Fenix CL20R rechargeable mini lantern : overview and first toughts

[archimedes]

I have a problem with rechargeable lanterns....

Me? I've got 48 AmazonBasic D cells in the freezer and 8 more in a UST 60 day lantern....

Modern alkaline cells are not recommended to store in an ordinary freezer, as it may increase risks of corrosion and/or damage to seals.

 

[mickeyfinn]

Modern alkaline cells are not recommended to store in an ordinary freezer, as it may increase risks of corrosion and/or damage to seals.

Hey arch,

There's so much conflicting info on this. I've read alkalines lose 1% - 2% of their charge per month at room temperature. I've also read they lose 1% - 2% per YEAR. Quite a difference.

I read that condensation on batteries kept in the cold damage the batteries and what they are put in.

The batteries I have in the freezer come shrink wrapped in groups of three. I took a three pack out of the freezer as a test.

Condensation appeared on the exterior of the shrink wrap almost immediately.

After waiting until the batteries came back to room temperature, I then waited a couple of more hours and removed the shrink wrap. There was no condensation on the batteries. None.

Refrigerating or freezing alkaline batteries DOES slow the discharge of stored alkalines. No one disagrees with that.

But all agree problems arise when condensation occurs. But there was no condensation on the shrink wrapped batteries themselves, but there was condensation on the exterior of the shrink wrap.

Duracell recommends against refrigerating or freezing batteries. But they're in the business of selling batteries, not helping us preserve them.


My question is, does keeping batteries in the freezer cause INTERNAL condensation in alkaline batteries?

 

[archimedes]

Hey arch,
....
My question is, does keeping batteries in the freezer cause INTERNAL condensation in alkaline batteries?

Honestly, I've not looked into this much, since I haven't used alkaline chemistry cells ... for anything ... for years :shrug:

If I were to guess, if there's a moist environmental atmosphere inside that freezer, then yes I'd think so.

I also think that the seals are likely made more brittle by very cold temperature, entirely apart from the moisture / freezing / crystal / condensation / corrosion issue(s)

 

[Woods Walker]

I am not putting alkaline batteries in my refrigerator because just don't use them. I would rather use LSD Eneloops or lithium primaries for AA. Alkaline batteries are kinda junk..... Sorry but that's IMHO. Also built in lithium polymer batteries are used in much more expensive gear than this lantern. The primary downside for me would be in cranking cold. The CL20 can use a CR123. I have been liking the few USB/lithium polymer lights in my gear collection. Did not think I would yet somehow they keep getting used.

 

[LetThereBeLight!]

So if you are out tent camping someplace, how exactly are you suppose to recharge it?

Well, if you bring along the WakaWaka Power (a small, easily packable/portable light with a solar panel that can also recharge your cell phone or anything else in that category such as presumably the CL20R), recharging it will not be an issue.

- LetThereBeLight!

 

[GaryF]

Thanks for the review. The 1 lumen low and improved run time are welcome. The 8 Lumen low of the old CL20 was always a deal killer for me, though the CL25R was a fine alternative.

 

[TPA]

After seeing the CL20R come out, I immediately bought 4x CL20 (non-rechargeable) and a couple of Nitecore LA10 CRI lanterns.

On the CR20R:
* Thumbs up for the 1 lumen mode & starting on the lowest mode every time.

* HUGE THUMBS DOWN for the sealed rechargeable battery!

The rechargeable battery makes this light completely USELESS for my needs -- disaster management / recovery. One of the best features of the original CL20 was that it could use CR123 or AA batteries, which let ME choose which type of batteries (Lithium, Alkaline, rechargeable NiMH) I want to use.

I get sent into disaster areas where infrastructure is non-existent, or will be damaged soon, with no ETA for when it might return. I've been part of: Andrew '92, Gabrielle '01, Charley '04, Frances '04, Ivan '04, Jeanne '04, Katrina '05, Wilma '05, Sandy (NYC area) '12, Irma '17... I speak from experience. My hurricane kit & advice has been refined with each storm as well.

For me, standard batteries are a must. Standard replaceable batteries also makes budgeting easier. ie: if you know the next supply shipment arrives in 3 days and you only have 2 AAs left, you know it's time to run on lower levels and don't waste power. Even if you had a USB battery bank with some sort of battery gauge, you still truly don't know how much power you have left in the light or the battery pack. I've yet to find a battery pack with a linear battery meter. There's also no question of "is it charged?" when I'm using regular batteries.

As much as I love my Honda EU2000i generators and solar panels, those don't get to go on the airplane with me. Even when I do have access to my generators, fuel isn't always available, even when working with emergency management. I just encountered this with Irma. I traveled by car, had my generators with me, was promised fuel would be available...and it wasn't, so the generator was run sparingly until we could get a decent stock of fuel. I should also note that some jerk tried stealing our generator on the first night we finally had decent access to fuel and decided to run aircon in the building. Battery-operated motion sensor w/remote alarm FTW! IF that had gotten stolen AND we were depending upon that for lighting, charging battery banks, communications, etc., we would have been dead in the water.

@LetThereBeLight mentions the WakaWaka Power light... Its solar panel is too small to be practical. The literature says that it'll charge itself to "50% on a typical sunny day" and only has a 2200mAH internal battery. Soo...2 days of solar charging = ~50% charge on my mobile phone.

 

[R2RO]

That is a totally different kind of lantern! It weighs like ten pounds with all those D batteries. The Fenix cl20r is a tiny light weight lantern you can use backpacking. The price of D batteries is soo high too. Fenix has a much bigger lantern(cl30r) that runs on 3 18650 cells. You're comparing apples and oranges.

 

[colight]

It's been a while since you posted this, but with all due respect @TPA, not many people would need this kind of lantern for emergency situations like the ones you mentioned, and you rightly said "USELESS for my needs". I can perfectly understand your concerns about this, but I am sure there are other products that you can use for this purpose, ones that fulfill your specific needs? Fenix does market it as a camping lantern, after all....