Charging Issues

[Jazzman]

This might help you some...

Guide to Choosing a Li-ion Battery Charger

This is a good blog for 3 years ago, but is dated to the point of irrelevance now. It really should be updated a bit to reflect current reality. You do a great job with your blogs so how about a refresh of this one, it could be very helpful to many to show current products and capabilities.

This is not a slam @Baditude , but times, needs, features and capabilities have changed greatly since this was written.

 

[Steensj2004]

Yeah it's always a good idea to have some kind of test equipment for your batteries like me I have a couple of units that I can use to test battery sag. So after a little bit of time I will take my batteries charge them plug them into one of my testers I will activate the battery and I will check for the SAG if it drops too low so let's say it goes from 3.7 to 3 volts flat usually that's the sign of a weak battery or dying battery. A little bit of voltage sag is not bad so like 2/10 or 3/10 of a volt isn't that bad but 7/10 of a volt that's a little excessive in my opinion

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

I have testing equipment back home, but unfortunately I’m on travel for work. I might look for better battery options, however. Thanks for the input!

 

[Steensj2004]

If you take the batteries out and put them back in, does it then work properly? I have a Nitecore i2 that occasionally does the same thing. When I re-seat the batteries it then works fine.

I did insert and remove them multiple times. No change.

 

[Steensj2004]

I did insert and remove them multiple times. No change.

Is there a charger/s, that as whole, are considered top quality? Cost is irrelevant if it’s worth the cost.

 

[stols001]

Xtar makes some nice chargers. I won one, and I have a feeling it does considerably MORE than I need it to do.

I will say ONE Brown LG I got from a reputable vendor sort of behaved in a (maybe? Similar? Fashion) when I charged it up. It sat around not gaining any charge while the other one was fully charged, and it sat in that charger..... For a fair period of time. It did that for like the first 4 or 5 charges, and I was seriously thinking "I need to throw that sucker out" only it got faster every time and now it's indistinguishable.

I don't know if it was over-discharged and sitting too long, just being stubborn or what. I will also say my brown LGs in general seem to take the longest to charge.

I have no idea why that is, and perhaps your batteries were in fact authentic and just elderly. In any case, I'm glad the vape shop was willing to dispose of them for you.

Annna

 

[Baditude]

This is a good blog for 3 years ago, but is dated to the point of irrelevance now. It really should be updated a bit to reflect current reality. You do a great job with your blogs so how about a refresh of this one, it could be very helpful to many to show current products and capabilities.

This is not a slam @Baditude , but times, needs, features and capabilities have changed greatly since this was written.

Your point is well taken. While I was writing the blog and attempting to list some recommended chargers by brand and model, I quickly realized that I probably wasn't qualified to create such a list. Researching that information is extremely time consuming and confusing, and it wasn't long before I simply wrote that the blog was a "work in progress" and left it as is. Should I have attempted to finish the blog, it would probably have become outdated within a few months time. It's hard enough to just stay current with the batteries available let alone the chargers, too. I still haven't gotten around to recommending any batteries other than the 18650's; for the more uncommon size batteries visit Mooch's blog.

As is, the blog is still pretty useful for a beginner to vaping in describing the basic features to look for in a basic charger. Anyone looking for more advanced features in the newer models can do that research for themselves.

That's probably a reason that Mooch hasn't come out with a Recommended Battery Charger list. He was smart enough to realize what an overwhelming and time consuming task that would be.

 

[CasketWeaver]

I have testing equipment back home, but unfortunately I’m on travel for work. I might look for better battery options, however. Thanks for the input!

Yeah, IF those are authentic LG HG2's, they will take a bit to charge, but from 3.7V to 4.2V, shouldn't take too long I don't think. Before you toss them, test them. Buy a charger that has a discharge feature on it as well, then discharge them, check the voltage, and try recharging them again, then check the voltage again.

The lower the mAh, the faster they charge normally. But with the battery indicator only blinking on the bottom line and the battery already reporting 3.7V, something is a bit fishy.

 

[Eskie]

If the charger works with other batteries there's nothing wrong with it. Yes there are faster chargers on the market but remember, the faster the charge, the shorter the lifespan of the battery. As you already know from your RC Lipo packs heat and battery longevity don't mix. I think a 1A per battery charger is a good balance. There are 2 and 3A fast chargers out there but you will be buying replacements more often.

The problem with 18650s and other can sizes is rewrapping of B and C bin batteries is rampant and in some cases you have zero idea who the original manufacturer was. Those brown batteries should be from LG but are among the most commonly counterfeits on the market. EBay and Amazon (third party sellers) are simply untrustworthy. Unfortunately those same problems end up in retail vape shops as well, along with rewrap names like Efest or Imren. You have no idea what's under the shrink wrap.

If you want a new charger sure, why not. But I'd suggest getting all your vape batteries from reliable sources known to only sell authentic Sony/Murata, Samsung, LG, and Sanyo batteries. In the US places like IMRbatteries, Liion, Illum, are the best sources. Shipping is a little long due to battery shipping restrictions (same on your Lipos) but the price on the authentic is usually within a dollar of the fakes, and not uncommonly on the cheaper side of it. I imagine the hobbyist retail stores you deal with do a good job on the Lipos they sell, unfortunately the 18650, 20700, 21700 type cans typically used in vape mods are a lot more problematic.

 

[P3ch3]

Sorry if I wasn't clear enough. Your charger is fine for what you do. I was just saying if you want more there are some good chargers for reasonable cost. The new models from Nitecore and XTar are quite a bit better than the older models, but probably weren't available when you purchased yours since they are recently released.

mine isnt bad at all i know, but the fact is that sometimes i do store batteries a while the feature of new ones is interesting, thanks a lot mate!

I don't know if it was over-discharged and sitting too long, just being stubborn or what. I will also say my brown LGs in general seem to take the longest to charge.

happens to me with mines too, compared to sansumgs and 1 anarchist battery i have, even when i truly suspect that anarchist is a LG too.... but too lazy to re-wrap and find out,
mxjo's and awt, the red ones takes exactly the same as brown hg2 lg's !




Regards,

 

[Jazzman]

mine isnt bad at all i know, but the fact is that sometimes i do store batteries a while the feature of new ones is interesting, thanks a lot mate!

You can still do a storage charge with your charger, you just have to do it manually. Use the battery until it is below 3.6v and charge it to anywhere between 3.6~3.7v and stop the charge. Sure you have to pay attention and watch it, but that will do a storage charge just fine. So no worries.

 

[P3ch3]

You can still do a storage charge with your charger, you just have to do it manually. Use the battery until it is below 3.6v and charge it to anywhere between 3.6~3.7v and stop the charge. Sure you have to pay attention and watch it, but that will do a storage charge just fine. So no worries.

my effest just have white light while charging.. blue when done so.. ill be vaping more and more next week since gotta workout 3 days, play sports and then spend time recovering, so more vaping time

 

[ScottP]

This is a good blog for 3 years ago, but is dated to the point of irrelevance now. It really should be updated a bit to reflect current reality. You do a great job with your blogs so how about a refresh of this one, it could be very helpful to many to show current products and capabilities.

I quickly realized that I probably wasn't qualified to create such a list. Researching that information is extremely time consuming and confusing, and it wasn't long before I simply wrote that the blog was a "work in progress" and left it as is.

That's probably a reason that Mooch hasn't come out with a Recommended Battery Charger list. He was smart enough to realize what an overwhelming and time consuming task that would be.

This is the site I use to look up the most current charger info:
Round cell charger index

You can't sort it but he does have it broken down into some more specific lists if you look at the links just above the chart. If you click a link to a charger he has a full review, and even does heat maps to show how hot they do or don't get. Very in depth. As mentioned it's up to date with 13 new charger reviews this year so far.

Legend and column description are at the very bottom.

 

[leftyandsparky]

This is the site I use to look up the most current charger info:
Round cell charger index

You can't sort it but he does have it broken down into some more specific lists if you look at the links just above the chart. If you click a link to a charger he has a full review, and even does heat maps to show how hot they do or don't get. Very in depth. As mentioned it's up to date with 13 new charger reviews this year so far.

Legend and column description are at the very bottom.

My new charger that I bought last week got 2 smiley faces.
I bought the xtar vc4 for under $20

 

[Jazzman]

This is the site I use to look up the most current charger info:
Round cell charger index

You can't sort it but he does have it broken down into some more specific lists if you look at the links just above the chart. If you click a link to a charger he has a full review, and even does heat maps to show how hot they do or don't get. Very in depth. As mentioned it's up to date with 13 new charger reviews this year so far.

Legend and column description are at the very bottom.

Great link! Thanks for posting this, a lot of good information on chargers.

 

[Mordacai]

Hello Steensj2004, SkyRC MC3000 is a possible candidate for one of the better chargers on the market.

I believe that @Jazzman has one, so is best qualified to give an opinion and information.

 

[englishmick]

This is the site I use to look up the most current charger info:
Round cell charger index

You can't sort it but he does have it broken down into some more specific lists if you look at the links just above the chart. If you click a link to a charger he has a full review, and even does heat maps to show how hot they do or don't get. Very in depth. As mentioned it's up to date with 13 new charger reviews this year so far.

Legend and column description are at the very bottom.

Thanks for the link.

I'm happy. My Xtar VP2 got 3 smileys.

 

[TrollDragon]

My Xtar SV2 Rocket got 3 as well.

 

[Jazzman]

Choosing a new charger is difficult and there are many considerations to the decision of which charger to get. So give some serious thought about what you want to do with the charger before making a decision. Little things like do you want to charge 20700 or 21700 batteries? Most of the XTar or Nitecore chargers don't do this according to the manufacturers specs... even the 3 smiley face models . They top out at 650 length cells. Maybe there is a way to squeeze them in there... dunno for sure since I don't have those chargers to test and there is a difference in the manufacturers specs and the specs in the link provided by @ScottP so careful checking before purchase would be wise. This would be critical for me since I'm switching over to all 21700 mods now. And if it can do 700mm cells, can it charge at a high enough rate for a decent charge time? A 21700 at a 1Amp charge rate is going to take quite a while to charge.

Another thing that I need is NiMH charging for all my AAA, AA, C, D cells, and most of the chargers don't have the programming for them. The top XTar and Nitecore do, and the lesser ones don't. Now that I have a charger that does NiMH batteries and (and a whole list of other chemistries too long to list), I purchased inexpensive Amazon Basics brand of many different NiMH battery sizes so I won't have buy expensive Energizer disposable batteries ever again. This will likely pay for my charger over the next year by itself really.

So take a realistic look at your charging needs before making a purchase so you can buy a charger that really meets your needs. It will be cheaper in the long run and be a better tool for you. Giving up critically needed features to save $20~$30 might not be the best decision. Even if you have to spend a bit more now, you will be much more satisfied with your purchase going forward. I still think if I were going to buy a mid range charger the XTar VP4 Dragon Plus would be the choice I would make, after I verify that it can really do 21700 cells.

 

[TrollDragon]

The next charger I get will be a Miboxer C4-12, up to 3A simultaneously on all 4 slots and takes every size of cell, even NiMHs.
Miboxer C4-12 |18650 Battery Charger|Smart Charger|Where There is MiBoxer There is Power|smart 12v battery charger,smart aa battery charger|MiBoxer Charger

 

[stols001]

Yes @TrollDragon but you charge batteries the size of human thighs, batteries that have not even been invented yet. I've seen your coil builds. LOL.

Anna