I have been searching around for a couple days, including the forum archives...I can find a lot saying NOT to overcharge IMR-type batteries and why it's bad. What I can't find is info on if and when someone makes a mistake and does overcharge (to say 4.5V), how do they safely discharge down to the 4.2V range.
Ohm's law still puts vaping at 4.5V on higher resistance coil builds within a safe amp range for many of the better IMR cells. And, lots of us have variable voltage devices that run at much higher than 4.2V as it is.
Can someone provide links to prior threads, or simply give me a run down on what I can do practically with say a 18350 AW IMR that is charged to 4.5V? If I stick to the "math" and ohm's law and apply that to the max discharge rate of my cell, I think I'm okay. But is there also a way to safely discharge back down to 4.2V?
Also, for the record, and for other new peeps: cheaper chargers like the Trustfire TR-001 and others popular with the flashlight crowd seem to be designed specifically to charge Li-Ion cells to the 4.2V cutoff and actually cut off with that type cell. With the IMRs that have lower internal resistance, this equates to a fast charge rate (can be dangerous) and a misleading cutoff limit - if you leave the IMR charging too long in a charger like that, the little LED light may only turn green once that cell hits a good 4.4-4.5V, and only then will it (hopefully) quit charging. I was told my TR-001 would work fine for IMRs, but that's not what I've discovered over the past few days. The IMRs charge VERY quickly, and end up overcharging if I don't constantly pull them off and check the voltage. If you don't already know, overcharging IMR cells even to 4.5V will cut the life of your cell roughly in half, and that's the safest thing it will do.
The Nitecore I4 seems like the logical next purchase in this case, as it is meant for a variety of cell types and is adjustable for charge rate and such.
Anyway, I hope this helps someone, and I'd love to hear some methods for "decharging" over charged cells, and the general consensus on why we have to be so careful with overcharged IMR cells and max discharge amperage, but so many VV devices otherwise kick out 5 or 6V "safely". I really don't think the VV devices with the built in 1100mAh cell have higher than 3C ratings on average. So what gives?
Ohm's law still puts vaping at 4.5V on higher resistance coil builds within a safe amp range for many of the better IMR cells. And, lots of us have variable voltage devices that run at much higher than 4.2V as it is.
Can someone provide links to prior threads, or simply give me a run down on what I can do practically with say a 18350 AW IMR that is charged to 4.5V? If I stick to the "math" and ohm's law and apply that to the max discharge rate of my cell, I think I'm okay. But is there also a way to safely discharge back down to 4.2V?
Also, for the record, and for other new peeps: cheaper chargers like the Trustfire TR-001 and others popular with the flashlight crowd seem to be designed specifically to charge Li-Ion cells to the 4.2V cutoff and actually cut off with that type cell. With the IMRs that have lower internal resistance, this equates to a fast charge rate (can be dangerous) and a misleading cutoff limit - if you leave the IMR charging too long in a charger like that, the little LED light may only turn green once that cell hits a good 4.4-4.5V, and only then will it (hopefully) quit charging. I was told my TR-001 would work fine for IMRs, but that's not what I've discovered over the past few days. The IMRs charge VERY quickly, and end up overcharging if I don't constantly pull them off and check the voltage. If you don't already know, overcharging IMR cells even to 4.5V will cut the life of your cell roughly in half, and that's the safest thing it will do.
The Nitecore I4 seems like the logical next purchase in this case, as it is meant for a variety of cell types and is adjustable for charge rate and such.
Anyway, I hope this helps someone, and I'd love to hear some methods for "decharging" over charged cells, and the general consensus on why we have to be so careful with overcharged IMR cells and max discharge amperage, but so many VV devices otherwise kick out 5 or 6V "safely". I really don't think the VV devices with the built in 1100mAh cell have higher than 3C ratings on average. So what gives?
