Questions about mech mod usage.

[calismog]

Well I've had an Astro clone for a few weeks now and really like mechanicals. But I am having trouble understanding a few things. I did a lot of research on batteries and pretty much scared myself into handling them with a velvet glove. Right now I use 2 efest 2000mah IMR and basically swap them out a every few hours for few of over discharging them. Is there any way I can tell when the battery is getting low before it gets dangerous? Freshly charged I do notice a stronger vape, but that's expected. It then levels off and I've yet to feel any decline in vapor while using them. Typically I use one during the work day 6am-7pm and I swap when I get home. My vision spinner would easily last me from 6am to 12am lol so I do think I am over doing it but I just don't want to have a battery vent on me.

What do you guys recommend? How do you guys gauge your batteries?

Also- if I have a plastic battery case for 2 18650s, can I put one 18650 and stack two 18350s in the area where the other 18650 would go?

 

[Thrasher]

over draining a battery wont cause it to vent you will just kill it.

you did not say what your using and what resistance your running at etc.

in most cases after a few weeks you begin to notice when the battery drops off, they are rated down to 2.5 volts so for most people in average situations it is very hard not to notice. i run .8 ohms and when i notice the drop off my batteries almost always read right at 3.4v

 

[calismog]

Ah thanks for the info. Does that apply to IMR batteries too? I run 2 dripping setups, a 2.1 microcoil and a 1.3-1.5 regular coil.

Also, is it ok to store stacked 18350 batteries in a 18650 tube ?

 

[Stosh]

IMR would work the same, you would notice the drop in vapor long before they are over-discharged.

Regarding stacking, depends on how well you know Murphey, as in he's Law. In a plastic box it's very unlikely to ever cause a problem, but if anything did go wrong, it would be in the worst possible way. Two batteries stacked that contained different charge levels would be much more likely to go into thermal runaway. The battery with the higher charge would try to charge the other, at the maximum amperage it could produce. At the cost of a second plastic box, not worth it...

 

[dam718]

Regarding your question about stacking batteries in a plastic storage tube... From a technical standpoint, there should be no issue with this, regardless of the charge level of the batteries. There is no complete circuit, so no energy can be passed from one battery to another. I have seen some nifty battery cases out there that can either hold 2 18650 batteries side by side, or 4 18350's side by side. If you're concerned about them, get something like that

The only way you're going to transfer the charge from one battery to another is by connecting the poles of multiple batteries in parallel. In series (stacked one on top of the other) you can stack em to the ceiling as long as the poles from the bottom and top most cells never complete a circuit...

 

[Ryedan]

What do you guys recommend? How do you guys gauge your batteries?

Also- if I have a plastic battery case for 2 18650s, can I put one 18650 and stack two 18350s in the area where the other 18650 would go?

jhsoltero, I get the feeling you haven't done much research on batteries and safe vaping with mechanical mods yet. Baditude has some very informative posts in his blogs here. Look for the battery and RBA/RDA posts.

I have a digital multimeter that I use regularly on my batteries. I check them off the charger every few cycles to make sure they're not being charged over 4.2 +-0.05V. I check them when the vape starts to decline and aim to change one out at about 3.6V. Lower than that and the voltage goes down faster and faster and it gets hard to catch it before it goes too low.

The DMM will also let you check resistances of your coils.

You will not have any issues from putting 2 18350's in the spot for the 18650 in your case.

Vape safe

 

[calismog]

Thanks for the info. I have actually done a lot of research prior to getting a mechanical. Now that I have one I just want to make sure I read the right info. It can all be overwhelming sometimes. What my concern is.. I don't carry a digital multimeter or charger with me and I don't want to get into a situation where I am over discharging a battery or trying to push it unintentionally. On the weekends I am swapping batteries every 4 hours from the fear of thermal god I've gotten doing all this research! It seems like yesterday the golden rule was to never let your coils touch or they'll short and today I am making microcoils purposely having them touch. It's hard to determine what information is the straight science and what is the "for general use" guidelines.

 

[Ryedan]

Thanks for the info. I have actually done a lot of research prior to getting a mechanical. Now that I have one I just want to make sure I read the right info. It can all be overwhelming sometimes.

Good to hear that and yes, it can be a lot of information.

What my concern is.. I don't carry a digital multimeter or charger with me and I don't want to get into a situation where I am over discharging a battery or trying to push it unintentionally. On the weekends I am swapping batteries every 4 hours from the fear of thermal god I've gotten doing all this research!

I'm not sure I understand completely. I think you have a DMM and you're been vaping mechanicals for a bit now, correct? On the weekends, you should have the DMM around and can check your batts whenever you need to, right? Also, when you started with mechs you probably used the DMM regularly to get a feel for things. I know I can tell by the way my mech is vaping about how discharged my batteries are. If I'm out without a DMM and think a battery is getting low, I just change it early to avoid problems. If I were to get into a situation I was unsure about, I would default to a safe solution. Also, using a regulated PV when out, or just having one for backup is not a bad idea if you're not completely comfortable with mechanicals for now.

It seems like yesterday the golden rule was to never let your coils touch or they'll short and today I am making microcoils purposely having them touch. It's hard to determine what information is the straight science and what is the "for general use" guidelines.

I hear ya on this! I've always gone slow until I felt comfortable with something new. When I got my first mech mod I had a few regulated devices I could count on until I cut my teeth on the mechs. That took a couple of months for me and it was very nice to have the time to really figure things out. YMMV, but going slow and taking the time to really understand things is the way to go IMO.

 

[CloudZ]

I notice the dropoff at 3.6 to 3.8 volts, at which time I recharge. I'd feel comfortable using an imr down to 3 volts, but I wouldnt want to do it every day. In truth, there is a massive buffer in usage between 3.6 and 3 volts. It's far larger than the usage to go from full charge to 3.6 volts. At the resistances you are using, a full 18650 should last all day, maybe 2 days, if a spinner lasted you all day in the past.

Periodically check your batteries with a multimeter to get a better idea of your vape time.