One other function seen increasingly more on lanterns is the usage of rechargeable batteries. Most campers favor rechargeable lights as a result of “if you happen to use much less ‘regular’ batteries, you may save more cash”.
Sadly, generally they’re unsuitable!
Most rechargeable lanterns are fitted with a 6 volt sealed lead acid battery with three little lead plates (cells), every cell offering 2 volt. Principally this battery is a scaled down model of a car battery. These batteries don’t wish to be drained ‘flat’ and left in a state of discharge. Sadly that is how most campers deal with their rechargeable lanterns. The lanterns are used till the light goes dim. So as to keep away from harm, these lanterns needs to be re-charged for a interval of a minimum of 12 hours, both on 240 volt or 12 volt. But once you’re camping, 240 volt energy is normally not obtainable (if it was, you would not use rechargeable home equipment, would you?). To take the car for a drive for 12 hours so as to re-charge the lantern can also be not an possibility.
So the lantern is put apart, taken home and left within the storage ready to be recharged (and normally forgotten about) and that is the place the harm happens. If the battery is left flat, layers of sulphur will adhere to the little lead plates inside making it tougher for electrons to stay to the plates. The opposite drawback that can happen is that typically the lead plates bend if the battery is left flat. In the event that they bend far sufficient, one plate will contact one other and a cell has been dropped, lowering the voltage by 2 volts. So now the