Best way to supply 12V from batteries?

[antknee]

I'm wondering what is the best way to supply 12V from batteries. I could use a 9V PP3 and two AA batteries but it seems a bit cumbersome. Ideally I'd like one battery which was rechargeable and had a reasonable amp/hour rating.

What do you think?

Regards,

Antknee.

 

[Diver300]

How much power do you need? How accurate does the 12 V have to be? Alkaline batteries are considered flat at about 1.0 - 1.2 V per cell, so if you need 12 V all the time, you need about 12 cells so two PP3s in series might be quite good.

 

[antknee]

It is to power an audio amp, I need 10V minimum but more volts is ok. I'm currently using 4 of the PP3 batteries but the leads from them are a bit cumbersome and I don't need 36V. Ideally I'd like 12V with a bigger amp hour rating. Thanks.

 

[bychon]

May I suggest a pair of 6 volt "lantern" batteries? They are about 4 inches square by 4 inches tall.

 

[antknee]

Yes I just looked them up, that is what I need. I have seen them before, they just don't spring to mind unless prompted!

 

[mgeno216]

I know that radioshack sells recharable 12v batteries, but they are big, just a little bigger than a latern 6v. You could just use a wall wart, or whatever you call them. I ditched batteries about a year ago and now I stock pile those for all my projects.

Mike

 

[antknee]

Thanks Mike I will have a look.

 

[Mickster]

You could get a 12v SLA battery from the likes of Maplin, plus a charger too if you don't have one.

Or.........

You could get a cheapie cordless drill from Aldi or Lidl for around the same price and use the battery pack & charger, plus you'll have a geared DC motor to use for robotics if that is one of your interests.

 

[antknee]

I have seen them at Maplin for about £17, I can get a similar one online for £12. The good thing about Maplin is that the quality of what they sell is often the best and returns are easy. Will have to decide if I want the convenience and quality or best price.

I already have a cheap 12V drill, using the charger on that is an excellent idea! I looked at the price of chargers in Maplin and it was £20, looked at car battery chargers and it is the same price.

 

[Emil09]

Recently used one of these in a project:

**broken link removed**

It's a 12v 1.3Ah rechargeable lead acid battery. Panasonic LC-R121R3P. Works great.