Batteries no long have a punch

[millzrm]

I have several cheaper quality batteries that have gone several months (+6) w/o use and now when I charge them they just dont have the same perfermance as they use to. This is the case whether I use them in my RC Boat or Truck.

Questions:
Is there anything I can do?
Recharge them again?
Will running the batteries totally dead and re-charging them help?
Should I just buy new batteries?
Is there anything you can do to prolong the life of the batteries in-between seasonal use?

[Flying Scotsman]

What type of battery chemistry? What charge level were the batteries stored with? Were the batteries subject to high temperature discharge levels?

Douggie

[millzrm]

I'm not sure what you mean by chemistry - can you elaborate?

The batteries affected are 3 different brands/kinds, ranging from 3000mah - 3600mah. They were most likely used and put away for the season (no discharging). I wouldn't say the batteries were discharged at high levels. The setups in both my boat and truck are more novice, I am not trying to break speed records with either toy.

[Doby]

Chemistry = LiPo, ,,,NiMh,,,, NiCd.....etc

If they were NiMh as I suspect, then you might need to charge and discharge them at a low rate (around .5 amp) for about 5 cycles. They might come back to life.

[Spot Me 2]

If they were Lipos, You should have stored them at half charge.

[JimClark]

If they are NIMH take a reading off of each cell with a meter to see if you might have bad cells.

Jim