Chargers and batteries. ( Newb questions)

[nino]

You can store lipos close to freezing but make sure you slowly bring them to room temp before charging. I keep mine in a shed and it gets a few degrees below zero (°C) outside this time of year. I bring them in the house somewhere warm for at least 15-20 mins before charging.

 

[WickedFog]

You can store lipos close to freezing but make sure you slowly bring them to room temp before charging. I keep mine in a shed and it gets a few degrees below zero (°C) outside this time of year. I bring them in the house somewhere warm for at least 15-20 mins before charging.

Yeah, I dont think it hurt the batteries. But they definitely didn't have the flight time he said.

 

[Doom!]

When we fly on cold mornings, I keep my charged lipos in my pockets or they don't perform well. they are really sluggish when they are cold. When we were going out in the cold regularly I used to keep then in an insulated bag (think pizza warmer) don't want them too hot or cold.

This is starting to sound like Goldilocks and the three bears.

 

[Caleb90]

So right now i have them in a lipo bag ( zeee brand from amazon) dont know how good it is. Then i have that in a old steel filling cabinet in the back laundry room. My biggest fear is a fire with these lipos

 

[WickedFog]

So right now i have them in a lipo bag ( zeee brand from amazon) dont know how good it is. Then i have that in a old steel filling cabinet in the back laundry room. My biggest fear is a fire with these lipos

Almost 40 years in the hobby here. Of course, LiPo batteries haven't been out near that long, but in all this time, with well more that 50 RC's in and out of my collection over the years, I have never had an RC or battery meltdown.

As long as you educate yourself, and play by the rules, you really have nothing to fear. If you see a LiPo battery starting to swell, check the IR and make sure it is in acceptable levels and continue on. Swelling is a sure sign a LiPo is degrading and releasing oxygen from the polymer, so dispose of them when they get too scary to use anymore.

That being said, I have found small 1 cell LiPo's that have been misplaced, fell behind a cabinet in my garage (when I had a garage), etc, that looked like baloons. I have a micro drone I just found awhile back that I forgot I even had that has a pea sized LiPo in it that looks like a tick getting ready to pop

The hype is much scarier than the reality. Just be smart, and keep an eye on things. But being safe never hurt anyone. Except for that guy driving down the interstate 20mph below the average speed

 

[Doom!]

My biggest fear is a fire with these lipos

Caution = good - Paranoia=not good.

 

[Mtbmatty]

Lipo definitely has a slight intimidation factor. I’m new to them and developing a healthy respect.

 

[ReMiXeDg]

Just make sure you take care of your lipos and they will take care of you. Make sure you don't over charge them or run them to low and just be sure you always storing them at the proper voltage which would be 3.80v each cell.

 

[Iowa_dude]

I have a noob question also i think. Thinking about getting the Hitec RDX2 Pro, it has the xt60 ports, so I would need a female xt60 to a male ic3 to charge my spectrum batteries, but I was reading about this and seen several people say that it will make the "smart" function not work? Does that mean I can charge, but it won't discharge or store the batteries? I don't see why an adapter would have anything to do with function. Somebody have any knowledge about this.

 

[pug]

I have a noob question also i think. Thinking about getting the Hitec RDX2 Pro, it has the xt60 ports, so I would need a female xt60 to a male ic3 to charge my spectrum batteries, but I was reading about this and seen several people say that it will make the "smart" function not work? Does that mean I can charge, but it won't discharge or store the batteries? I don't see why an adapter would have anything to do with function. Somebody have any knowledge about this.

If you have a G1 LiPo it will work, if you have a G2, it won't.

 

[Sebkauff]

I have a noob question also i think. Thinking about getting the Hitec RDX2 Pro, it has the xt60 ports, so I would need a female xt60 to a male ic3 to charge my spectrum batteries, but I was reading about this and seen several people say that it will make the "smart" function not work? Does that mean I can charge, but it won't discharge or store the batteries? I don't see why an adapter would have anything to do with function. Somebody have any knowledge about this.

Also I think because IC3 connectors have the third smart plug in them and XT60 connectors don't the adapter (you where talking about a IC3 to XT60 adapter correct?) would just ignore the smart plug. Keyword in this being THINK, there's a big chance I got this totally wrong or completely misunderstood the question (and if I didn't get this wrong it probably made no sense lol.) So my apologies if I'm totally wrong

 

[Iowa_dude]

Yeah, been reading/listening on batteries and chargers all day, I think I'll just get a Spectrum G1 charger, maybe a battery combo to go with it. More expensive but I'll be running spectum batteries in my planes anyway. Leaned a lot on that spree of information though. Until I find something else. Still looking for a good mini cell charger for my scx24, I'll have more trucks and more batteries eventually, might as well start looking forward to that soon too.

 

[Caleb90]

Yeah, been reading/listening on batteries and chargers all day, I think I'll just get a Spectrum G1 charger, maybe a battery combo to go with it. More expensive but I'll be running spectum batteries in my planes anyway. Leaned a lot on that spree of information though. Until I find something else. Still looking for a good mini cell charger for my scx24, I'll have more trucks and more batteries eventually, might as well start looking forward to that soon too.

I wouldnt. I am new to this electric rc scene aswell. But the spectrum smart battery/charger set ups are wayyyyy over priced. If you have any mechanical skills you will find that keeping and tending these lipos are alot easyer than you thought

 

[pug]

Yeah, been reading/listening on batteries and chargers all day, I think I'll just get a Spectrum G1 charger, maybe a battery combo to go with it. More expensive but I'll be running spectum batteries in my planes anyway. Leaned a lot on that spree of information though. Until I find something else. Still looking for a good mini cell charger for my scx24, I'll have more trucks and more batteries eventually, might as well start looking forward to that soon too.

This adapter and some EC3 leads work great for me with my "non-smart" charger.

 

[Iowa_dude]

I wouldnt. I am new to this electric rc scene aswell. But the spectrum smart battery/charger set ups are wayyyyy over priced. If you have any mechanical skills you will find that keeping and tending these lipos are alot easyer than you thought

I know. They all seem the same "ish" honestly. Some are really cool and have awesome features. I'm just looking for simplicity.
I'm a contractor professionally. Welder/mechanical/electrical. But I know nothing on lipo or all the other batteries. Just want the safest way to learn without burning my house down. Almost pulled the trigger on a Amazon charger for $45 but a couple people in the reviews showed exploded lipo's. Few extra dollars "with common sense" for a peice of mind is priceless.

 

[WickedFog]

Buying a smart charger is what people do that don't care to learn about LiPo safety or care. It is what they are designed for. I would highly discourage you from buying one if I could. Sure, they do what you want. But after learning about LiPo charging, which only takes a short bit of reading or watching vids, or asking questions, charging your batteries with a regual charger is as easy as plugging it in and starting a charge cycle. There is nothing to it really.

 

[Iowa_dude]

Buying a smart charger is what people do that don't care to learn about LiPo safety or care. It is what they are designed for. I would highly discourage you from buying one if I could. Sure, they do what you want. But after learning about LiPo charging, which only takes a short bit of reading or watching vids, or asking questions, charging your batteries with a regual charger is as easy as plugging it in and starting a charge cycle. There is nothing to it really.

Yeah I was really interested in the Hitec RDX2 Pro. Talk me into it. Or, do you have a better suggestion?

 

[WickedFog]

The Hitec chargers are great chargers based on what I have read about them. I am partial to the Hota D6 Pro because I like the XT60 connectors, the balance circuit helps it charge faster than other chargers, and I love the wireless and usb charging feature for my phone.

If you take it out into the field, you can use the regenerative discharge feature to dump the juice from your packs back into your car battery.

I also love the control wheel and the menus. Greywolf brags about the Hitec, so I am sure it is great, but I have never used it. I just know the Hota would be my choice between the two. The Hota has better specs also I believe. Been awhile since I compared them.

 

[Iowa_dude]

The Hitec chargers are great chargers based on what I have read about them. I am partial to the Hota D6 Pro because I like the XT60 connectors, the balance circuit helps it charge faster than other chargers, and I love the wireless and usb charging feature for my phone.

If you take it out into the field, you can use the regenerative discharge feature to dump the juice from your packs back into your car battery.

I also love the control wheel and the menus. Greywold brags about the Hitec, so I am sure it is great, but I have never used it. I just know the Hota would be my choice between the two. The Hota has better specs also I believe. Been awhile since I compared them.

Ok. I definitely look into it brotha, thanks!

 

[Sebkauff]

Buying a smart charger is what people do that don't care to learn about LiPo safety or care. It is what they are designed for. I would highly discourage you from buying one if I could. Sure, they do what you want. But after learning about LiPo charging, which only takes a short bit of reading or watching vids, or asking questions, charging your batteries with a regual charger is as easy as plugging it in and starting a charge cycle. There is nothing to it really.

I use some Smart batteries because I use Smart electronics in one of my cars because I like the telemetry that they have. I don't have a Smart charger though but I'm considering getting one not because I don't care to learn about LiPo safety but because I like the idea of just plugging in the battery and not having to touch any buttons or make sure the settings are right but still having the peace of mind knowing your battery is being charged the way you want it to be (and it would save a bit of time at the track lol.) They're designed for convenience of the user. I'm not trying to start any arguments or make any drama, just pointing out some other reasons to have a Smart charger