bondspyguy

hi all

i have been charging my 11.1v turnigy 1800mah and 2200mah batteries to 11.1v and only getting a minute of flight.i have been told they should be charged to 12.4v.will this not damage them ?? i charge at 0.5amp is this ok ?? also i have nano-tech 14-8v 3000mah 4c batteries what do i charge these to for max voltage...why do they say 11.1v and 14.8 if they have to be charged higher ??
hope someone can help me been asking hobbyking for months with no luck

thank you stu

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

Hi Stu,
First off, what kind ,model, make of charger are you trying to use with the lipo batteries?
A good balance charger when set to lipo charge will set the charger rate to 4.2 volts per cell . Some chargers you have to set this value. When a 3 cell lipo is fully charged it will measure approx. 12.3 to 12.6 volts. You should get a decent multicharger that charges and balances the packs. Entry level ones can be bought for under $50.00.
The reason you are only getting a minute of runtime is because you are only charging the pack to around 50-60%.
You need to educate yourself a little if you are going to properly and safely use lipo batteries.
Here is a good read and there are many others out there as well.
Do yourself a favor and don't rely or depend on HK for anything technical and think about looking for alternate sources for your RC items. There are a lot of places that have decent pricing , selection and shipping and most important they will HELP you with technical questions as well as product problems.
Good luck!

bondspyguy

hi brian

i have a turnigy accucell 6 i charge balance and have tried fast charge i think i had the amp set to low i to it up to 0,5amp and am now able to charge higher on the 11.1v batteries but what does the 14.8v battery be charged to and is the amp at 0,5a ok

thanks stu

opjose

The Acucell charger is fine as are the Tunigy batteries. You just need to read up on LiPo technology.

-

Set your Acucell to charge at the 1C rating of the battery.

If you are charging a 3S 11.1v 2200mAh pack, set the Acucell to 11.1v 2.2A using the LiPO setting. Make sure the display reads "LiPo".

.5A is too low... and not the way to do it...

The charger AUTOMATICALLY reduces the current as the batteries near full charge... in fact that is one way to quickly determine how far along the batteries are in the charge...

e.g. the charger may start out a 2.2 amps at first, but towards the end ramp down to only .1AMP as it waits for the battery voltage to stabilize.

Also:

You should really balance charge your packs FIRST using the Acucell set the same way.

Balance charging requires that you connect BOTH the white charge lead to the balance board, and the RED ( or yellow if XT-60 connectors are used ) connector to the charger.

It is a good idea to balance charge your packs every few charges, to keep the cells equalized.

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

Syu,

That's a typical "4-Button " multicharger and they all work about the same. Provided you have the pack connected to the charger properly, you select LIPO from the start menu then hit enter and then select the charge type and hit enter again. Then you select the amperage level, hit enter , then select the battery cell voltage.. Then hold enter and it will check the pack and then it will prompt you to hit enter again to start charging. After that if you hit the right arrow you can view the screen showing each cells voltage level.
If you select LIPO Charge and set it to 0.5 amps and 11.1 volts , the charger will charge the pack until each cell reaches around 4.2 volts and all cells are balanced. Then it will beep and end the charge cycle showing the total pack voltage on the display.

bondspyguy

thanks guys for all that help i think i got it now i feel a right dummy lol good reading that brian and thanks to you both for the help now i can go fly for more than a minute lol

cheers stu

opjose

bondspyguy

That is INCORRECT, set the AMP value to the 1C value of the pack as I indicated. e.g. 2.2A for a 2200mAh pack, 4.2A for a 4200mAh pack etc.

The charger will regulate the charge current automatically, dropping it down as the pack nears full charge.

FYI:

The Turnigy, E-Flite, Hitec and other chargers are all based upon the iMax B6 firmware/hardware which is why the entire program menu is identical on all of these chargers.

bondspyguy

When i try to set the amps as you say it bleeps and says input err i even tried lower amps still the same but at 0.5 they charge.......i also have another question i have 2 transmitter packs a zippy 9.9v 5c 1800mah and a turnigy 11.1v 1c 2.65mah how can i charge these on the accucell6 as i cannot seem to find a setting for (11.1v 1cell) or (9.9v 5 cell)

thanks stu

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

First off you can charge an 11.1 volt lipo at 0.5amp or about 1/4C. It will take a long time to complete.
Stu,
You need to write out here how you are setting -up the charger so we can determine what you are or aren't doing correctly.
After you press enter and select Lipo Charge and press enter again the lower left number will flash (0.5a) and you press the right arrow to increase the amperage number. Press enter again and the lower right number starts flashing (11.1 v) pressing the right arrow changes the pack voltage (or number of cells) such as 11.1, 14.8, 18.5 , etc.... Then press and hold enter to verify pack and after confirmation press enter again to start the charge.

You need to solve your first disaster before moving onto the next ! However the transmitter packs you have are two different types. The 9.9v pack is a LiFe pack and requires you to make even more changes to your charger in order to properly charge it. Forget that until you can properly learn how to use the charger to charge LiPo packs. The second pack 11,1 volts is a LiPo transmitter pack and you can charge it as soon as you get the LiPo charger procedure down.
What you are referring to as 1 cell and 5 cell are the 1C and 5C ratings of the packs. 1C and 5C do not mean cells but rather Discharge Rate. Re-read that article again and scroll down to the section Discharge Rate.

Please list your step-by-step procedure for setting up your charger to charge an 11.1 volt /1800mah lipo at 1.8 amps using the LiPo Charge setting.

bondspyguy

Hi brian

what you say in setting up is exactly what i do..and all my 11.1v 3c have charged to 12.6. but i cannot set the amp much higher than 0.5 or i get error and cuts off i can not set as i am being told to do (set the AMP value to the 1C value of the pack as I indicated. e.g. 2.2A for a 2200mAh pack, 4.2A for a 4200mAh pack etc.)what you said here is what i am doing [color=#990000]After you press enter and select Lipo Charge and press enter again the lower left number will flash (0.5a) and you press the right arrow to increase the amperage number. Press enter again and the lower right number starts flashing (11.1 v) pressing the right arrow changes the pack voltage (or number of cells) such as 11.1, 14.8, 18.5 , etc.... The press and hold enter to verify pack and after confirmation press enter again to start the charge.[/color

ok will read the info again you sent sorry to bug you again lol i will get there in the end lol

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

I don't know. When the amp value is flashing you should be able to change it to any value(that the charger can support) by pressing the right or left arrow button.

Here's a manual. Scroll to the bottom of page 10 and follow the flow chart and instructions for "Charging Lithium Batteries"

bondspyguy

yes brian i can change it but if i set it say to 2.2A for a 2200mAh pack or 1.8 for a 1800mah pack it cuts of and i get the message input err

opjose

Bondspyguy, as he said you are doing something incorrectly.

You -DO- want to set the charger to the 1C rate of the packs in all cases unless you have a specific reason NOT to. This has been confirmed by the firmware writers. It is needed for various reasons.

You need to understand the menu structure BEFORE you attempt to charge your packs. It is likely that you do not have the charger set to LiPo charge mode if you cannot increase the current.

As I previously mentioned this is the same hardware / firmware used on many different brands... I should have been more obvious, but that was a hint that you can obtain manuals for other sources that might be easier to read.

Here is the Hitec Manual:

[link=http://www.hitecrcd.com/files/Hitec_X4_Manual_US.pdf]Hitec Manual Click me![/link]

Eflite Manual:

[link=http://www.e-fliterc.com/ProdInfo/Files/EFLC3020-Manual_EN.pdf]E-Flite Manual - Click me![/link]

Accucell Manual

[link=https://www.sparkfun.com/datasheets/Prototyping/Batteries/ACCUCEL_manual(2).pdf]Accucell Manual - Click me![/link]

Disconnect any battery packs and play getting deep into the menu structure so you understand how to modify the settings and how the buttons operate.
What you see labeled on the button does not always apply as per the label.

Remember: The display should come up and say "LiPo Charge" before you can change the AMP output and Voltage.

opjose

When does it cut off?

When you change it to read 2.2A ?

Or does it cut off when you start the charge?

If the latter, the packs are damaged and the charger is detecting the incorrect voltage input from the packs.

This means that the packs were over discharged and are effectively ruined.

bondspyguy

ok guys this is what i do ....i pick lipo balance charge that gives me the next step to set amp which i set to 2.2 then set the voltage to 11.1 3c then it asks to confirm it which i do it starts charging then bleeps cuts of with a reading saying input err......but if i lower the amp setting it charges ok

bondspyguy

then when charged the battery reads on each cell 4.20 4.20 4.20 all 12.6v

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

OK . Now it's clearer. The charger is giving you an Input Error . That means the SOURCE you are using to power the charger cannot supply the current/voltage you set in the charger , IE:11.1 volts @ 2.2amps. However it is capable of supplying 11.1volts @0.5amps.
What are you using to power the charger?
If it's a power supply (110volt AC to 12 volt DC converter) you will need to get another that is rated for higher current.
If it is a 12 volt car-type battery then it may need to be replaced.
In the meantime you can still charge the packs at 0.5amps and you won't hurt anything.

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

Now when you are ready to charge the 9.9volt LiFe pack you will need to make a change in the charger.

Press the left (type) button until USER SET PROGRAM appears on the display.

Press Enter and LiPo  V Type   3.7v will appear on the display.

Press Enter and the 3.7v will flash.

Press the right arrow key and change it to 3.3v  You will see that LiPo changes to LiFe

Press the left button and get back to User Program then press the right arrow key and get into the charging programs. Now when you select what was LiPo will now show LiFe and you can set the parameters for charging and charge the 9.9v LiFe transmitter  pack or any LiFe pack.

When you want to charge LiPo packs again you will need to go back into User Program and change the LiFe V Type back to 3.7v and that will change the LiFe display to LiPo. Than you can charge LiPo packs again.

lopflyers

My Feedback: (12)

Input error as stated above only have to do with the power source.

bondspyguy

OK THIS IS ON THE POWER ADAPTER

MODEL NO12-1A
INPUT :120V 60HZ 23W
OUTPUT 12VDC 1000MA

SO SORRY I AM AN IDIOT WITH ELECTRICS can you advise me the size power adapter i need to buy
thanks so much for putting up with me and thanks for the help this dummy needs

cheers stu

bondspyguy

THE DURAFLY SE5A FLIES GREAT WHEN THE BATTERIES ARE CHARGED PROPERLY LOL

AND ANY ONE WANTING TO GO TO A GREAT WARBIRD AIRSHOW IN NY GENESEO 12/13/14TH JULY AND IF YOU CAMP YOU CAN FLY YOUR R/C IN THE EVENING

THANKS GUYS STU

flyinwalenda

My Feedback: (5)

You  have a 12 volt 1 amp power supply. The output power is listed as 12 volts DC  at 1000 ma  (or 1.0 amps).
You should get a power supply capable of supplying at  least 7 amps  but 10 amps or more would be better.  New power supplies with high amp outputs are not inexpensive. Some folks get computer (either PC or mainframe) power supplies and convert them to be used  for battery chargers.

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_63.../anchor/tm.htm

lopflyers

My Feedback: (12)

It looks like we found your problem.

rihhanarachel

Why don't you try using 12amp 13.8v Bench Switch Mode Power Supply? Here are some suggestions at mr positive.

mscic-RCU

My Feedback: (6)

I use a 15 volt, 7 amp laptop charger. Works great and is cheap. Find them on ebay for 10 bucks.