Topic: Problem with lithium ion last night

[Teen Wolf Blitzer]

Got to the show last night and one of my ESA batteries doesn't seem to work.     I get no lights on it when I press the button.  Luckily I have 4 so I swapped it out.  They were all charged up prior to the show.  Anyone ever had this problem?  I'm a little scared to plug it in and charge it for fear it might blow up.  Also keep in mind I rarely use battery power so this battery is essentially new.  Was thinking of calling ESA and seeing if they'd replace it.  Any input or similar experiences appreciated.  Cheers.

Edited to say I just saw Tim's post about his wallmart battery.  Kinda similar.   

[caymanreview]

i had this happen once. it was the only time i had ever used a DC>AC converter to charge the batt in the car on the road between shows.

it was powering a v3, and didn't go dead untill about 10 minutes into the 2nd set of moe

i thought it was because of using the DC > AC converter in my car to charge it. i had tried to plug it in and charge it afterwards and nothing happened, no lights or anything

i took it to the store to exchange it and the guy wanted to plug it into the charger just to see if it would charge, and it did all of the sudden

i used that same batt for at least 6 more months, i actually still have it somewhere i think

[twatts (pants are so over-rated...)]

Few years ago, I ran my UA5 and a Hosa off my WalMart battery.  Because the UA5 has reverse polarity, the "tip" is actually the shaft.  When I plugged in the battery, the UA5 plug touched the Hosa plug and the battery shorted.  Plugging it at home again reset the battery, and it still works great.

I changed out how I power my UA5 and never had the problem again.

I have also heard of folks that had the same thing happen to them - that their battery shorted.  The batteries always reset upon plugging into the wall.

I'm guessing your battery shorted for some reason, maybe when you plugged it in you plugged in crooked and that shorted it.  Not sure...

I'm thinking your battery should be fine, that these batteries have a "fuse" that shuts the batteyr down when it shorts.  And then it resets upon plugging it in...  Like I said, I've never had issues since that one time...

Good luck, hope that helps!

Terry

[F.O.Bean]

I hate Lithium Lion's personally. ive already had 2-3 722 batteries go DEAD and i just dont trust the charging mediums......I power everything v2/722 off of 7.2v NIMH rc batts for festivals and use the 722 batts ONLY at local shows. the v2 is ALWAYS powered from 7.2v NIMH rc batts batts so.....I can run the v2 with 7.2v@9000mah for about 16 hrs I also have a few single 7.2v NIMH batts for the v2 for local shows where I dont want nor need the 9000mah packs i wired in parallel. besides, (1) 7.2v batt is MUCH lighter than (3) batts

i say screw lithium, its ONLY advantage is weight/size IMO and what good is that if your batts DIE all of a sudden......

[Teen Wolf Blitzer]

That was the weirdest thing.  I plugged it in and it appeared drained.  No lights but the red charge light lit.  So I charged it.  Will let it sit and check it every so often.  Maybe I just tripped something and it needed a reset.  Strange though that it was drained.  Hmm.  I'm still sold on lithiums but this is sketchy for sure.

[Shawn]

I hate Lithium Lion's personally. ive already had 2-3 722 batteries go DEAD and i just dont trust the charging mediums......I power everything v2/722 off of 7.2v NIMH rc batts for festivals and use the 722 batts ONLY at local shows. the v2 is ALWAYS powered from 7.2v NIMH rc batts batts so.....I can run the v2 with 7.2v@9000mah for about 16 hrs I also have a few single 7.2v NIMH batts for the v2 for local shows where I dont want nor need the 9000mah packs i wired in parallel. besides, (1) 7.2v batt is MUCH lighter than (3) batts

i say screw lithium, its ONLY advantage is weight/size IMO and what good is that if your batts DIE all of a sudden......

IME A good high quality li-on battery can be a very reliable solution. I've used power runner li-on batts for well over a year to power everything in my rig (R-4, Ua-5, jb3, etc...) and I've never had a single problem with them. The only people I know that have had problems are using generic wal-mart style batteries. I think the problem with li-on is there are some crappy manufacturers spewing out bad products that are snatched up because they are really cheap. 

[TheMaestro]

The thing with li-ions is that they have an internal overload protection circuit.  It's kinda like a circuit breaker.  So if the polarity gets reversed or a major fluctuation in current draw the batteries will protect themselves.  When you plug them back in to charge it resets it and works.  At least that's how it's been explained to me before.

[Kindguy]

The thing with li-ions is that they have an internal overload protection circuit.  It's kinda like a circuit breaker.  So if the polarity gets reversed or a major fluctuation in current draw the batteries will protect themselves.  When you plug them back in to charge it resets it and works.  At least that's how it's been explained to me before.

So I guess it couldn't hurt to carry a plug tip in your bag?

[drewloo]

The thing with li-ions is that they have an internal overload protection circuit.  It's kinda like a circuit breaker.  So if the polarity gets reversed or a major fluctuation in current draw the batteries will protect themselves.  When you plug them back in to charge it resets it and works.  At least that's how it's been explained to me before.

So I guess it couldn't hurt to carry a plug tip in your bag?

I carry the charger w/ me now, for some reason I thought you need to plug it in like a regular charge to reset it.  Maybe you don't, though.   

[capnhook]

The thing with li-ions is that they have an internal overload protection circuit.  It's kinda like a circuit breaker.  So if the polarity gets reversed or a major fluctuation in current draw the batteries will protect themselves.  When you plug them back in to charge it resets it and works.  At least that's how it's been explained to me before.

So I guess it couldn't hurt to carry a plug tip in your bag?

I carry the charger w/ me now, for some reason I thought you need to plug it in like a regular charge to reset it.  Maybe you don't, though.   

Me and Chuck had this conversation about this subject not too long ago:

I got a new pair of these Li-ion 9V rechargeables to maybe replace the 2-9V alkaline power supply I use to power my NAK MX-100 mixer.  Gonna hack the cables tomorrow and solder the ends into a 4-pin female mic connector, like the 2 alkalines are setup now.  There's no power switch on the mixer, so I'll be plugging in hot ---- hope the current surge doesn't pop the protection circuit, or else I'll be back to using alkalines again. I suppose one could make up a 12V sled of AAA batteries to jumpstart a Li-ion, though.........it would save having to search around for AC.  I'll let you know if this works for me......

I wish I had a picture, but I took a 9v battery and wired a plug that fits into the "charger" jack on my LiOn's. It works like a charm to get them going again when they shut down. I have found that they shut down when hit with a big load or a direct short. The 9v battery trick works in the field, when you don't have an AC outlet to use. I have also thought about just making a jumper between the two LiOn's I have. That way I could use one battery to re-start the other, but more important and useful, I would be able to keep one going if the other is getting depleted by passing the 9v from the good one into the "charger" jack of the depleted one.

Good one, Chuck!  Nice to know a 9V will reset it.........+t

http://taperssection.com/index.php/topic,70922.msg1040804.html#msg1040804

[TheMaestro]

@capnhook
Thanks for bringing that thread up.  I need to try that sometime to see if it will work on the sony li-ions.

[capnhook]

@capnhook
Thanks for bringing that thread up.  I need to try that sometime to see if it will work on the sony li-ions.

Yeah, man this is a great place.....hope I can spread even a tiny bit of know-how I get everyday from this place.  +T

 

[guysonic]

Most rechargeable batteries have an auto-reset thermal fuse in-series with the cells usually rated from 3 to 7 amperes. 

Too much current drawn from the battery heats up a bi-metal strip that bends to snap open one of the output leads coming off the cells.   In the open condition, the fuse device cools down to where it resets to connect again, but will immediately snap open again if there's too much current being drawn.  So you might hear a clicking sound inside the battery as this fuse opens/resets.

These fuses are usually reliable to prevent fires from shorts, but on rare occasions the reset function is not making good enough contact for some reason, and being mechanically jarred sometimes helps remake the fuse's contact.

Problem with battery not charging, then charging OK may also be a bad contact with the charger. 

Also, some chargers don't run so good on DC-to-AC adapters outputting square or modified sine waveform power.  Best is using true sine wave adapter so sensitive gear works just like on house AC power.