When to charge battery

[Rascal24]

I just got my first mod today the lava tube.... anyway this is my first experience using 18650 batteries. When I charged them they read 4.0 I've been using it for most of the day and it now reads 3.5 when am I supposed to charge it again or do I wait until it dies like I did with my egos? I know this is probably a stupid noob question but I'm sure I'm not the only one wondering this

 

[leftfeild]

I don't think it matters too much as they wont let you discharge them too much. Mine cuts off around 3.3 so you might want to think about charging them up again when it gets near there.

It's said if you charge them before you reach the cutoff point you might prolong the battery life a little but the difference isn't going to be much and a new battery isn't that expensive.

So yeah, I'd just wait up until the cut off point or when it's near 3.3.

 

[Rascal24]

sounds good, I did get a second battery so I wouldnt have to wait lol

 

[hairball]

Rascal, don't let any battery completely die. It will shorten the longevity and will kill the battery completely.

 

[Della Cirque]

I recharge as soon as I feel a drop off in performance...usually at about 3.7.

+1 to what hairball says.

 

[hairball]

I recharge as soon as I feel a drop off in performance...usually at about 3.7.

+1 to what hairball says.

That's how I do it. Once performance starts to drop, new batts off the charger get put in.

 

[Tersur]

I never notice a drop in performance on my PV i just have to check the voltage. i pull it out about 3.5v

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

I also agree about recharging the batts before they fully discharge- they'll last longer and while you may not seem important now it will when the performance drops and you're constantly recharging.

Merry Christmas

 

[butters73]

no disrespect to anyone here in the forum,im new,and unfamiliar with the "posting & commenting" part of it all.my question is similar so i think its ok to ask,.....ive purchased two 4.8 nihms from m.v.'s. can anyone tell me when to charge,how long and or is there a "smart charger " for this batt? thanx,Bart

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

Hi butters73 and welcome to ECF. If the batts are 600 mAh...
100 mah= 1 hour vaping on a single coil
100 mah= 1/2 hour on a dual coil
So on a single coil you would want to recharge after about 4 1/2- 5 hours of vaping. Understand after the batt has discharged 50% the performance drops off a cliff.
This charger would work
4.8 volt NiMH Battery Charger
Most here DO NOT leave the batts charging unattended because if the shut-off chip in the charger fails the batts could explode- very rare but advice to be heeded. The charger light will be red when charging and change to green when fully charged.

Edit: When I first began vaping I didn't believe I needed a Digital Multimeter. I now see the need for one- test batts, cartos, attys and know exactly where they're at.
http://www.madvapes.com/Digital-Multimeter_p_2742.html

Merry Christmas

no disrespect to anyone here in the forum,im new,and unfamiliar with the "posting & commenting" part of it all.my question is similar so i think its ok to ask,.....ive purchased two 4.8 nihms from m.v.'s. can anyone tell me when to charge,how long and or is there a "smart charger " for this batt? thanx,Bart

 

[swedishfish]

Vapoor eyes er, just want to tell you, I think you're great!

 

[Vapoor eyes er]

WOWSER and I mean this sincerely. There are certain posters here at ECF that I hold in the highest regard and you are tied for being at the top of that list. Being a newbie I feel very honored by your comment and it's prolly one of the nicest gifts I could receive this Christmas. BTW I not only look up to you and several others because of your vast amount of knowledge and your tireless efforts to help us Newbs but more so I have a funny gut feeling you've got the "Right Stuff" in regards to character and ethics and I salute you for that. Enuff said cuz I'm getting teary eyed kinda like watching Dolphin Tale last night- yeah, yeah, yeah I was crying along with my wife

I wish You and Yours a very

Merry Christmas

Vapoor eyes er, just want to tell you, I think you're great!

 

[theWayISshut]

I think the 3.7V in such batteries is only nominal. An Ego 650 maH fresh off of the charger reads 4.2 something.

 

[dormouse]

Hi butters73 and welcome to ECF. If the batts are 600 mAh...
100 mah= 1 hour vaping on a single coil
100 mah= 1/2 hour on a dual coil
Merry Christmas

I would add to that 100mah is about 1 hour of MODERATE vaping on a standard resistance single coil

If you vape heavily or chain vape, expect to use charge up faster
If you use LR (low ohms) atomizers or cartomizers regardless of single or dual coil, you will use charge up faster

In extreme cases (like using a 1.5ohm attachment and chain vaping) 100mah may only last 15 minutes. One guy was going through a 900mah battery in 2.25-2.5 hours.

So plan accordingly - balance you choice of ohms with the amount of charge time you would hope to get out of each battery, or carry spare batteries.

 

[butters73]

thank you Vapoor eyes er, i do appreciate your info.you seem to be very intelligent at this.i could sure use some of your advice from time to time. can you tell me where to buy a quality rebuildable atty.ive been looking ...unsuccessfully.your help would be greatly appreciated.thanks again

 

[mynameisrob]

Hi butters73 and welcome to ECF. If the batts are 600 mAh...
100 mah= 1 hour vaping on a single coil
100 mah= 1/2 hour on a dual coil
So on a single coil you would want to recharge after about 4 1/2- 5 hours of vaping. Understand after the batt has discharged 50% the performance drops off a cliff.
This charger would work
4.8 volt NiMH Battery Charger
Most here DO NOT leave the batts charging unattended because if the shut-off chip in the charger fails the batts could explode- very rare but advice to be heeded. The charger light will be red when charging and change to green when fully charged.

Edit: When I first began vaping I didn't believe I needed a Digital Multimeter. I now see the need for one- test batts, cartos, attys and know exactly where they're at.
Digital Multimeter

Merry Christmas

I agree with Vapoor completely that a digital multimeter is something that every vaper should have. You can not only check your batteries, but also the ohms of your attys/cartos. Checking a new carto BEFORE you fill it with juice and use it will allow you to catch ones that are DOA and will save you juice. Nothings worse then filling a new carto with your favorite juice only to find that the carto is a dud. Using a digital multimeter will ensure that doesnt happen.

If your not in a huge rush to get a digital multimeter, you can get the one that Madvapes sells for $9.49+shipping on eBay for $3-4 bucks and free shipping. Type "DT830-B Digital multimeter" in the ebay search and you should get a nice sized list of them from different sellers. Scroll through them and find the cheapest one and make sure it has free shipping, or if it doesnt have free shipping, make sure the buy it now price is low enough that the price plus the shipping is still in the $3-4 dollar range. Check the descriptions bc some come with a 9V battery for the multimeter, and some do not. Normally the ones that come with a battery are .50cents to a dollar more. If you have a 9V at home, get one without one so its cheaper. If you dont have one, find one that comes with one so you dont have to go out and spend as much as the multimeter costs just for a battery.
I got one awhile back with a 9v battery bc I didnt have one for $3.82. I just checked quickly now and while I dont see any that cheap, there are quite a few that are in the $4.00-4.50 range that come with a battery. Some have free shipping and many of them were buy it now for $1 with different shipping costs in the low $3's. I looked quickly, but there are a few pages so you can prob find one even alittle cheaper, but even $4.50 is still less than half of what Madvapes charges for the exact same multimeter.
They do ship from China or Hong Kong, so thats why I said if your not in an immediate rush to get one, but it doesnt take too long at all. I got mine in alittle under 2 weeks. It works fine and serves its purpose well.

 

[mynameisrob]

Oh and for anyone that uses a tube mod or other PV that uses non-proprietary batteries that charge on the Trustfire TR-001 charger, you can get one of them on ebay for cheaper also. Most ecig vendors charge around $10-15 for the TR-001, and I ordered one on ebay last weekend for $8.40 + free shipping.
Again, if your charger died or is about to, this is def not where you want to buy one bc its gona take around 10-14 days to get to you, but for someone that just wants an extra charger or a better charger than they have now, its not a bad deal.
I have the charger that came with my E-Power and it works fine, I just ordered the TR-001 charger bc Id rather be able to charge 2 batteries at once, and also the TR-001 charges them a good bit faster. I dont need it right this minute so for around $8 bucks, I figured why not

 

[KeysBum]

Rascal, don't let any battery completely die. It will shorten the longevity and will kill the battery completely.

True that.

I usually have two (or more) mods going during the day. I charge my batts every night and start fresh every morning, I never let a battery die.