Inexpensive Lipo Discharger That Works!

3-in-1 Battery Balancer, Voltage Indicator and Discharger
I’m glad I finally found this device (thanks to a thread I am subscribed to on RC Groups).
There may be many of you that wonder why I would want one of these.
Let me see if I can explain why:
We do not have power at our flying site, I don’t have a generator and I choose not to charge at the field using my car battery etc. I end up buying as many batteries per plane that I can reasonably fly in one day.
I charge up enough batteries for each of the planes I will take to the field that will get me through the day. For a wide variety of reasons, I may not be able to get all my flights in so I might end up coming home with a few fully charged packs.
Lipo Storage Safety: I have come to believe there is a greatly reduced risk of a lipo fire or at least the intensity of a lipo fire if they are stored in a metal container at storage voltage.
Over the past few years, we have done a lot of experimenting destroying lipos and while we can get spectacular results setting off fully charged packs, we get nothing but a little fizz out of packs that are at storage voltage. I personally know of a few guys who burned down their homes because of Lipo mishaps and that’s a club I don’t want to join!
So, when I get home, I discharge any full packs left over from the day. I have six, good quality chargers (two duo chargers and two single chargers) and I have been using their discharge feature to draw down the packs. There is a lot of heat generated by the discharge function and I have never been happy about that. Recently, one of my Thunder Power 820 chargers started to act funny and started to perform functions at a greatly reduced speed (response to button pushes, etc.) Re-flashing the firmware did not help. I am thinking that I may have damaged it by overheating it by discharging two 5000 mAh lipos back to back.
I was looking for an affordable discharger and found a thread on RC Groups of like-minded individuals. These guys are electronic wizards and have designed and built one. I was in the midst of assembling all the bits and pieces to build one based on their design when someone posted a link to this device.
For about 20 bucks (including shipping), this was a no-brainer.
I have discharged about 10 packs so far and it works like a charm.
Note: I did not receive this unit free for evaluation and/or review, I bought a couple at full pop.
Here is a link to the product:
www.myrcmart.co...
Here is a link to an even less expensive model that is exactly the same but only uses one 50W bulb as the load. I’d rather pay the extra 3 bucks for the 150W version to save a lot of time babysitting the packs as they discharge.
www.myrcmart.co...
Here is the link to the thread on RC Groups if you’re keen to build your own. The total cost of the DIY version is more but it is more robust and can handle a bigger load.
www.rcgroups.co...
Thanks for watching!
Royalty Free Music:
Sex & the City by Re-Drum from Jamendo.com
Crimson Fly by Huma-Huma from KZbin’s Audio Library

[@alanrussell5093]

Hi, Thanks for taking the time to make and put up this video. It's been a massive help. I bought that same discharger and have just used it to do my first battery conditioning (charge and discharge five times before first use). That particular discharger is very easy and quick.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Thank you for the kind comments and I'm glad you like the discharger. I use mine all the time and they continue to work great. They remain one of the best things I ever bought for the hobby. By the way, I really like that you are caring for your lipos so well before you use them but three cycles before use is adequate. You can even condition them by flying around at half throttle for three flights before starting to stress them with full throttle flight. Also, if you are willing to give up a little bit of flight time to bring them down at 3.85v, they will last many times longer than if you drain them every flight and they will be at the perfect voltage for storage. I have lipos that are four years old that have hundreds of flights on them and they are as good as new. I usually lose one minute of flight time by bringing them down when I do but it is a trade off I am willing to make. Thanks for watching and happy flying to you. Cheers, Bob

[@alanrussell5093]

Thanks for your reply. I must confess I actually have several dozen LiPos of all sizes from 1S 150mAh to 6S 2,900mAh a few of which (3S LiPos) have swollen and I guess will need to be disposed of. In the roughly four years I've been fiddling about with RC and LiPos, this is me only now starting to look after them properly ... . Oops. I'm almost wishing that model shops sold 'LiPo Care Packs' with basic info about LiPo care and a discharger like the AOK one. The fact that I had to order the discharging kit from an eBay seller in Hong Kong as there's nothing like it available in the UK (apart from using the charger for discharging - which probably shortens it's life) doesn't say much for the model shops I guess. My first inexpensive charger started to malfunction with the larger cell counts (5S and 6S) after about 2 years but that was a charger and transformer combined. I decided to invest in a separate charger and transformer which I don't want to stress. So the AOK discharger is ideal. Also the AOK can discharge up to 150W whereas the discharge function on chargers seems to be typically 5 to 10W. So the AOK should be at least 10 times faster. Perhaps you should be running a paid link to the eBay sellers ! : ). Thanks again. A.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

I totally agree with you. I was very glad to discover that this thing works as advertised and is so inexpensive. I was discharging 4s 5000's on an expensive Thunder Power 820 when the charger went up in smoke.

[@alanrussell5093]

Ouch. I'm sorry to hear that ... I'm just looking at an 820 on eBay US for $200. I can see why you started to look for alternatives. I started with heli's and I'm hoping to fly an E-flite Apprentice (more or less my first plane if you discount the Parkzone Radian I totally mashed four years ago) sometime in the next week. I buy the manufacturer's batteries just for consistent size and weight, and the E-flite batteries aren't cheap. So I don't want to damage them. I've got my eye on an LX Models F4 Phantom for some day in the way off future and that will be 6S 5000 60C's at about £130 a pop. If I ever get to that stage, I really will want to be careful with the LiPo charging and discharging. Again big thanks. A.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Happy flying to you! 😎

[@woozer74]

Thanks for posting the video! I ordered one of these recently, waiting for it to arrive, along with a few adapters. Can't wait to try this out.

[@chrismillersrcfamily]

XT 60. .. boo.boooooooo. haha. Very good Bob. Enjoyed the video and helpful information. Thanks for sharing my Friend :)

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

LOL, I've tried them all buddy and the XT-60 connector rules! Deans are for cars, XT-60's for anything that flies lol. And besides buddy, not all of us work in a hobby shop like someone I know :-) and some of us get our batteries from a place that supplies them with XT-60's ;-) Thanks for watching Chris!

[@jackfmail]

Very cool. I've been using the external load feature of my iCharger discharge but this beats it easily. Super convenient. Thanks for sharing.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

I agree Jack, my chargers smile at me now that they will no longer be abused by having to discharge! And at the price of this thing.... it's a no brainer! Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment, much appreciated! Cheers, Bob

[@RobinDChrisChurch]

Cool device, and modestly priced. Thanks for sharing.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

My pleasure Robin. It's hard to believe what they can put together for just a few dollars! Not only that, it even works lol :-)

[@blackmennewstyle]

Very interesting Bob :) I can understand your concern, me too when i go flying, i mostly go with all my LIPOs fully charged and sometimes unfortunately i can not discharge them all during my day! I use mostly my LIPO charger for discharging them when i go back home but it takes so long time lol This fantastic device is on my top list now! Thanks for sharing and have a great week. Cheers :)

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

I agree Cedric, I hate coming home with six fully charged 4s 5000mAh lipos for my QAV!. This will save my chargers a lot of wear and tear! Thanks for watching! Cheers, Bob

[@harpoon_bakery162]

@@SubToTripleThreatRC -- so it can wear out a charger when discharging batteries? Ok, thanks man. I knew the charger was a cheapy China unit with the touch-screen, and I should have assumed it was brittle and discharging was not good for it....but i'm stupid that way as I am just getting back into the flying sport after being out of it for a long, long time and battery technology was not anywhere near where it is. Not even close. I just wish they would make a battery that is safe and doesn't need 100 dollars of accessories to keep it from catching the house on fire and just to keep the women of the house from closing us down with our favorite hobby.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

LOL. Yes, discharging a battery is very hard on a charger because of the heat generated. In the case of this cheap little device, the three 50 watt light bulbs do all the work and take all the abuse. The heat doesn't get near the electronics like it does with a charger. And I agree, I look forward to the next leap in battery technology! Happy flying to you and welcome back to the hobby!

[@garygullikson6349]

Question: Tiny 2-pin connectors latch when inserted, how do I unlatch and disconnect them?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

You can use a finger nail or tiny screwdriver to pry the connector out of the device. To be honest, I built a little jig to hold a few of these units (so I could discharge more than one battery at a time) and didn't have to remove the little two pin connector.

[@PACubFlyer103]

I git mine in the mail yesterday. Only took a week. It works great. Thanks for the recommendation.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Awesome, glad you like it! Thanks for the feedback :-) I ordered a dozen units for guys at the club and they got here in about a week too. Much faster than the first time I ordered!

[@bobwhite4098]

PACubFlyer103 m

[@Davide79]

Nice product...it is very important to have a battery in a storage mode for safety when not using on a few days or months. Nice work Bob!

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Thank you very much. Aside from the safety issue and depending on who you listen to, it is not good for the long term health of the Lipo to leave it fully charged for more than about 24 hours. At our club, most of us will charge up the night before or on the morning of the day we are going flying. If you use that Lipo within the next day or so it should be fine. Most of us would never store fully charged batteries for more than a day or two at the most.

[@Davide79]

***** I agree..thumbs up!

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

***** *:-)*

[@KrotowX]

Nor all have such possibility. I'm also trying to charge at morning. But usually I have time for that only at evening of previous day or 2 days before.

[@TheDm1974]

Great review been looking for one for a while. Just ordered one brilliant. Thank you.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Glad I could help! Thanks for the kind comments! Cheers, Bob

[@XB223]

Awesome device! I need to get one of these. Thanx for the post! Great channel, just subbed you!

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

+XB I now have four of them and there have been about 20 of them purchased by members of our little club. Still going strong. Just watch out for potential fire hazards because the bulbs get very hot. They are the best darned deal in RC! Thanks for watching and for the sub, much appreciated! Happy flying! Cheers, Bob

[@XB223]

Thanx Bob! Yes I took special notice to the light bulb on the paper towel, thank you for the reminder. Things happen real fast in this hobby. I was already searching to buy one of these. Funny you mentioned having more than one, as I'm getting 3 right now :) My problem is charging and then not being able to fly the next day... Happy flying to you too Bob! Below: I see you know Chris.He is one cool dude! BTW, I'm XT60 also!!

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

+XB Yes, that's my issue too. I often come back home with a few packs I couldn't fly. Having more than one of these units let's you discharge more quickly. And yes, Chris is a great guy! Cheers!

[@Cadillacstsv06]

Wow, now I'm all charged up about discharging! Seriously, I never realized the benefits and safety of discharging batteries! Being a relatively new to the hobby and not part of a club or group to benefit from their experience tips like this are very informative and welcome! I really value your instructive videos and encouragement to my flying and landing or lack there of! Thanks again and two helpful thumbs up! Cheers Bob! P.S. A local bacon fest this weekend... mmm bacon fest :-)

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Did you say.........wait for it............."BACON FEST"? I'm booking a flight lol. But seriously Freddy, lipo safety is a huge issue that doesn't get enough attention. In a perfect world, you will charge up lipos just before you use them and keeping an eye on them as they charge to ensure they don't become overcharged. (where most fires occur) You will fly all the packs you charge and any packs you can't fly should be discharged. If you store lipos for any length of time, you should keep them at a storage charge of 3.85V per cell. This will extend the life of your lipos. You will also not use a lipo that is dented or damaged in any way (as in crash damage or dropping it onto concrete etc.) I put a storage charge on the lipos I use every time I get home from the field and discharge the ones (to storage voltage) that I didn't get a chance to fly. Thanks for watching and happy flying buddy!

[@spocktra50]

Tech-ni-cal Bacon Bob. Nice one mate.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

LMAO, thanks Mark!

[@nickb5091]

Wow! I bought one of these before watching this video and both Banggood and the instructions it came with do not indicate anything about connecting light bulbs when discharging the battery. Now I feel like I shouldn’t even use it. Tried searching for the light connection by itself but can’t find it. Bummed 🙁

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Thanks for watching this old video. These units work amazingly well because it uses the 50 watt light bulbs as a load and it can balance the discharge so that each cell has the same voltage when it reaches the set voltage level (storage voltage). Hopefully in your search, you will come across one of these because they works so well and have so many functions. I'm not sure what you mean about "connecting batteries when discharging the battery". Take care and be well.

[@nickb5091]

@@SubToTripleThreatRC I’m sorry, I made a typo, I meant light bulbs not batteries. I bought one but it didn’t come with the bulbs or cable to connect them just the main unit.

[@sagacyberdemon]

@@SubToTripleThreatRC thank you for the video. the link in the description is broken though. is this product still available?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

@@sagacyberdemon Well, the video is eight years old now so there's that. I found a similar unit on Amazon. It's not exactly the same but looks like it does the exact same job. Check it out: www.amazon.com/GalaxyElec-Battery-Discharger-Balancer-Discharge/dp/B09NCC41XW

[@sagacyberdemon]

@@SubToTripleThreatRC thank you.

[@nuessgi22]

Good Idea Bob. Thumbs uuuuuuuuuup!

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Thanks Markus, I like it when things that are useful and actually work do not cost a fortune! Thanks for watching! Gruss, Bob

[@TinkerManRC]

Great info Bob Thumbs Up..Tim

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Awesome, thanks very much Tim! Cheers, Bob

[@pbox9642]

do you have wiring diagram for a 4s for this meter? i gone one same as yours but can not get it to power up

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

I do not have a wiring diagram but it is very easy to make it work. Make sure to properly insert the balance connector from your 4s battery into the appropriate 4s connector on the side of the unit and when you connect the XT60 connectors you are good to go. As soon as you connect the balance connectors (and before you connect the XT60 connectors) you should see a reading on the screen for each of the 4 cells. In doing this, the unit operates as a balance checker. As soon as you connect the XT60s, it can function as a discharger. You must attach the balance connector when discharging so the unit can draw down each cell evenly. I hope this helps. If your unit does not "power up" when both connectors are attached, then it is probably faulty. Cheers!

[@jimholloman4457]

The unit has only 3 bulbs for discharging. How does it work with 4S, 5S, and 6S batteries?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

With this device, the load has nothing to do with how many cells a lipo has. With this model, each light bulb represents 50 watts of discharge for a total of 150 watts. When you first start a discharge cycle (regardless of whether 3s or 6s) all three light bulbs will be on full time. As the lipo draws down, the lights will begin to modulate and only provide a load that the cell can handle until it reaches your discharge set point. By the same token, it doesn't matter how big the lipo is 450 mAh or 5000 mAh. It is still looking for 3.85 per cell )or whatever you use as a storage charge).

[@HaintNoSaint]

I Am in Bob, Thanks.. I have been looking for one as well.. How well does it balance the cells while discharging?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

It does a very good job and draws the packs down in a balanced manner. Just as good as any balance charger. Thanks for watching! Cheers, Bob

[@HaintNoSaint]

ordered one .. Thanks

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Radio control show Nice!

[@GeoffDryer]

Great informative video Bob. What are the other connections on the unit for? Is it one bulb per cell?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Hi Geoff. If you're talking about the connections on the end of the unit, they allow for measuring the voltage of a receiver pack. One is for the "servo end" of the receiver pack and the other is for the JST connector from a 2 or 3 cell lipo to power the unit while you test the receiver pack. Thanks for watching!

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Hi Geoff, I missed the question about one bulb per cell. No, it modulates the draw to use as much load as is required. At some point in the discharge cycle, all three cells (as in this example) are being taken down by one bulb.

[@cbsflows1041]

TripleThreatRC are you talking about the module between the discharger and the battery? I really want to know if i need to buy that thing with the lamps?! I don’t understand. CAn it discharge without that lamps between the discharger and lipo?

[@smileybrotherslawncare9599]

Will it discharge to 0 volts?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

I haven't tried it but I suspect not. You can program it to stop the discharge but I've always discharged to 3.85 volts per cell. Are you trying to kill your lipo? If so, a salt water bath is the way to go.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Thanks for watching. I've had good success with storing my batteries at 3.85v for as many years as Lipo batteries have been on the market but like many other things, there is no one right answer. I think anything between 3.7 and 3.85 is fine. The main thing is to not store them full charged or fully discharged. Thank you for offering your opinion.

[@BendApparatus]

As another commenter noted. These are sold without the red module and light bulb array. Is the red module and said light bulbs superfluous? Because the unit claims to be able to balance and discharge cells on it's own. Any ideas?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

The light bulbs are there to provide energy used to draw down the battery. As you can see when in use, the bulbs will modulate near the end of the discharge cycle so that each cell lands softly at storage voltage and so all cells will be the same. Without the module and light bulbs, you would have to rely on an internal load which will produce heat and which will be unable to draw down each cell evenly. In the unit in my video, it a light bulb burns out (none of mine have) you just have to replace the bulb. In other types, when the unit has fried because of the heat, you have to replace the entire unit.

[@BendApparatus]

@@SubToTripleThreatRC ah makes sense. The array offloads the discharge load from the main module. But the purpose of the unit is to be a tester, balancer and discharger, so it IS capable of discharging the cells in a balanced manner on it's own. Otherwise it would defeat the purpose of it's labeling...the array is a diy style mod to it. Pretty cool that it's offered (I found the listing through a search of the site from your link.) I've read reviews of the same module (different color possibly a clone) and there's guys claiming to have discharged S5 batts from 3300 to 14000! With eye brow raising heat being the only result. Pretty sure this thing is literally a small PCB module and a huge cheap heatsink in the case. I picked one of the clones up for literally $10 if it fries I'll pick up the one you linked...👍

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

@@BendApparatus Awesome. They key is to remove the electrical draw outside of any piece of equipment because of the incredible heat the draw generates. The light bulbs are a simple and elegant way to create an electrical load. Because there are three bulbs, the device can modulate the "draw down" more precisely. It starts out with three bulbs and gradually tapers down to one bulb as the discharge nears completion.

[@PatBALEX]

Nice video.. sweet little discharger.. How much heat does it put out?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Thanks Pat. Aside from the bulbs that get super hot, the unit itself gets quite warm, not hot but warm. I think it gets warm enough that if I wanted to be kind to it, (while it is discharging) I would make sure to not block the vents on the underside. I'm going to make up a little stand to hold a couple of these and their bulbs and I'll be making sure they can get some air. If you were to leave it flat on a workbench, I doubt it would cause any problems but cooler is always better :-)

[@VARocketry]

Why do you use a discharger? Why do you want to discharge your batteries once you've charged them? Is it a safety issue or longevity of the batteries? What does it mean when someone says "set my batteries to storage "? I am new to using LiPos and do not understand this idea/need.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

There is much to learn about lipo batteries to use them safely and to treat them properly. It would take a long time to discuss all the topics here so I suggest you look at a resource like this: rogershobbycenter.com/lipoguide or this: batteryuniversity.com/learn/article/how_to_prolong_lithium_based_batteries I hope this helps! Cheers.

[@discord2000]

Great video. Do you need the light bulbs connected for the 'balance mode' feature? ie to balance the voltages between cells?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

No, it will balance a pack without the need for the light bulbs. It does get hot however and I usually prop it up on a screwdriver or something similar to allow air into the cooling vents on the bottom of the unit. If a pack is out of balance it is sometimes easier to (balance) charge the pack and then put it on this unit and do a storage charge so the light bulbs can help out with the balancing on the way down. I hope this helps. Cheers!

[@VARocketry]

Or one more, If I have a 6S 22.2v 1500mah battery does the need 6 lights or will the system work with the load provided by the three lights?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

The load from the three lights are fine for all cell counts including 6S. The light bulbs are just the load used to draw down the batteries. Each bulb draws 50 watts. I hope this helps.

[@TheCladi8or]

what about just running down battery slightly in drone , then storing it afterwards?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

+TheCladi8or That works perfectly as long as you bring it down at storage voltage. This device is more suited to discharging batteries that you don't get a chance to use and that are fully charged.

[@erwinganchoon1739]

Hi, any idea if there is a discharger for 4S setup(i.e. with 4 bulbs). Thanks

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

The three bulbs are only there to create a load. I have used the discharger for 2s, 3s, 4s, and 6s. You can use it for your 4s batteries without any worries. Happy flying.

[@4snday]

How does it work for 6s batteries? Do you need more globes etc?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

No, it works just fine with 2s to 6s lipos. It modulates the three bulbs that have a max load of 150 watts. As the battery is drawn down, it will reduce the load to bring it down gently and evenly (across all cells) to get to your preferred storage setting. I discharge fully charged 4s 5000's in about 20 minutes. I hope this helps, thanks for watching!

[@Partytimes08]

Thanks for the great video! Would you mind testing it on a 6 cell? The website says 1-6 cell but I can't imagine those 12 volt lights lasting on 24 volts for long. I'm looking to use this to discharge 6s 4000 packs. Thanks for any help!

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

+Partytimes08 I've used this to discharge many 6s lipos. I think there must be a regulator that delivers a reasonable voltage to the light bulbs. In any event, there's never been a problem and I'm still using the original bulbs. Thank for watching!

[@kurt3084]

how warm/hot does the battery get?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

It draws power at a much slower rate than if you were using the battery to power an RC car or plane. The battery usually stays at, or close to room temperature. I hope this helps.

[@jeromedupont8994]

Hello sir, is it ok to use all the lamps for a small lipo 350mah? Can i just unplug 2 and use just 1 lamp? Thank you

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Hi Jerome! Yes you can. But you don't have to use remove any bulbs. The device is smart enough to only draw as much load/power as it needs. It has a modulating circuit. Chances are, when you attach your 350mAh lipo, only one bulb will "turn on" and not for very long. I hope this helps. Happy flying! Cheers, Bob

[@jeromedupont8994]

TripleThreatRC thank you for your answer ' have a good day

[@noisynerdman]

What kind of lights are those? I would like to buy replacements for down the road.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

You might just want to order two units because it can be less expensive than buying replacement bulbs: www.ebay.ca/itm/5Pcs-Replacement-Bulb-For-OSRAM-64445U-24V-50W-GY6-35-Shadowless-Halostar-Lamp-/171559245801 www.amazon.com/REPLACEMENT-64445U-24V50W-Shadowless-halogen/dp/B014VFWH6E/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1481850994&sr=8-1&keywords=24v50w

[@noisynerdman]

TripleThreatRC thanks and noted! thanks for your video review. I never would have know this existed!

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

I use a couple of these a lot and still love them. Best darn deal in the hobby. I'm glad you found value in the video. Cheers, Bob

[@809nel]

you can find replacement bulbs if you look for them on ebay, i ordered some from china since i broke a bulb. low cost

[@photographermatt]

Awesome Video easy to understand, Thanks 😆👍

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

I'm glad you liked it! Thanks for taking the time to comment. Happy flying to you! Cheers, Bob

[@winstonoso5821]

Does the balancer work pretty good as well?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Perfectly! I highly recommend this mixture of high and low tech. For the amount of packs I was discharging, it saved my chargers from doing all the hard work! I hope they still sell them, this is an old video lol. Warning: make sure you supervise the packs when your discharging them....just in case. I never had any problems through hundreds of cycles but hey, there's always a first time!

[@kudalkarshadab]

Super informative!!

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

I'm glad you think so! Thank you very much for taking the time to comment :-) Cheers, Bob

[@adrictan]

Hi bob, in what scenario will all 3 bulbs light up? Mine only light up 1 of 3.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Hi, this little device is designed to modulate and all three bulbs should light up at the beginning of the discharge as long as there is a decent gap between the current voltage and the desired voltage. Then, as the voltage level drops, it will start to modulate and reduce the draw to two bulbs and then one. If the difference in voltage is very small, usually only one bulb will light. If you are going to discharge a fully charged lipo from 4.2 volts to 3.85 volts, you should see all three bulbs light up for a few minutes. In this scenario, if all three bulbs never light up, then there is a problem with the unit or more likely, with the bulbs. Try moving the "good" bulb to a different socket and see if it lights up there too. If you have a pack that you have already flown and are simply discharging it down to storage levels, you will probably never see three bulbs light up. I hope that helps. I have had these for more than two years now (since I made this video) and I use them all the time. They still work great and all the bulbs are still good. Cheers, Bob

[@FabioKastro]

I store my LiPos in my BedRoom in the summer. A LiPo can burst into fire while charging or discharging (when flying), i feel safe when storing them at 3.8v i only leave charged LiPos overnigth only.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

I agree and I would store your lipos at 3.8v in an ammo can and feel pretty safe. For sure I would store charged lipos overnight in an ammo case or a metal tool box or something to limit the spread of any potential fire. How much would it suck to burn your house down? I know three who had fires, two burned down their house and one their garage. All of these were the result of unsupervised charging issues but you can never be too safe.

[@Htownrule]

I'm using 1200mah 2 cell lipos, I have a alarm on my quad set for 3.4v i never let my battery drop under that. I ordered this device because my stock charger is changing my batteries to around 8.46v im not sure if it's dangerous with it being a 7.4v battery? One cell reads 4.14 the second cell reads 4.32. What is a good voilt to keep both cells at? If you or anyone who may be able to help me, it would be very thankful.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Hi, A good charge will result in about 4.21v per cell for a lipo with any amount of cells. So for your 2 cell, it should read about 8.42v . The key to lipo safety is to use the battery ASAP and within 24 hours and to store it in a safe space while it is at full charge. A full charge should not result in anything more than about 4.21v per cell so yours is charging a bit too high for my taste if it takes it to 4.32v. A good charger should allow you to set the upper charge limit. I store my lipos with a storage charge of 3.85v per cell. I hope that helps. Happy flying!

[@excongamehub1089]

is this device can charge or discharge only?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Discharge only but it can also balance your cells if your charger can't. The idea is to take the task away from your charger if you need to discharge a pack. Your charger will last much longer. Thanks for watching!

[@leandrocarreon1198]

Does it shut off automatically when it reaches the pre discharge voltage?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

No, it just sits there and idles as it tries to achieve a perfect balance. Eventually it would draw down the battery. I never leave it unattended anyway. And, I've learned a trick to speed up the discharge. If you want a storage voltage of 3.85 per cell, set it at 3.50 and take it off when it reached 3.85. This eliminates about 15 minutes of final balancing (and the cells are within .01 anyway)

[@leandrocarreon1198]

Hey thanks a lot for the reply! Keep up the good work.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

No worries, happy flying to you!

[@parammukku]

Hi , I can use this device for 24 v power supply with Nicad batteries? pls reply

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

No, it is designed to work off the balance leads of lipo batteries.

[@adrictan]

How many amps does it draw per min?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Not sure but it has three 50 watt bulbs to draw down the lipo. I assume there is some math out there that will provide your answer. There is a modulator that slowly ramps down the draw as the desired voltage is reached. It will draw down a fully charged 4s 5000mAh to 3.85 volts per cell in under 15 minutes.

[@TheCladi8or]

i got a little volt reader thingy...so ill check them b4 storage

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

+TheCladi8or Good idea, it's also much safer to store lipos that are at storage voltage rather than fully charged!

[@lavithhcm]

does it work with 4S?

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Yes, if you visit the link in the video description you will see that it works with 2s to 6s. Thanks for watching!

[@dhardjono]

thanks good idea,

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

You are most welcome *:-)*

[@plowboyh6054]

Thank you

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

My pleasure! Thanks for watching! Cheers, Bob

[@PACubFlyer103]

Hello fellow flyers. I really love this lipo discharger but you need to be careful with the 2 small wires that connect the discharge unit to the small circuit board. If you twist them around too much they may break at the connectors, which they did on mine. Luckily I was able to repair them with some epoxy. You may want to mount the entire unit to a board to prevent the wires from getting damages. If you would like to see how I did this, check out the posting on my blog at www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2315958.

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

Yes, I had the same thing happen to one of mine too. After I repaired it, I used hot glue around the connector and wires to prevent them from straining and breaking the wires where they enter the connector. I'll check out your blog post. Thanks for watching and for your observations. I have several of these and use them all the time, they work great.

[@TheCladi8or]

thx! im tryin not to spend alot

[@SubToTripleThreatRC]

+TheCladi8or No worries. If you treat your batteries properly they will last many times longer and save you a lot of money! Happy flying!

[@bobravenscraft5376]

For those building battery pack for ebike this is better than sex 😊

[@tapankumarbanerjee2666]

👍

[@TheCladi8or]

what about just running down battery slightly in drone , then storing it afterwards?