Battery charging safety: Wall charger vs micro USB

[bearsarecool]

Hi all,
I've been a lurker for too long, so gonna start with this.

I have a what I know to probably be the best direct clone of the hana modz DNA30.

Question: Why is it considered safer/better to charge the 18650 batteries which this device takes (e.g. my Samsung 25-R) in a "proper" charger, rather than plugging the battery-containing mod into a USB charger via micro-USB?

I have gathered that both methods of charging should not really be left unattended.

Also: Will a cheap charger (Amazon, about 6eurors/10 bucks) that says it will charge all 3,7V Li-Ion 18650s charge a LiNiMnCo (like my S. 18650 25-R) with sufficient safety if I keep an eye on it?

The element combinations still confuse me.

EDIT: Went with Nitecore NC-I2, sounds like this has everything covered for 20 euros.

Thanks!

 

[classwife]

Welcome to ECF bearsarecool


Moved you to New Members from Simple Solutions

 

[bearsarecool]

Thanks, will bear that subforum in mind in future!

 

[drunkenbatman]

Question: Why is it considered safer/better to charge the 18650 batteries which this device takes (e.g. my Samsung 25-R) in a "proper" charger, rather than plugging the battery-containing mod into a USB charger via micro-USB?

Hey mate, found you wandering deep in the thread wilderness so hopefully you're still around. You got a solid charger, so you're set there.

There are generally two reasons why it's recc to charge outside of the device:

1. It's generally much faster as I believe the builtin is 500 milliamp.

2. Batteries are the most dangerous part of the device, statistically most issues will happen while they're charging, and a dedicated known-good charger helps minimize that risk.

The Hana Modz version might be perfectly OK and charge just fine, but the clone version might not. Or the clone version might be just fine, and the authentic has an issue. There have been enough issues with their reliability as compared to a dedicated charger that they're recommended -- it may be we get to a point where that is being overly cautious for most mods, but I'm not sure we're there yet.

And yes, it's highly recommended you not leave the batteries unattended while charging as in the rare event something does go wrong you want to be on top of it.

 

[bearsarecool]

Hey mate, found you wandering deep in the thread wilderness so hopefully you're still around. You got a solid charger, so you're set there.

There are generally two reasons why it's recc to charge outside of the device:

1. It's generally much faster as I believe the builtin is 500 milliamp.

2. Batteries are the most dangerous part of the device, statistically most issues will happen while they're charging, and a dedicated known-good charger helps minimize that risk.

The Hana Modz version might be perfectly OK and charge just fine, but the clone version might not. Or the clone version might be just fine, and the authentic has an issue. There have been enough issues with their reliability as compared to a dedicated charger that they're recommended -- it may be we get to a point where that is being overly cautious for most mods, but I'm not sure we're there yet.

And yes, it's highly recommended you not leave the batteries unattended while charging as in the rare event something does go wrong you want to be on top of it.

Thank you for your reply, I was aware of most of the general issues involved, was a nice summary though.
My impression was that "good chargers" also usually charge 18650s at 500mA (incuding the one I listed).

On vapingforum.com one member's opinion was that he wouldn't use a USB-charging mod that takes a removable 18650 (or other "external") battery, period.
So it wasn't really a question of clone vs authentic. His reasoning was that fixed battery devices (e.g. MVP, Istick etc.) are built for that very purpose (USB-charging), so they ought to be safer.

Thank you v much though!

 

[drunkenbatman]

Thank you for your reply, I was aware of most of the general issues involved, was a nice summary though.
My impression was that "good chargers" also usually charge 18650s at 500mA (incuding the one I listed).

The i2 does 500mA x2, so each battery being charged gets 500mA. On the i4 it does 750mA in paired bays (or 1&4) or otherwise 375mA (it's working with 1.5A). You also have the case that not all power sources are equal, so your computer port/wall adapter might not be putting out 500mA but rather 150 or 420... I remember one Hana clone that never pulled more than 180mah.

...However, assuming it is, you're right that if you are just charging a single battery in the i2 vs the Hana Modz ideally you're getting about the same charge. However if you're dealing with two batteries, that obviously changes. Will one battery last you all day? Go here and start to figure it out.

Battery drain | Steam Engine | free vaping calculators

On vapingforum.com one member's opinion was that he wouldn't use a USB-charging mod that takes a removable 18650 (or other "external") battery, period.
So it wasn't really a question of clone vs authentic. His reasoning was that fixed battery devices (e.g. MVP, Istick etc.) are built for that very purpose (USB-charging), so they ought to be safer.

Oh my. Wait till you see some of what gets said here.

I can kind of see how he squinted and ended up there, but what completely kills it is the logic behind it. There's a big difference between an MVP/iStick and a random istick clone, or even the cloupor minis that are catching fire. There's no reason a removable-battery boxmod can't have solid onboard charging, it's just that it's been sub-par and wonky in enough devices that it's very hard to trust them.

When LEDs are turning green while the battery is still charging, or red when it's fully charged, you *hope* the onboard charger is not dumb enough to get confused and keep pumping current into a battery but you can't say.

The way the Hanna-Modz are designed with the single battery and screws on the backplate instead of magnets, it makes switching out the batteries annoying, so no one is going to look askance at you if you use the on-board charger, but they're also not going to look askance at you if you use an external one.

Two last things:

1. In case I missed it the first go-around, welcome mate!

2. Bears are cool.

 

[rolygate]

Another thing is that people have blown up their laptops trying to pull more than 500mA out of the USB port.

PCs tend to be able to take a bit more of a hammering. Also, if you burn out a PC USB port then maybe it's a daughter card on the mainboard, or you could add a card if the mainboard blows. Either way it may not cost too much to fix, sometimes. If all else fails then just stick a new mobo in, sorted for $30. Unless it's a Dell PC, but strictly speaking they aren't PCs, they're more in the Apple monopoly parts class.

Burning up a laptop is always expensive, and some faults are so costly to fix you end up buying a new laptop.

And don't even think of risking an Apple laptop, the costs are enormous as it's a monopoly.