I couple years ago I bought a Nexus PC50 scale. I didn’t use it much
so I took out the batteries and shelved it. Now that I have an
apprenticeship I took it in to use and it will only read EE or EE
(under & over weight indicators ) unless I press Tare and Off, then
it says, IN, and then goes to 2.016 until I Tare it, then it will
seem to read ok until I turn it off and back on. Then it’s the same
thing all over again.
There is nothing jammed in it to make it stick that I can find, and
it was stored in a clean, dry environment, so I would assume
corrosion would be around none. As Far as I know its never been
dropped or had anything real heavy set on it, or pressed upon with
unusual force.
Ive tried on several occasions to contact Nexus, but no one ever
gets back to me. I know its out of warranty, but I also know its
barely been used. If there is a reset or something that I can at
least try, I would appreciate that. I found the Tare/off sequence on
my own, but I have tried what little info is included in the poorly
Xerox instructional sheet from Nexus.
Does anyone have any helpful experience with this unit? Or know how
to contact and actually talk with someone who would at Nexus? I kind
of figure they only sell, not really support the product from what I
have heard about them already. I kind of think I will need to buy
another scale as soon as I can afford it, but it would be nice to
use the one I already bought. I doubt my next scale will say Nexus
though.
The phone number I have for Nexus Scales is: 586-774-2500, E-mail: info@nexusscales.com, Web site: nexusscales.com. You can download
the manual from there.
I don’t have experience with the Nexus PC50 scale, but, these type
of instruments often have hardwired programs like you would find in
an automobile. When this hardware is powered down for an extended
period it will not restart immediately. You could try to leave it on
and occasionally use it and see if it will respond after several
hours. If the circuitry doesn’t fully recharge after a day or two I’d
worry then. I think you should try cycling the input data every half
hour.
I couple years ago I bought a Nexus PC50 scale. I didn't use it
much so I took out the batteries and shelved it. Now that I have
an apprenticeship I took it in to use and it will only read EE or
EE (under & over weight indicators ) unless I press Tare and Off,
then it says, IN, and then goes to 2.016 until I Tare it, then it
will seem to read ok until I turn it off and back on. Then it's the
same thing all over again.
Years ago, I did the same thing, remove the battery, when I decided
to store my Dendritics 50 scale. Like you, I assumed it was the safe
thing to do to avoid corrosion damage. Boy was that a big mistake. It
turned out that by removing the battery for the extended period of
time, the main calibration programming was lost. When I contacted
Dendritics, which is no longer in existence, I was told that
reprogramming was not available and that my scale was reduced to a
paper weight. Even though the manual did not state that the scale was
always to have a battery in it, that turned out to be the case
according to the fellow who developed the scale. His name escapes
me. Perhaps this is your problem though it sounds like with some
added inconvenience, you can still use your scale.
Donna Shimazu
p.s. Does anyone know if removing a battery when storing other items
like digital cameras results in memory/programming drains?
Well, in my case procrastination has worked in my favor. I had
intended to remove the batteries from my scale, forgot about it, and
left them in. Good thing, as I would have removed the programming. It
was just luck that saved me. Nowhere in my instructions am I advised
to leave the battery in at all times.
I am really fed up with the haphazard way manufacturers have of
dealing with the buying public. Programming is a crucial element in
so many of the products we buy today, but often the instructions we
get are so minimal, or so poorly written that often expensive errors
are committed that could have been avoided in the first place.
I am still trying to decipher the instructions for my Smith
Silversmith torch. From the directions I have not a clue as to how
far to turn the little handle on the dial regulating the flow of gas.
I I never seem to get the right mixture of gas. Tried to use it for
melting my casting metal, and flames a foot long shot out,accompanied
with black soot.
Fortunately my old prestolite is still performing as it should.
Its been about 2 weeks not of leaving request with all forms of Nexus
for support for help on the scale I purchased. As to date, NO
RESPONSE!
Just thought this would interest anyone when looking at scales.
Especially in this day and age of technically advanced electronic
items, you dont want to spend a couple hundred dollars to find out no
one will give you the time of day when it doesnt work properly. I
couldnt even return it if I wanted to, because no one will get back
to me from NEXUS!
G’day Donna, et al; When closing down a battery operated item like a
scale I can see no difference between just switching off; or
removing the battery. Batteries run down even when not in use. I have
had similar experiences with a scale and other appliances and found
there was nothing wrong with the item after a brand new battery had
been installed. The idea of removing a battery if the scale or
whatever is not going to be used for some time is to simply safeguard
the apparatus. The older batteries invariably corroded and leaked,
thus helping to destroy the item after a while. The modern batteries
are not supposed to deteriorate to the point of leaking corrosive
liquid when run down - but I wouldn’t trust 'em in anything that cost
plenty $ to replace! After all, the dry batteries aren’t very costly
(except those rechargeable ones of special design that come in things
like expensive cameras.) $80 for a new camera rechargeable battery?
That’s price-gouging! Sony does it too. Thieving !@#$%^&!!! I have a
good face mask which has a little fan and a filter, and provides it’s
wearer with fresh clean filtered air and no fogging on cold days. The
battery went the way of them all and a new one was priced at about
$60! So I bought 3 x 1.2v NiCads for about $12, wired them in series
and bound them with tape so they would fit in the battery
compartment, and have continued to use the mask happily for another 3
years! So, try a new battery before relegating your scale to
landfill.
Which brings me to another point - check the price of a spare
battery when buying equipment, and finally select the device that
could take a cheaper battery with a little bit of wangling.
Cheers for now,
John Burgess; @John_Burgess2 of Mapua, Nelson NZ
Years ago, I did the same thing, remove the battery, when I
decided to store my Dendritics 50 scale. Like you, I assumed it
was the safe thing to do to avoid corrosion damage. Boy was that a
big mistake. It turned out that by removing the battery for the
extended period of time, the main calibration programming was lost.
Donna, how long was your Dendritics 50 in storage? Since putting my
own small business on hold to work in a friend’s store, mine has
been in its’ box with the battery out for about 18 months. Either
that wasn’t long enough or I’m extremely lucky because mine works
just fine today. It’s still calibrated, too. But since it’s such an
accurate scale (not cheap, either), I think I’ll leave it in a
conspicuous place with the battery in, changing it every few months.
When closing down a battery operated item like a scale I can see no
difference between just switching off; or removing the battery.
Batteries run down even when not in use.
That’s what I thought, too. But go to dendritics.com and read what is
posted about this specific scale. The product must have some kind of
defective chip or design flaw because the website emphatically warns
that a battery must be in place. It states that the calibration
programming drains out if there is no battery installed. You really
would think there would have been warnings in the owner’s manual
about this battery problem. Also, the idea that critical functions
aren’t hardwired into the instrument’s permanent memory seems
ridiculous.
I did try all kinds of new batteries but was unable to resurrect the
scale. I was, however, warned by my brother that generic rechargeable
NiCad batteries can sometimes be problematic in expensive and
delicate electronics because their power output can be less than the
proprietary batteries that come with the product. Yes, the name brand
battery packs can be costly, but there is some truth in some of the
warnings about using substandard battery replacements. The question
is whether or not one wants to risk damage by buying substitutes.
Some substitutes are perfectly good while others are not.
I had my scale stored away for about two years. Previously, I had
removed the battery off and on for months or a year at a time and had
no problems when I reinstalled the battery. After the last two-year
hiatus, however, I couldn’t get past the error display so I contacted
the manufacturer only to get the bad news about the draining memory
and battery problem. Needless to say, I was quite upset because while
it worked, I did like the scale.
When closing down a battery operated item like a scale I can see no
difference between just switching off; or removing the battery.
It IS possible that removing the battery would have the effect noted.
Many electronic devices nowadays which have some form of inbuilt
‘firmware’ program, have a little lithium battery soldered into the
circuit somewhere to provide long term backup for the firmware
memory. The computer you are sitting at has one as do many digital
cameras, personal organisers, central heating controllers etc. If the
internal battery has gone flat, removing the normal batteries will
remove all power from the device and the charge supporting the
firmware will dissipate so allowing the memory to be lost. In normal
use you would never notice this as the normal batteries give all the
power necessary for the memory and, when changing batteries, the
capacitances in the circuit can retain enough power to span the small
interval when the normal batteries are out. The internal batteries
are normally claimed to have a life of about 5 years, more or less,
however, I have known them to fail after only a couple of years.
Basically, anything that is programmable is likely to have a hidden
battery and so, if this scale can be programmed to convert weights
etc. or has a clock on it, it can be assumed to have an internal
battery.
if this scale can be programmed to convert weights etc. or has a
clock on it, it can be assumed to have an internal battery.
So basically, electronic manufactures pretty much control the death
of a product with a fixed internal battery? Kind of like Shareware,
you get 30 days and then you cant use it, only with electronics, you
may get 1 to 5 years depending on battery. So we are more or less
renting the use of these products for a pre-determined amount of
time???
Our only natural gas supplier here in St.Louis kind of did the same
thing, but they finally were caught at it. In certain parts of the
city they installed drive by wireless meter reading devices in the
homes about 7 years ago. The internal battery was hardwired into the
circuit, but only lasted 2 years at the most. So for 5 of the last 7
years, the gas company has been guessing the bill. This was not made
public until the gas company finally changed the readers out this
spring. They claim it was an unforeseen defect with the product and
not their fault. Now they have been physically reading each meter,
and attempting to figure the difference from what they guessed, and
what was charged. Then they are suppose to refund, or charge the
customers accordingly. I was lucky and got a refund for a couple
hundred dollars, whereas my neighbor was charged a couple hundred
dollars. Many I think doubt the accuracy of the gas companies math
here, but not much can be done about it at this point.
I wonder if someday we will be seeing everything from our TV’s to
maybe even out cars being limited by internal battery life. What a
wonderful thing technology is for a large portion of the
manufacturing community.
I may try to find an older balance scale, at least it has to
physically break before I need to replace it.
So basically, electronic manufactures pretty much control the death
of a product with a fixed internal battery?
To all intents and purposes, yes. Having said that, the replacement
batteries are available as a rule but usually have to be soldered
in. My latest experience with this was a few weeks ago when I was
looking for a central heating controller for my daughter’s house. I
found a high end controller at a local boot sale which was ‘dead’
and bought it for 50 pence (less than a dollar). A new internal
battery cost me 3.5UKP - five minutes to dismantle the controller
and solder in the battery and we have a super-duper controller in
as-new condition…
Sometimes the batteries can be a bit difficult to locate and
identify as the one was in a digital camera I had which died but
they are usually there somewhere - if they weren’t, how would the
devices remember the alterations you had made to settings, the time
etc. when you change out the regular batteries?.. Occasionally,
newer devices use a high value capacitor in the 3 - 4 farad range
instead of a battery but this is the exception rather than the norm.