How about flying while snowing

[afarkas]

Hi guys,
Is it OK to fly while these beautiful huge snow flakes are falling from the sky?
(basic setup - no rain coat on the machine)

 

[RayOZ]

Probably not advisable. Snow gets sucked in by fan, melts inside, corrosion, etc.

 

[CanadaDrone]

Not only is it not waterproof, but the Mavic 2 in particular has a top-mount battery which allows moisture to get into the contact area through the gap between where the battery attaches and the drone itself. I wouldn't even consider flying if it was raining, snowing, or even foggy but that's just me.

You can buy specific skins that allow for flight in light rain/snow as they plug all the gaps and limit what gets sucked into the aircraft, but I see those as more of a second line of defense rather than a green light to fly in wet conditions. Too expensive to risk it IMO, and DJI's warranty and Refresh are void if you fly in bad weather.

 

[Skyskipper]

Not only is it not waterproof, but the Mavic 2 in particular has a top-mount battery which allows moisture to get into the contact area through the gap between where the battery attaches and the drone itself. I wouldn't even consider flying if it was raining, snowing, or even foggy but that's just me.

You can buy specific skins that allow for flight in light rain/snow as they plug all the gaps and limit what gets sucked into the aircraft, but I see those as more of a second line of defense rather than a green light to fly in wet conditions. Too expensive to risk it IMO, and DJI's warranty and Refresh are void if you fly in bad weather.

Keep in mind the drone visibility regulations

 

[evolution 3d]

I fly in the light snow once in a while.. generally not a big deal.. let it dry well afterwards.. heck.. my launch time mavic 2 pro landed in a deep mud puddle 1st week I had.. there was water in the camera, in the body, everywhere.. I flushed it out with distilled water.. and I mean dunked it right in the stuff.. put it in front of the air conditioning for 2 days to suck out the moisture its' been perfect ever since.. only thing I was worried about was the battery and it ended up fine as iI got it out of the puddle quick enough.. I tested it flying low and recharging it a few times for a couple weeks before I fully trusted it.. these new generation of drones are a lot better when it comes to moisture.. you do it ask your own risk of course. and ya there is the warranty thing.. I personally don't care about that as I can repair just about anything... one more thing.. stay away from salt water of course.. that is bad news.. I live in the 1000 Islands which is all fresh water..

 

[Lapeer20m]

I’ve flown original Mavic Pro in the snow countless times over the past 2 years.

My biggest problem is keeping my fingers from freezing.

Make certain you start with a warm battery.

Mavic got covered in snow during the filming of this video, I had to bring her down and clean the snow off of the camera:

 

[jwt873]

I've flown in the snow a few times. If it's not too close to freezing, the plastic skin of the M2 and battery will get down to ambient temperature fast and the snow won't melt or stick. The motors get warm, but they don't seem to get wet either.. Perhaps because they're spinning so fast.

The long and short of it, is that flying in snow is much like flying in light fog. Visibility is reduced. You do see flakes, but it's nothing really special. I was actually going to fly today but didn't because it's been snowing.

And it's good to see that I I'm not the only one who films themselves blowing snow

 

[CanadaDrone]

I've flown in the snow a few times. If it's not too close to freezing, the plastic skin of the M2 and battery will get down to ambient temperature fast and the snow won't melt or stick. QUOTE]

The top of the battery won't get down to ambient no matter how cold it is outside (provided you can still fly the drone), and that is where you don't want the snow to melt because it can seep into the cracks on the top and onto the battery contacts. Just something to be aware of.

 

[Lapeer20m]

I've flown in the snow a few times. If it's not too close to freezing, the plastic skin of the M2 and battery will get down to ambient temperature fast and the snow won't melt or stick. The motors get warm, but they don't seem to get wet either.. Perhaps because they're spinning so fast.

The long and short of it, is that flying in snow is much like flying in light fog. Visibility is reduced. You do see flakes, but it's nothing really special. I was actually going to fly today but didn't because it's been snowing.

And it's good to see that I I'm not the only one who films themselves blowing snow
View attachment 62953

Were such dorks!