Still researching pumps and now I’m obsessed with the life of the battery in the pump. How long does your battery last? What pump do you use? If it has a short life span, does it become a hassle to constantly be changing it? Can you use rechargeable batteries?
Thx 8)
I use the Minimed Paradigm 515, and the AAA battery lasts about a month. I keep it in “vibrate” mode (which uses more battery power than the beeps), and use the backlight frequently at night.
MM says the pump is optimized for Energizer batteries, and strongly suggests to only use Energizers. I thought that was just a gimmick/marketing ploy, but for some reason it holds true. When I tried Duracell batteries, they only lasted a week! I think this has to do more with the way the pump “measures” the remaining battery life as opposed to the actual life of the battery, but I didn’t take my experiment that far. So stick with Energizer for Minimed.
Rechargeable batteries have a different chemical composition than regular alkaline batteries, so the voltage they produce is slightly less than a traditional battery. I wouldn’t advise them. I buy a large pack of regular batteries at Home Depot (or even larger at Sam’s Club) and then I don’t have to worry about running out for about a year. I also keep one spare battery tucked in the pouch of my meter’s case, just in case I need it when I’m away from home.
It’s really no big deal at all to change it. Just pop the old one out, and the new one in. I don’t need to worry about losing any information stored in the pump at all.
I should also add that I change the battery when I have one (out of four) bar left on the battery-strength meter. My CDE, by the way (who’s also a Type 1 pumper) changes hers when it goes from 4 to 3 bars, but she admits to being a little paranoid! So “how long does it last” is a bit of a loaded question. Some might be overly cautious, and others might wait for the flashing, beeping “LOW BATTERY!” alarm.
I use the 722 and like Scott says they last about a month with Energizer, depending on how much you use the backlight, alarms etc. I am lucky and my insurance actually covers batteries for my pump, so every 3 months when they send me pump supplies they also send me 8 batteries which are more than enough to last me 3 months. I usually change mine when it says low battery, so I always carry a battery with me. If you leave the battery out for 5 min max then it saves all your setting so you don’t have to input them back in.
I use the MM 722 and use only energizer AAA. I never let my battery go to the last bar so I change mine maybe every 3 weeks, sometimes longer. I tried the energizer lithium AAA for a while and it was great … it was full (4 bars) for over a month! But I got worried that I was doing harm to the pump so stopped using them. I do wish that they would last longer but it’s not a huge inconvenience … just make sure you are stocked up on batteries 
I use the Accu-chek Spirit, and it uses a AA battery. I’ve had this one since Sept 2007, and I’ve used 4 batteries, Energizers. It gives you plenty of warning when the battery is going down. You have an option of using rechargables.
I have a Cozmo and when I got it, it would go through a battery in 6-8 site changes. Now it’s going in about 4-5. My TDD is sort of high which might be part of it (60-75 u), although I’ve also heard that the type you use may matter. Mine came with a Duracell but I’ve been using Energizer Max. I don’t use the backlight much. The one thing I don’t like about the Cozmo is that when the battery is really low the backlight won’t go on - so annoying!
The more features you use, the shorter your lifespan. I let my pumps beep at me for days before I actually change the battery. I always felt like I had plenty of warning with the Minimed. With the Cozmo, it allows you to insert a partial battery whereas Minimeds are pretty strict about a full charge. Either way, I’ve never had anything negative to say about their battery life.
When I started on the Minimed 715 three years ago I didn’t really use any special features like temp basal or square wave bolus. I had the alarm set to beep and did not have the BD meter communication turned on because I used an UltraSmart. I did turn the backlight on fairly often. My batteries would last around 7 weeks. Once I started using square/dual wave bolus and temp basals I started getting about a month from each battery. By that time my brain had also learned to tune out the alarm it would sometimes go off for hours before I realized it.
I switched to a 722 in June and turned the communication on for the UltraLink meter, still using the beep for the alarm and using square/dual bolus and temp basal often. My first battery lasted 3 weeks. I then started using the CGMS sensors so I turned the meter option off and the sensors on. I’m having to change it every two weeks now. I just stocked up on a lot of AAA Energizers!