Change yer batteries when they's dead!

[Ummon]

I have a wireless keyboard/mouse deal. When the batteries start goin on the mouse, I have this habit of pulling the cover off, and pulling up one of the batteries and re-seating, which gives me some more time. Last night I guess I pushed my luck on this - cos, all of a sudden, I head this little pop and a hiss, bubble....what the hell was 'at??

It was one of the batteries juicing inside my mouse!

Pulled it apart and tried to clean it out with a sponge lightly sprayed with some natural cleaner - like, you could eat this stuff and maybe only crap a bunch for a day or so. Then I blew it out, but it still wouldn't turn on. Would get a quick flash of the LED, only. Hoped it was only that it needed to dry overnight, and not that acid was eating the thing.

Turned out to be the case this morning - that it needed dryin. Whew. Then - I'd messed up the wheel spring and clicky mechanisms - that is, they came off, and I wasn't payin attention to how they'd been on there. Took me a bit, but I figured out how they went in. I guess I'm not too dim.

So, all's well that ends well, right?  But don't wait ta changer yer batts!

[RayB]

yeah batteries these days seem to get less and less reliable. I had a 9 volt "explode" open by itself with a firecracker-like bang. It spit acid all over the chair I had been sitting in minutes before. This was a Duracel, not a dollar-store special.

Other problems I've had is Energizer AA batteries that are fairly new leaking in my flashlight after only a few months.

Ridiculous.

[Ummon]

Hmmm. I have maybe three items that use standard batteries - mouse/keyboard, head lamp, and a regular flash light. (Cell and camera take special batteries, of course.) I've had some corrode, but never have they popped. I keep new batts in the fridge. This would seem okay, and does seem to be.