Higher Battery Prices Hit Again
I know I ranted a bit the other day about the prices that are constantly going up and up. I was reminded again when I had 2 more pages of price increases cross my desk today. Lead seems to be stabilizing a bit however the costs in the electrolyte, fiberglass separator, even the polystyrene/polypropylene casing as all gone up. According to one of the higher ups at Johnson Controls (the parent company that makes Optima batteries) has said that these costs have gone up 200% in the last 6 months.
I know it’s not helping that the US dollar has been taking some ugly hits in value as well, which will only drive up costs as well. I know we have seen some pretty ugly increases ourselves, hopefully the lower lead prices will offset the costs of the rest of the materials or we will be seeing yet more strain on our
wallets.
The irritating part is for those on fixed incomes that use batteries for their wheelchairs. Their budgets are usually flexible enough to handle the various fluctuations that the markets require. The cost on 2 wheelchair batteries has gone up around $60 bucks in the last year alone. Those that live in hotter climates know full well that the heat drains the life out of your battery giving these people even less life expectancy for the batteries that they depend on to sustain a lifestyle with at least some mobility.
I’m no expert by any stretch; however I see a lot of people and businesses getting crunched if the current cost of living doesn’t stabilize. I realize we’ll never see $2.50 a gallon for gas nor will we find a gallon of milk under $3 dollars again, however I don’t think we need to have a minor heart attack everyday when we go to the grocery store or drive by a gas station. Adding my 2 cent complaint is the billions we’re spending on the war while we have record foreclosures and businesses going belly up adding to the strain we’re already feeling. That’s enough of that can of worms as I’ll touch as I know it is a pretty prickly subject and I’m too opinionated for my own good.
How about you? What are your thoughts?
Written by
Ken