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Battery temperature cutoff

Mikerobertsn

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Hi All,
I charged my mavic 2 batteries for the first time with the car charger on the weekend and I have read the batteries have a temperature cut off inbuilt.
Having charged phantom batteries in a car boot before from an inverter and having the batteries swell (was a hot day), I’m keen not to repeat that mistake again and I was wondering what is the temperature which the batteries cutoff charging, and does it always work etc?
 
Per the Mavic 2 manual, the battery will only charge when the temperature is between 5°C (41°F) and 40°C (104°F).

Per the DJI Battery Safety Guidelines, the ideal room temperature for charging batteries is between 22°C (71°F) to 28°C (82°F). Charging the battery outside the temperature range of 5°C (41°F) to 40°C (104°F) could damage the battery.

If the boot of your car is not air conditioned, you could permanently damage your batteries by storing them there on a hot day.
 
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Hi All, I charged my mavic 2 batteries for the first time with the car charger on the weekend and I have read the batteries have a temperature cut off inbuilt.
Having charged phantom batteries in a car boot before from an inverter and having the batteries swell (was a hot day), I’m keen not to repeat that mistake again and I was wondering what is the temperature which the batteries cutoff charging, and does it always work etc?

This is a great time to discuss this, since summer temperatures have already arrived for some members.

The OP stored his previous Phantom battery in the trunk "boot" of his car when the temp was hotter than specs, and although the internal battery thermometer could have cut off the charge to prevent puffing, the battery puffed due to the ambient temperature.

Before charging, the batteries thermometer checks its temperature, and if it in excess of the manufacturers specs, the batteries circuitry will not allow it to charge. This happens frequently after a flight, when the batteries temperature has risen to above what its preprogrammed spec temps are for safe battery charging, and the circuitry will not allow the battery to charge until it has cooled below that threshold.

Theres a problem that DJI has not solved yet. What if a battery is overheating during flight, and the battery is on the verge of causing permanent damage to itself and the drone? The drone will turn off or land, right? Unfortunately not. Its supposed to, but doesnt always detect and protect the drone from excess temperatures until its too late.

So what can you do to prevent the battery from overheating during charging, and overheating during flight? Simple. First, use the OPs experience as a lesson, and dont leave you Mavic batteries in the car in warmer weather. They say not to leave your baby or dog in the car during warm weather, well, the same applies to your battery.

Second, try not to fly when the ambient temperature is above 100°. Thats already almost terminal temperature for the battery before its even been turned on. Even if it lets you turn it on, you will soon be near max temp within a short time after you start flying.

So, keeping your batteries at storage level and keeping them out of extreme temperatures is the safe thing to do, and will help your batteries live long healthy lives.
 
Last edited:
This is a great time to discuss this, since summer temperatures have already arrived for some members.

The OP stored his previous Phantom battery in the trunk "boot" of his car when the temp was hotter than specs, and although the internal battery thermometer could have cut off the charge to prevent puffing, the battery puffed due to the ambient temperature.

Before charging, the batteries thermometer checks its temperature, and if it in excess of the manufacturers specs, the batteries circuitry will not allow it to charge. This happens frequently after a flight, when the batteries temperature has risen to above what its preprogrammed spec temps are for safe battery charging, and the circuitry will not allow the battery to charge until it has cooled below that threshold.

Theres a problem that DJI has not solved yet. What if a battery is overheating during flight, and the battery is on the verge of causing permanent damage to itself and the drone? The drone will turn off or land, right? Unfortunately not. Its supposed to, but doesnt always detect and protect the drone from excess temperatures until its too late.

So what can you do to prevent the battery from overheating during charging, and overheating during flight? Simple. First, use the OPs experience as a lesson, and dont leave you Mavic batteries in the car in warmer weather. They say not to leave your baby or dog in the car during warm weather, well, the same applies to your battery.

Second, try not to fly when the ambient temperature is above 100°. Thats already almost terminal temperature for the battery before its even been turned on. Even if it lets you turn it on, you will soon be near max temp within a short time after you start flying.

So, keeping your batteries at storage level and keeping them out of extreme temperatures is the safe thing to do, and will help your batteries live long healthy lives.
On my phantom drone, the batteries did charge, and still worked just got puffy though, it was a phantom vision 2 so not sure if it had temp sensors.
 
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On my phantom drone, the batteries did charge, and still worked just got puffy though, it was a phantom vision 2 so not sure if it had temp sensors.

I wonder if anyone has came up with a way to charge batteries in a hot car, thinking along the lines of buying a little camping fridge etc. If you go out for a day and want to charge the batteries (car charger) while you are doing something else (having lunch etc), it makes it hard.
 
I wonder if anyone has came up with a way to charge batteries in a hot car, thinking along the lines of buying a little camping fridge etc. If you go out for a day and want to charge the batteries (car charger) while you are doing something else (having lunch etc), it makes it hard.

A solar powered charger would work for what you described, but leaving any battery in a hot car isnt the best idea even in a fridge.
 
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If you go out for a day and want to charge the batteries (car charger) while you are doing something else (having lunch etc), it makes it hard.
An alternative would be to buy more batteries. That way you wouldn't have to recharge them after you head out for the day. Then, just keep the batteries in a cool place or carry them with you until you're ready to fly.
 
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Interesting. There's a 107 pilot in my neighborhood who does real estate work with a Mavic Pro. He stores his batteries in a little styrofoam cooler (about the size of a 6 pack) along with one of those small reusable ice packs. Probably keeps the temps around 40 F. Gets pretty hot here in the summer but not desert hot.
 
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Interesting. There's a 107 pilot in my neighborhood who does real estate work with a Mavic Pro. He stores his batteries in a little styrofoam cooler (about the size of a 6 pack) along with one of those small reusable ice packs. Probably keeps the temps around 40 F. Gets pretty hot here in the summer but not desert hot.

Thats one way to keep them cool. That will also extend your flight time on a 95° day because the battery might take a few minutes to get to operating temperature.

The only caveat is that if the battery does get below freezing, it could get damaged. So I would just come up with a formula of how many ice packs it takes to keep the batteries at, say, 50°f on different days. Also, be sure to leave the cooler in the shade. If it gets into the sun, it could vary in temps up to 30°f.

Necessity is the mother of invention.
 
JAW: What a great idea! I am definitely going to test it out soon as we've already had a high over 90 down here in South Texas. Such a simple solution and yet almost certainly very effective. I think I'll just leave my spares in their LiPo bags to prevent any condensation on the batteries. Thanks, amigo.
 
JAW: What a great idea! I am definitely going to test it out soon as we've already had a high over 90 down here in South Texas. Such a simple solution and yet almost certainly very effective. I think I'll just leave my spares in their LiPo bags to prevent any condensation on the batteries. Thanks, amigo.
You're welcome!
 
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