Mavic air batteries

[Johnnyw1948]

Can anyone help. 2 of my 4 batteries have started to swel and are getting hot. What is happening. Thanks

 

[cheddar-man]

Can anyone help. 2 of my 4 batteries have started to swel and are getting hot. What is happening. Thanks

Throw them away (recycle them properly). DO NOT USE! They have reached the end of their lives and could be a fire risk!!

 

[akdrone]

And when you replace them be sure to do it with OEM batteries from DJI which are hard to find and typically quite expensive since they are no longer available from DJI. I do think DJI allows such things to stop production wayyy to soon.

 

[GFields]

As mentioned, do use them. They are no good.
Check with DJI to see if they are under warranty.

 

[shb]

Can anyone help. 2 of my 4 batteries have started to swel and are getting hot. What is happening. Thanks

Yes, DJI makes crappy batteries. Sorry.

 

[cheddar-man]

Yes, DJI makes crappy batteries. Sorry.

About as useful as a chocolate fire guard!

 

[spamgnome]

WAIT! Do not throw them away just yet. Contact DJI and tell them that your batteries are swelling and see what they say. I have a MA 2 and 3 of 3 batteries started swelling after 2 years. DJI replaced them free of charge. All I had to do was send them a video of putting the swollen batteries in a bucket of salty water. They were not under warranty. Your experience with MA1 batteries may be different, but it's worth a try. Even if you do end up throwing them away, you'll still want to drown them in salt water for safety reasons. But as I said, contact DJI first.

 

[wardtom084]

Curious as to the number of charges on them. I have 3 that are near 100 recharges.

 

[4006448]

What is the purpose of dunking the battery in salty water? I’ve never heard of that before.

 

[fsdaaerwrf]

What is the purpose of dunking the battery in salty water? I’ve never heard of that before.

I suppose it's about making them unusable.

 

[Kilrah]

What is the purpose of dunking the battery in salty water?

Salt penetrates the cell pouch and basically renders it inert, no more stored energy that could pose a risk of fire etc.

 

[slup]

Salt penetrates the cell pouch and basically renders it inert, no more stored energy that could pose a risk of fire etc.

The LiPo pouches are mainly air & water tight so they doesn't get killed by salt penetration. Instead the thought is that the battery gets shorted in the water & the salt is to improve conductivity.

But be aware that this method isn't bullet proof ... this as the battery terminals quickly corrode, effectively lower or even completely prevent conductivity between the + & - terminal.

Tested this with a 6 cell ordinary quad battery on storage voltage (3,8V/cell) just a week ago ... cut the XT60 connector off, stripped the wires properly & dunked it in salt water for a week. Once out of the bath & dried up I measured the cells, & they were still at 0,1V = 0,6V for the complete battery... & yeah, both exposed wires & the balance connector was heavily corroded, pitch black.

Sound like a harmful voltage but drove a nail through it to be sure & it was a loud "pop" & the battery let out huge amounts of smoke & it sounded like it boiled... it wasn't any open flames though. It was generating both smoke & heat for a couple of hours.

 

[Kilrah]

It might depend on cell type/construction. I have one battery a few years ago that got a minor splash of seawater at the beach and was quickly cleaned, nothing on the contacts etc... but the next morning all 3 cells were at 0V and would not take a charge again, as if they were shorted.

 

[slup]

...I have one battery a few years ago that got a minor splash of seawater at the beach and was quickly cleaned, nothing on the contacts etc... but the next morning all 3 cells were at 0V and would not take a charge again, as if they were shorted.

The battery most probably was shorted by some water left in a hidden place inside the battery enclosure (if it was a DJI battery type...)

If water could reach inside the pouches, air can that also... & air consists of many different gasses, not only oxygen ... they will quickly destroy the electrolyte rendering the battery useless.