Charging LiPo's for storage

[Diamond Dave]

I think it's important to make a comparison, including NiCad & NiMH in the discussion of shelf-life. ... EDIT .... YUP

Compared to NiMHs, LiPos at least retain their charge for MUCH longer, and I've read they can last in storage for several years without significantly losing their chargeability or capacity.

I have a few brand new two cell lipo's sitting here, No voltage loss or degradation in the last year or more. Store them properly, proper temp and your good to go.

[THEYTOOKMYTHUMB]

Is there any kind of shelf life on stored lipos? I have some NIP ones that I bought probably a year+ ago. Obviously I will try them out and see, but just curious if anyone had any idea.

Ok, here is one of said lipos and I still have yet to touch it since the post above. Can anyone tell me where to put the diodes and set the dial for voltage testing?

[jwscab]

diodes? you mean test leads?

click that volt meter counter clockwise three clicks to the '20'. the inner ring of white text is the range, and the outer ring in yellow text tells you what it measures, in the case i told you to switch it to, is volts, dc.

you can measure between the two big leads, and between a big lead and the small charge lead, to measure each cell individually. don't be alarmed if the voltage is negative, that just means the leads are backwards.

[THEYTOOKMYTHUMB]

diodes? you mean test leads?

Yeah, probably. This reading make sense? I expected them to be lower coming from the manufacturer. Especially maybe close to 2 years ago. Thanks for the help.

[THEYTOOKMYTHUMB]

Nevermind, I went back and see the recommended voltage now. I was thinking it should be a lot lower, but I haven't messed with any batteries in a long time.

[lmwong]

Okay, this is a stupid question, but it's not clear to me. What do people mean when they say "storage"? A few hours, days, weeks? Can I charge up batteries a day or two before and store them overnight? Or should I wait until the day of to charge them up? Or by storage, you mean a season or months.

[jwscab]

Any time that includes longer than a couple minutes. What they mean is, if I'm not actively using the pack,what voltage should it be at? Ten minutes could turn into a year depending on life events so if you aren't planning to immediately use a pack, charge it to a minimum.

[LTO_Dave]

I use the storage function on my charger that brings the packs up to 3.85V per cell I think. I used to do it manually with my old charger that didn't have a storage function.

But there have been several times I've fully charged some 2s and 3s packs, then didn't end up using them immediately and didn't use the storage mode on them until days or weeks later.

[THEYTOOKMYTHUMB]

But there have been several times I've fully charged some 2s and 3s packs, then didn't end up using them immediately and didn't use the storage mode on them until days or weeks later.

I'm guilty of that on more than one occasion. It's scary how fast a year can fly by!

[Diamond Dave]

But there have been several times I've fully charged some 2s and 3s packs, then didn't end up using them immediately and didn't use the storage mode on them until days or weeks later.

I'm guilty of that on more than one occasion. It's scary how fast a year can fly by!

I know keeping them at full charge is probably not a good idea, but a few weeks pass and I have not had any issues.

Any idea on why having them sit at full charge is not a good way to store them?

I could google it, but I would rather discuss it here. I went out and bought a fresh can of Plasti Dip and did some ends of a few of my batts.

I have my first SCX10 Rubicon built and running, waterproofed everything and I have done this with a few lipo's before with no issue.

[Coelacanth]

But there have been several times I've fully charged some 2s and 3s packs, then didn't end up using them immediately and didn't use the storage mode on them until days or weeks later.

I'm guilty of that on more than one occasion. It's scary how fast a year can fly by!

I know keeping them at full charge is probably not a good idea, but a few weeks pass and I have not had any issues.

Any idea on why having them sit at full charge is not a good way to store them?

I could google it, but I would rather discuss it here. I went out and bought a fresh can of Plasti Dip and did some ends of a few of my batts.

I have my first SCX10 Rubicon built and running, waterproofed everything and I have done this with a few lipo's before with no issue.

I had to throw out a battery that was fairly new because I stored it several months on a full charge (I forgot it was charged)...it got puffy and split the seams. I can't say what causes it but I'm sure you can Google it...just don't risk having to toss out a perfectly good battery because you left it charged before storing and it got puffy.

Re: The Plasti Dip for the battery ends, I was thinking of doing the exact same thing! How did that turn out?

[Diamond Dave]

It always turns out well, I have even done the seams on hard case packs.