A123 Charging Question
10-17-2011, 07:28 PM
#26
RE: A123 Charging Question
ORIGINAL: SinCityJets
Danno,
Sorry about that....You have to ''tap'' in to each cell through the balancing charger with a home-made adapter that you can charge/discharge each individual cell.
Or.....cut the pack open (don't do this method....no need)
Chad
Danno,
Sorry about that....You have to ''tap'' in to each cell through the balancing charger with a home-made adapter that you can charge/discharge each individual cell.
Or.....cut the pack open (don't do this method....no need)
Chad
Got it !!! Thanks !!
Dan
10-17-2011, 07:33 PM
#27
RE: A123 Charging Question
ORIGINAL: SinCityJets
Danno,
Sorry about that....You have to ''tap'' in to each cell through the balancing charger with a home-made adapter that you can charge/discharge each individual cell.
Or.....cut the pack open (don't do this method....no need)
Chad
Danno,
Sorry about that....You have to ''tap'' in to each cell through the balancing charger with a home-made adapter that you can charge/discharge each individual cell.
Or.....cut the pack open (don't do this method....no need)
Chad
10-18-2011, 03:50 PM
#33
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RE: A123 Charging Question
ORIGINAL: bcovish
I'm a total ''dummy'' when it comes to batteries. Danno, for once in your life keep your mouth closed and hands of the keyboard.
This my battery setup. How do I charge/discharge cells one at a time.
I'm a total ''dummy'' when it comes to batteries. Danno, for once in your life keep your mouth closed and hands of the keyboard.
This my battery setup. How do I charge/discharge cells one at a time.Tap in to that 3 wire connector. Put a multi-meter on in. You should read 3.3v on one set of two wires, 3.3v on another combination, and 6.6 (entire pack) on another combination. Discharge/charge the two 3.3v leads, one at a time......Or you can try the NoBS connector from the link above.
Chad
10-18-2011, 03:52 PM
#34
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RE: A123 Charging Question
ORIGINAL: DAN AVILLA
Chad my 2200 ECU pack usually only go s to about 85% when charged . Is this the same problem ? Thanks Dan Avilla BVM rep
Chad my 2200 ECU pack usually only go s to about 85% when charged . Is this the same problem ? Thanks Dan Avilla BVM rep
Absolutely Dan!
10-23-2011, 08:22 AM
#35
RE: A123 Charging Question
Just received one of the NoBS gizzmos. Have a battery on discharge now. Hope to have results before I leave for work this this afternoon. If not I will post results next weekend. I still dont understand why they get out of balance with a balance charger. Oh well...standby.
10-23-2011, 08:28 AM
#36
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RE: A123 Charging Question
It's because of the way the current "balancing" chargers are set up. They balance by drawing down the high cell, but they can only draw so much. So if the imbalance is great than the charger can compensate for, it will not correct the imbalance.
C
C
10-26-2011, 11:56 AM
#39
RE: A123 Charging Question
[quote]ORIGINAL: SinCityJets
OK, here goes....
A123's are designed for deep charging/discharging (power tools / electric vehicles). While they are as perfect a battery as anything we could use right now, they have ONE little issue. Since we only use the top 30-40% of the battery, they build up a different impedance. Because of this, one cell will discharge/charge slower. It is not a BIG problem, because we only use the top 30-40% of the packs. If we were to run them all the way up and charge them all the way down, we would not see this problem.
While I initially (2006) said that A123's do not need to be cycled, we have known for a while (2008) that cycling actually IS a good idea. Since cell impedance is the issue, the cells really should be discharged INDIVIDUALLY if one wants to maintain ''perfect'' balance. Otherwise, taking a 2 cell pack down to 3-4 volts will also help.
So, in closing, you are not crazy, they probably ARE taking longer to charge because of the way most balancing chargers work. You can either live with it (and really never know the difference), or you can take the time to discharge each cell and them charge them up together. Charging each cell individually may also be necessary for the initial recharge.
Enjoy the A123's, there really is nothing better or safer for use as receiver pa
Chad on 3 cell ecu batteries what should I discharge them to. Thanks Dan
OK, here goes....
A123's are designed for deep charging/discharging (power tools / electric vehicles). While they are as perfect a battery as anything we could use right now, they have ONE little issue. Since we only use the top 30-40% of the battery, they build up a different impedance. Because of this, one cell will discharge/charge slower. It is not a BIG problem, because we only use the top 30-40% of the packs. If we were to run them all the way up and charge them all the way down, we would not see this problem.
While I initially (2006) said that A123's do not need to be cycled, we have known for a while (2008) that cycling actually IS a good idea. Since cell impedance is the issue, the cells really should be discharged INDIVIDUALLY if one wants to maintain ''perfect'' balance. Otherwise, taking a 2 cell pack down to 3-4 volts will also help.
So, in closing, you are not crazy, they probably ARE taking longer to charge because of the way most balancing chargers work. You can either live with it (and really never know the difference), or you can take the time to discharge each cell and them charge them up together. Charging each cell individually may also be necessary for the initial recharge.
Enjoy the A123's, there really is nothing better or safer for use as receiver pa
Chad on 3 cell ecu batteries what should I discharge them to. Thanks Dan
10-26-2011, 04:51 PM
#40
RE: A123 Charging Question
ORIGINAL: KC36330
that's a somewhat common problem with an A123 and a discharge cycle usually cures it.
that's a somewhat common problem with an A123 and a discharge cycle usually cures it.
build a discharger for the a123's as follows.
solder two 1157 bulbs with both elements in parallel. so all four elements are working when you plug it in. wire up a volt meter. discharge them just till the bulbs start to go dim. it will happen around 5v-2.5 volts per cell. then charge them n the cellpro. it will recondition them very well. Its the 4 amp load that brings them back.. My dischargers dont do near as well as the simple varying load.. the load drops as the battery drops..
I also use Andy Low's A123 checker balancer.. its a nice piece of equipment
I do that annually or semi annually as a mx..
10-26-2011, 06:14 PM
#41
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RE: A123 Charging Question
The discharge voltage you want to get to is 2 volts per cell, or 6 volts for a 3 cell pack. You will want to load each cell individually though to correct any imbalance issues.
Chad
Chad
