My Maglight quit working one day, so I opened up the back and the 2 batteries closest to the bulb are stuck with corrosion. I can’t (or don’t know how to) open up the bulb side of the light, or I’d just try to push them through from the other side. I’ve heard baking soda neutralizes battery acid, but will it unstick the batteries as well? Will it destroy the light in the process? Will the thing explode on me if I use the wrong stuff?
So, any ideas? It’s a big 4 battery jobby and it has served me well until I neglected it. I thought they were supposed to be indestructable?!?! Should I write the company and see if they have a warranty or a guarantee or something?
Dispose of it in the correct manner and buy a new one. I doubt that Maglight will give you a new one although the batter company might. However, while you haggle with them you don’t have a light. Some things are just not worth it.
The flashlight company is not going to replace your light because you forgot to replace the batteries in a timely fashion. You wouldn’t expect a smoke detector company to pay for your house after it burned down under the same conditions.
The light head does come off the maglite. It’s designed to act as a base for the light so you can use it as a lamp. Just unscrew it. It’s doubtful that the light will continue to work even if you can get the batteries out. I suspect the battery acid has corroded the electrical connections, but you might get lucky.
If it were light corrosion, some cleaning could extend the lifetime for a short while. But for that heavy of corrosion, Chefguy is right, it’s a goner.
I had this happen once with an aluminum-body flashlight (I left the batteries in so long that they began leaking inside) and even though they came out as normal, it continued to leak corroded acid/aluminum flakes from then on. No amount of cleaning with anything could seem to get it to stop, and the flakes ended up inside the front reflector and ate the aluminum off the plastic reflector in there in spots, too. I tried baking soda, as well as a couple different oil-lubricants but nothing worked. I ended up trashing the light and getting another.
~
You could check the fine print on the batteries. Used to be that battery companies would offer to replace any piece of equipment damaged by leakage. However, given the hassle involved, and the relatively small cost of a Maglite, you might as well just pop down to the hardware store and shell out $15.00.
only my batteries weren’t corroded, but their labels apparently somehow “swell up” - anyhoo, they were stuck well and good in the light.
The solution is simple: Grab thee a piece of metal long enough to reach the batteries - I used an old Allen key, but whatever works - and a tube of superglue. Put a drop of superglue at the end of said piece of metal, hold it against battery base until glue sets, pull out with an even pull. Break the battery off once it’s out, repeat once per battery.
I was inordinately proud to come up with that on my own
