RC-Monster Forums - View Single Post - Charging li-pos w/out using a balancer...can it be done?

lincpimp · 10.05.2008, 09:04 PM

Do not agree with you on this:

You can balance before the charge and the charge w/o the balancer to 4.1 volts/cell. Unless the cells are really out of sync with each other, this is the surest way you will not damage your cells, though not the safest.

Without the balancer monitoring the cells there is no gaurantee that the cells will take an equal charger, even if they are balanced before the charge. You could still have a cell that gets out of balance with the low charge rate. Plus not every charger will allow for a 4.1v cutoff.

If you charge with a balancer, you can get the maximum performace out of you pack, because each cell will take the exact amount of charge that it needs. However if the cells in that pack have various capacities, you could risk damaging your pack as the cell with the lowest capacity will dump first, possibly before the entire pack voltage reaches the cut off.

The balancer does not regulate the amount of charge that each cell receives, it just bleeds off the higher voltage cells to match the lower ones. Big benefit of using a charge thru balancer is that I can interrrupt the charge if there is an issue with the cells going over or under voltage...

Bottom line: Charge with a balancer and be conservative on the lvc voltage if your cells are matched. OR balance your cells and then charge to 4.1 volts/cell w/o a balancer if your cells aren't so matched anymore.

I really do not see what your 4.1v method will do. You might as well just charge the lipo normally, risk is the same.

	(#14)
lincpimp Check out my huge box! Offline Posts: 11,935 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Slidell, LA	10.05.2008, 09:04 PM Do not agree with you on this: You can balance before the charge and the charge w/o the balancer to 4.1 volts/cell. Unless the cells are really out of sync with each other, this is the surest way you will not damage your cells, though not the safest. Without the balancer monitoring the cells there is no gaurantee that the cells will take an equal charger, even if they are balanced before the charge. You could still have a cell that gets out of balance with the low charge rate. Plus not every charger will allow for a 4.1v cutoff. If you charge with a balancer, you can get the maximum performace out of you pack, because each cell will take the exact amount of charge that it needs. However if the cells in that pack have various capacities, you could risk damaging your pack as the cell with the lowest capacity will dump first, possibly before the entire pack voltage reaches the cut off. The balancer does not regulate the amount of charge that each cell receives, it just bleeds off the higher voltage cells to match the lower ones. Big benefit of using a charge thru balancer is that I can interrrupt the charge if there is an issue with the cells going over or under voltage... Bottom line: Charge with a balancer and be conservative on the lvc voltage if your cells are matched. OR balance your cells and then charge to 4.1 volts/cell w/o a balancer if your cells aren't so matched anymore. I really do not see what your 4.1v method will do. You might as well just charge the lipo normally, risk is the same. Alot of Savage parts for sale!!!