Different Types of Battery Powered Soldering Irons

The world of batteries is both fascinating and complex. Batteries are used in such a wide variety of applications that it would be nearly impossible to list all the different compositions. From cellphones to cars, you’re unlikely to go a day without using something that is powered by a battery. Even here at Iso-Tip, several of our products utilize batteries to run. Of course, not all batteries are built equally. Different batteries are made from different chemicals, and these chemicals determine how that battery functions.

There are many different types of battery powered soldering irons out there, all with their own unique characteristics. The most common types are Lithium-Ion and Nickel-Metal-Hydride. Our Iso-Tip Battery Powered Soldering Iron has always used a Nickel-Cadmium battery. Our irons were designed back in the 1970’s when that type of battery was much more common. In recent years, other battery types have become the standard and the Nickel-Cadmium has fallen out of favor. This isn’t because it’s an inferior battery, but because Cadmium is a toxic metal, which raises environmental concerns for when it is not properly disposed of.

These environmental concerns helped inspire us to look into different battery types for our irons. Many of our competitors use Lithium-Ion batteries, but we found that the lifespan on these was only around three years. In an age where every piece of technology seems to only last a short while before needing to be replaced, we decided that we needed to find something better. This caused us to research all sorts of different battery types before settling on one that met our standards.

New Battery Powered Soldering Iron

And for those of you wondering, we released the new Model #8000 Power Pro Advanced Cordless Soldering Iron in 2022! It has a Lithium-Iron-Phosphate battery. If you’re into cars, you may recognize that as the same battery type that Tesla is looking at putting into a version of their Model 3. We chose this because it’s safe and has a 10 year lifespan on average.

If you want to learn more about batteries, I would recommend you check out Battery University. It’s a great website that will tell you everything you could ever want to know about the different battery types. If you’ve got any questions about batteries and our irons, please contact us.