Would a Fluke 87V meter be able to run on a 9V Li-ion rechargeable battery capable of 550mAh?
In general (for any device), what information (device specifications) would I need in the future in order to be able to answer this sort of question? Current? Power consumption (how long a battery lasts in the device)?
Yes, but the lifetime between charges may be quicker than you think. Normally a 9 volt battery has 6 each 1.5 volt batteries in series. But Li-Ion batteries put out 3.3 volts or so. A 9 volt lithium battery may actually put out 10 volts on a full charge, but the 3 tiny cells in series are no better than a good alkaline battery.
The Fluke 87 III is miserly with its power consumption and has a sleep mode for the display if you have it in record mode.
Initially the rechargeable lithium batteries may seem like a good buy, but remember that if one cell goes bad from overcharging or from letting them go dead, it will block any current from the good cells, so it may seem that in the long run you have to replace them more often than you thought.
I have used 9 volt lithium batteries before and was disappointed at their maximum life-span, so we went back to using good alkaline batteries, which last a full year but are replaced every year by UL testing standards.
The Fluke 87 User Manual specifies the compatible batteries as NEDA 1604, 6F22, or 006P. A cursory search turns up Lithium-Ion batteries in the 6F22 format. So, yeah, those type should work.
Many primary batteries have a rechargeable equivalent. Either through stacking cells or internal voltage regulators. The main thing to avoid is placing primary (non-rechargeable) batteries into devices that expect rechargeable batteries. The other-way-around is usually more forgiving.
In general you need to meet the voltage, meet or exceed the current rating, and ideally exceed the capacity.
I have used the rechargeable batteries in my 87III for quite a few years now with no trouble, I have the one with the micro USB charge port same as many phones. They do not last as long but if you just put them on charge every few days it's no problem. Remember not to jam any old thing in the plastic screws so you don't mess up the battery lid screws. I have Fluke 87 and 87III with the 87 you have to remove the back case to get to the battery so I would not recommend this as it is easy to break the posts where the screws go. As a point of interest I had a 87V but found it was not trustworthy on the AC scale if there was a lot of noise, especially cell phones. The 87III is the best meter ever made.
