3s Lipo newb - questions and first impressions

[rage232]

Hey everyone - I got my castle link BEC installed, xpert 7801-hv servo and running a venom power 3s Lipo

I first charged up the Lipo, got all 3 cells as close to 4.2v as possible. Took 45 mins - 1 hr.
Questions:
1. Should I be able to get all 3 cells exactly at 4.2? First time on balance charge it was #1@4.21 #2@4.20 #3@4.16 I shut the charger off bc I got nervous when the first cell hit 4.21

I ran the truck on the 3s Lipo - wow! It's a whole new truck!! Still fun to crawl and has great wheel speed for climbing hills, etc.. After I ran it for about 40 mins or so I put it back on the charger and chose to decharge it or whatever back down to 3.7v. All 3 cells hit 3.7 evenly and it's now sitting in its storage bag.
2. I now have another solid hour of charging before I can run the truck. If I go home, charge up to 4.2v. If I charge it up ready to go, how quickly do I need to start running it. What if I charge it up and wait an hour before going out, 2 hours, 3? What's my limit??

3. On a balance charge are my numbers above good? My charger is a protek prodigy 680 if that helps... Btw I changed the limit to 4.19 to be safer..

4. Is the Lipo waterproof?
5. Is the castle creations bec water proof?

Sorry if these are dumb ?'s I read a ton just to purchase and install all this stuff
And I've been researching to find these answered but I'm about searched out today lol
Thanks!!

 

[RiderZ]

I run mine down to about 35 percent then recharge it to about 55 percent and put it away till I'm ready to run again and recharge it till the charger shuts down.

 

[robertjpjr]

If your charger is functioning and set up properly it will auto shut off at the proper voltage. 4.2 at each cell is ideal, but slight variation is normal.
Over charging will be very bad, leading to potential fires.
The charger should hover around 4.1 - 4.2 for a few minutes as it is balancing the pack. A tenth or two over 4.2 is ok, as it will likely return to 4.2 upon completion of the balance charge.
Always charge with the balance leads and main leads plugged in.

You can leave a battery fully charged as long as you like. It will go down in voltage over time, minutely. I recommend that you store the LIPO as 3.82 on each cell.
There should be a storage mode charge. Leaving them fully charged, while safe, is not ideal as it shortens the life of the pack and increases swelling.

LIPO batteries are waterproof. If they weren't you'd know as it'd be on fire
Castle BEC is not waterproof. If memory serves they put a very light coat of conformal coating to make them water resistant. But I always coat mine in a layer or two of conformal coating.

 

[TacoCrawler]

Lipo's retain no memory...
so there is no cycling necessary.
And can be recharged at any voltage level.

storage should be near 3.7v
so the LiPo is not stored at full capacity.

the cut off voltage should go no lower then 3.3v
tho' others may disagree and push that.
But if it goes too low... it might not recharge.
Tho' sometimes a recovery may be possible.

I have to connect my balance port
just to charge when using my charger...
or the charger does not recognized the LiPo.
and I will have to input manually.

I have a mode on my charger that is a balance charge.
I use that most always.
I set that to 2.1a @ 11.1v for my 3s LiPo's.

The amperage can be adjusted to each particular LiPo that is used.
So be sure you are charging in accordance. ( ie: 2s, 4s, 6s etc. )
I charge slower then many here...
But doing so ensures longer consumable battery life (cycles).
and less chance that over charging and swelling could occur.

IMO... a swelled or puffy LiPo is toast and dangerous.
especially when attempting to recharge.

I use 2200mah 3s LiPo's
and charge at 2.1 amps @ 11.1v

Higher capacity LiPo's with higher "C" ratings...
can handle more abuse and charge at higher amps.
But I recommend charging at what the mfgr/dist specs state.

Tons of LiPo information on the net...
so read up some and learn more.

I usually charge my batteries the evening before,
if running them the next day.

They should always be stored in a burn bag
or fire safe container when either charging or transporting.

If I plan to stow them for more then a day or two...
I will discharge them down to 3.7v
And stow them in a fire safe container.

All LiPo's regardless of charge state...
should be stowed/stored in a fire safe container
or a burn bag.

Old skool military ammo cans work good
and will contain a LiPo burst...
Tho' even then each LiPo should be inside it's own
burn bag, inside the ammo can.
This might give all the other LiPo's being stored
in the same container...
the chance for survival if a single LiPo might burst.

Even if stowed at a lower voltage...
a fire or burst could occur...
and that could burn your house down.

So be safe/smart and realize that LiPo's can be danerous
and burst with the same intensity as that of a road flare.

 

[jamesthe1v]

i just balance charged a 2s 3300mha at 3.3 and it charged to 8.19 4.09 and 4.10??brand new hitech x4 plus....and a floureon battery guessing cheap battery??? is this a problem?

thanks

 

[EeePee]

Is what a problem?

Sorry, I meant…


Is…
What
A
Prob…
Lem?

 

[alpine4x4]

Is what a problem?

Sorry, I meant…


Is…
What
A
Prob…
Lem?

Glad I'm
not the
only one.

 

[Sneetches]

1 - It is normal for a cell to "overcharge" by .01v if another cell is being balanced, and this is especially noticeable when one cell is lower than the other two, like for example a battery showing 4.19 - 4.18 - 4.15. Just let the balancer do the work. The only reason to worry is if the battery gets abnormally hot (like 90-100F+).

2. You can leave the battery charged for a week without any ill effects, but past that it isn't good to leave LiPos stored fully charged for longer than a week as far as I know. They also prefer cooler storage temperatures in terms of prolonging battery life.

3. 99.9% chance nothing is wrong with your balancer, it was just trying to charge cell 3.

4. Yes, nothing to worry about unless you want to submerge your whole rig underwater, at which point I'd plasti-dip the battery leads side thoroughly.

5. Shouldn't see any problems from splashes, but for submersion, I'd coat the thing in some conformal coating just to be safe. They do come coated already for "water resistance".

 

[rage232]

Awesome thank you all very much!! Great info!! I did plasti dip my dean connectors after I soldered them on. Should I plastic the castle creations BEC or does it cause an issue. I did see the mention above about conformal coating - I just don't have any.

I think I'm done going into submarine mode after the last servo failure.. But to plasti dips defense - I didn't use a rubber o-ring so I'd bet that's where water got in.