Bloated LiPo
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Hi Chris,
I did see your post number 12 thanks, but I also found the original charger handbook under the foam packaging at the bottom of the box. It had plain white paper covers over the printed handbook covers so it was very well disguised under the white foam !
The handbook also gave the search sequence to call it up onto the screen which was helpful as this charger has a LOT of functions available.
This has proven to be a helpful blog as it suggests that there is nothing wrong with my battery…….but I admit to buying a replacement from Amazon last night that will be here today !……so now I have a useful spare (of the right size to fit the Remora battery box) as well!
I have tried to picture the bulge for you in the previous pictures I put on here, but the bulge is not big enough to make a significant difference to the profile of the battery but is is very easy to see and feel the bulge on the top and the bottom of the battery.
If it should get any worse (and bad enough to make a good picture), I will not be keeping the battery, no-matter what the resistance figures tell me - because I am naturally nervous of swollen LiPo batteries - but for now, I am happy enough to give this one another outing in my Remora - but I will be monitoring it carefully for heat and swelling both when in use and during charging.
Thanks for your help.
Bob.
I did see your post number 12 thanks, but I also found the original charger handbook under the foam packaging at the bottom of the box. It had plain white paper covers over the printed handbook covers so it was very well disguised under the white foam !
The handbook also gave the search sequence to call it up onto the screen which was helpful as this charger has a LOT of functions available.
This has proven to be a helpful blog as it suggests that there is nothing wrong with my battery…….but I admit to buying a replacement from Amazon last night that will be here today !……so now I have a useful spare (of the right size to fit the Remora battery box) as well!
I have tried to picture the bulge for you in the previous pictures I put on here, but the bulge is not big enough to make a significant difference to the profile of the battery but is is very easy to see and feel the bulge on the top and the bottom of the battery.
If it should get any worse (and bad enough to make a good picture), I will not be keeping the battery, no-matter what the resistance figures tell me - because I am naturally nervous of swollen LiPo batteries - but for now, I am happy enough to give this one another outing in my Remora - but I will be monitoring it carefully for heat and swelling both when in use and during charging.
Thanks for your help.
Bob.
Never too old to learn
Liked by hermank
Hi Bob, did you miss my post #12!
The symbol is for Ohms and so the measurement is milli-Ohms. Anyway, those results are very good, as I said earlier, the lower the better. Mine were higher than those and varied by a greater amount. So on that basis and the fact that the cells charge to a good and equal voltage I'd say the battery is fine.
To be on the safe side I'd still charge outside though and check how hot it gets after use, getting warm is normal. The risky times for LiPos are when charging and when being worked hard which is more applicable to race boats being driven fast for lap after lap. Your white water but relatively short run times shouldn't cause any problems.
Still be interested to see the puffy part of the battery.
A check of my 2S batteries also gave higher readings than yours at 6 and 7 for one and 8 and 5 for the other, which from what I've read are fine. My 2S and 3S batteries are 3300mAh which I think are lower than yours - I mentioned that resistance tends to be lower the higher capacity you go, which probably explains the lower readings you are getting compared with mine. Out of interest I checked one of my small capacity LiPos yesterday, 7.4v/1500mAh and the results were in the 20s which seems to bear this out as did a 7.4v/2200mAh with results of 16 and 15.
The symbol is for Ohms and so the measurement is milli-Ohms. Anyway, those results are very good, as I said earlier, the lower the better. Mine were higher than those and varied by a greater amount. So on that basis and the fact that the cells charge to a good and equal voltage I'd say the battery is fine.
To be on the safe side I'd still charge outside though and check how hot it gets after use, getting warm is normal. The risky times for LiPos are when charging and when being worked hard which is more applicable to race boats being driven fast for lap after lap. Your white water but relatively short run times shouldn't cause any problems.
Still be interested to see the puffy part of the battery.
A check of my 2S batteries also gave higher readings than yours at 6 and 7 for one and 8 and 5 for the other, which from what I've read are fine. My 2S and 3S batteries are 3300mAh which I think are lower than yours - I mentioned that resistance tends to be lower the higher capacity you go, which probably explains the lower readings you are getting compared with mine. Out of interest I checked one of my small capacity LiPos yesterday, 7.4v/1500mAh and the results were in the 20s which seems to bear this out as did a 7.4v/2200mAh with results of 16 and 15.
Scratch building 7 Faireys at a scale of 1:12 and also have 2 built by Dave Milbourn
Liked by hermank
Battery Resistance.
I have found the Battery Resistance Meter on my charger and recorded the results.
The charger shows the numbers followed by a small “m” and what looks like the outline of a tree. I have recorded this second figure here as an “A” as I have no pictures that look like a tree on this keyboard !
The battery with the “puffed” heat shrink cover that I have been using on my Remora is a 3 cell LiPo and has given the following readings:-
Total:- 5 mA.
Individual Cells:- 1 2 2 mA.
I have no idea what this means except that all the readings are very low and that one cell is lower than the other two.
My way of comparison (only), I took one of the two cell LiPo batteries out of my Kopy Kommander and put it on the same program and got the following readings:-
Total:- 4 mA.
Individual Cells:- 2 + 2 mA.
Any help with identifying exactly what the reading for the 3 cell LiPo that has the puffy heat shrink covering tells me about its safety would be greatly appreciated as I have no idea what it means, other than identifying that one cell has a lower reading than the other two cells.
The comparison with the 2 cell battery from my Kopy Kommander has not helped much other than to note that both cells also have low readings of 2 mA that are the same as each other.
Bob.
I have found the Battery Resistance Meter on my charger and recorded the results.
The charger shows the numbers followed by a small “m” and what looks like the outline of a tree. I have recorded this second figure here as an “A” as I have no pictures that look like a tree on this keyboard !
The battery with the “puffed” heat shrink cover that I have been using on my Remora is a 3 cell LiPo and has given the following readings:-
Total:- 5 mA.
Individual Cells:- 1 2 2 mA.
I have no idea what this means except that all the readings are very low and that one cell is lower than the other two.
My way of comparison (only), I took one of the two cell LiPo batteries out of my Kopy Kommander and put it on the same program and got the following readings:-
Total:- 4 mA.
Individual Cells:- 2 + 2 mA.
Any help with identifying exactly what the reading for the 3 cell LiPo that has the puffy heat shrink covering tells me about its safety would be greatly appreciated as I have no idea what it means, other than identifying that one cell has a lower reading than the other two cells.
The comparison with the 2 cell battery from my Kopy Kommander has not helped much other than to note that both cells also have low readings of 2 mA that are the same as each other.
Bob.
Never too old to learn
Liked by hermank
Just as you suggested Chris, my charger does have a Lithium Battery Resistance Meter.
Page 21 of the Overlander RC-D100 charger shows this function and how to read the display.
It can display the highest resistance, the lowest resistance and each cells resistance.
I am not sure what to do with this information, but I will gather it now and see if I can find out if this LiPo is safe or should be disposed of .
Bob.
Page 21 of the Overlander RC-D100 charger shows this function and how to read the display.
It can display the highest resistance, the lowest resistance and each cells resistance.
I am not sure what to do with this information, but I will gather it now and see if I can find out if this LiPo is safe or should be disposed of .
Bob.
Never too old to learn
Liked by hermank
The Turnigy battery that I have is no longer in stock from HobbyKing , and has no delivery date.
Maybe after blowing following only 8 balanced charges at 2.5 amp I should try a different type anyway?
WhenI looked this afternoon they had fewer LiPo batteries in stock than I can remember seeing there before.
Maybe they are about to re-stock?
Bob.
Maybe after blowing following only 8 balanced charges at 2.5 amp I should try a different type anyway?
WhenI looked this afternoon they had fewer LiPo batteries in stock than I can remember seeing there before.
Maybe they are about to re-stock?
Bob.
Never too old to learn
Liked by hermank
Hi Chris,
We have just walked back from Ainsdale Village and it is really hot, but later I will get the charger out and run through the menu options.
To be honest, I have only ever used the charger to charge and balance my batteries and have never used it for anything else, but knowing about the resistance of each cell is not something I had thought of previously, but if it can be used as a “heath guide “ for each individual cell, it would make sense to check it now and again - if especially on a LiPo pack that has a puffed sleeve covering like this one has.
I chose this particular battery to fit in my Remora and made a close fitting battery holder to keep it safely located during use. I think I will check to see if they are still available or if I can find any other 3 cell LiPo packs of this overall size and shape as I think a replacement may well be needed in the near future……and it would be good to have one here ready !
Bob.
We have just walked back from Ainsdale Village and it is really hot, but later I will get the charger out and run through the menu options.
To be honest, I have only ever used the charger to charge and balance my batteries and have never used it for anything else, but knowing about the resistance of each cell is not something I had thought of previously, but if it can be used as a “heath guide “ for each individual cell, it would make sense to check it now and again - if especially on a LiPo pack that has a puffed sleeve covering like this one has.
I chose this particular battery to fit in my Remora and made a close fitting battery holder to keep it safely located during use. I think I will check to see if they are still available or if I can find any other 3 cell LiPo packs of this overall size and shape as I think a replacement may well be needed in the near future……and it would be good to have one here ready !
Bob.
Never too old to learn
Hi Bob
That's my servo and battery checker. My charger is a Turnigy. If I was buying now I'd get an Overlander as I buy a lot of their stuff and the Turnigy has been discontinued, good charger though.
If you haven't got the instructions they are available to download from the Overlander web-site. This is the relevant page.
That's my servo and battery checker. My charger is a Turnigy. If I was buying now I'd get an Overlander as I buy a lot of their stuff and the Turnigy has been discontinued, good charger though.
If you haven't got the instructions they are available to download from the Overlander web-site. This is the relevant page.
Scratch building 7 Faireys at a scale of 1:12 and also have 2 built by Dave Milbourn
Liked by SimpleSailor and jumpugly and
Hi Chris
Thanks for your contribution.
You also use an Overlander LiPo charger (these are FlySky re-labeled as far as I know) and I have found them to be very accurate and reliable - but I was unaware of their ability to check the resistance, so I need to scroll through into “unknown areas” until I find it.
I always check the temperature of my motor, ESC and LiPo after every run (nothing clever - just by touch) and I have never had a “hot” LiPo yet, but they do usually feel slightly warm.
This LiPo does have a slightly “puffed” cover that can be pushed in and out a little - like it has some air trapped between the heat shrink and the battery itself.
I will see if I can find the function to check the resistance of each cell, but the LiPo charged normally up to 95% (when I stopped it) last night and each cell had the same voltage reading, so the pack is still balanced nicely.
The heat shrink covering is very tight at each each, so any gas (or air when the pack was made and covered) may be unable to seep away, but I would have thought that any gas (including air) that was under pressure would be able to leak its way out ?
Anyway, the battery has now had 9 balance charges from new, has good balanced voltage readings on each cell…….but it still worries me (a little) so I will search for that internal resistance measurement function on my charger and see if I can find it.
Bob.
Thanks for your contribution.
You also use an Overlander LiPo charger (these are FlySky re-labeled as far as I know) and I have found them to be very accurate and reliable - but I was unaware of their ability to check the resistance, so I need to scroll through into “unknown areas” until I find it.
I always check the temperature of my motor, ESC and LiPo after every run (nothing clever - just by touch) and I have never had a “hot” LiPo yet, but they do usually feel slightly warm.
This LiPo does have a slightly “puffed” cover that can be pushed in and out a little - like it has some air trapped between the heat shrink and the battery itself.
I will see if I can find the function to check the resistance of each cell, but the LiPo charged normally up to 95% (when I stopped it) last night and each cell had the same voltage reading, so the pack is still balanced nicely.
The heat shrink covering is very tight at each each, so any gas (or air when the pack was made and covered) may be unable to seep away, but I would have thought that any gas (including air) that was under pressure would be able to leak its way out ?
Anyway, the battery has now had 9 balance charges from new, has good balanced voltage readings on each cell…….but it still worries me (a little) so I will search for that internal resistance measurement function on my charger and see if I can find it.
Bob.
Never too old to learn
Liked by SimpleSailor and jumpugly and
Hi Bob
Your charger may be able to check the internal resistance, mine does and yours looks like a good one. As for values, when I checked my 3S I got 7, 5 and 6 milli-ohms for each cell. For info. search for "internal resistance of Lipo battery". But note that any checks will only give you a comparative result as they vary on battery temperature and charge. Hence my comment to check when new to give a baseline. The lower the better but the results will vary on the capacity of the battery.
With my battery, looking at it more, I think it is due to the heat wrap being tighter at the ends as the curvature is only slight from end to end - see photo. What does yours look like side on? I need another one anyway and so will get the exact same battery and compare it.
Lipos can start to puff if worked too hard, did you notice if yours was hot? Some guys carry on using them if they puff but in less power hungry uses like torches - no bloomin' way!!!
For the number of charges you have carried out there shouldn't be a problem with your battery so maybe it had an issue from the start? That's why the internal resistance check is useful as comparatively it will show if a cell is much different from the others.
Jumpugly - I've got a couple of those little units. But bought mainly to use for servo checking as I prefer to use my battery charger for battery functions as it cost somewhat more and I trust it more!
Chris
Edit: Just checked again and internal resistance is 8, 5 and 5 with each cell being at 3.82v. I've had that battery for a few years now but those values are fine.
Your charger may be able to check the internal resistance, mine does and yours looks like a good one. As for values, when I checked my 3S I got 7, 5 and 6 milli-ohms for each cell. For info. search for "internal resistance of Lipo battery". But note that any checks will only give you a comparative result as they vary on battery temperature and charge. Hence my comment to check when new to give a baseline. The lower the better but the results will vary on the capacity of the battery.
With my battery, looking at it more, I think it is due to the heat wrap being tighter at the ends as the curvature is only slight from end to end - see photo. What does yours look like side on? I need another one anyway and so will get the exact same battery and compare it.
Lipos can start to puff if worked too hard, did you notice if yours was hot? Some guys carry on using them if they puff but in less power hungry uses like torches - no bloomin' way!!!
For the number of charges you have carried out there shouldn't be a problem with your battery so maybe it had an issue from the start? That's why the internal resistance check is useful as comparatively it will show if a cell is much different from the others.
Jumpugly - I've got a couple of those little units. But bought mainly to use for servo checking as I prefer to use my battery charger for battery functions as it cost somewhat more and I trust it more!
Chris
Edit: Just checked again and internal resistance is 8, 5 and 5 with each cell being at 3.82v. I've had that battery for a few years now but those values are fine.
Scratch building 7 Faireys at a scale of 1:12 and also have 2 built by Dave Milbourn
Liked by AlessandroSPQR and jumpugly and
DaveyBoyzToyz fun run at the Babylon town park yesterday. Damn Lipos...and the mighty effort to save a gorgeous Chris Craft Corvette. 🙄😬😪
https://www.facebook.com/1479377005/videos/pcb.1729376108185245/1580268093488445
https://www.facebook.com/1479377005/videos/pcb.1729376108185245/1580268093488445
Liked by AlessandroSPQR and hermank
As much as I complain about lipos. This particular video and the item it describes has been invaluable.
Liked by AlessandroSPQR and Steves-s and
What to Do?
At the moment I have put the LiPo into a “LiPo Safe Bag” while I give the situation a little more thought.
Like Chris’s LiPo, this battery may have been a little bloated when I bought it from new - it certainly wouldn’t be the first or the only one - but I do think that this one is a little worse now.
I am not sure how to check the internal resistance or know what is an acceptable reading, but I would like to find out both.
As far as disposing of a LiPo is concerned, back when we were first using much larger LiPo packs for large r/c helicopters and large 1/5 scale racing cars, we were advised of a method to dispose of them that worked and made them safe .
The method was to place the LiPo in a bucket of salt water and leave it for 24 hours (or longer). This had the affect of completely draining it and leaving it “inert” and safe to dispose of.
That was a long time ago. If anyone has any other more up to date method of rendering a LiPo “safe” before disposing of it, I would like to know about it please.
Bob.
At the moment I have put the LiPo into a “LiPo Safe Bag” while I give the situation a little more thought.
Like Chris’s LiPo, this battery may have been a little bloated when I bought it from new - it certainly wouldn’t be the first or the only one - but I do think that this one is a little worse now.
I am not sure how to check the internal resistance or know what is an acceptable reading, but I would like to find out both.
As far as disposing of a LiPo is concerned, back when we were first using much larger LiPo packs for large r/c helicopters and large 1/5 scale racing cars, we were advised of a method to dispose of them that worked and made them safe .
The method was to place the LiPo in a bucket of salt water and leave it for 24 hours (or longer). This had the affect of completely draining it and leaving it “inert” and safe to dispose of.
That was a long time ago. If anyone has any other more up to date method of rendering a LiPo “safe” before disposing of it, I would like to know about it please.
Bob.
Never too old to learn
Hi Gang...
Truth be told, as much as I like the high speed and high output I am not too thrilled with Lipos as It seems you need a phd to fully understand them. I don't like the small margin for error in charging and discharging them either. But I do know that a bloated battery is a battery that has gone bad and can be a huge problem.
I don't mean to run around like the sky is falling, but I found this particular article helpful. 👍
https://www.ufinebattery.com/blog/how-to-dispose-of-swollen-lithium-polymer-battery/
Truth be told, as much as I like the high speed and high output I am not too thrilled with Lipos as It seems you need a phd to fully understand them. I don't like the small margin for error in charging and discharging them either. But I do know that a bloated battery is a battery that has gone bad and can be a huge problem.
I don't mean to run around like the sky is falling, but I found this particular article helpful. 👍
https://www.ufinebattery.com/blog/how-to-dispose-of-swollen-lithium-polymer-battery/
Liked by AlessandroSPQR and Steves-s and
Man, I would. I put it in my neighbor’s yard to charge! Not really as this is, as Jump states a SERIOUS problem! Get rid of it ASAP. (Not sure how one does that).The bloating is caused by one or more of the cells outgassing. Quite probably a prediction of a boom & or a fire.
My 3S looks a bit bloated as well but it could be that it was always like that but I can't remember. But like you it has only ever been charged and storage charged using a smart/intelligent charger. One thing I did read about awhile ago is checking the internal resistance of the battery which I was able to do using my charger and it was within acceptable limits, so I will do that again. What is recommended is that you do this when the battery is new as a reference point, which I will do with any new batteries I get.
Chris
Chris
Scratch building 7 Faireys at a scale of 1:12 and also have 2 built by Dave Milbourn
Bloated LiPo
As my Remora was charging around the lake today, I happened to comment to my friend Adam (who was with me making the short video of the Kopy Kommander for Boatshed) that I didn’t think the boat was revving as hard as usual.
He laughed as the boat is a superb performer, but when it came back to shore the LiPo was bloated as the heat shrink cover had ballooned slightly.
I have just put this LiPo on a balance charge and noted that all three cells are showing a very similar cell voltage with a 51% fuel available. (see charger port A).
…..suggesting that the battery is OK ?.
I always put a small strip of masking tape on each of my LiPo batteries and add a mark after each charge - just so I know get many times the battery has been charged.
It is worth noting (when counting these “five bar gates”) that this battery had only been charged 8 times from new, and every charge has been a balance charge on this RC-DC100 charger, so it has not been abused in any way.
I am charging it outside on the stone paving - just to be safe………..
He laughed as the boat is a superb performer, but when it came back to shore the LiPo was bloated as the heat shrink cover had ballooned slightly.
I have just put this LiPo on a balance charge and noted that all three cells are showing a very similar cell voltage with a 51% fuel available. (see charger port A).
…..suggesting that the battery is OK ?.
I always put a small strip of masking tape on each of my LiPo batteries and add a mark after each charge - just so I know get many times the battery has been charged.
It is worth noting (when counting these “five bar gates”) that this battery had only been charged 8 times from new, and every charge has been a balance charge on this RC-DC100 charger, so it has not been abused in any way.
I am charging it outside on the stone paving - just to be safe………..
Never too old to learn
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