Battery swelling

[horne47789]

I have a 2 month old FC40 and I got a spare battery when I bought it. One of the two, standard Phantom, batteries has begun to swell just today and is no longer holding charge in the third cell. I get the warning lights within about 60 seconds of liftoff. Until a few days ago I was getting about 10 to 12 minutes every time.

Are there any options other than dump it ? With 40 or 50 discharges done should I be sending it back or asking for a replacement ?

Thought and opinions appreciated.

Cheers - Damian.

 

[LuvMyTJ]

Use extreme caution if a lipo battery is puffed. I would immediately take it outside or store it in a latched metal box on your garage concrete floor with nothing close to it. In that state it could possibly rupture, catch fire and/or explode.

Secondly I would certainly contact the seller and/or DJI about it and see if a replacement under warranty is an option. At 2 months old it should not be an issue.

 

[rudedog]

I just had my B&H dual battery and charger packs go bad. I noticed them on the 89th day and filed a RMA with both B&H and DJI as well as my Amex card (gold extends your warranty up to a year).

B&H denied saying they only warranty 30 days and to contact DJI
DJI I had to call back 5 times because their phone que only holds 14/15 calls and anything over that they tell you call back and then hang up on you.

DJI authorized my RMA and I sent them in overnight. They received the package but don't open them right away. They only get to them, in the order they receive them (which could be one to two weeks)...... Which means their system does not say they have received them until they open them.

While I'm grateful they authorized my RMA but DJI really needs to work on their customer service and replacement speed.

It should also be noted that both batteries (which where purchased several weeks after the Phantom 2) where consecutive serial numbered.

 

[JoeyD]

Does overnight mean they went by air? If so I don't think shipping unstable lithium batteries (or stable ones for that matter) on a plane is a good idea or legal, at least in the USA. People worry about our Phantoms falling from the sky. Imagine if they burst or caught fire.

Then again they did ship them here from China.

 

[rudedog]

I thought about that, but how else did they ship them in the first place. DJI, wanted them back and other then me driving across country to return them..... They where marked or claimed as batteries via FedX

 

[LuvMyTJ]

There are different rules in place for commercial airlines vs. shippers. Fedex has their own planes and they allow pre-approved shippers to use their service to transport lithium products. http://www.fedex.com/us/service-guide/our-services/dangerous-goods/index.html#tab3

 

[BigTulsa]

There are different rules in place for commercial airlines vs. shippers. Fedex has their own planes and they allow pre-approved shippers to use their service to transport lithium products. http://www.fedex.com/us/service-guide/our-services/dangerous-goods/index.html#tab3

UPS Flight 6 was the cause of the ban on lithium ion batteries on passenger jets.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UPS_Airlines_Flight_6

 

[LuvMyTJ]

Actually you can still take them onto passenger aircraft if it is in the cabin with you and under a certain size, etc., so laptops & such can still go onboard with you... for now - http://safetravel.dot.gov/documents/airline_passengers_and_batteries.pdf

Interestingly enough the missing Malaysian jet was reportedly carrying over 2 net tons of lithium batteries when it disappeared and is being looked into a a possible reason for it's disappearance. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/21/the-secret-far-deep-hunt-for-mh370.html

 

[BigTulsa]

Actually you can still take them onto passenger aircraft if it is in the cabin with you and under a certain size, etc., so laptops & such can still go onboard with you... for now - http://safetravel.dot.gov/documents/airline_passengers_and_batteries.pdf

Interestingly enough the missing Malaysian jet was reportedly carrying over 2 net tons of lithium batteries when it disappeared and is being looked into a a possible reason for it's disappearance. http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/03/21/the-secret-far-deep-hunt-for-mh370.html

Yeah, what I meant was bulk transport of them in the cargo hold, which evidently had been done previously.

 

[JoeyD]

I'm not sure a swollen lithium battery should be shipped by air under any conditions. It should have been shipped on the ground, maybe UPS. I know it takes longer but I wouldn't want that plane flying over my house.

 

[LuvMyTJ]

FYI - If you drop a bad lipo into a container of saltwater and leave it for a few days it can be safely transported to a disposal site or back to the seller.

*Here is a video describing the process -

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTelhRLqXlk[/youtube]

 

[Melvoid]

UPS Flight 6 was the cause of the ban on lithium ion batteries on passenger jets.

UPS Airlines Flight 6 - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Off topic a tad, but are you saying I can't take my quad on a flight (well, the batteries, anyway):

 

[N017RW]

No..It's fine.

The recent changes involve using passenger jets to carry the batts. as cargo.

There are guidelines though and you should visit the TSA website for specifics.