# Incandescent Flashlights problem: short battery life time



## aSpartan (Aug 10, 2008)

Hi Guys;
this is my frist post here, I've been reading around the site every now and then, but finally decided to register and share my problem with you guys.

I'm not sure if this is a general problem with Incandescent Flashlights, or it's my Flashlight that's doing this.

I bought a GEEPAS, 2,500,000 candle power, china made flashlight few month ago from KSA, since i live in Egypt, and there arn't much option to select from.

The thing is, it takes like 24 hours to charge the batteries, but when it comes to usage, the battery could die on me after like 10 periods, 1-2 mins each.
I use it for fishing specially when i'm out camping in Sinai, i just direct the light towards the fish while getting it out of the water, which is a few mins process, but after doing this for like 5-10 times, the battery dies.
Is this a normal thing with Incandescent Flashlights, or is it a problem with battery deplating too fast, capacitor maybe?

I could post images if required.


----------



## Carpenter (Aug 10, 2008)

First -> Welcome to CPF

I don't know much about that light to start with, nor can I find anything in a quick google search. I would contact the seller where you got the light from or the company itself.

Does the manual answer the questions you are asking?


----------



## aSpartan (Aug 10, 2008)

Hi Carpenter;
Thanks for welcoming me.
concerning the flash light, i don't think it came with a manual, and i think it runs a halogen lamp, I'm still a noob in lights arena, so i'm gonna post some images of my set, and see if someone can help me figuring out the problem, or maybe mod it


----------



## Lexus (Aug 10, 2008)

It's probably a 100w bulb running from a lead acid battery. I had a 2MCP spotlight a few years ago and it's runtime was around 15-20 mins.
If you want to stay with incans, I suggest a modified Maglite, like a ROP or Mag85. Charging time is much less and runtime is better. It's easier to lug around too.

What is a "ROP" or "Mag85", you might think. They have the same form factor as a normal Mag, but put out a few hundred lumens. You can build them yourself of buy them in the Custom B/S/T forum. Do a search for them lots of stuff to read here.

And welcome to CPF. :wave:


----------



## aSpartan (Aug 10, 2008)

Hi Lexus;
your guess is almost very right, except the bulb back says 12v55w not 100W.
here's some photos, it's a lead acid batt.

the only problem i can think of right now is the sealed lamp area, is it safe to take the lamp out, and how do i break in :S
also, if I'm going to mod. and i think this is what I'm going to do, am i going to replace both the battery and lamp?


----------



## Lynx_Arc (Aug 10, 2008)

I am guessing your battery is about a 2Ahr 12v SLA which is about 24 watts and your 55 watt bulb will drain it in about 24/55 mins of use or 26 mins if you have no loss in the wiring.... with losses I suspect you will get about 18-22 mins of runtime. I would suggest if possible a lower wattage bulb or a larger battery to increase runtime.


----------



## aSpartan (Aug 10, 2008)

Lynx_Arc said:


> I am guessing your battery is about a 2Ahr 12v SLA which is about 24 watts and your 55 watt bulb will drain it in about 24/55 mins of use or 26 mins if you have no loss in the wiring.... with losses I suspect you will get about 18-22 mins of runtime. I would suggest if possible a lower wattage bulb or a larger battery to increase runtime.


so by larger battery you mean a higher Amp battery since, it must stay 12v, am i getting this right?


----------



## Lynx_Arc (Aug 10, 2008)

higher Ampere hours... 12v more capacity means longer runtime. I am guessing at the ampere hours of that battery if I am correct a 12v 5Ahr battery will run perhaps 45 mins to close to an hour.


----------



## jumpstat (Aug 10, 2008)

Welcome to CPF.

The lead acid battery looks new in condition. Probably there is a problem with the included charger that not charging the battery properly.
May I suggest you go to your nearest car/motorcycle service centre and ask whether they can charge the battery. Usually the workshop should have chargers that can charge batteries like this quickly. What is the capacity of the battery in Ah or mAh? (Usually it states this somewhere on the battery).
On the different note, do browse around these forums for valuable information about flashlights. Also there is an an active buy/sell/trade section that you could visit.


----------



## aSpartan (Aug 10, 2008)

well i could check the charger thing, it takes up to 24 hours to charge, maybe that's the issue.
I can't find any Ahr written on the batt. though it says 20HR beside the voltage, that might be it?


----------



## jumpstat (Aug 10, 2008)

aSpartan said:


> well i could check the charger thing, it takes up to 24 hours to charge, maybe that's the issue.
> I can't find any Ahr written on the batt. though it says 20HR beside the voltage, that might be it?


Is there any ratings on the included charger?


----------



## aSpartan (Aug 10, 2008)

jumpstat said:


> Is there any ratings on the included charger?


ouch, how could i've missed that, i just checked.

charger:
input- 230V 8.5w
output- 12V 350mA
what do you make of that?


----------



## jumpstat (Aug 10, 2008)

350mA is a very slow charger.....

To charge example a 2Ah battery takes 5.7 hours. A 5Ah at 14 hours. So for 24 hours that charger should have produced 8.4ah which should suffice to run your light. IMO, something not right in charger or battery, trouble shooting the battery first.


----------



## aSpartan (Aug 10, 2008)

jumpstat said:


> 350mA is a very slow charger.....
> 
> To charge example a 2Ah battery takes 5.7 hours. A 5Ah at 14 hours. So for 24 hours that charger should have produced 8.4ah which should suffice to run your light. IMO, something not right in charger or battery, trouble shooting the battery first.



you're doing great math here, sorry if I'm not helping you so far, having some migraine headaches today :s
so how do you suggest i test the battery?


----------



## Lynx_Arc (Aug 10, 2008)

without knowing the Ahr of the battery the only tests I know of for SLAs are checking the voltage when charged and putting a load on them to see if they sag too much which could mean a bad cell. It is possible you deeply discharged it too much and weakened the battery some or are not getting a complete charge.


----------



## LuxLuthor (Aug 10, 2008)

This may be a defective (or damaged) battery. Since there is no mAh rating on the battery (not a good sign for quality indication), it may be better to give size measurements for us to approximate its mAh. I'm not sure the 24hr @ 350mA rate is necessarily a correct way to determine capacity if anything wrong with battery.

Indeed, there may be a more efficient lamp that could be used. By it drawing less current, it will last longer....you almost need to know the bulb model & base/pin size to find a replacement.


----------



## BlueBeam22 (Aug 11, 2008)

:welcome: aSpartan! :wave:

I also have a 2,500,000 candlepower spotlight with a 12 volt 55 watt Halogen bulb and a 12 volt 2.8 ah lead acid battery. It stays at full brightness for about 5 minutes and then dims. Mine also came with a 350 mA charger.

A 55W Halogen bulb running on a small lead acid battery will most likely always have a short runtime.
I suggest you get the largest Incandescent flashlight you can find that takes standard non rechargeable batteries, it should be bright and stay on at least 5 times as long as your spotlight.


----------



## aSpartan (Aug 11, 2008)

LuxLuthor said:


> it may be better to give size measurements for us to approximate its mAh.


You mean the battery dimensions?
maybe i could just use an avometer to measure the voltage and Amp?


----------



## Lynx_Arc (Aug 11, 2008)

yes battery dimensions...... Length, Width, Height. 
Would be easier to measure instead of us guessing. Once we have the size someone can look up a smilar sized battery, determine capacity and tell you what you should be getting in rutimes and output on that light.


----------



## lctorana (Aug 11, 2008)

I have a 500,000 CP spotlight, with a H3 6V 55W halogen globe and a nominal 4.2 Ah SLA battery.

Same sort of thing.

The documentation that came with the lamp says that the expected runtime is about 20-25 minutes.

When you consider the ~ 9A draw, that sounds about right.

So I'm not at all convinced there is a problem to be fixed here, it sounds like it is working correctly.

There are only two ways of increasing runtime, either get a lower wattage bulb, or a bigger battery. And a bigger battery is problematic, as it needs to fit in the space provided.

_One other thing to note is that SLA batteries do not like being flattened. Whilst you can get 20 minutes or more out of one of these, doing so will damage the battery and lessen runtime. Treat your spotlight as a 5-minute-burst and recharge thing, and the battery will last very well._

Perhaps one of these, while satisfyingly bright, is not the ideal choice for an extended fishing trip. IMHO, a Rechargeable Eveready Dolphin (floats, 210 lumens & 3 hours runtime) would be a better choice, if you can (a) find one and (b) afford one.


----------



## zipplet (Aug 12, 2008)

I agree with that Ictorana says. One last option if the OP requires a very powerful spotlight type device for a low cost - you can buy 5-10MCP spotlights that feature direct operation from a 12V source. If you are prepared to lug the weight, you can buy a deep cycle lead acid marine battery (a smallish one, say 20Ah) and fit it with the correct connection for the spotlight and lug both. This would give a much more acceptable runtime but you MUST recharge the marine battery immediately after your trip to prevent sulfation and stop using it immediately upon dimming.

But I highly doubt the OP needs so much light so a long throwing incan of lower power should do the trick


----------

