Multi-battery charger

[Raptorman0909]

I have the factory charger that came with the P4P that can charge a battery and the RC at the same time. I also have the hub that can charge three batteries in succession and charge/discharge for storage, but I also wanted a charger that would charge several batteries simultaneously. So, I ordered and just received the "Hobby Signal Phantom 4 Battery Parallel Charging Board Remote Control Intelligent Charger Multi Battery Charger for DJI Phantom4" from Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01EWY7WRI/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have only used it once and didn't have to charge all the batteries that much, but I was pleased that it charged three batteries and the RC at the same time and it did not get hot or smell like electronics burning. I'll need a bit more testing to confirm it is what I hope it is, but so far so good.

BTW, the unit has no power switch or LED indicating power or charging, but as soon as you plug a battery in the fan kicks on and the LED's on the battery indicate charging. I may modify with switch and LED, but that's kind of a nit -- it does the job...


Brian

 

[smiller]

Hi Brian,

Do you have any followup report? Has the unit been performing to your expectations?

Also have you by any chance measured AC input current when charging multiple batteries? The spec only says 110-240VAC but says nothing about current. I have a 400W inverter and would like to verify that it will be adequate. At full output (3 x 4 amps at 17.5 volts) it would be supplying 210 watts to the batteries, so even with typical conversion inefficiency I should be OK I guess.

Thanks

 

[Raptorman0909]

No, not yet as I've not been able to fly for more than a month. I have installed a switched and fused connection to my cars rear fuse panel that has enough current capability to drive the inverter I need to power the multi-charger. With this setup I can charge multiple batteries while driving. It works, but I haven't done any extensive testing of it or the multi-charger itself. My inverter is rated at 500W so it has more than enough to handle the multi-charger.

I've also built a proto-type battery heater that I can power from the cars power port of from a reused Dell laptop charger. I can set the temperature up to 40C but 30C should be enough unless it's REAL COLD at which point I could go up to 40C if I wanted. My plan while on the road is to charge the batteries to about 75%-90% in the evening then put them in the heater and heat them up to, say. 30C overnight. Then, I head out to the car, plug in the heater to keep the batteries warm, and hook up the charger to 2-3 batteries in the heater. By the time I get to the first location the batteries will all be warm enough and I should have 2-3 batteries at full charge. Then, as I'm heading to the next location, I charge other batteries to 100% as needed.

So, this way I keep the batteries at full charge for as little time as possible and make sure the batteries are warm enough no matter how cold it is. I don't plan on doing much flying when it's below about -10C (14F) but if I do I will likely increase the heater temp between 30C and 40C.


Brian

 

[Hendo]

I had a similar multi battery charger for my P3A, it worked well charging all 3 batteries in my ute with a 600W inventor. I have a similar one on the way now - Sunnylife 4 Faster Charger 4in1 Battery and Remote Controller Charger 5.7A Big Current for DJI Phantom 4 4PRO 4PRO+-in Parts & Accessories from Toys & Hobbies on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

One thing to check is that the charger is earthed. A lot of the units out of China are not earthed. There are a few blogs on how to easily earth them.

 

[Waternut13134]

I had a similar multi battery charger for my P3A, it worked well charging all 3 batteries in my ute with a 600W inventor. I have a similar one on the way now - Sunnylife 4 Faster Charger 4in1 Battery and Remote Controller Charger 5.7A Big Current for DJI Phantom 4 4PRO 4PRO+-in Parts & Accessories from Toys & Hobbies on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

One thing to check is that the charger is earthed. A lot of the units out of China are not earthed. There are a few blogs on how to easily earth them.

Correct,and to add on that one of the battery charging lines is also connected to the same circuit that charges the controller. Some have said charging both the controller and a battery have caused problems.

 

[Lanno]

I have just bought a similar unit and it works really well. I can now charge three P4P batteries and the controller in one hour. I've had a look around and can't see any information that would suggest these chargers are detrimental to the batteries life.