One of the questions that I routinely see is “what charger is best”. Honestly, the answer varies to what you are biased on. I say this as we all have opinions on what brands and models that we like and will state this as the norm of what everyone should buy. However, to avoid the question, it is best to know what to look for and then what charger best suites you and not someone else.

Benefits to Lipo

If you are going lipo then there are some fears that people have concerning lipo. Honestly, unless you have your lipo placed in a perilous location, are abusing the cell, or buy a no-quality name brand cell, then the chances of cell failure are minimal. Care of the cells will yield enjoyable benefits to your experience away from NiMh and NiCad.

So what are the benefits of Lipo? For me, it is the high discharge rates and lowered cell resistance. They allow me to be able to feed a motor to what it is demanding for increased speed and performance. The capacities of the cells are also higher than NiMh which means longer run times. And, when the cell weighs less, then I will be able to increase performance of the kit without bogging it down.

Mah and ‘C’ rating

Most people get confused with 2500 mah 30c when they see it. Mah is what the cell has for capacity. This is what your run time is based off of; or how many amps the battery can provide over time. The C value is how many times capacity the cell can out put in amps.

To figure out how many amps the cell can provide up to simply multiply the Mah value by the C value. In the example above, of 2500 mah 30C, 2500mah * 30C = 75,000 or 75A. This means that the battery can provide up to 75A to a motor on its demand. If a motor is only drawing 60A then the battery will only provide 60A. If the motor is demanding 80A then the battery will only give its maximum of 75A. In this scenario, the motor’s excessive demand will put a strain on it and the battery.

So, what will run longer? A Battery at 5000Mah at 10C or a battery with 2500mah at 20C?

In the above, both packs will provide 50A to the demand. However, the battery with more Mah will run longer as it has a larger capacity (or fuel tank).

4s3P- what do the S and the P mean in reference to packs?

What does the above mean? Simply, it means that a lipo battery pack has 4 cells in series and 3 cells in parallel. To understand what each does then lets break that down:

4s- this means that the pack has 4 cells in series. Each cell is 3.7VDC. 4*3.7V = 14.4V. Another thing to note is that series is additive to cell voltage and not mah. So, each cell in series will add the voltage together or 3.7 + 3.7 + 3.7 + 3.7= 4s or 14.4VDC

3P means that 3 cells are in parallel . Parallel has an additive effect on Mah or capacity of the cell. Each cell combined in parallel will not affect voltage but will add to the capacity. For example, if (3) 3.7VDC 500 mah cells are added in parallel then you would get an output of 500mah + 500mah + 500mah = 3.7Vdc or 3P 1500Mah.

Before Charging a Lipo

First, and foremost, before charging a lipo you need to have a lipo charger. Your NiMh charger will not work and will damage the battery. Both batteries are different. For example, NiMh is 1.2V per cell and lipo is 3.7V.

When you pick a charger then you will want to get one that senses peak charge. There are some chargers out there, typically the cheapest, that will just dump power into the cell. These have the potential to overcharge. You want a charger that will detect when the cell is fully charged at 100%. Typically, like the two shown in the video, these chargers will also verify your settings are accurate to the pack being charged.

When picking a charger, look at the limitations of the charger. Look at what you currently run and see what your needs are. For example, for people using BL conversion, they will run 4s to 6s lipos. Some chargers, like the Duratraxx Ice charger that is shown in the video, can only charge up to 4s. This is fine as some kits, like the Electric Revo, Savage Flux, etc, require 2 lipos of the same type (two 2s or two 3s packs) where they are joined in series and would be fine with buying the ICE. However, some people need the 6s brick and all in one battery. For these people, the ICE would not be a valid charger for them. So, be sure to realize what your current and potential future needs could be.

Next, you want to have a charger that can charge up to a high amperage. If you are going to want to fast charge then you will want a high current ready charger to supply the amps as that is a reflection in the speed of charge. *note*, rule of thumbs on selecting your charge amps will be included late on in this guide (and in the video), be sure to read them!

In addition to a charger with the ability to charge fast you will want a power supply that can support. Most chargers do not come with a power supply. These are typically racer orientated chargers that can clip onto a 12VDC car battery. Power supplies are available for sale and you can make your own modded computer supply. Ideally, pick a power supply out that will provide 12 to 15VDC with at least 15+Amps.

charging

The best chargers out there are the programmable ones. I don’t want to date this write up but I am going to have to. The Triton, ICE, Hyperion, Turnigy’s etc that are computer ran, and manually setup to a profile or each individual pack, are the best ones out there. I state this as you, the user, input the controls on what the charger should look for, and hence, charge to. For example, you, the owner of the lipo, should 1) input what the mah level of the pack is, 2) setup the correct voltage level (or in most chargers they will make it easy for you and augment to cell count on the lipo), and 3) choose the charger level in amps.

The video referenced in this write demonstrates this on the ICE and the Turnigy chargers. The cool point about this is that both chargers are different in capabilities. One is a new charger and the other has been around for years. However, setup on both is very similar as seen in the video. So, once you know how to setup your charger, then any other charger you touch, should be similar in that fashion of charger. Normally I would provide a walk through of a charge process, however since chargers will vary, I will leave it generic as the generalities are universal and the basic steps are very straight forward. Again, please reference the video for this section as it shows this on two separate chargers.

Charging amperage
Charging amperage, mentioned above, has three mindsets that you can listen to. On one side there is risk of damage to the pack at the mercy of speed of charging the pack, and on the other side, you have a slower charge that is safer for the packs and yourself.

The fast charging rule of thumb has two amperage settings. First, the manufacturer will state the recommended fast charge amperage. Simply input this into your charger and charge away. The next one is to charge at 1A per 1000 mah. The danger to this is that this is a generic rule of thumb, that some people use successfully, but you could overwhelm the battery and harm it.

The safest way to charge your battery is at 1C. This is a slow charge typically. Slow charges take time. Personally, I observe this mindset myself and have two sets of cells so that I can run with one while the other set is charging. What this states is that if a 1000 mah 10C battery is 10A total output potential then 1C would be 1A. If the 1000 mah pack was 20C then the 1C value would be 1A still. My personal choice is to charge at 1C, or 1A to 2A, which ever is less while balancing.

Balancing
Balancing is the ability of the charger or external device to either charge, or discharge, each cell. The way this works is that the balancing port is wired so that each input and output of a cell is monitored. This allows the balancer to know the voltage of each cell. As the charge, or discharge processes, the balancer will work the weakest cell the hardest to get the entire pack on the same level. This increases the pack’s run time and overall ability to deliver performance.

There are two methods of balancing. The first is like the blinky balancer where it is external. The other is monitored by the charger. Either method you will want to do regularly. Be it on every charge, every 5 charges, or every 10 charges. The thought is not to have a predetermined number but to do it regularly. External devices will inform you of the cell that is being worked by its own design. For example, the blinky, will have an LED that flashes to indicate which cell is being worked. If you have a built in charger balancer then there should be a really cool function that will show you the voltage of each cell while the charge or discharge occurs.

lipo Storage

Some chargers have this capability. The turnigy, as shown in the video, does. Lipo storage is a subject where people do recommend to charge the pack to a certain Mah level and be done. How do you know that the pack is at that mah level though? To be certain, discharge or charge the pack to 3.85V per cell.

signs of a good charger

While charging, a good charger will detect that your settings are correctly inputted before charging, it will show the voltage applied to the cell while being charged, will show how much charge has been put into the pack via mah applied, will show the current amperage applied, and allow monitoring of use via charge and / or balancing functions.

General Safety

-Never let the cell voltage go below 3.7V
-Always be present while charging.
-Always use a metal container to store the lipo in (or something that can handle a potential explosion
-Use a fire safe bag if available.
-Quarantine the battery (if possible) away from items that can increase the dangers of fire (flammable liquids as an example), people, animals, property, etc.

Nitrokings