5V regulated box mod weirdness

[billherbst]

Among my large inventory of PVs/mods, I own three 5-volt regulated box mods. Each was purchased from a different vendor---a Big Kazoo from KalamazooVaping and two other no-name (and dirt cheap) 5V box mods from GoodEJuice and MaximumVapors. All three are basically the same---simple, handmade mods using black plastic 3AA boxes for the case, dual 14500 batteries, with an inexpensive little wafer board inside that holds the 5-volt regulator chip, a 510 connector with a center horn firing button, and an on-off switch at the bottom of the front face.

They all put out exactly 5.0 volts, and they all work fine.

Here's the weird part: If I leave the on-off switch in the "on" position, all three units completely drain the batteries overnight when I'm not vaping them, so that when I pick them up the next day for their 10-15 minutes of use, I get nothing, since the batteries have drained down to their protected cutoff and won't fire. So, I swap 'em out for a freshly-charged pair of 14500s, slap the drained pair onto the charger, and they charge right back up to full.

My question is: What's the deal with this? Why are the batteries draining on all three 5V box mods when not in use? I also own a whole slew of Madvapes VV boxes---which are made using the same plastic 3AA box with the switch---but I can leave the switch in the "on" position forever on those. The only time the batteries drain is when I'm vaping them. Which---as far as I'm concerned---is exactly how they're "supposed" to work.

If it were only one of the 5V boxes that did this, I'd think it was just a glitch in the 5V regulator board on that unit, but no---it happens on all three.

Is there something strange about those 5V regulator chips?

This isn't a killer problem. The easy fix is simply to turn the switches to the "off" position after I'm done vaping each box, which I now do. Heck, it's not even much of a hassle. So, I'm not tormented or losing sleep over this problem. It is, however, a mystery I'd like solve.

Has anyone else experienced this problem with 5V regulated box mods? Or am I just radioactive somehow?

 

[twohandedcreations]

i have a big kazoo from kvs and a bunch of madvapes 5v kits i put together myself. and i haven't had this issue with any of them. but the fact that your having the same issue with 3 different boxes makes me wonder if its not an issue with the batt's as opposed to the units.... but if its the same batts your using with your VV units, then im just clueless... i know ive been absolutely no help and im not even too sure why i chimed in. but i figured id let ya know that ive been using the big kazoo for a while now with no prob's. i let it sit all night with the switch on and it works fine in the a.m....

 

[Nomoreash]

Regulators most often will have a slight drain on the batteries when not in use. Some more than others, it's usually not much but can vary depending on the regulator used and how it's wired, your case does seem a little excessive.

Sorry, really can't really get more detailed than that without looking up the specs of the specific regulator used and how they wired it, sounds like you've found the simple fix though and safer also.

 

[billherbst]

twohanded and nomo,

Thanks for responding. I didn't expect any profound revelations, but it was nice of you both to take the time.

After reading your posts, I wonder if the "workaround" of switching off the boxes after vaping might be a good idea for all 12 my 2AA and 3AA box mods (since they all have those little on-off switches). Easy enough to make the routine of turning them off and on a second-nature habit, and it's really no extra hassle. As nomo wrote, turning off the boxes when not vaping them provides an extra layer of safety to insure against the rare but inherent volatility problems of li-ion battery chemistry. Yes, all my li-ions in every size are protected, but still...

 

[XMit]

I'm not privy to the boards in the regulated mods save for what I've seen in pics. That said, all I can think of is if the board has caps, pots and or simple resistors. Capacitors and potentiometers will store energy and slowly disspate it in heat, resistors the same thing depending on the regulated load.

That's all I can think of. The radiated heat, while so low to be indiscernable to the touch will drain power from a battery. Then you get into a myriad of other things like the length of the wire runs, the amount of trace on the board; all these things can potentionally store and convert energy to heat. The switch is probably closer to the battery and effectively stops the "slow dribble", so to speak.

I am not an electronics guy, just an observation from my humble amount of knowledge.

 

[Nomoreash]

twohanded and nomo,

Thanks for responding. I didn't expect any profound revelations, but it was nice of you both to take the time.

After reading your posts, I wonder if the "workaround" of switching off the boxes after vaping might be a good idea for all 12 my 2AA and 3AA box mods (since they all have those little on-off switches). Easy enough to make the routine of turning them off and on a second-nature habit, and it's really no extra hassle. As nomo wrote, turning off the boxes when not vaping them provides an extra layer of safety to insure against the rare but inherent volatility problems of li-ion battery chemistry. Yes, all my li-ions in every size are protected, but still...

If your mods are regulated, (5v or VV) then turning them off after each use could make a difference in battery life as there will most always be a very slight drain on the battery but ordinarily it should be so slight of a difference it wouldn't be noticed. I turn mine off when I'm carrying it around so it won't accidentally fire and then again at the end of the day, other than that I don't worry about it.

If your mods aren't regulated then other than added the safety of breaking the circuit path (which the switch already does) there should be no difference.

 

[hoogie76]

Just my guess but if the chip has a control pin that is being used, then it uses a pull-down resistor to keep the pin low so it doesn't activate. There's probably some small current going through that continuously when the main switch is on.

hoog