Batteries Care

[mmudder]

I'm not sure if this is the correct section of the forum to post this thread. If not, please move it with my apologies.

I've been worried about the correct way to charge my batteries. I have IMR 18490 batteries and have been leaving them connected to the charger until ready to use. They usually end up sitting in the charger while fully charged for a while. Is this all right to do, or should I try to keep an eye on them and take them off the charger when the light turns green? I don't want to ruin the batteries.


Thanks


Edit: Ack, the title should have read "Battery Care".

 

[kwalka]

More importantly you dont want a much bigger problem than that. You really should read through the info in my signature. You need to be checking the batts with a meter when they come off the charger. Do this once a week. They should never be above 4.2 volts. Also do not over discharge them. make sure they aren't going below 3.2v.

 

[BuGlen]

I'm not sure if this is the correct section of the forum to post this thread. If not, please move it with my apologies.

I've been worried about the correct way to charge my batteries. I have IMR 18490 batteries and have been leaving them connected to the charger until ready to use. They usually end up sitting in the charger while fully charged for a while. Is this all right to do, or should I try to keep an eye on them and take them off the charger when the light turns green? I don't want to ruin the batteries.


Thanks


Edit: Ack, the title should have read "Battery Care".

I recommend taking them off the charger and storing them in a cool, dry place until they are needed.

 

[kwalka]

I recommend taking them off the charger and storing them in a cool, dry place until they are needed.

Yes I agree. I failed to answer the OPs question directly...

I haven't seen you in months. Interesting that we end up here again .

 

[BuGlen]

Yes I agree. I failed to answer the OPs question directly...

I haven't seen you in months. Interesting that we end up here again .

I see you all over the forum carrying the torch for vape safety! I've been spending a lot of my time reading the OUTSIDE forum lately, and I've been impressed with some of the intelligent political debate there (some).

 

[tc1]

Might I recommend clicking on the battery link in my signature ...

 

[Rader2146]

I always love these threads.

Who in this busy world has the time to actually practice all of these "recommended battery safety" techniques?

• Never leave a charging battery untended.
• Never charge overnight.
• Unplug charger when not in use.
• Remove the battery when the light turns green.
• Use a Li-Po Bag. (1. Does anyone know the RIGHT way to use a Li-Po bag? 2. Heat is the enemy of batteries....think about it.)
• Rest batteries before and after charging (<--That's just silly right there )

Those recommendations make good fine print for the liability attorneys, but they suck as real practical advise.


Rader2146's No-BS Charging Advise:
(Just my advise from a practical view so take it or leave it, call me a rebel or a daredevil...wont make a difference to me.)

• Use a quality charger that you can trust. I trust Xtar. They dont overcharge, the programmed to safely re-charge an over-discharged cell, the current after cutoff is VERY low, outstanding reputation. I charge overnight, unattended, leave the battery in the charger for hours after the light turns green (letting them "rest" ), and leave my charger plugged in 24/7....because I know that my charger does what it's supposed to do.
• Use quality batteries. This shouldn't need explanation. "Garbage in=Garbage out"
• Dont be a slave to you batteries. You dont turn off your cell phone or laptop, let it rest, plug it into the charger, put it into a "Li-Po" bag, wait for the light to turn green, take it out of the Li-Po bag, lest it rest, and then go back to using it....do you? So as long as you follow the first 2 bullets, why do that for your vaping batteries that are fundamentally the same as the batteries in your cell phone and laptops?

All that said, there is still a responsibility for periodic check-ups like measuring the full charge voltage of the charger and self-discharge rate of the battery. Along with responsible use of the battery in the device; ie: staying under the max rated discharge current of the battery.

Also do not over discharge them. make sure they aren't going below 3.2v.

Minimum voltage on an IMR and most quality ICR's (Panny, Sanyo, Samsung,...) is 2.5v. With the right charger, a cell can be [safely] re-charged from as low as 2.0v with minimal damage to capacity.

 

[kwalka]

I always love these threads.

Who in this busy world has the time to actually practice all of these "recommended battery safety" techniques?

• Never leave a charging battery untended.
• Never charge overnight.
• Unplug charger when not in use.
• Remove the battery when the light turns green.
• Use a Li-Po Bag. (1. Does anyone know the RIGHT way to use a Li-Po bag? 2. Heat is the enemy of batteries....think about it.)
• Rest batteries before and after charging (<--That's just silly right there )

Those recommendations make good fine print for the liability attorneys, but they suck as real practical advise.


Rader2146's No-BS Charging Advise:
(Just my advise from a practical view so take it or leave it, call me a rebel or a daredevil...wont make a difference to me.)

• Use a quality charger that you can trust. I trust Xtar. They dont overcharge, the programmed to safely re-charge an over-discharged cell, the current after cutoff is VERY low, outstanding reputation. I charge overnight, unattended, leave the battery in the charger for hours after the light turns green (letting them "rest" ), and leave my charger plugged in 24/7....because I know that my charger does what it's supposed to do.
• Use quality batteries. This shouldn't need explanation. "Garbage in=Garbage out"
• Dont be a slave to you batteries. You dont turn off your cell phone or laptop, let it rest, plug it into the charger, put it into a "Li-Po" bag, wait for the light to turn green, take it out of the Li-Po bag, lest it rest, and then go back to using it....do you? So as long as you follow the first 2 bullets, why do that for your vaping batteries that are fundamentally the same as the batteries in your cell phone and laptops?

All that said, there is still a responsibility for periodic check-ups like measuring the full charge voltage of the charger and self-discharge rate of the battery. Along with responsible use of the battery in the device; ie: staying under the max rated discharge current of the battery.







Minimum voltage on an IMR and most quality ICR's (Panny, Sanyo, Samsung,...) is 2.5v. With the right charger, a cell can be [safely] re-charged from as low as 2.0v with minimal damage to capacity.

I always love posts like this that make the possible ramifications of thermal failure seem like a wives tale. There is a huge influx of RBAs and noobs that have no clue what a meter is. Nevermind what proper batt procedure is. This is just what we need is someone telling people it's OK to discharge down to 2.5v.

Some batts may be able to handle this, in fact I agree that is true. However this applies to certain batts only. Each manufacturer has their own specs for each batt.

Err on the side of caution. Your voice is heard here and it sounds like you know what your talking about. Please do not mislead people with half the info.

Every eGo batt should be charged in a blast bag. I can find 5+ instances of ego batts going thermal/flamethrower while charging. Is this going to happen to an IMR batt in an XTar? Nope. Do I agree that Li-Mn batts dont need a blast bag? Yes, 100%.

Please be safe and share good info.

 

[Rader2146]

I always love posts like this that make the possible ramifications of thermal failure seem like a wives tale. There is a huge influx of RBAs and noobs that have no clue what a meter is. Nevermind what proper batt procedure is. This is just what we need is someone telling people it's OK to discharge down to 2.5v.

Some batts may be able to handle this, in fact I agree that is true. However this applies to certain batts only. Each manufacturer has their own specs for each batt.

Err on the side of caution. Your voice is heard here and it sounds like you know what your talking about. Please do not mislead people with half the info.

Every eGo batt should be charged in a blast bag. I can find 5+ instances of ego batts going thermal/flamethrower while charging. Is this going to happen to an IMR batt in an XTar? Nope. Do I agree that Li-Mn batts dont need a blast bag? Yes, 100%.

Please be safe and share good info.

Dont get me wrong, the possibilities are very real, but also very rare. Battery safety is a personal responsibility, so if the noob doesnt heed one of the thousands of overzealous battery warnings or as least ask some questions, then there isnt much hope for him anyways. I provide the facts, and my recommendations based on the facts. I dont agree with bloating the specs and making blanket statements when the fact is that 2.5v is OK for IMR batteries. Is it good practice to stop at 3.2v...Yes. But making the statement "dont go below 3.2v" will mislead someone into thinking they have done harm to their battery when they really haven't. I firmly believe that bloating the specs is the root of some of the recommendations that I have seen stating "dont discharge below 3.6v". Erring on the side of caution^{^2}

For this thread, and the type battery that the OP is concerned with, I have provided all the info. There has been no misleading on my part. It is not my place to err on the side of caution on behalf of someone else. I provide the info and they decide the degree of caution that they would like to apply.

eGo batts and other devices with non-replaceable batteries were not part of the OPs question so by advice wasnt geared towards them, but it still somewhat applies. I would not trust an eGo charger or eGo batteries, so an additional degree of caution would apply. They do contain Li-Po cells inside, so a Li-Po bag would be appropriate for them. What is just downright silly, is that many people are placing their XTar (or whatever brand) chargers and IMR/ICR batteries in Li-Po bags. Chargers produce heat, heat is a battery's enemy, Li-Po bags dont allow the heat to dissipate properly, so they are literally baking their batteries...all in the interest of safety because someone told them it was a good idea. Ironic?

 

[BuGlen]

I always love posts like this that make the possible ramifications of thermal failure seem like a wives tale. There is a huge influx of RBAs and noobs that have no clue what a meter is. Nevermind what proper batt procedure is. This is just what we need is someone telling people it's OK to discharge down to 2.5v.

Some batts may be able to handle this, in fact I agree that is true. However this applies to certain batts only. Each manufacturer has their own specs for each batt.

Err on the side of caution. Your voice is heard here and it sounds like you know what your talking about. Please do not mislead people with half the info.

Every eGo batt should be charged in a blast bag. I can find 5+ instances of ego batts going thermal/flamethrower while charging. Is this going to happen to an IMR batt in an XTar? Nope. Do I agree that Li-Mn batts dont need a blast bag? Yes, 100%.

Please be safe and share good info.

Agreed. And I would also like to add that it's been my experience that the average person does not follow all that is recommended for safety, but will instead do what they feel is a comfortable level of risk based on their own experiences. If we only recommend our own personal practices, then the person taking that advice may assume that's the "worst case" scenario and reduce the requirements further. This is what I've observed as standard human behavior.

BTW: If you live in an area prone to lightning strikes (like I do), it's generally recommended to unplug ALL electronic devices when not in use to prolong their life. This can be true if you live in an area that experiences brown outs as well as sudden reduced power can harm certain components. Yes, you can use UPS devices and expensive surge suppression devices to minimize the damage, but those too are subject the power surges and occasional failures.

Finally, I couldn't agree more that one should always get high quality batteries, but that does not negate the need to respect them for what they are. While the newer battery chemistry is safer than the batteries of yesteryear, they still do require care in applications that demand the output that some APVs require. It's been a blessing that we haven't heard any more stories in the general media about e-cig related battery incidents since early last year, and I like to believe that we (ECF) as a responsible community has helped in that regard.