Battery Question

[serenity21899]

I have a bunch of AW IMR 2000 mah 18650 batteries. 4 are about 13 months old, and a couple of them are a couple of months old. I am using a Pila IBC Charger.

I cycle through them all, and let them rest before and after charging. I do use them until my ProVari starts blinking at me. They were all bought from reliable US vendors.

They used to come off the charger, and after resting read on my ProVari 4.1. Recently, they are coming off the charger at 3.8 or 3.9. I get the older ones doing this, but the newer ones read the same. They do get a lot of use, and they also don't seem to be giving me the use time they used to, either.

I do not sub ohm. My coils are around 2.5ohms and my voltage around 3.8ish. So, I am not using my batteries beyond their capacity. Also, my other size batteries are not doing this, nor are my Efest batteries.

I am planning on replacing the older ones soon, but it's the 2 newer ones that I'm wondering about.

 

[Ryedan]

They used to come off the charger, and after resting read on my ProVari 4.1. Recently, they are coming off the charger at 3.8 or 3.9. I get the older ones doing this, but the newer ones read the same. They do get a lot of use, and they also don't seem to be giving me the use time they used to, either.

Just want to be sure I understand. You're saying that the new batteries are coming off the charger reading 3.8-3.9V and don't seem to be giving you the same time per charge? If that's true, how sure are you the vape time per charge is going down?

 

[serenity21899]

I used to get about a day out of an 18650 and now I don't. Had one this evening that was about 6 hours or so. It's a little hard to keep track of since several mods are rotated throughout my day.

 

[Ryedan]

I used to get about a day out of an 18650 and now I don't. Had one this evening that was about 6 hours or so. It's a little hard to keep track of since several mods are rotated throughout my day.

There are two possibilities here. The Provari could be reading the voltage wrong or the charger is failing to fully charge the batteries.

Since you are seeing less vape time per charge on the new batteries also (I think), my bet is on the charger having a problem. If the new batteries were giving you the same vape time you were used to with fully charged batteries I would say the Provari was giving you the wrong voltage reading.

One way to double check and make sure would be to measure battery voltage with a DMM and compare to the Provari reading.

 

[serenity21899]

I was thinking about this issue and realized up until a month or so ago, I was using 3ohm cartos at about 3.4 volts. But I'm thinking that overall that isn't really much of a difference?

 

[serenity21899]

There are two possibilities here. The Provari could be reading the voltage wrong or the charger is failing to fully charge the batteries.

Since you are seeing less vape time per charge on the new batteries also (I think), my bet is on the charger having a problem. If the new batteries were giving you the same vape time you were used to with fully charged batteries I would say the Provari was giving you the wrong voltage reading.

One way to double check and make sure would be to measure battery voltage with a DMM and compare to the Provari reading.

I have 3 ProVari, and get the same thing. And yes, with over a year of vaping, I don't own a multimeter. I am also thinking it's the charger. And trying to figure out what the issue is before I buy replacement stuff.

ETA: The charger was purchased in May 2013 from ProVape.

 

[Ryedan]

I was thinking about this issue and realized up until a month or so ago, I was using 3ohm cartos at about 3.4 volts. But I'm thinking that overall that isn't really much of a difference?

No, that would not make this much difference.

 

[Ryedan]

I have 3 ProVari, and get the same thing. And yes, with over a year of vaping, I don't own a multimeter. I am also thinking it's the charger. And trying to figure out what the issue is before I buy replacement stuff.

3 Provaris all giving you the same voltage readings means the voltage is correct and the charger is failing. It's time for a new charger

 

[serenity21899]

Thank you for your input. I tend to agree based on what I know. Kinda hard to take when you buy a good one, but that's how it goes.

 

[Ryedan]

ETA: The charger was purchased in May 2013 from ProVape.

That's under one year old. Do you know how long the warranty is?

 

[Katya]

I have a bunch of AW IMR 2000 mah 18650 batteries. 4 are about 13 months old, and a couple of them are a couple of months old. I am using a Pila IBC Charger.

I cycle through them all, and let them rest before and after charging. I do use them until my ProVari starts blinking at me. They were all bought from reliable US vendors.

They used to come off the charger, and after resting read on my ProVari 4.1. Recently, they are coming off the charger at 3.8 or 3.9. I get the older ones doing this, but the newer ones read the same. They do get a lot of use, and they also don't seem to be giving me the use time they used to, either.

I do not sub ohm. My coils are around 2.5ohms and my voltage around 3.8ish. So, I am not using my batteries beyond their capacity. Also, my other size batteries are not doing this, nor are my Efest batteries.

I am planning on replacing the older ones soon, but it's the 2 newer ones that I'm wondering about.

Are you saying that those other batteries charge all the way up to 4.2v? If so, the charger is fine.

 

[Ryedan]

Are you saying that those other batteries charge all the way up to 4.2v? If so, the charger is fine.

Yup, if you've got any batteries that are coming of this charger at 4.2V, it's a whole new ballgame susieq. I was thinking they were all reading 3.8-3.9V on 3 different Provaris.

 

[serenity21899]

That's under one year old. Do you know how long the warranty is?

I thought it was a year. ProVape doesn't state it on their website. But it is also to late at night to go look for the box and paperwork on it.

 

[serenity21899]

Are you saying that those other batteries charge all the way up to 4.2v? If so, the charger is fine.

I thought they were when I last used them, but I am not entirely sure. I have been using only 18650s for the last few days. Before I take any action, I will be verifying the other size/brand batteries I have. I certainly do not want to replace a charger if I do not have to.

 

[Katya]

I thought they were when I last used them, but I am not entirely sure. I have been using only 18650s for the last few days. Before I take any action, I will be verifying the other size/brand batteries I have. I certainly do not want to replace a charger if I do not have to.

Yeah, do that first. Pila is a good and expensive charger; it should last longer than a year. I use a Nitecore I2--much cheaper than the Pila and it's been working flawlessly for over a year.

Good luck!

 

[serenity21899]

The Pila warranty is voided if you use batteries other than those made by Pila. Ok then, that's useless.

 

[Ryedan]

I thought they were when I last used them, but I am not entirely sure. I have been using only 18650s for the last few days. Before I take any action, I will be verifying the other size/brand batteries I have. I certainly do not want to replace a charger if I do not have to.

Yup, make sure you understand what is happening before you move forward susieq. Little details matter. You need to make sure your charger is capable of charging to 4.2V with a good battery. I would try that with one of the new AW's. If it can do that it is good and you likely have battery issues with old cells.

 

[Ryedan]

The Pila warranty is voided if you use batteries other than those made by Pila. Ok then, that's useless.

Can you give us a link to that?

My second thought is tell them all the batteries you own are Pila.

My third thought is you're not sure it's the charger yet. Relax ... one thing at a time, lol.

 

[serenity21899]

Can you give us a link to that?

My second thought is tell them all the batteries you own are Pila.

My third thought is you're not sure it's the charger yet. Relax ... one thing at a time, lol.

I did a Google search and several hits gave the same info. And I also vaguely remember that from when I bought it.

 

[serenity21899]

I just randomly checked some of my newer batteries in other sized and got 4.O on them. But I don't remember when I last charged them. Have them in use now so I can recharge them and see what I get.