Battery Leakage?

Beexter

How safe is it to leave batteries in pedals? Is there a time limit or any conditions which are more likely to 'cause a battery to leak?

I'm not talking about current drain, I'm talking about the chemical contents of the battery oozing out all over the insides of a pedal. I was clearing out some rubbish from my garage the other day and there was an old torch in there and the batteries had leaked out and ruined the torch. No biggie but it would be if the same thing happened to one of my pedals!

Am I being paranoid or should I just leave the batteries in my pedals? Anyone know what causes a battery to leak?

Sassafras

I would take out batteries from any device if I wasn't using it.

If you're using the pedals regularly then the batteries would probably go flat long before they started leaking as long as you use decent quality batteries.

RaymondLin

A battery is just a box filled with acid with 2 elements which electrons flow between them.

It leaks when the housing fails, the acid eventually corroded through its weakest point and start coming out.  This process normally takes years and years.  I have had it happened to torches, old battery powered toys etc.  So every pedal I get now I open it up, take out the battery.  I find it amusing actually having a box full of 9V batteries, and who knew Bogner has their own branded batteries?  And Xotic Effects too have their own branded batteries !

FelineGuitars

I had a battery leak inside a battery compartment of a guitar - made a real mess , but thankfully confined to the battery box pretty much, although the acid did wick down the inside of the battery clip -ve wire all the way to the jack, so I had to replace the jack also.

But I have a piece of arck equipment that has had the same thing happen to the battery that helps save all the settings and it ate through the battery holder and made a mess of the PCB- not sure if that unit can be saved

Beexter

Hmmm, I think I'll be taking all my batteries out of my pedals at the weekend...

RaymondLin

Beexter said:

Hmmm, I think I'll be taking all my batteries out of my pedals at the weekend...

Then wrap the socket with electrical tape.

TheCount

If your a real anorak like me you'll get some of these

Fazer

TheCount said:

If your a real anorak like me you'll get some of these

oh my god, my anorak has been awoken! - you got a link to buy them?

Beexter

@TheCount - consider me an anorak. Where do I get them? Any idea what they're called?

Danny1969

I recently had to repair a £300 Sennheiser IEM receiver where the battery had leaked, destroyed the battery cage and a track on the PCB. That's the only time I've seen that but it obviously can happen and the result could have been fatal. 

Sassafras

Generally, cheap batteries are more likely to leak although I've had the odd Duracell go rogue and leak its nasty juice all over a compressor. Luckily it wasn't fatal.

TheCount

Battery snap covers