An AED's battery and electrodes each have their own expiry, and it differs from model to model.
There is no single "AED expiry date": the battery and the electrodes are two different consumables, with different dates, set by the manufacturer's manual rather than by one legal number that fits every model. Here are the typical intervals for ZOLL, HeartSine, AMI Italia, Philips and Physio-Control, how to read the right date on the unit in front of you, and what Italian rules ask for AED checks.
The battery and the electrodes don't share a date
People who own an AED often search for "the defibrillator's expiry date", as if there were only one. In reality an AED has two consumables with a life of their own: the battery, which powers the unit and delivers the shock, and the electrodes — the adhesive pads — which are applied to the patient and carry the impulse. Each has a date printed on its own packaging or cartridge, and the two dates almost never coincide.
Unlike fire extinguishers, there is no technical standard in Italy that sets the same number of months for every AED model. Ministerial decree DM 24 aprile 2013 — the "decreto Balduzzi" — refers explicitly, in its Allegato E, to the intervals stated in the manufacturer's manual and to the rules on electromedical devices: it is the manufacturer, not the legislator, that sets the service life of battery and electrodes.
The practical consequence is that the same organisation, running two different AED brands, almost certainly has two different expiry calendars. That's not a footnote: it's the reason treating "the AED's expiry date" as a single thing almost always ends with someone finding it has already passed.
Battery and electrode expiry, model by model
The figures below come from manufacturers' manuals and spec sheets. Always check them against your own unit: they can change between product revisions, and the date printed on the part in your hand outranks any table.
| Model | Battery | Electrodes | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| ZOLL AED Plus | type 123 lithium batteries: up to 5 years on standby (3 years on software versions earlier than 5.32) | CPR-D-padz: 5 years; paediatric Pedi-padz II: 2 years | per the manufacturer's manual |
| ZOLL AED 3 | lithium battery: up to 5 years on standby from installation, 2-year shelf life before installing it | CPR Uni-padz: 5 years | "smart" battery, reports status on the display or via WiFi |
| HeartSine samaritan PAD (350/360/500) | included in the Pad-Pak | Pad-Pak — battery and electrodes in a single cartridge: 4 years from manufacture | a single date to track, not two |
| AMI Italia Saver One | manufacturer-rated 5 years, over 3 years on standby, over 200 shocks | about 30 months (two and a half years) | per the manufacturer's documentation |
| Philips HeartStart HS1 / FRx | M5070A: 4 years of operation after installation, up to 5-year shelf life before that | SMART Pads (II): 2 years | check the "install-by date" printed on the battery |
| Physio-Control LIFEPAK CR2 | 4 years, covered by the manufacturer's warranty for the whole period | 4 years | per the Physio-Control / Stryker spec sheet |
Source: the manuals and spec sheets of each manufacturer (ZOLL, HeartSine, AMI Italia, Philips, Physio-Control). The date that always counts is the one printed on the unit or cartridge in front of you, not the one on a similar model.
Shelf life, install date, self-test: three dates that get mixed up easily
Not every "expiry date" measures the same thing. Shelf life is how long a sealed part can sit in storage before being installed: for the Philips M5070A battery, for instance, that's up to 5 years. The standby service life instead starts on the day of installation in the AED, and is shorter — 4 years for that same battery. Mixing the two up almost always leads to underestimating, or overestimating, how much life the unit actually has left.
Manufacturers that combine battery and electrodes into a single cartridge — HeartSine's Pad-Pak is the clearest case — solve the problem at the root: one part, one date, no combination to keep track of. It's a design choice that cuts down on human error, at the cost of replacing two components together even when only one is genuinely close to expiring.
The daily or weekly self-test the AED runs on its own — flagged with an LED or a beep — checks that the electronics are working, not that battery and electrodes are within date. An AED that passes its self-test every day can still have electrodes that expired months ago: the self-test looks at the present, the date printed on the cartridge looks at the future.
What to check, in practice
These checks don't need a technician: they're done by whoever the organisation has named as AED lead, at the minimum weekly frequency provided for by the DM 16 marzo 2023.
- The AED's daily or weekly self-test passed with no error flags
- The battery's LED or status indicator doesn't flag low charge
- The expiry date printed on the electrode cartridge hasn't already passed
- The electrode packaging is intact, with no dried-out gel or damaged wrapping
- The check's outcome is logged, with the date and the name of whoever verified it
- The AED is reachable, signposted and in its case, with nothing blocking access
Who checks what, and when
The DM 16 marzo 2023, implementing L. 116/2021, calls for a log with a status check at least weekly; the rest of the schedule — when to replace battery and electrodes — is set by the manufacturer's manual, model by model.
- 01
Self-test
daily or weekly, depending on the model
the AED itself, automatically
- 02
Status check
at least once a week
the AED lead named by the organisation
- 03
Battery replacement
per the manufacturer's manual (every 3-5 years in practice)
AED lead or maintenance technician
- 04
Electrode replacement
per the manufacturer's manual (every 2-5 years in practice)
AED lead or maintenance technician
- 05
Periodic functional test
per the manual and the rules on electromedical devices
qualified technician
Replacement intervals aren't the same across models: the table above, not a single number, is the reference to follow.
The most common mistakes with batteries and electrodes
The first is trusting the self-test alone: it checks the electronics, not the date printed on the cartridge. The second is confusing shelf life with standby life, and assuming a new part that's sat in storage for three years still has its full service life once installed. The third, typical of AEDs with separate battery and electrodes, is replacing only the part closest to expiry and forgetting the other: the two dates need checking together, even when they're far apart.
This guide is informational material: it does not replace the standards cited, the manufacturer's manual or the judgement of a qualified technician. ToriSet organises deadlines and documents; it does not certify compliance.
The same deadlines, without the spreadsheet to recalculate.
Anyone who reaches the end of a guide like this one usually keeps the dates on a spreadsheet, on a tag, or from memory. It works as long as the assets are few and there is one person keeping track. Here is what changes with a logbook.
A spreadsheet with one date per row, on a single computer
A shared logbook: whoever opens the record sees what's due and who did the last job
You recalculate the next deadline yourself, if you remember
ToriSet calculates it from the last job: by months, by hours of use, or whichever comes first
The reminder is a sticky note or a diary
An email 30, 14, 7 and 1 day before, to you and to whoever has to act
Reports and invoices in a folder, to go looking for when needed
Attached to the job, on the product's record
What changes from one country to the next.
Battery and electrode expiry is set by the manufacturer everywhere: no country below replaces it with a number of its own. What changes from country to country is who has to check the AED, how often it must be logged, and who carries out the periodic technical safety checks on the electromedical device.
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Italy
References
DM 24 aprile 2013
The "decreto Balduzzi": for AED maintenance it refers to the intervals in the manufacturer's manual and to the rules on electromedical devices.
L. 116/2021
Requires registering the AED with the 118/112 emergency dispatch centre and provides for a service that flags battery and electrode expiry dates.
DM 16 marzo 2023
The implementing decree of L. 116/2021: it calls for a log recording, at least once a week, the active status of the AED, battery and pads; AEDs with built-in connectivity are exempt from manual log-keeping.
CEI EN 62353
The technical standard on periodic electrical safety checks for electromedical devices, AEDs included.
Intervals
Status check
at least once a week, under the DM 16 marzo 2023
AED lead
Device registration
on first installation, with the 118/112 dispatch centre
owner or AED lead
NoteThe law sets the frequency of the check, not the expiry of the parts: that stays in your model's manual.
France
References
décret n° 2018-1186
Makes the AED mandatory in ERPs (premises open to the public) and requires maintaining the unit and its accessories per the manufacturer's instructions.
Intervals
Maintenance and periodic check
per the manufacturer's manual
the manufacturer, an approved third-party provider, or the premises operator
NoteMaintenance can be handed to the manufacturer, an outside provider or the operator itself: the choice is the ERP's, the obligation to do it isn't.
Germany
References
MPBetreibV
The German medical device operator ordinance: it requires a safety technical inspection (Sicherheitstechnische Kontrolle) on AEDs at least every two years.
DIN EN 62353
The technical standard the safety technical inspection of electromedical devices is based on.
Intervals
Safety technical inspection (STK)
at least every 2 years
authorised competent person
NoteThe most explicit framework of the five: Germany is the only country here that sets a technical-check interval for AEDs by law, independent of the parts' own expiry.
Switzerland
References
MepV / ODmed
The Swiss medical devices framework: it asks the operator to plan and document maintenance, without setting a single interval for AEDs.
Intervals
Visual check and self-test
per the in-house plan; the safety technical inspection isn't required if the AED has an automatic self-test and regular visual checks
staff on site
NoteThe parts' expiry is still set by the manufacturer's manual; for technical-check obligations, check your unit's classification.
Austria
References
Medizinprodukte-Betreiberverordnung (MPBV)
The Austrian medical device operator framework: it provides for safety technical checks on active medical devices, with intervals depending on the device's classification.
Intervals
Safety technical inspection
per the device's classification and the manufacturer's instructions
authorised person or body
NoteThe exact interval for AEDs isn't fixed as uniformly as in Germany: check your unit's documentation and, if in doubt, ask the manufacturer or an authorised body to confirm.
What we get asked most.
How long does an AED (defibrillator) battery last?
It depends on the model: manufacturers' manuals put it roughly between 3 and 5 years. ZOLL AED Plus and AED 3 batteries reach up to 5 years on standby, the Philips HeartStart HS1/FRx battery 4 years after installation, and AMI Italia's Saver One battery is manufacturer-rated for 5 years. There's no single number that fits every AED: the date that counts is the one printed on the battery in front of you.
How often do AED electrode pads expire?
The range is just as wide here, from 2 to 5 years depending on the model: Philips SMART Pads and AMI Italia's electrodes run about 2 to 2.5 years, ZOLL's CPR-D-padz and CPR Uni-padz reach 5 years. HeartSine's Pad-Pak combines battery and electrodes into a single cartridge with one expiry date, 4 years from manufacture. Always check the date printed on the packaging or cartridge.
Where do I find maintenance instructions for ZOLL, HeartSine or AMI Italia?
In the manual for your specific model, which every manufacturer makes available: ZOLL and Philips publish an IFU (Instructions for Use) portal searchable by serial number, HeartSine prints the expiry directly on the Pad-Pak, AMI Italia lists it in the Saver One range manual. When in doubt, your specific unit's documentation overrides any generic guidance found online.
How long does the ZOLL AED 3 battery last?
Per ZOLL's manual, the AED 3's lithium battery has a service life of up to 5 years once installed on standby, with a 2-year shelf life before installation; it's a "smart" battery that reports its own status on the display or via WiFi to the management system. The earlier AED Plus model also reaches up to 5 years with type 123 lithium batteries, but only on the more recent software versions.
Does ToriSet keep battery and electrode deadlines for me?
ToriSet helps you keep to them: you record your AED with its make, model and serial number, and from there the schedule is built from the manufacturer's manual — battery and electrodes included — with automatic reminders before a date passes. The weekly check and the registration with the 118 dispatch centre remain your responsibility, as does physically replacing the parts.
Battery and electrodes: two different deadlines for every AED you run.
With one AED, you can hold it in your head. With ten, split between ZOLL, HeartSine, AMI Italia and Philips, every part has its own date and the odds of missing one climb. Record each unit with its model: the schedule is built from the manufacturer's manual, and the reminders arrive before the date passes.
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