konc wrote:

Yep, that's the way to go if you don't want to resolder another barrel-type battery. Those are correct nicd replacements, can be charged, and have the correct voltage. The only problem is that in some cases the charging voltage is not enough for them but this is a rare case and they still qualify as one of the best alternatives.

And in the case of these cordless phone packs or an external battery holder, you can mount the things in the bottom of the case away from anything you need to protect.

I'm also considering mounting the aa packs outside the case, taped/glued to the back of it. This would permit easy removal for storage.

Either way. Pretty easy to slip off an ATX side panel, especially with thumbscrews.

Ok, so I clipped off the barrel battery and have the replacement battery fitted with an extension (made using header pins and dupont jumper wires, and some electric tape) so that it can be glued to the case bottom. All is well. Except the question of how to charge this thing?

NiMh batteries require 12+ hours of initial charging, and I have no clue how a motherboard charging circuit works. Would I have to plug this onto the EXT BATTERY header and keep the PC running for 12 hours? Or would just keeping the PC plugged into the wall socket be enough for the battery to get charged?

Someone more knowledgeable will probably correct me but...

The external battery header probably does not charge at all, if I understand things correctly.

You'd have to modify that extension cable so you can plug it into the regular battery soldering holes.

(Or did I miss something "upthread" and you have measured the connector pins for the external battery and they provide voltage?)

I guess an "I told you so" would be in order 😁.
Just solder some headers on the regular rechargeable contacts and plug it in there.

Well, no, I have not really tested the EXT BAT headers for current - should I do this with the power plugged in and the board powered? I think it's much easier to just solder headers onto the old battery connectors. I'll do that 😀

Aaaand, done:

Did I do good? 😀

Perfect. Now just measure the voltage across the battery and leave the computer on for a couple of hours. Measure again.
I'd put the battery in a small plastic container if it will be stored in this position so it contains any potential leak. It will still do some corrosion damage to the case but it's spread will be limited.

appiah4 wrote:

Well, no, I have not really tested the EXT BAT headers for current - should I do this with the power plugged in and the board powered? I think it's much easier to just solder headers onto the old battery connectors. I'll do that 😀

Aaaand, done:

Ha ha, nice.

Does this set of pins look like an external battery header? If no luck, then I might just try appiah4's method.

For the record I can report that the mod I did works perfectly with the batteries I use.

I also found success. In the pic two posts up, JP4 jumper stayed as is, and the 4 pin header was indeed for external battery. I'll get myself one of the battery boxes from ebay, but in the meantime a sandwich of two cr2032s, some electrical tape and a speaker header wire did the trick.

appiah4 wrote:

If it helps any, here are photos of the battery and corrosion in question: […]
Show full quote

If it helps any, here are photos of the battery and corrosion in question:

[...]

Commenting on your old post in this old thread, because I need know....

What camera did you use to take those close-up shots?? They look amazing.

I believe they were from the stock photo app of my Samsung Galaxy Alpha with an led flashlight instead of the flash.

I really need a new phone then. The camera on mine is horrible in any lighting/distance.

Anyone uses rechargeable ML2032? Then there is no need for diodes. Just solder the 2032 holder and stick this in.

Like:

ML2032 are lithium based. You surely don't want to recharge these with a circuitry designed for NiCd.

The charging circuit on the mobos (if present at all) is only single current limit resistor, nothing beyond that. There's no overcharge protection or any other things. I haven't had any problems using rechargeable lithium batteries even after multitude of years. For rarely used stuff I install AA packs and do make sure that charge resistor (if preset) is incapacitated.

derSammler wrote:

ML2032 are lithium based. You surely don't want to recharge these with a circuitry designed for NiCd.

I've seen this on another forum. Reports are good. Just wanted to know if someone here did the same and what is the experience.

I went a different route with a 486 motherboard, I plugged in a 3xAA battery holder onto the BATT_EXT header and used 3 1.2V AA NiMH 2500mAH rechargeable batteries for the job. It seems to have worked fine, however when I measure the voltage on the battery pack I'm getting 4.15V, which is considerably above the 3.6V the board would normally get supplied. Should I be concerned about damaging anything?

I have used this type of 2032 on lots of boards in the past. Works beautifully.

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