Understanding Lipo's

[Mack]

Hi
Is there a site I can go to that will teach me about Lipo's. I keep seeing things like 3s 1p and 5s 2p, min and max cell voltage and balancing and I have no idea what they are talking about. I have a completed Trex sitting on the bench waiting for a battery!! I also have a Prodigy charger that does Lipo's but where do you plug the balance lead into. OMG I love Nitro!!

[Thomas]

3S means 3 cells in series, each cell is 3.7 volts so it give you a 11.1 volt pack.

2P means 2 sets of cells in parallel, so if you have a 5000 milli amp battery that is 3s2p you will have 6 x 2500 ma cells.

If you let the cells drop below a certain voltage, 2.7 volts (I think) it does not do the pack any good and can mess it up.

Balancer plugs into the little lead on the battery if you have one, on the smaller FlightPower ones there is plug with 4 wires, one neg and a pos for each cell, though if it was 4s it would have 5 wires. The voltage on individual cells can get out of balance, especially if you abuse them, you could have one that drops below 3.7 and is supported by the others, the balance simply makes sure that all are the same voltage and corrects it if necessary.

1c is the amp of the pack, a 5000 ma pack at 1c is 5 amp, 2c 10 amp and so on, a pack that can discharge at 10c will give your motor 50 amps if it needs it.

Think that makes sense, I'm sure others are more up on this stuff than I am. I must admit I prefer electrics.

[Made2Fade]

I learnt a bit there like... great info Thomas. So if you havent used a balancing lead at all and then one day you decide to plug it in will it still work and just balance all the cells as if you plugged it in from day 1?
Lee

[Thomas]

You shouldn't need to ballance new batteries - but I did have to on one, an Evo 20 2100, a ballancer will work the same on a new pack or and old one that's not been ballanced. I expect there a people who don't bother with them at all as they do cost 40, people normally nick mine when I turn up.

I'm no expert on this subject, but I run an Eolo, wing and did have a Trex all running on LiPo's so I've learnt a little.