Battery discharging and storage question

Dramface460 · Aug 2, 2016

Hello P4 pilots,

So I just called DJI about this question and got a kinda unclear answer. So should I discharge my batteries to 50 percent with that battery discharger DJI sells for 100 dollars or set the battery discharger to 2-3 days in the DJI Go app. I have 4 batteries. I do tend to use all 4 batteries when I fly each weekend. With the amount of flying I do is every 7 days or so should I be concerned about discharging my batteries to 50 percent with that battery discharge station DJI sells?

The manual just says the batteries will do it themselves depending on which day you set in the app but it takes 3 days for them to discharge and they only discharge to 65 percent.

Let me know what is the best routine to use on my batteries. I have a lot of money tied into 4 batterie so I need them to last as long as possible

thanks

msinger · Aug 2, 2016

It would be best (and easiest) to let them auto discharge. Plan on it taking above 2-3 days longer than the number you have set in the DJI GO app. That setting just tells the battery when to start discharging.

Dramface460 · Aug 2, 2016

@msinger thanks for the quick reply. So set it for 2 days to start discharging which will take 2-3 days to discharge to 65 percent. So what's the point of having the 3 hub charging station. I have 2 charging cables so I can charge 2 batteries at once. Also are we supposed to discharge our batteries to 0 if stored for 30 days or more?

msinger · Aug 2, 2016

Dramface460 said:
what's the point of having the 3 hub charging station

I use mine because it's more convenient than swapping the batteries on the charger as they finish charging. And, if I have batteries in storage for a while, I can use it to charge them back up to the storage level. I never use it to discharge a battery down to the storage level.

Dramface460 said:
are we supposed to discharge our batteries to 0 if stored for 30 days or more?

No. Batteries should always be stored between 30-65% charged.

Dramface460 · Aug 2, 2016

@msinger also what is the best day to set the batteries to start discharging if I'm flying my P4 every 7 days or so?

msinger · Aug 2, 2016

Assuming you charge your batteries within ~1 day of using them, 2 days would be a good setting for you.

Dramface460 · Aug 2, 2016

@msinger cool thanks for the reply. I guess since I have 2 charging stations I'll just use them and not a hub. Thinking of setting time to discharge at 2 days. That way at 4-5 days they should be at 65 percent or below.

Dramface460 · Aug 2, 2016

Okay Great I'll set it for 2 days. Do you recommend I buy a lipo bag to store all 4 batteries. I did read it's not good to store these batteries on a bag though since they will be discharging and emitting heat?

msinger · Aug 2, 2016

Dramface460 said:
Do you recommend I buy a lipo bag to store all 4 batteries.

I do not put my batteries in a LiPo bag/container when charging them (since I'm always in the same room). And, I used to just always keep them stored in my Phantom cases. I recently decided to pick up some Hobby Tiger LiPo bags (love them!) to store my batteries. While it's very rare to hear of a Phantom battery catching on fire, I simply cannot take that chance since I store them in my house. The small cost I paid for the bags saved a lot of worrying over something that could potentially happen.

Dramface460 · Aug 2, 2016

Funny @msinger I was just looking at that hobby tiger bag on Amazon and just purchased it Thanks for the heads up and info.

Last Chance · Aug 2, 2016

msinger said:
I do not put my batteries in a LiPo bag/container when charging them (since I'm always in the same room). And, I used to just always keep them stored in my Phantom cases. I recently decided to pick up some Hobby Tiger LiPo bags (love them!) to store my batteries. While it's very rare to hear of a Phantom battery catching on fire, I simply cannot take that chance since I store them in my house. The small cost I paid for the bags saved a lot of worrying over something that could potentially happen.

I'm glad they are inexpensive...I just bought the bag also. It never ends.

Dramface460 · Aug 2, 2016

Haha nice these accessories seem contagious. bag is a good idea. Not sure why I didn't think of it before. Then again there are so many accessories out there for the Phantoms. When I bought my P4 I got an extra battery thinking that's all I needed. Haha yea right. Ended up getting a back pack, filters, antenna booster, etc. never ends is very true

Last Chance · Aug 2, 2016

msinger said:
I do not put my batteries in a LiPo bag/container when charging them (since I'm always in the same room). And, I used to just always keep them stored in my Phantom cases. I recently decided to pick up some Hobby Tiger LiPo bags (love them!) to store my batteries. While it's very rare to hear of a Phantom battery catching on fire, I simply cannot take that chance since I store them in my house. The small cost I paid for the bags saved a lot of worrying over something that could potentially happen.

This thread answered a lot of questions this Noob had!