Mag XL200 battery leakage

[sawman]

I went to use my XL200 today and it was dim as can be.  It had been sitting un-used for several months and this time was apparently enough to drain the batteries.  I somehow did not expect this from a Mag light...

Your thoughts welcome...

[thebullfrog]

In my entire life I have never owned a MagLite that DIDN'T leak or drain the batteries after being stored for a while.

[BlueDot]

What kind of batteries?  Some here say eneloops and/or lithium don't leak.

I have thrown away two older D-cell versions in my life.

[Syndicate]

Normally if its Duracell or Enegizer, you can send it back to MagLite, as they have an agreement with them to replace the Maglite, but only if you user Duracell or Enegizer.

[gregozedobe]

Alkaline batteries (and their poorer relatives eg carbon-zinc etc) are well known for losing charge even when unused.  You are lucky the batteries didn't leak and jam in your flashlight.

Either LSD eneloops or primary lithium batteries are recommended for lights that are going to sit around unused for long periods of time.

The other possibility is the light has slight parasitic drain even when switched off.  This is common on things that have electronic "soft touch" on/off switches, rather than the older style mechanical switches.

[nate j]

I use disposable lithium batteries in pretty much all of my personal AA and AAA lights whenever possible.  Longer life (both in use and in storage), better cold weather performance, lower weight, and fewer problems with fluid leakage make them worth the extra $$ to me vs. standard alkalines.  I've also had a fairly negative experience overall with rechargeable NiMH batteries (poor battery life, poor charge-holding capability, poor charge life) and have basically written them off barring major future technological improvements over today's offerings.

What type and brand of batteries did you have in your light?

[gregozedobe]

I've also had a fairly negative experience overall with rechargeable NiMH batteries (poor battery life, poor charge-holding capability, poor charge life) and have basically written them off barring major future technological improvements over today's offerings.

If you use your lights a lot it might be worth having a good look at the standard capacity (LSD, 1500 - 2000 cycle) eneloops, they are much better than most other NiMh rechargeable batteries.  I use them as my battery of choice and am very happy with them.  I was also quite unsatisfied with the several other brands I'd used in the past, but after research over at cpf I was convinced to give eneloops a try, and am glad I did.

You also need to use a decent battery charger ( I use a MAHA C9000), as many chargers actually damage the batteries they are charging.

[sawman]

To answer your questions, it had Duracell batteries in it.  Thanks for all the input everyone!

[Xavsbud]

I had the same problem with my XL100 about a year ago. It was right after buying my 200. I was sure that the 100 was just jealous.

I sent it back to maglite and they replaced the battery holder and cleaned the barrel and switch before returning it.

First warranty claim I've had go in my favor in a long time

HTH,
Dave

[Jailbird]

I've read somewhere, on CPF I think, that the maglite xl lights will drain batteries even when not used. It has something to do with the electronic switch they use. If I remember correctly, one solution was to unscrew the switch cap when you're storing it.

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