Hopefully, it's not that. I had the unit serviced at Shearwater about a year ago.
 

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