original battery ?swelling?...

[ribjig]

...or maybe battery port is shrinking???
P4P+ bought 12/2016;
one original battery;
very recently battery became difficult to pull out;
this morning nearly impossible...
battery lock buttons & latches seem to be working normal;
is this a widely reported problem?
only solution is new battery...?
advice or links to similar threads appreciated!

 

[MapMaker53]

Does it look swollen when it is out? If not, the guides that it slides in and out on can get dirty and bind. Cleaning them off and applying a dab of plastic/rubber safe grease will help it slide easier. Here is a video for the Phantom 2V+ battery, but the P4P battery must have similar guides. (Sorry, I don't have my P4P battery handy at the moment.)

NOTE: Once a battery starts swelling, it is time to get rid of it.

 

[Ansia]

These are P3 batteries, but the P4s will look exacly the same. As you can see, the battery in the left is completely normal. That is how it should look. The battery in the right is swollen and should not be used for flying.

Edit: Here is a P4 battery that has swollen.

 

[ribjig]

Original battery with my P4P+ has only one "divider beam"
& it is parallel to length of battery.
But I do see what might be very slight swelling.
I pressed down on both sides of exposed battery
& there is definitely a springing-cushion feel.
Oddly, afterwards removal from battery port
easier, but still not as easy as before...
I thought first sign of dying battery was charge
holding time gets shorter & shorter...?
Thanks in advance.

 

[Ansia]

Original battery with my P4P+ has only one "divider beam"
& it is parallel to length of battery.
But I do see what might be very slight swelling.
I pressed down on both sides of exposed battery
& there is definitely a springing-cushion feel.
Oddly, afterwards removal from battery port
easier, but still not as easy as before...
I thought first sign of dying battery was charge
holding time gets shorter & shorter...?
Thanks in advance.

I would suggest for you not to use that battery anymore. When it presents swelling, one or more cells have failed.

 

[JadedMarxist]

Lead acid battery's will slowly take less charge lipos swell up. Time for new battery. That will fail or go from 90%-critical in a blink of an eye. Or even worse burst into flames.

 

[ribjig]

For those with same issue,
wiggling battery up & down
at same time as trying to remove
it works a little better than simply
trying to pull battery straight out.

On the positive side, I won't be a
victim of battery losing contact with
drone in-flight that others are reporting...

 

[delfin2003]

I've been flying RC for 10 years now. I have made lipos swell and here are top reason why:

1. Storing them at full charge for a long time and then using them will make your lipos swell! I used to fly my Stryker F27Q every weekend. I'd come home, top off my lipos and fly again the next weekend. At some point I couldn't fly for a month and a half. Eventually I threw the lipo back in my bird and went flying. Everything was ok, except when the plane landed the lipo was very puffy. Happened to both of them. Phantom 4 lipos have auto discharge to storage, so that should not be a problem. Not sure about Phantom 3. Btw, nominal storage voltage for a lipo is 3.85 ~ 3.8 volts a cell - Write This Down. I usually charge them to 3.85 volts a cell and they can sit like this for a super long time. Voltage eventually drops to ~3.82, but that's like after a year on the shelf.

2. A lipo is considered empty once it reaches 3.7 volts per cell! Pay attention to this one!!! It is OK to drive lipo to say 3.66 volts a cell under load (as it usually recovers to ~3.72 - ~3.75 or so when you land, depends on the lipo ofcourse), would not recommend going below that. If you drove them to 3.5 volts under load or lower, your lipos will most likely swell or will take less charge because you are actually causing physical damage to them. Going below 3.5, say 3.4 or 3.3 will guarantee you a swollen lipo.

 

[ribjig]

Delfin & all

Thanks for response.
Can you dumb it down for me... ?????
yes, my battery has been recharged after flights
& stays attached to plugged-in charger until next flight, often more
than a week or months later. This has been true for three years.
The puffy mild swelling is very recent.
Can I reduce swelling by letting battery slowly drain to dead?
And then only fully recharging just before a new flight(s)?
Thanks in advance.

 

[N017RW]

The charger turns off after the battery is fully charged. Leaving it plugged in to mains is Watt-wasteful and bad practice.
Should something go wrong with the battery control circuitry fire is possible.

ALWAYS fully charge before a flight.

 

[ribjig]

This:

"when the plane landed the lipo was very puffy. Happened to both of them. Phantom 4 lipos have auto discharge to storage, so that should not be a problem."

Not clear if letting battery discharge
(same as letting it sit long time without charging?)
results in eliminating-reducing puffiness.

 

[JadedMarxist]

It will discharge on its own down to a safe for storage 3.8v per cell or 15.4v per battery. Yes the p3 has auto discharge you can set how many days till it discharges. Never leave a battery that's full charged for any length of time unused. If stored for long time fully charged it will start to swell next time you wot your toy. Never over heat the battery(p3 has a batt temp in the app). Don't keep wot for any length of time bursts are ok but drawing the max from the battery for a long time could also cause it to swell. As well as asking more of the battery than it can give will def swell a battery. Hope that explains it!

 

[delfin2003]

"yes, my battery has been recharged after flights & stays attached to plugged-in charger until next flight, often more than a week or months later. This has been true for three years." <-- That said, you were "storing" them at full charge for a period of up to 10 days, until the self discharge function kicked in and discharged them to storage voltage. I bet you were doing it for a long time and eventually the pack began to puff. It should puff the most after the flight. You really should be flying your drone, watching you battery voltage, and as soon as it hits around 3.67 volts when in the air landing it. Then, what I would do (actually I am about to do) is buying a DJI charging hub, moving a hub switch to "storage", and then having the hub storage charge your lipos. Not sure if they make a charging hub for phantom 3 as I just bought a pro+ and I know they make it for phantom 4.

You cannot reduce the swelling. The swelling will decrease slightly if you don't use a battery for a while, but it will come back when you fly again. The swelling that you see is actually a hydrogen gas inside you pack. That battery is physically damaged, that is not to say you cannot use it! I have a few Pulse 65C 5500mah lipos for my heli that I puffed when using them in my RC jet because I was stupid and didn't watch my voltage and discharged them to 3.3 volts a cell at high load. They still work great, but in your case, you actually have to fit it in the drone, which sounds like a problem due to swelling.

 

[delfin2003]

This:

"when the plane landed the lipo was very puffy. Happened to both of them. Phantom 4 lipos have auto discharge to storage, so that should not be a problem."

Not clear if letting battery discharge
(same as letting it sit long time without charging?)
results in eliminating-reducing puffiness.

Letting a battery discharge while you are flying the drone will make it more puffy as the battery is under load and gets warm. Get home, throw it on the charger until you get about two bars and unplug it. It will self discharge to storage voltage if it needs to. Two bars should be around 3.8 - 3.85 volts a cell which actually is about the storage voltage.

Any battery will discharge after letting it sit for a long time, but you want to let it sit at around 3.85 - 3.80 volts a cell as it is the ideal voltage when it is not used for an extended period of time.

 

[ribjig]

The swelling that you see is actually a hydrogen gas inside you pack. That battery is physically damaged, that is not to say you cannot use it!

Would shallow pin pricks in the exposed "soft" pillow part of battery
release unwanted hydrogen gas?
The advice to continue using it (right or wrong, I am) contradicts earlier posts that advise getting new battery asap...???

 

[Deleted member 62848]

The swelling that you see is actually a hydrogen gas inside you pack. That battery is physically damaged, that is not to say you cannot use it!

Would shallow pin pricks in the exposed "soft" pillow part of battery
release unwanted hydrogen gas?
The advice to continue using it (right or wrong, I am) contradicts earlier posts that advise getting new battery asap...???

No no pin pricks it will just make play inside cover that seals it,,,mayby watch utube clip of battery bursting,,pretty violent,,battery has had it ,to risky to fly on that ,I had t,rex 11.1volt swell and burst and result was damage,,would hate that happen to any phantom though the blazing streak towards earth might look good,,,bite the bullet and start looking for another,,the odds just don't weigh up,,new drone or new battery ?,,,keep safe mate....and yes unplug that charger...I've even lost p4 due to batt error,,

 

[delfin2003]

You can use it, no problem. As long as it holds the voltage and gives you good flight times. Don't go below 3.67 volts a cell under load. I actually always wanted to try using a tiny needle to "de-gas" a battery. BUT, if you puncture the battery somehow while doing it, it will ignite! Most likely - violently! Proceed if you wish at your own risk...if I was to do it, i'd stick a pin parallel to the puffy surface, in no way should a pin go into a battery cell. Remember that.

 

[delfin2003]

I still would advice against doing the "de-gas" attempt though..just buy a new battery. I know I know..it's a bit of money, but you live and you learn.

 

[JadedMarxist]

Maybe it's a setting on my 3 pro, but I've noticed in my go app I've been doing some high speed bashing if ya Will and I've gotten the notice that my output is restricted as precaution to get longer battery life. From experience with rc trucks and boats I never let my lipos go under 40% which is right around 3.8-3.9v cell. I use a charging hub for my p3p battery's 4 battery's and my TX all in one! Branded dji also I think I may have 2 of them. Ps I've seen what happens to a 11.1v battery as it exploded in my truck after about a 30 foot high snowbank I launched it off.

 

[N017RW]

De-gasing... fixes nothing.