Shearwater Perdix Battery Died Twice

[Searcaigh]

I mainly use SAFT batteries in both my Petrel 2 and Perdix.

I've had some issues in the past with fake Duracell and Energiser batteries in the Middle East. Dodgy genuine batteries do occur from time to time if stored improperly.

 

[Amy B-G]

Following is information provided by Dive-Tronix, the company that repairs Shearwater computers. This being said, if you are already following their recommended guidelines, you might be leading up to a depth sensor failure. Just before mine failed my batteries were dying in a very short amount of time unreliably. The repair for such was under warranty and the Shearwater/Dive-Tronix customer service was excellent.
*Saft batteries last the longest but are more expensive and harder to find so if you can find a good batch that is also an option.

1) Do not leave an alkaline or lithium battery installed in your dive computer for more than four (4) weeks without use.
2) Do not store your computer with a low battery reading.
3) DIVE-Tronix and Shearwater recommend using Energizer Ultimate Lithium or SAFT LS14500 batteries.
4) If you choose to use an Alkaline battery, please exercise precaution.
5) Make sure you program your computer for the correct battery, it cannot tell the
difference.

Any alkaline battery can leak if it goes dead. Duracell (including Kirkland batteries which are made by Duracell) seems to be the worst culprit. We do well over 300 repairs each year due to Duracell battery leaks. You can find more information on using Duracell batteries at www.duracell.com. Go to “Responsible Battery Use, Care and Disposal”.

This is not to say lithium batteries do not leak. Though we have seen only a few.

The dive computer is in standby mode checking every 15 seconds to see if you have entered the water. There is also a clock running that uses battery power. Both features can, and will, eventually drain a battery while it is storage or not being used for a long period of time.

More information can be found in the Quick Start Guides, online Manuals and on the Battery Warning card that now comes with Petrel and Perdix computers.

DIVE-Tronix, LLC
10733 210th Street SE, Snohomish, WA 98296
858-775-4099, divetronixllc@yahoo.com
www.divetronix.com

 

[Couv]

I've had some issues in the past with fake Duracell and Energiser batteries

If this ^^^ is somewhat common, is there a method of examining/testing to determine if one has the genuine article?

TIA,

couv

 

[wnissen]

Just wanted to point out a couple of sources for genuine SAFT batteries. I personally would never buy a battery for expensive equipment on Amazon, they allow anyone and everyone to throw inventory at them and don't even track, so they couldn't sort out fakes even if they tried. Search "stickerless commingled inventory" for the gruesome details.

This is a legit US-based industrial supply site selling the branded SAFT, as well as a number of other versions:

Saft LS14500 $10.19 LS14500 AA Battery 3.6V 2600mAh Lithium replaces Maxell Tadiran and more | Zoro.com

Order Saft LS14500 AA Battery 3.6V 2600mAh Lithium replaces Maxell Tadiran and more, LS14500 at Zoro.com. Great prices & free shipping on orders over $50 when you sign in or sign up for an account.

www.zoro.com

$10.20 per, shipping tends to be pretty reasonable, I am seeing $5 flat rate and it tends to be fast.

McMaster-Carr is a respected US industrial supply house, they don't explicitly say it's SAFT, but how many batteries do you buy that are made in France?

McMaster-Carr

McMaster-Carr is the complete source for your plant with over 595,000 products. 98% of products ordered ship from stock and deliver same or next day.

www.mcmaster.com

Site is weird that it doesn't calculate shipping when you order, tends to be $8 per order for smaller orders, so stock up. Moderately fast shipping.

 

[Belzelbub]

If this ^^^ is somewhat common, is there a method of examining/testing to determine if one has the genuine article?

Probably, but most likely not at the user level, and it changes frequently.

I used to be involved with counterfeit mitigation in electronics a while ago. Generally, the methods were destructive (this was fine as volumes were higher), which wouldn't help on a single purchase. Also, the counterfeiters adapt. I've seen some really bad counterfeits and some really good ones. More often than not, analysis of suspect devices came back as "inconclusive."

 

[wnissen]

Probably, but most likely not at the user level, and it changes frequently.

I used to be involved with counterfeit mitigation in electronics a while ago. Generally, the methods were destructive (this was fine as volumes were higher), which wouldn't help on a single purchase. Also, the counterfeiters adapt. I've seen some really bad counterfeits and some really good ones. More often than not, analysis of suspect devices came back as "inconclusive."

Yeah, this is just a tough problem. I've seen transparent fakes (bad font, foil seals poorly replicated in a consumer color printer, packaging wrong size, text misspelled, etc.) but also some really good ones. That's why I recommend concentrating on sourcing. The industrial houses are not going to try to save ten cents on a battery by going with an unproven third-party supplier. They're going to buy direct from the manufacturer or an authorized reseller and pass the cost onto the customer, who is usually happy to pay a few extra bucks to minimize the risk to their expensive machinery.

The one exception here is Costco, they deal direct with the manufacturer to reduce their overhead, I would buy from them with confidence. Of course, they only have so many products.

 

[Marie13]

Batteryjunction.com is also a reputable supplier of batteries. All my lithium ion rechargeables come from there. I just checked and they do sell SAFT cells.

 

[wnissen]

Batteryjunction.com is also a reputable supplier of batteries. All my lithium ion rechargeables come from there. I just checked and they do sell SAFT cells.

Thanks, they do have a ton of batteries! $6.70 each with flat $6.29 shipping at the moment. Saft AA 3.6V Lithium Battery - Primary LS14500 - Priced Per Cell

 

[davehicks]

Thanks, they do have a ton of batteries! $6.70 each with flat $6.29 shipping at the moment. Saft AA 3.6V Lithium Battery - Primary LS14500 - Priced Per Cell

+1 for Battery Junction. I've bought from them for a long time.

 

[dbnewton]

Recently my Perdix is behaving the same as how you have described it, but it's happening with the Energizer Ultimate Lithium battery, that's the type of battery I use all the time. New battery drained over a week with only 2 dives, 73mins total dive time.

For unknown reason, my Perdix is draining the battery even when it is off, battery indicator flashing red before the next dive during the following weekend. At first, I thought it might be just the bad lithium battery, so I replaced it with a double AA brand new alkaline just to try it out, making sure I chose the correct battery type, and off I'm gone diving. Half day gone and 2 dives done, about 1 hour dive each, the battery indicating yellow already! That night, I swapped the alkaline battery out with the 3.7v Li-Ion rechargeable battery. It was fully charged at 4.2v and it has gone down to 3.8v 33hours later...

I couldn't figure it out why is my Perdix behaving so power hungry after 2 months of dive break, it was working perfectly fine before I took the Lithium battery out for storage.

Any idea what happened with yours? And how did you fix it? I live in Malaysia and the nearest service centre is in Thailand. I wish it is easy fix that I could address it myself without having it sent all the way to get it checked in Thailand.

Cheers!

I switched to 3.6v lithium. They don't last as long but i bought 4 and a charger so I swap them more frequently. So far (maybe 50 dives) no repeat of full to dead in one dive.