Battery Question...

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yzer

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Generally best to charge the battery when it drops below the nominal voltage of 3.7V. Full charge is just below 4.2V, like 4.15 to 4.19V.

Some APVs will tell you battery charge, others will signal that battery is low and needs charging.

A DMM can tell you voltage remaining on the battery.

We never actually run these Li-ion batteries all the way down. That's a popular misconception. If protected ICR (for instance) is run below 2.7V it may refuse to be recharged. 3.2V is about as low as I will take a Li-ion. 3.4 to 3.7V for recharging is ideal.
 

*deleon517*

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i just simply recharge when i switch batteries, most will have a point in the charge where vapor and or flavor drop off a bit, that's a natural part of the battery power curve. at that point i put it on the charger and switch batts.

what will effect the batteries over all life is its expected charge cycle. most will have a number like 200 or 500 charges in its life cycle. as you approach that number its ability to provide the same power as brand new may start to decrease.
 

Gatillero1980

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Which MOD? which batteries? if something like a provari then the device will not let the battery over-discharge (under 3.3V i think) and as long as your 3.7V battery reads 4.2V fully charged then everything will be ok. Now, if fully charged it reads 4.4V or more then you may want to replace the charger.

Don't take my word for it though, let's see what everybody else says.
 
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tj99959

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    Li Ion batteries do not have memory, but you will find that they have safeguards built in that prevent you from over discharging them.
    I don't understand what you mean by "repeat 2-3 times".
    Basically you recharge mod batteries when you notice the voltage dropoff. Some are happy using a battery until it shuts itself off, others never let theirs drop below 3.7v. The battery really doesn't care.
     

    yzer

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    If a new battery is 3.8V or above I would use it before charging it. If it is above 3.8V you won't hurt it by charging it, though.

    Despite industry-wide claims of 300 charge cycles before battery capacity is noticeably diminished, most of us are seeing Li-ions show some signs of capacity loss after 30-50 charge cycles. Still, standard cylindrical Li-ion batteries are a much more economical way to power an APV than battery/switch/connector combos.
     

    tj99959

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    Ok... I have been vaping on my Ego Twist batteries until the button flashes. I then put that one on the charger and pick up a charged one. I guess I thought the blinking light was the indicator that its time to charge. Plus it shuts off .... ;-) Am I letting the batteries get to low before charging?

    Not hurting a thing, that is how the unit is designed to be used. When you get to the point where there would be noticeable drop off the button flashes and it stops working.
     

    yzer

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    The button on my E-Power 14650 which is regulated 3.7V flashes when the battery drops down to about 3.5V. That's when I change out to a freshly charged battery.

    Actually, I notice low battery before the light flashes. As soon as the battery drops under the E-Power regulated 3.7 the vapor quality changes. Less vapor and cooler. Battery voltage will drop off very quickly after it reaches 3.7V. It can take me 15.5 hours to run from 4.19V down to 3.7V. It takes only 30 minutes or less to run from 3.7V to 3.5V.

    I use a good quality digital multimeter (DMM) to check voltage and resistance. Lot of cheap ones around but a decent DMM can be had for $25-40. I check battery voltage directly from the battery before charging and several hours after charging up a new batch. Resistance measurements can be useful with cartos, attys, etc.
     
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