Want to save a lot of money ? (I mean a lot !) People don't realize how much money they can save and how much waste can be avoided by using rechargeable batteries. Even though most portable music players have built in rechargeable batteries that use the computer to keep them charged, there are still a lot of items using batteries. And they use them at an astonishing rate. Flashlights, remotes for t.v.'s, video players and stereos, wireless controllers for game consoles, cameras (oh boy, do cameras eat up batteries!) , and my favorite, the wireless mouse and keyboard for the computer are battery gluttons.
If you take an average 4 pack of name brand alkaline batteries, say AA size. Average price is around 4 dollars. 4 dollars for one use of 4 batteries. You are basically talking about a dollar for a single use battery that is going to be thrown away after it's dead. All batteries have a slew of toxic chemicals and heavy metals in them. Approximately 3 billion, that's billion with a B, get thrown away every year in the U. S. alone. This is enough to completely pack 600 full size school busses.
A four pack of rechargeable batteries with a charger is around 20 dollars. I know what you're thinking, oh my goodness that's 4 dollars a battery, with the charger thrown in for good behavior. Okay, 20 dollars would buy you 20 disposable batteries. That would get you 20 uses, then 20 toxic batteries that end up in the landfill. Rechargeables can be used and recharged, conservatively estimated, 2oo times. Now that same 20 dollars that got you 20 batteries, gives you 200 times the uses and 1/200th of the waste. Let's look at it another way. Those 4 batteries and a charger actually come out equaling 800 battery uses. 800 batteries that would be thrown away if they were disposables, and would equal 800 dollars spent on those same disposable batteries. 20 dollars versus 800 dollars, and 4 batteries versus 800 batteries. No matter how you look at it, it's a winner. Batteries can also be recycled, did you know that? Check with your local recycling centers. Save yourself a ton of money, save the planet from unnecessary toxic waste, and still enjoy all of your personal electronic gadgets. It's a no brainer.
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I love this post about rechargeable batteries. I don't think people realize how many batteries they go through, and how much money they would save if they just recharged them. Plus it's way better for the environment. My mom uses a lot of batteries, but she does recycle them. After reading this article, I'm going to get her to switch to rechargeable batteries. I know my dad will probably protest since the charger costs more money, but I'll use this blog post to convince him that he could save more money in the long run if he just switched to rechargeables. And he won't have to worry about recycling all those batteries.
ReplyDeletehope it works. thanks for the nice comments. my husbands idea for a post. i said, everyone all ready knows about rechargeables and he said, well, let's post it anyway. so, glad you found it interesting.
ReplyDeleteWhile getting a battery charger and switching to rechargeable AA and AAA for cordless electronics, did you know that there are many items that you use daily that only use rechargeable batteries? Cell phones, laptop computers, cordless phones, power tools, electric razor, electric toothbrushes, cordless vacuums, walkie talkies - anything that needs to be plugged into to charge up before use only use rechargeable batteries.
ReplyDeleteThe nationwide program sponsored by the rechargeable battery industry, Call2Recycle, operates a free recycling program in the U.S. and Canada. Thousands of retailers voluntarily participate. Find a convenient location in your neighbor at www.call2recycle.org.
Thank you for the insightful and motivating article - we all need to recycle.
ReplyDeleteGreat thoughts! I used to be religious about using rechargables...and then I had kids. :) I need to start using them again. I wonder how much electricity it takes to charge a set of 4 AAs? I'm sure it's still cheaper than buying alkaline, but it'd be interesting to find out!
ReplyDelete