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How long do the batteries last in your BGL meter?

uart

Well-Known Member
Messages
424
Location
Australia
Type of diabetes
Type 1.5
Treatment type
Insulin
I've got an Accu-Chek Nano that takes 2x CR2032 lithium batteries. The first batteries that came with the meter lasted pretty good (more than 6 months) but lately the replacements I've been using only seem to last about a month or so. I guess I've got to find a premium brand battery to use, because it's a bit annoying getting this "E-9" (battery low) error every month or so.

Just wondering approximately how often other people are needing to change the batteries in their meters?

Thanks.
 
Thanks Aginoth. I'll give those a try next time. The ones I've been using recently were from Aldi and they don't seem very good.

I also buy NiMH (rechargeable) batteries from Aldi and they do seem quite good, so I thought these Lithium ones would be ok as well. Unfortunately however they seem to be a bit substandard.

The weird thing about them is that, even after the meter rejects them, they still read 3.0 volts (which is their nominal rated voltage) and can still work in other less demanding gadgets. It's like they're not really flat but just don't supply enough current, so the meter sees them as bad. So it seems those CR2032's are definitely not all created equally, and that my meter only likes the premium ones.

BTW. Does anyone else have the Accu-Chek nano? If so let me know how long you get from a set of batteries.
 

Had the same problem with the Nano meter, it was burning batteries at a alarming rate.

I ended up phoning the Accu-Chek customer service line and they advised me to reset the meter, they said to remove the battery's and hold down the two buttons at the top of the meter for 30 seconds then reinstall the battery and switch the meter back on, it worked and the problem was no more.

So it's not a problem with the Aldi batteries and is more likely the meter needs reset @uart, try it and see how you get on.
 
noblehead said:
I ended up phoning the Accu-Chek customer service line and they advised me to reset the meter
Click to expand...
Thanks very much noblehead, that's really good to know. I'm giving that a go right now!

BTW. That's the two top "arrow" buttons that you hold at the same time, is that right?
 
uart said:
BTW. That's the two top "arrow" buttons that you hold at the same time, is that right?
Click to expand...

It is the two arrow buttons that you hold down together, if it doesn't work then just ring Accu-Chek anyway as they'll replace the meter if its faulty.
 
Never really gave that a lot of thought as I have used the same tester for the last 10 years and probably changed the battery about 6 times it came from Boots chemist hanging onto it because they are not available anymore its probably down to profit first!!
 
I once had trouble with batteries in my accuchek Aviva -kept saying batteries dead even though had only just changed them. I rang Accuchek and they said not all CR3032 batteries fitted properly and to get a specific brand from them. If you register your meter with them they will send you vouchers for free batteries from Boots (used to send the actual batteries).
 
hels said:
I once had trouble with batteries in my accuchek Aviva -kept saying batteries dead even though had only just changed them. I rang Accuchek and they said not all CR3032 batteries fitted properly and to get a specific brand from them.
Click to expand...
That's interesting. CR2032 is supposed to be made to very specific dimensions, so "fitting" properly really shouldn't be an issue. There is a very similar looking, but slightly thinner version called a CR2025, which perhaps someone could mistakenly fit and which would fail to properly contact.

I think it's the electrical characteristic that makes the real difference between premium and cheepo brands. I've seen this before with other devices, where the cheep button cells just cant supply the required current levels for some applications.

If you register your meter with them they will send you vouchers for free batteries from Boots (used to send the actual batteries).
Click to expand...
Yeah I was given this meter by the DN and she told that me about that at the time. TBH I was so sick with the diabetes at the time that I never got around to doing it.

I've reset it like Noblehead suggested and for now it's going ok. Probably a dumb move but I've also bought a bunch of stupidly cheep CR2030 batteries from ebay. I think I got 20 batteries for the price of about one premium one. I actually got these a few weeks ago when I was getting totally feed up with the "low battery" error all the time, and figured that even if the cheep ones only last a month or two that those 20 would still be worthwhile. I'll update this thread when I test these new one, see if they even work at all.
 
Cheap batteries are a waste of money even if they appear to be big name they can be time expired or counterfeit.
Also some genuine bearing household brands best known for products other than batteries are on batteries that aren't very good.
It pays to buy genuine batteries with the name of a manufacturer specialising in batteries from a reputable seller that sells batteries in sufficient volume to turnover stock before they approach the end of their shelf life.
I tend to buy batteries from "Savers" the health & beauty high Street chain or in packs from very carefully selected eBay or Amazon sellers.
 
Just an update on this.

It's now been several months since I followed noblehead's procedure to reset the meter, and I'm happy to report that it has definitely worked!

Currently in the meter I have one of the sets of batteries that were just starting to give the "E-9" low battery warning over 3 months ago, just before I reset the meter, and amazingly they are still going fine and haven't given any problems since.

I do have fresh batteries ready to go in, so this was really only a test to check that the reset had really done something. Before the reset, when I got this "E-9" error I could sometimes remove the batteries and then reinsert them (same batteries) again to get it going, but it only ever worked for a day or two (at best) before dying with the same error. This time however it's been over 3 months since I put back the apparently already failed batteries, and it's still going strong. So there is no doubt that the batteries were not the real problem and the meter reset has done the job.
 
funnily enough I got a freestyle lite meter about 4 years or more ago and I haven't changed the battery on it yet and i use it all day every day. I used to use an accu-check nano and it chewed through batteries quickly. So I really like my meter. Although I have just purchased a dario meter and waiting for it to arrive... that's the one I can use my smart phone as my meter and it stores all your BGL's and does reports and stuff. I ordered the dario for that reason as my freestyle lite is fantastic but I am slack with recording my BGL's in my diabetes app lately. I figure if the dario does it for you then I won't forget. I just have been too **** tired and sick, that's my excuse.
 
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