Living with LiPo’s

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RoyRoy

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I love the worry-free robustness of the Nihm’s on our ECX. But I know I’ll be getting another RC eventually. I don’t think a 15T brushed or a 8.6 Nihm hump battery is going to be a big enough jump in excitement/speed/power for me.

I’m hearing lots of things about overcharging/overdischarging, starting fires, balance charging, and charge rates for storage of LiPo batteries. -not the mention the amperage/power/size ratings-
My kids are very “let’s run the monster truck!” Spur-of-the moment. So I’ve always got two Nihms charged and ready to go. When they’re done, they’re off and running to something else, and so am I. (We have a ECX Amp MT and a Spectrum 150 charger)

I see a Granite or Big Rock in my future, I’m just worried about wrecking a LiPo because I’m not taking care of it the right way.
LiPo’s are pretty foreign to me. Are they really that high-maintenance? I’d appreciate some advice.
 
Look bro...
... jk buddy!
I was worried to when I got into the hobby. Lipos aren't too bad as long as a little care is exercised.

Didn't mean to come off as a jerk lol @aametzger just text me asking why I left the first short response ?
 
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Look bro...
... jk buddy!
I was worried to when I got into the hobby. Lipos aren't too bad as long as a little care is exercised.

Didn't mean to come off as a jerk lol @aametzger just text me asking why I left the first short response ?
:ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: :ROFLMAO: called me out i see.. thanks buddy!
 
Ya, so not much care is required. U should be fine! I do worry sometimes but I have good experience with the HRB 3s on Amazon! Just make sure u have a compatible charger. Always get a lipo charging bag. Then u could light the whole batch of lipos on fire :cool: ? (don't do that)
 
Don’t stress too much about it. Just get a decent lipo safe bag, I think my zee one was 12 bucks, and use that when you charge. Just keep an eye on things when your charging otherwise you should be good.
 
Lipos are safe but they do require maintenance. You can't leave them charged for more than ~ 2 days and you can't run them to complete empty.
They do have a lot more power which equates to more fun. Charging takes ~ 45 min.
No idea how old your kids are but they have to learn some responsibility at some point.

Maybe it's best you start with 1 RC on Lipo and grow into it.

Lipo bags are utterly useless for the bigger ones, just a waste of money. You will need a capable charger, look in the Electronics section or ask.
 
I was also worried when I started reading about Lipos.

Really, you should not worry too much about. Just make sure you understand and apply rigourously the basic rules and the risk of fire should be very low.

- Don't let you kids be in charge of the charging if you don't trust them totally.
- Get a good charger
- Don't leave the batteries fully charged for more than a few hours.
- Keep your batteries at the storage voltage (~3.85V/cell) when you don't use the car. Lipos are very stable at the storage voltage
- Always balance charge your lipos at 1C (i.e.: at a current equivalent to the size of the battery in mAh divided by 1000. For example: 1C for a 5000mAh battery is 5A).
- Stay nearby when you charge the batteries, and charge them in a lipo bag and/or fire-proof box.
- Discard the battery (or at least monitor it closely) when it starts puffing.
- Keep the batteries in a fire-proof box. Many people are using an ammo box.

I think that pretty much covers it.
 
IMO it's a good idea to respect the potential danger of a lipo, but in practice if managed properly the risk is low. That being said, for years I did not heed my own advice. I never storage charged (didn't have a charger that could do it and honestly didn't care as much years ago) I puffed several batteries, over discharged them, charged them hot etc. All the things that are NO NO's. I am more careful now. Partially because the larger batteries are expensive and i'm more serious now. More cars means more batteries = more potential danger for fire.

summary:
  1. Lipo safety - Get a lipo bag.
    1. charge in the bag if your not going to be anywhere near your charger while changing(i never leave the house while charging)
    2. store your batteries in the bag when not in use
  2. lipo charging - After running put the batteries on the charger and do a storage charge (to fully charge from a storage charge likely only takes 20 min so you can quickly charge when you decide you want to run)
    1. if I know I am going to run within 24 hours I do a full charge vs storage, and put in the bag
    2. if the batteries are hot, wait 10-15 for them to cool down before charging. I think the spectrum charger will tell you the temp of the battery when you plug it in. I usually don't charge unless the battery shows under 90 degrees (nothing scientific here just what i do)
  3. over discharging - your car will detect LVC and go into a limp mode. this prevents over discharging, unless you turn the truck off and on again and run it more. If you do this a few times you can put the batteries a risk of over discharging. make sure your kids don't do that.
  4. charge rate - most batteries will list the charge rate. if not 1c is a safe charge rate. 5000mah @ 1c charge rate would be 5amp. if the battery says it can charge at 2c, then 5000mah @ 2c would be 10amp
Ya, so not much care is required. U should be fine! I do worry sometimes but I have good experience with the HRB 3s on Amazon! Just make sure u have a compatible charger. Always get a lipo charging bag. Then u could light the whole batch of lipos on fire :cool: ? (don't do that)
I have actually thought about that i often do store multiple batteries in the same bag and i have thought to myself.. crap, if one of these goes up in smoke its going to be an expensive fire :cool: . not nearly as expensive as my house catching fire but still... Im interested in what others think about this.. multiple lipo bags?
 
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I have actually thought about that i often do store multiple batteries in the same bag and i have thought to myself.. crap, if one of these goes up in smoke its going to be an expensive fire :cool: . not nearly as expensive as my house catching fire but still... Im interested in what others think about this.. multiple lipo bags?

For storage, I put two 3S batteries per lipo bag and all my batteries + lipo bags in an ammo box.

Pretty sure all batteries will be destroyed if one catches fire in the lot, but the lipo bag certainly don't hurt.
 
Thanks, everybody. This helps. (Some information out there on the ‘net make LiPo sound unstable like like nuclear fuel rods.)
 
There's a lot of hype getting into lipos, they're really safe as long as you know how to take care of them, charging, balancing, storing. I've had no issues with them in almost 20 years, don't use any lipos sacks even though I have them and leave them in my home sitting on a shelf or whatever. Just recently got a ammo can to throw them in. Don't be intimidated, read up on them, it's easy peasy.
 
I was skittish at first as well, but now, not so much. Once you get used to taking care of them, it just becomes second nature. Many lipo's these days you can safely charge at 2C to cut your charge times down. I just charged 2 4S 6200mah packs from storage in 18-19 minutes. You just need to start with a charger that can do it. I usually charge at 1.5C or so, which takes 30 minutes, but I wanted to cycle some 4S packs I just built out of old 3S lipo's I had so I could see the IR and log it.

2020-1127-Hobbystar6200mah-4S-ohms.jpg


Now I'm discharging them to storage charge, then will charge them back up tomorrow morning for a run tomorrow.
 
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