Battery woes - seems like I'm not the only one..

[welly]

Hey all:

I now have 3 batteries that are completely dead, no lights and nothing seems to rejuvenate them. One is new in box, but bought about a year before I tried to get it out of the box. Google tells me this is all too common for these batteries to do. Any storage of these batteries seems to kill them. Many youtube videos show people taking them apart, which I actually did to one of them. I checked the voltage of the battery, and it reads 3.4V. I read that people use some sort of 15V 1A 'bench charger' to charge the battery up to 15V, then reconnect the plugs and this 'jump starts' the battery to working again. I don't have a charger to do this part, so that battery sits. I guess I'm wanting to know if there's anything I can try to get these 3 batteries to go again, or a place that will repair them. I don't like loosing $600 on batteries, and I definitely don't want to spend more on new batteries that will die soon if I don't fly every few weeks. Any advice?

 

[msinger]

Any storage of these batteries seems to kill them

You got it. DJI even warns against storing them without use for longs periods of time. I'm assuming many people just aren't reading that documentation.

If interested, this guide explains how to properly care for Phantom batteries:
HOW TO: Maintain and store your DJI Phantom batteries

 

[Capt KO]

Even if you were able to recover one of those batteries, I would not trust it to fly with. The one I was able to revive is not trustworthy. Too much variation in voltage. I use it only for bench testing. Out of 3 DOA batts, 1 partly revived, 1 swelled, 1 dead. None good , sorry.
There was a P4 battery ($110) available here yesterday as part of a P4P+ being sold for parts.

 

[Deleted member 62848]

Yes moral of the story is keep flying ,dont put nothing in storage or it fall below minimum voltage,,yip myself has lost 2 p4 batterys and 1 was new,,if you do have to store or cant fly keep it charged,that way when ready to pull out you should still have 2 lights,,so called hybination for batterys is false cause they always discharge

 

[Capt KO]

Charging stored ones today. Been 4 months since Jan charge date on batts. Daily's are fine. Always good for a reminder though. Take care everybody

 

[David_Cambridge]

The batteries are more complex than just the cells that store the electrical energy. There is a microcontroller inside each battery that runs continuously and monitors the battery status. Leaving the battery long enough, this circuitry shuts down into a hibernation mode. Getting it out of that hibernation mode can be difficult or impossible, depending on how long it has been in hibernation, and the phases of the moon.

Moral of the story - don’t let your batteries get into this state if possible. Even brand new batteries can get in this state if they sit on the store shelves too long before being charged and used.

 

[Andy9]

Yes, these batt. need regular training to be fit. One of my Phantom batt. began to show some variations in cells valtage although no issues whit it. Just flew with it twice from full to 20% and it is now perfectly well as a new.

 

[welly]

Thanks everybody. I have LIPO RC batteries that I have to keep up with, but they seem to have way better success rate than these DJI batteries. Charging 185 for a battery is steep, and now that I have 0 working batteries and now 600 worth of 3 dead dji batteries, I find myself considering selling the P4 altogether as I simply do not fly often enough to afford their failure rate. I'm also considering a Powerextra battery, since they are only a fraction of the DJI cost.

 

[Capt KO]

Thanks everybody. I have LIPO RC batteries that I have to keep up with, but they seem to have way better success rate than these DJI batteries. Charging 185 for a battery is steep, and now that I have 0 working batteries and now 600 worth of 3 dead dji batteries, I find myself considering selling the P4 altogether as I simply do not fly often enough to afford their failure rate. I'm also considering a Powerextra battery, since they are only a fraction of the DJI cost.

Buy a cheap battery if it will keep you flying. Used or aftermarket. Out of my 12 batteries, I have one aftermarket made by ExpertPower from Amazon. It’s nearly identical and use it with my old P4 with no issues, so far. It had better ratings than the Powerextra. Go fly

 

[tribar]

Battery Hibernation mode:

It is important NOT to alter the sequence:

1. Switch on battery - ignore what happens to lights etc.
2. LEAVE IT ALONE for at least 5 minutes.
3. Do NOT touch power button - plug into DJI charger
4. LEAVE IT ALONE.. it may be hours before it wakes up ... DON'T TOUCH IT !

You need a DJI charger for this - it's the only time a specific charger is required in fact ... you cannot use any 3rd party charger.

The secret is to NOT touch the power button after point 1), if you do, you need to put the battery away for a while, then start again.

 

[GeorgeMoses]

Hey all:

I now have 3 batteries that are completely dead, no lights and nothing seems to rejuvenate them. One is new in box, but bought about a year before I tried to get it out of the box. Google tells me this is all too common for these batteries to do. Any storage of these batteries seems to kill them. Many youtube videos show people taking them apart, which I actually did to one of them. I checked the voltage of the battery, and it reads 3.4V. I read that people use some sort of 15V 1A 'bench charger' to charge the battery up to 15V, then reconnect the plugs and this 'jump starts' the battery to working again. I don't have a charger to do this part, so that battery sits. I guess I'm wanting to know if there's anything I can try to get these 3 batteries to go again, or a place that will repair them. I don't like loosing $600 on batteries, and I definitely don't want to spend more on new batteries that will die soon if I don't fly every few weeks. Any advice?

IMPORTANT: DO NOT ALTER THE SEQUENCE OF THESE STEPS!

1. Switch on battery – one quick press followed by a press that lasts 4 seconds. Don’t expect to see any lights, just do this step.
2. LEAVE IT ALONE for at least 5 minutes.
3. Do NOT touch power button on battery – plug it into your DJI charger.
4. LEAVE IT ALONE… it may be hours before it wakes up. DON’T TOUCH IT!

You need your DJI charger for this. The secret is to NOT touch the power button after point 1. If you do, you’ll have to put the battery away for a few hours and then start all over again.

 

[tribar]

IMPORTANT: DO NOT ALTER THE SEQUENCE OF THESE STEPS!

1. Switch on battery – one quick press followed by a press that lasts 4 seconds. Don’t expect to see any lights, just do this step.
2. LEAVE IT ALONE for at least 5 minutes.
3. Do NOT touch power button on battery – plug it into your DJI charger.
4. LEAVE IT ALONE… it may be hours before it wakes up. DON’T TOUCH IT!

You need your DJI charger for this. The secret is to NOT touch the power button after point 1. If you do, you’ll have to put the battery away for a few hours and then start all over again.

YOU'RE KIDDING.... see the post above !!

 

[solentlife]

Battery Hibernation mode:

It is important NOT to alter the sequence:

1. Switch on battery - ignore what happens to lights etc.
2. LEAVE IT ALONE for at least 5 minutes.
3. Do NOT touch power button - plug into DJI charger
4. LEAVE IT ALONE.. it may be hours before it wakes up ... DON'T TOUCH IT !

You need a DJI charger for this - it's the only time a specific charger is required in fact ... you cannot use any 3rd party charger.

The secret is to NOT touch the power button after point 1), if you do, you need to put the battery away for a while, then start again.

Tks for the cut and paste from my posts !! No worries .....

 

[welly]

Thanks guys this doesn't work for none of my batteries. Still trying them here and there, but giving up hope.