All Charged Up
Dec. 16th, 2008
By Robert Souza

When Castro Valley resident Larry Evans tells you his "Batteries Plus" shop in Dublin has just about every battery under the sun, he's not joking.

"We have about 15,000 on hand, but there are about 40,000 different batteries available," Evans said.

Anything from oversized cell batteries for cars and motorcycles to the most minute button cells for hearing aids and penlights can be found at the shop he and son Greg opened four weeks ago.

Evans said he found out about Batteries Plus after spotting franchise information about it in the business section of a local newspaper. "I thought it was interesting and looked them up online and went to visit their headquarters in Milwaukee, I felt it was a great concept and decided to give it a go," said Evans.

Prior to opening, Greg and Larry attended extensive training sessions at the company's headquarters to get familiar with store procedures, battery chemistry, and how to set up and use such specialized equipment as a Kadex machine, which is used to recondition and analyze lithium and nickel battery cells.

"There's really a lot to know about batteries and most people are surprised there's so much involved in them," said Greg as he examined and cleaned the cell in a car-door remote clicker.

"Castro Valley just has that great small town charm," said Larry Evans, a longtime salesman in the auto parts industry, who moved to Castro Valley with his family some seven years ago from Morrow Bay.

Evans takes time out from his job every Wednesday afternoon to volunteer for the Castro Valley CHP office to help set up speed indicators.

"Batteries are the one thing that every house has and needs," he said. "We've got just about any kind you can imagine."