Why You Shouldn’t Keep Rechargeable Batteries in the Fridge

Should You Put Your Rechargeable Batteries in the Fridge?

While looking for some travel hacks and tips, I came across a lot giving the wrong information and incorrect advice. Even the big sites or YouTube channels have travel hacks that are wrong. I will demystify one such travel hack today.

A common travel tip floating across the Internet is that rechargeable batteries should be kept in the fridge to lengthen their charge. This is not only incorrect but can also damage the batteries.

I have noticed that batteries lose their charge fast when I film outside in the winter and that I needed to keep charging more frequently.

Various reputable sources, including the Panasonic Rechargeable battery division, confirmed that keeping batteries in the fridge not only deteriorates their life but can also cause damage.  This is because moisture in the fridge causes condensation.

Batteries will pick up the moisture, which doesn’t help rechargeable batteries and will actually reduce their charge and life expectancy. The best place to store rechargeable batteries, or any type of batteries, is in a cool, dry place.

So, when you are looking for travel hacks and travel tips, don’t believe everything you read or see on YouTube. Use your common sense and judgement first before deciding on a travel hack.

Canada’s Best No Foreign ATM Fee Bank Card Debit Card

Best No Foreign Transaction Fees Bank Card in Canada

I was looking for a Canadian bank card that charges no foreign currency transaction fee and no international ATM withdrawal fee. Then I came across the EQ Savings Plus Account.

EQ Bank offers a high-interest savings account, unlimited transactions, unlimited Interac e-Transfers, bill payments, and Electronic Funds Transfers. No minimum balance requirements, no separate accounts for savings/chequing … and all these are free.

All these sounded too good to be true, so I was hesitant. So, I read of few reviews online and contacted their customer support. At this point, I was certain that this was the real deal and I ended up opening an account.

I was only interested in the unique feature of EQ Bank’s no foreign currency ATM withdrawal fees and no foreign currency transaction fees. I have a one-month long trip coming up, so I needed to have a bank card that lets me withdraw from foreign ATMs.

The problem with taking out money from a foreign ATM with a Canadian bank card is that you will get hit 3 times with fees. Your Canadian bank’s ATM fee, a foreign currency transaction fee, and a foreign location’s ATM fee imposed by that ATM.

With an EQ Bank card debit card, I am removing my Canadian bank’s ATM fee and foreign currency transaction fee, which is a win-win situation and for all these benefits EQ Bank is not charging anything. 

I will keep a few hundred dollars (for security) to access via my EQ bank card when I am traveling and if I need more, I can always transfer more money from my regular bank.

I have a video about EQ Bank you can watch here:

The Best Canadian Bank Debit Card To Avoid International ATM Fees

Avoid These 3 Dangerous Travel Habits

Risky Travel Habits You Need to Stop Now

There are many bad travel habits many of us have, but these 3 travel habits can be dangerous and you need to be aware of them now.

Sleeping During Landing and Taking Off

Air pressure on the plane changes due to rapid altitude change during landing and takeoff. Sudden altitude change affects air pressure in the body and ear, and your body needs time to stabilize the pressure. When you are sleeping, your body and ear are slow to adjust, which can cause damage to the eardrum and many other complications can occur.

Best practise is to stay awake and not sleep while landing and takeoff to keep your body alert.

Not Turning on Airplane Mode

During takeoff, if you don’t turn on airplane mode, your phone signal gets stronger, bouncing off high-rise buildings and the phone works harder to catch a signal due to rapid altitude change. This can clog your flight’s communication channels with the ground, which can be risky when pilots can’t communicate.

At any point, when you are on plane, you don’t want to interfere with the plane’s communication. The safest practise is to keep airplane mode on for the duration of your flight.

Emergency Medical Travel Insurance

Travel insurance is cheap, compared what you would pay if you are stranded in a hospital in a foreign country or if you need a medical air-lift to your country from a foreign country. 

Don’t be one of those thinking nothing will go wrong with you. If you don’t want to pay for insurance, get a premium travel credit card  also gives you free lounge access, along with travel insurance.

If you would like to watch my video on the above, please visit: 3 Risky Travel Habits You Need to Stop Now

2 Big Secrets Most Travel Credit Cards Are Hiding from You

What Your Travel Credit Cards Are Not Telling You

You can be paying a $700 Annual Fee for American Express Platinum, $250 for Amex Gold, $400 for TD, CIBC, RBC Visa Infinite Privilege (and many others), but what they don’t want you to know is that you will get dinged with 2.5% foreign currency transaction fee and some of these even don’t provide free lounge access.

For example, American Express Gold has a hefty $250 annual fee, but it even doesn’t provide free global lounge access. On paper, it looks like there are 4 free Plaza Premium Lounge Passes, but these free lounge passes are only applicable to Canadian airports.

The most important travel credit card feature all these cards don’t provide and are actually hiding from you is the foreign transaction fee. Every time you make a purchase in something other than Canadian currency, you will get charged a 2.5 percent foreign transaction (FX) fee.

However, there is one card with only a $140 annual fee that gives you both zero foreign currency transaction fees and 6 free global lounge accesses. Scotia Passport Visa Infinite is the only travel credit card on the Canadian market that offers both free global lounge access and zero foreign currency FX fees.

If you are reading this from another country, look for a travel credit card that offers zero foreign currency transaction fees and free global lounge access. These features should be the gold standard of any premium travel credit cards.

To view this article in video format, please visit this link: Secrets Travel Credit Cards Hiding From You

A 5-Star Airline, EVA Air, Does Not Have 24-Hour Customer Service Support

EVA Air’s 24-Hour Customer Service Phone Number Doesn’t Exist

When you think of a 5-Star Airline, the first thing to come to your mind is excellent customer service support and you need a phone number to do that. I tried calling EVA Air for 2 days to reach a live person and failed, and so did my travel agent. This is because it looks like a 24-hour phone number doesn’t exist for EVA Air.

If you try calling EVA Air on their website, it asks you to pick your location and directs you to a local number where no one picks up the phone and it goes to voice mail. I tried calling number after number given to me by my travel agent or found on the EVA Air website. Some of them are: 416-598-8808, 281-209-0022, 800-695-1188, and many others. None of them worked.

One number (801-636-9417) seemed to be claiming to be EVA Air, but when you ask them to provide any sort of information, they hang up. I have a feeling that some of the numbers are scamming people, knowing that customers are looking to reach EVA Air and they can’t because there is no such customer service offered.

What I don’t understand is what are customers supposed to do when they are traveling EVA Air and get stuck in the middle of the trip or emergencies arise and need to contact EVA Air right away? It is possible EVA Air has a 24-hour support line, but they are hiding it and will only reveal it when people are stuck at the airport.

I have a video on this here: https://youtu.be/TfvmDmkROSo

If you happen to know EVA Air’s 24-Hour Customer Service number that works, please leave a comment on that video to help other fellow travellers.