Getting your drone ready for the winter.

[Former Member]

Now that the summer is officially over, and even though the weather is still unusually warm here in Atlanta, winter is right around the corner. While you dont need to "winterize" your drone as you would a car, there are certain tips to ensure the longevity of your drone.

Over the winter, if storing for a while (more than a month), you really need to cycle the battery to increase its longevity. If not being used for a while, it might be a good idea to store the battery outside of the drone. Lipos can expand and contract, especially when subjected to extreme temperatures, so leaving it in the drone for weeks at a time in extreme weather could hurt the battery and the drone. If a battery expands too much due to heat, it could warp the top body, and then any battery you put in after that might not snap in as well. I have seen it happen on Mavics, and even worse on Phantoms. If a battery is exposed to extreme cold, it can zap the power, and might end your flight prematurely, sooner than flying in normal conditions. Yes, Mavics do have their manufacturers suggested operating temperature range, but that doesnt mean you are grounded if the outside temp is higher or lower than that. It just means that you need to take more care and be aware of the circumstances of flying in that atmosphere.

Feel free to join in with your winter flying and storage tips.

 

[PacificNorthwest]

Great post, I need to look into this since I live in the PacificNorthwest. I wasn’t able to fly today and I carried my drone over my shoulder to and from the office just in case lol...

 

[macoman]

Now that the summer is officially over, and even though the weather is still unusually warm here in Atlanta, winter is right around the corner. While you dont need to "winterize" your drone as you would a car, there are certain tips to ensure the longevity of your drone.

Over the winter, if storing for a while (more than a month), you really need to cycle the battery to increase its longevity. If not being used for a while, it might be a good idea to store the battery outside of the drone. Lipos can expand and contract, especially when subjected to extreme temperatures, so leaving it in the drone for weeks at a time in extreme weather could hurt the battery and the drone. If a battery expands too much due to heat, it could warp the top body, and then any battery you put in after that might not snap in as well. I have seen it happen on Mavics, and even worse on Phantoms. If a battery is exposed to extreme cold, it can zap the power, and might end your flight prematurely, sooner than flying in normal conditions. Yes, Mavics do have their manufacturers suggested operating temperature range, but that doesnt mean you are grounded if the outside temp is higher or lower than that. It just means that you need to take more care and be aware of the circumstances of flying in that atmosphere.

Feel free to join in with your winter flying and storage tips.

Thunder what is the proper percentage that the batteries needs to be if we are not going to fly for over a month? I hear 30%, sometimes 50%... What is the real and safe percentage?

 

[charliesRig]

I would say a proper warm-up 1- 2 minutes in colder temperature (40deg or colder) on the pad with rotors spining before flight
Don't fly with less then 20% battery
.........cR

 

[Former Member]

Thunder what is the proper percentage that the batteries needs to be if we are not going to fly for over a month? I hear 30%, sometimes 50%... What is the real and safe percentage?

Good question. According to DJI, the battery will auto-discharge to below 65% on its own. My experience and suggestion for storage has been anything above 40% but below 65% is a good, safe level. Leaving the battery for longer than a month might be ok, considering some batteries sit in big box stores for months at a very low voltage, certainly lower than 65%. Not great for your battery, but once you own it, you can regularly cycle it.

I like to keep mine around 50%, so if I decide to fly, I can charge them up pretty quickly.

DJI Mavic owners manual page 28:

2. Auto-Discharging Function: To prevent swelling, the battery automatically discharges to below 65% of total power when it is idle for more than ten days. It takes around two days to discharge the battery to 65%. It is normal to feel moderate heat being emitted from the battery during the discharge process. Discharge thresholds can be set in the DJI GO 4 app

 

[Eivinas Noru]

There are some good tips on how to fly a drone in cold, snowy weather conditions here:
How to Fly a DJI Mavic Air / Pro in Cold, Snowy Weather (Checklist)
I've done some research and created a checklist that will help you keep yourself and your drone safe.

 

[bushie]

No problems with my Mavic batteries but during our winter we went overseas for 3 months. When we returned my lawn mower battery was dead and would not accept a charge. I had foolishly left it in the charger.

Fortunatly the store replaced it under warrenty.

 

[MiniPalourde]

What's cycling7

 

[JDawg]

What's cycling7

Charger your battery to 100%, run it down to where it needs charged again, that is a cycle.

 

[MiniPalourde]

Charger your battery to 100%, run it down to where it needs charged again, that is a cycle.

What if I charge the battery to 100% and let it discharge to 50% by itself? Does that count as cycling?

 

[mnis]

A complete charge cycle goes from 0 to 100 percent And a discharge cycle goes from 100 to 0 percent. Some battery electronics can detect unfinished cycles and take this into account during charging cycle counting.

So YES ... I would say: A smart DJI battery knows when cycles are complete. It is possible that the extracted and supplied energy is counted so that the cycles are calculated based on the available capacity.

 

[PropSpin]

Thunder what is the proper percentage that the batteries needs to be if we are not going to fly for over a month? I hear 30%, sometimes 50%... What is the real and safe percentage?

I think the user guide for the batteries states between 40 to 60 percent. Actual voltage per cell should be ~3.85. Not sure how many cells your battery has, but you could check. Storage voltage would be #cells*3.85, assuming the charger is balance charging the battery.

 

[Mschinella]

Thunder what is the proper percentage that the batteries needs to be if we are not going to fly for over a month? I hear 30%, sometimes 50%... What is the real and safe percentage?

Storing at 50% charge for your batteries if your not going to use for a month is recommend. But you still should not let them sit for too long.