sweetdiesel said:
I have an Apache 2020 lipo charger and plan on charging a 3S 1200mah battery.....
The power supply will be fine to power the lipo charger but don't even think about charging directly from the power supply. Basically the charger will use what it needs. Other functions post minimal draw. I use a powergate 15 amp P.S. for all my charging.
Charge at 1C (1x capacity) or less for lipos, use **only** lipo chemistry chargers. for a 1200 mah this is 1.2 amps or LESS.Do not charge through the power jack, charge through the taps which does individual cell charging. Cell balance is so much more important with lipos than any other chemistry. If you have the ability to set voltage, the voltage should equal the cell count:
1S 3.7
2S 7.4
3S 11.1
4S 14.8
The absolute best setup I've found for 2-4S lipos is offered by Common Sense RC. They have a lipo charger for $89 that balance charges 1, 2, 3, and 4S packs. Plug 'em in, choose amperage at or less than capacity, and go. My test show all packs to be perfectly balanced at the end of a charge.
Second to that (actually better, but more expensive) is the Hyperion LBA6 balance charger/discharger. The LBA balance discharges packs as a standalone unit and when connected to any lipo-capable charger balance charges them. The LBA6 can handle up to 6 amps (I think) and charges 1-5S packs. I use it connected to a Dynamite VisionPeak.
At any rate after a run, any lipo cells should have no less than 3.6 volts per cell (I shoot for 3.7, this equates to 3.0 under load) and should be within .01 volts of each other. When they start to go out of balance they are being overdischarged and this can lead to puffed packs and fires.
