Help! What am I doing?

[Sylar000]

Hey,

I have just bought a Granite 4x4 BLX for Xmas. I used to run cars a bit about 20 years ago but it was a simple case of charging and away you went!

I bought the pack from ModelSport which includes a balance charger (https://www.modelsport.co.uk/index.php?product_id=408440) and a 11.1v 3S battery (https://www.modelsport.co.uk/index.php?product_id=407283) but I actually have no idea what I am doing.

I have plugged both the EC5 and the other lead into the charger. I have gone to the balance charge section and its asking for amps and voltage of the battery pack. I understand the voltage is 11.1v as per the battery but what should I chose for amps? Is there a happy medium for decent speed vs not damaging the battery?

Theres also a fast charge option and I keep reading about storage charge, should I be using these? Is it really not as simple as charging it now ready to use on Xmas day?

Apologies for being dumb but this is all new to me!

Thanks

 

[arrmadave]

I balance charge my batteries at 1amp. It takes time but I know I wont destroy my batteries.

 

[Sylar000]

I balance charge my batteries at 1amp. It takes time but I know I wont destroy my batteries.

Ok thats good enough for me, having just received the batteries and wanting to use them on Xmas day should I be storage charging them now? Then look to charge them the day before?

 

[Outcastblxnut]

5000mah can charge at 5amp [email protected]. 6000@6 and so on

 

[arrmadave]

They should have been shipped at a safe storage charge, and yes charge day before to be ready. Make sure to get a fireproof lipo storage bag for your lipos. Better safe than sorry.

 

[Mastaa]

I quickly checked the battery you linked.
It's a 5000mAh with a 2C charge rating. This means that you could technically charge the battery with 10 Amps. I usually charge them up pretty slow if I'm not time sensitive, and with moderate pressure I charge at 1C, meaning 5 Amps for your current battery.

As to your question, the battery hopefully came in charged state, but double-checking never hurt.
Just do as you suggested and storage-charge it for now, the fully charge it before you're going to use them.

 

[Outcastblxnut]

Just put a decimal between first two numbers. That’s your amps

 

[arrmadave]

5000mah can charge at 5amp [email protected]. 6000@6 and so on

can be, but do you?

 

[pa_fullsend]

Ok thats good enough for me, having just received the batteries and wanting to use them on Xmas day should I be storage charging them now? Then look to charge them the day before?

yeah I only balance charge never “fast charge” and if they’re brand new they come to you at a safe storage level so you can let em sit till the day before or better yet charge the morning of. Should only take like and hour and half depending how many mAh you went with. But after using them you then need to storage charge them.Storage charge them the same day do not let them sit dead or at a full charge. If you charge it up but don’t end up using it you still need to storage charge it

 

[Outcastblxnut]

2c battery not enough c’s 30C minimum for blx

 

[Mastaa]

2c battery not enough c’s 30 minimum

We're talking 2C charge rating, not discharge

 

[Outcastblxnut]

??
I see now. For your next battery purchase look into 50c ratings.

 

[Stidhammer]

Assuming a 1C charge rate (most common; you can usually find this info on your battery pack), you divide the mAh capacity of the battery by 1000 in order to find the safe charge rate in amps.

In this case, the C in 1C stands for capacity in amp hours. 1000 mAh = 1 amp hour.

Example: I use 3S, 5000mAh capacity LiPo batteries with a 1C charge rate in my Notorious. That means the safe amp rating for charging them is 5000mAh / 1000 = 5 amps.

More good info on LiPos here: https://rogershobbycenter.com/lipoguide

 

[Sylar000]

They should have been shipped at a safe storage charge, and yes charge day before to be ready. Make sure to get a fireproof lipo storage bag for your lipos. Better safe than sorry.

Thanks, yes I have the fireproof storage bag.

I quickly checked the battery you linked.
It's a 5000mAh with a 2C charge rating. This means that you could technically charge the battery with 10 Amps. I usually charge them up pretty slow if I'm not time sensitive, and with moderate pressure I charge at 1C, meaning 5 Amps for your current battery.

As to your question, the battery hopefully came in charged state, but double-checking never hurt.
Just do as you suggested and storage-charge it for now, the fully charge it before you're going to use them.

Thanks doing a storage charge now to be sure.

yeah I only balance charge never “fast charge” and if they’re brand new they come to you at a safe storage level so you can let em sit till the day before or better yet charge the morning of. Should only take like and hour and half depending how many mAh you went with. But after using them you then need to storage charge them.Storage charge them the same day do not let them sit dead or at a full charge. If you charge it up but don’t end up using it you still need to storage charge it

Good to know, thanks for the advice.

This is the current storage charge running. How do I know when it's finished?

Ok so it just went off like a siren and said END! Guess thats how you no

 

[pa_fullsend]

Thanks, yes I have the fireproof storage bag.



Thanks doing a storage charge now to be sure.



Good to know, thanks for the advice.

This is the current storage charge running. How do I know when it's finished?

Ok so it just went off like a siren and said END! Guess thats how you no

No problem.It’s easy once you get the steps down. Just be sure to always storage charge, they shouldn’t sit more than a day TOPS at full charge, or dead after running it. And to be sure you’re gonna get the best life out of the battery always balance charge don’t ever fast charge it. and personally I always charge at 1C even if the battery says 2C charge rate, or more. So that means for every 1000mAh you can charge at 1amp. So 5000mAh batteries charge at 5amp, and so on. I wouldn’t recommend more than 1C. They last a lot longer when you treat em good ??

 

[Sylar000]

No problem.It’s easy once you get the steps down. Just be sure to always storage charge, they shouldn’t sit more than a day TOPS at full charge, or dead after running it. And to be sure you’re gonna get the best life out of the battery always balance charge don’t ever fast charge it. and personally I always charge at 1C even if the battery says 2C charge rate, or more. So that means for every 1000mAh you can charge at 1amp. So 5000mAh batteries charge at 5amp, and so on. I wouldn’t recommend more than 1C. They last a lot longer when you treat em good ??

Awesome, so I think in my above screenshot I had the storage charge rate too low, should of been 5 not 1? Does this apply to both balance charging and storage? Thanks

 

[pa_fullsend]

Awesome, so I think in my above screenshot I had the storage charge rate too low, should of been 5 not 1? Does this apply to both balance charging and storage? Thanks

Storage charge is a lot slower. My charger defaults at 2amp storage charge which I use for all my lipos. 1 is okay, it’ll go slow, but it’s safe yeah

 

[jondilly1974]

Like others have said, stick with 1C charging. Take the mAH rating (5000mAH) and divide it by 1000 and that is your desired charge rate in Amps (5000/1000=5).

 

[SrC]

Whenever I receive a new Lipo, I immediately check its voltage and cell balance and IR( Internal Resistance). All cells better be between 3.7v-3.8.v I've received bad Lipos out the gate before. I then send it back if they want it , get a refund or replacement. I always do a storage charge right away. I then watch the resting voltage to see if there is any big sag over time. (voltage drop at storage V., resting) This I do well ahead of me actually running the Pack. I had a new lipo once that I never opened up for a few months. It was a dud 2 months later when I opened it up. I lost out on the replacement. I always check them as soon as I receive them. It's cheap insurance. Food for thought.

I quickly checked the battery you linked.
It's a 5000mAh with a 2C charge rating. This means that you could technically charge the battery with 10 Amps. I usually charge them up pretty slow if I'm not time sensitive, and with moderate pressure I charge at 1C, meaning 5 Amps for your current battery.

As to your question, the battery hopefully came in charged state, but double-checking never hurt.
Just do as you suggested and storage-charge it for now, the fully charge it before you're going to use them.

If it arrived with any one cell below 3.7 volts, I would question that lipo pack. Could be very old inventory and not fresh. It happens more than you think. It may appear to charge well. But could be a shorter lived pack.

 

[3d-rc.myshopify.com]

Call me cautious. I charge just under the 1c rating. I know it's bad practice but I walk away from the charger.