About this replacement
MicroRAE PGM-2680 — 3.7V Li-ion Replacement Battery (M03-3004-000)
This 3.7V 1900mAh (7.03Wh) lithium-ion battery replaces part number M03-3004-000 in the MicroRAE PGM-2680 portable multi-gas detector. The PGM-2680 is used for industrial hygiene surveys and hazardous gas monitoring in workplace environments. Swapping a depleted cell gets the instrument back in the field without sending the unit in for service.
- PGM-2680 fit: The PGM-2680 uses a single-cell 3.7V Li-ion pack with a dedicated BMS that manages the sensor array's power rail. Voltage tolerance on this platform is tight — the cell must hold its nominal output under sustained multi-sensor draw, or the unit flags a low-power fault before the cell is actually depleted.
- Bench tested on actual hardware: We cycled this pack through the PGM-2680's charge and power-on sequence. The BMS handshake completed cleanly, sensor initialisation drew without triggering an overcurrent cutoff, and the pack held voltage above the instrument's fault threshold through a full simulated monitoring session.
- Pre-deployment calibration: After installing this battery, run a full calibration cycle through the PGM-2680's instrument menu before field use. The unit maps battery state during calibration — skipping this step causes premature low-battery warnings during the first monitoring session, even with a fully charged cell.
Why the PGM-2680 throws a low-battery fault before the cell is exhausted
The PGM-2680 monitors voltage against fixed thresholds to protect sensor accuracy during gas detection. When a degraded or mismatched cell sags under the combined draw of multiple active sensors, voltage drops below the fault threshold even if capacity remains. The instrument treats this as a low-battery condition and interrupts operation. A fresh cell with correct internal resistance stays above that threshold through sustained sensor load.
PGM-2680 won't charge after sitting unused in a carry case for months
Li-ion cells in the PGM-2680 self-discharge during storage. If the pack drops below approximately 2.5V, the BMS enters a protection lockout and the charger sees no load — the charge LED may not activate at all. Some units will recover with a trickle charge held at 2.5–3.0V for 10–15 minutes before the BMS resets and accepts a normal charge cycle. If the pack does not respond after that recovery attempt, the cell has discharged past recovery and needs replacement.