How to Charge Lithium Batteries

[@rrho6701]

NO, NO, NO !! I'm an engineer who designs chargers for a living, for a fortune 100 company that you know. PLEASE do NOT leave the batteries on the charger when fully charged. When they get to 4.2v, you you start monitoring the current. When the current gets down to 125mA, you must REMOVE the supply. Otherwise, the electrodes begin to accumulate lithium metal on them. This clogs up the internal chemical structures, permanently decreasing their capacity by a small amount. This isn't the biggest problem. The biggest issue is that the lithium will demand to be set free, causing the cell to vent. Violently ! You can die, your house can burn down, and your insurance company will NOT be happy. If you want to keep them topped off, turn on the charger every week or so, and let them drink until the current goes down to 125mA again. Also, don't put more than 2 times the current into the cell, than it's rated capacity, or it will explode. The 18560 you had there must not exceed it's 2.5AH x 2, or 5A charge, no matter how hungry it is. Another thing, if the cell is really, most sincerely dead, with terminal voltage less than 2.7v, you can't safely let it eat 2x it's AH capacity in current. You must do a pre-charge. Limit the current to about 1/10th of it's capacity, or 250mA, until it reaches 2.7v. Then let it rest for about 5 minutes. If it holds the 2.7v, then you can charge it normally. If its voltage falls back, you can repeat this a couple or three times. If it keeps falling, it's done. Toss it. If it tests shorted, drawing max current for 15 seconds, it's done. If the cells heat while charging, to about 20 degrees above ambient, stop charging & let it rest. Only attempt to charge a cell if it's between 0 and 50 degrees C. You're right about single cells in parallel. They can be treated as one big cell. Each cell in a series string MUST be monitored individually while charging, to make sure they don't climb above 4.2v. If any do, charging must stop & the pack is unbalanced. Better chargers will try & match each cell in a string, to improve pack performance. The cells MUST be monitored individually during discharge. If ANY cells in a string falls below 2.7V, the pack MUST be considered depleted. If you discharge any string, such that a cell reaches 0v, the other cells will try & force current through it backwards. It will act as a load, and explode with great robustness. OK, that's at least $10k worth of consulting an analysis in engineering costs, free for you and your readers. Please heed my information, because I REALLY know whereof I speak. I'm not being an over cautious alarmist, despite what flamers may tell you. I have witnessed detonations in person. Please don't skip these instructions. Cheers, Randy

[@MiguelGarcia-lx1vu]

It Is good to hear from an expert, almost all of those facts of charging lithium cell arrangements , I had to figer out for myself, throug experiments AND some times bad experiences.

[@doverstreet4319]

So BMS would do the job 🤔

[@GTari97]

Anybody know if BMS balance cells during charging, discharging, and charging plus discharging at the same time? My Daly brand BMS claims that it does, but it was described like it was written in chinese language then ran it through google translate.

[@doverstreet4319]

@@GTari97 nope bruh..its not possible... One thing happens at a time.. either charge or discharge...not both on same time

[@GTari97]

@@doverstreet4319 I'm no engineer, but I've seen both yes and no. I mean phones are used while being charged. Manual kinda says it does too with the common port for charge and load, but the whole manual's in one paragraph using comma as a period.

[@Moist_yet_Crispy]

I know this is an older video but it's finding me perfectly on my path of learning electronics and batteries. Thank you!

[@MotoAlias]

Didn't realize how old this video was. I am thoroughly enjoying watching.

[@MauriatOttolink]

What a refreshing change on Internet to find advice from somebody who knows what he's talking about. Believe me Jehucarcia, there are SO many who DON"T but that doesn't stop 'em! Thank you....Love the dogs...Only once a week to the park? Send me the air tickets..I'll do it for the rest of the week and get further training from you while I'm there. Thanks and good luck from Brexit land.

[@moiquiregardevideo]

Mr Garcia, you obviously have lots of hands-on experience charging lithium battery. The important details left out are: Find those switching regulators which: - limit the voltage to some adjustable value (4.2 volt for 1 cell, 12.6 volt for 3 cells) - limit the current to some value specified in Amps - when current limit is hit, must not go in shut down mode, like most computer power supply do ; instead, it must continuously adjust the voltage to keep the current at the limit In other word, the power supply will start at the same low voltage as the battery discharge state. As the battery is charging, the voltage will raise while the current will remain at the fixed maximum allowed. When the voltage reach 4.2 volt, the power supply automatically enter in the second mode of operation, which is regulating the current to maintain that fixed 4.2 volt. The battery is still charging when reaching 4.2 volt, but it consume less and less current. It is really the battery that "decide" how much current it want, the power supply just try to keep the voltage at 4.2 volt and provide as much current as the battery want to keep that voltage. Now, to speed up charging, we want to provide a voltage slightly higher than 4.2 volt (or 12.6 volt for 3 cells). The extra voltage is provided to counter act the loss in the following components: - loss in wires - loss in connectors - loss in batteries The loss in wire can be decreased by using thicker wires. But bigger wires are more rigid, less flexible and get damaged faster from constant flexing. Typical cable in USB charger with a current of 1 amp waste from 0.1 to 1 volt. The loss in connector is often in the same range of 0.1 to 1 volt. Even when the exposed metal on the connector appear shiny yellow, imitating the look of gold, they may still waste part of the energy, which imply absorbing part of the voltage. Those bad quality connector become warm to the touch. The battery itself, particularly as they age, waste a portion of the charging energy. An old battery that waste part of the charging energy is exactly equivalent to a very good battery with a small resistor added in series ; both located physically inside the batteries. Let's take a real example : suppose the battery has an internal resistance of 1 ohm and we provide 1 amp of current. The ohm law allow to find the voltage across a resistor: V = RI = 1 ohm * 1 Amp = 1 volt The battery itself takes from 3 volt to 4.2 volt as it charge, and the internal resistance take 1 volt. We can also find how much energy is wasted by the internal resistance as follow: P = VI = 1 volt * 1 Amp = 1 watt Suppose that the battery charge level started at 3 volt and is now at 4 volt. Our charger is still pushing 1 amp since we are still below 4.2 volt. The total energy provided by the charger is: P = VI = 4 volt * 1 Amp = 4 watt The energy wasted by the internal resistance (assuming 1 ohm) is: 1 Watt, as calculated above Brief, 3 watts are used to charge the battery and 1 watt wasted as heat All the long text above is to explain what make a battery to become hot during charging. The lithium battery are strong when delivering high current, but they easily get damaged by silly little thing such as overcharging them or discharging them too much. All lithium battery designed by an company, not just professionals equipment, but every device (even the cheapest Chinese clone and the cheapest child toy) include a temperature sensor which is used during charging. The charger inside your cell phone does the following test: - refuse to charge if temperature already too high - start in fixed current mode, with voltage increasing slowly - monitor for "fast" temperature change with high precision (down to 0.1 degree Celsius or about 1.5 F) and stop charging if increase "fast" - while charging, stop if temperature exceed some threshold - when the voltage reach a limit, switch to fix voltage (the current is decreasing slowly) The end of charge is determined by: - current below a fix value while voltage already at 4.2 volt (for example) - temperature suddenly raise at any time during charging When the battery get old, it may accept less total energy and may decrease the maximum voltage to a value below 4.2 volt. By monitoring the temperature raise with high precision, the charger can stop charging and avoid damaging the battery. This precise temperature monitoring technique is what allowed old battery to keep working for many months after the voltage started to drop. Somebody got a patent for that and that company probably still get large amount of royalty for allowing all of us to use the same cell phone with the original battery for a few years. The battery exploding in recent Samsung cell phone is probably caused by an engineer who wasn't not very clever. He didn't read the patent explaining how to charge a lithium battery correctly and use the temperature sensor in a smart way.

[@marcelzak1247]

Thanks for a very good explanation. It helped a lot.

[@100canOICIB]

make a video How to charge them properly

[@candisbrendel7396]

HA!!! JUST A LITTLE LEFT OUT HUH!!???? JUST SAYING OLD ONE LEGGED JOSEPH T RETIRED NAVY

[@OliverKempel]

I have a question you might know the answe to and it would be very appreciated if you would answer me :) So i wanna make a 24 volt 5s battery and i man planning on buying this BMS for it: www.banggood.com/PCB-BMS-6S-15A-24V-Battery-Protection-Board-For-18650-Li-ion-Lithium-Battery-Cell-p-1162772.html?p=4G190320067484201803&cur_warehouse=CN And just using a 24 volt wall charger to charge it. now i am wondering how i would know when the battery is at full capacity, Would i have to messure the voltage? Thanks in advance, - Oliver

[@shubhamawate7623]

Sir, your explanation covers the basics of electronics in simplest way. Thanks a lot now i can remember it forever.🙂

[@SouthSideChiTown]

Always love watching your videos. One thing I wanted to point out, when you explained series charging, you said two batteries in series are not 4.2, they are 7.4, then you add another 4.2 volts for a third battery. People just learning how to do this don't understand or may not know that nominal voltage for these batteries is 3.7. If the math doesn't add up it might confuse them. Just wanted to let you know. Thanks

[@Shmade0304]

Things like this video is what I’m talking about in my last comment …I learn something every time I re watch one of your videos ..learning about batteries is just my thing now thanks to you …🔋🔋🐐🐐🙌🏽🙌🏽👑👑

[@rgones]

It's nice to know that multi-parallel-cell lithium packs don't drift much. For anyone wondering, it may be because the 33 parallel cells each have a different internal series resistance (which usually causes voltage drift), but as such a large number of cells are used, the resistance averages out to a common number (gaussian resistance distribution; one has a very high resistance, other has a very low one and the rest are in between), and each series group gets a similar resistance, making the pack accept the same charge. And, as example RC Packs are usually 1P (1 parallel cell), the resistance between cells is uneven, thus requiring leveling.

[@josecuadrado3840]

Hello "J". Listen I had attended a Vocational H.S. and retired from the medical/medicine field and am able to follow, comprehend, technological trends and tech-info. I appreciate you willing to share with others what comes naturally to you. I suggest that, if you have something you want to share with an audience that may be unfamiliar/familiar, you write down exactly what you want to cover so that you don't bounce from one coincidence to another. Know your audience i.e. knowledgeable or novice. It gets a little schizo following your presentation: i.e. cover chargers-types-appearance-identify-connections-do's,don'ts-etc. Then cover batteries using the same approach. Avoid introducing terms, Sampo,? unless you initially introduce the item previously. Thank you would like to hear more.

[@neilking01]

5:22 I know someone has probably already said this but 4.2v * 2 = 8.4v dude :)

[@ChavMusic]

You're a math genius

[@NETOGAMERBR]

7.4v is the nominal voltage, 8.4v is the charging voltage

[@allexandruprroca6713]

He mean nominal voltage

[@YvonSmart]

He also said you gonna turn up the supply to 4.2v in order to charge at 7.4v pack, which is wrong. And he should have also added that this won't be a safe way to charge batteries in series! Different internal resistance so some will charge faster than others leading to overcharge (fire)

[@kdevus]

I have 11.7 or 11.1 V 3cell Lipos... SO FUCK ALL OF YOU!

[@chriswouse7713]

Not quite the detail I was expecting as charging lithium cells can be a mine field. It's not quite as simple as hooking an 18650 to a wall wart, which some folk my mis-interpret. You really need a control circuit: TP4056 boards are good for testing this, and are abundant on eBay. They monitor the battery voltage and regulate current into the battery depending on charge state. Also bare lithium batteries without protection circuitry built in should not be charged unattended, cos if over charge occurs...well lithium fires are a bitch to put out!

[@Ask125]

Thanks!

[@Middle-Eastt]

My buck converter output 16.3v from my 150W solar panel input of approximately 20V, I expected my 4S setup to charge up to 16.8V but usually stopped at 16.3V which is the buck converter output voltage. Meaning lithium battery can not charge beyond buck converter set output voltage. The only protection I have on the setup is a Chinese made BMS which would have let the battery charge up to 16.8V if not for the buck converter setting. It appears to be a good charger for lithium batteries.

[@creeek3]

This is really excellent and filled in a few blanks. I now have upgraded a couple of drill to Lithium. An converted the constant voltage charger to cater for 2, 3 and 5 cells battery packs. As this is the most comment electric drill battery size! Works perfect

[@paperwork1125]

Excellent video. I've watched it 5 times so far and will probably watch it another 5.

[@JOHNMORIN100]

You are a blessing it pays to watch over and over your videos we are always picking up little nuggets hear and there some of us it takes a lot of repetition to learn and finally sink in thanks for your patience because of you we are up grading from L16 lead batteries to Li-ion John Morin in Milo, Maine 09-03 2017

[@MYNICEEV]

I am charging ALL my cells from solar. From the solar panels into step down converter. My cell packs are 21V and I have Step down set at 20.5V. Each cell has it's own protection circuit so will never shut off a cell. The series won't be broken. The series packs are 5 x 4.2V cells in series to give me 21V per pack. I then have 12 x packs in parrallel and then out to another step down converter to 12.6V for my home lighting. It is the prototype battery for my up coming TTPW (Tesla Type Power Wall). Videos on my other channel.

[@kimt6333]

Li-Ion cells are rated at 3.7V, just like Ni-Mh and Ni-Cd are rated at 1.2V.

[@highdesert50]

Thanks for sharing your adventures, to include both your wins and fails.

[@dezertraider]

OK,,I BOUGHT YOUR U1XP12,,IT HAS 2 CABLES COMING OUT OF IT..WHAT PINS DO YOU USE TO CHARGE IT? 2 YOUR MONITOR YOU SHOW ON THE VIDEO FOR THIS U1XP12 DOES NOT SHOW HOW TO HOOK UP YOU BMS? CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT PINS TO ADD A 2 WATT WALL WART CHARGER..POS/NEG PINS? VERY FRUSTRATING THERE WAS NO WIRE DIAGRAM FOR THESE BATTERIES. I REACHED OUT TO YOUR TEAM AND GOT NO INFO.. CAN YOU DO A VIDEO FOR THE U1XP12 BATTERY,HOW TO ACCESS THE WIRES? THANK YOU

[@RoyAndrews82]

@jehugarcia Please correct me if I'm wrong. So the batteries need to be almost identical in voltage. The capacity doesn't matter. When charging them in series, the input voltage must be whatever the total voltage is. So if I'm charging two 18650's in series, then the input voltage must be a constant 8.400v using a buck, SEPIC, or boost converter or simply a DC to DC converter. I'm talking about 18650 or 26650 batteries, NOT LiPo batteries.

[@jehugarcia]

Mark II if your cells have different capacity they must balanced either at the top or at the bottom. The smallest cell will always reach top and bottom voltage first therefore it will be either overcharged or overdischarged. So cells with different capacities can be used but you'd have to adjust your end voltages, top or bottom depending where you balanced them at.

[@RoyAndrews82]

So they need to be both identical in voltages. They are almost identical batteries. So I can either charge them to a desired top voltage of let's say 4.000v, or discharge them to somewhere near 3.00v. Then I can put them in series 2S, 3S, whatever, and when I go to charge them, they should charge and discharge at together. I didn't do that yesterday. The one reached 4.208v, and the other was something like 4.187v, when I tried to charge them in series. This isn't because regardless if I ordered 2S BMS modules from china, I don't want to use a BMS. I'm making a mailbox light type post for my father's mailbox, and I don't want to have to worry about all this BMS crap. So today I put them in parallel, because from what I think I know, they should balance themselves out. So I'm watching the video you did.. What is Battery Balancing? Quick tip #5 So it seems they just need to be almost identical in voltage either near fully charged, or near fully discharged. Then I can use them in series, charging and discharging. I also noticed with my box mod when I put the two batteries that are used in my box mod (2S Series), the charger tells me they're the same voltage. So that's really good, and proves what you said about the fact that they will discharge together, and charge together, as long as they're almost identical in voltage. Over the years, I've learned a great deal about Lithium type batteries (18650, 26650 batteries mainly). Then you come along, and say they can be charged and discharged in series. Which I'm learning, is 100% correct.

[@mikecauser4302]

Thanks Jehu, I find your videos both educational and entertaining :)

[@pauls5745]

I would add to the many good comments and tips posted already, BMS are pretty cheap now, esp. for a DIY'er and if you can't attend and monitor charging, a BMS can add the safety you need with lithium batts cutting the power when it's set V is reached. some also can set a flat timer for charging

[@neail5466]

thank-you sir, a very good series to make some practical battery xp, it doesn't matter how much you read there are always some questions you basically resolved much of them, i have a request to make , i know its too late but if you make a frequency analysis of various chargers including expensive balance chargers, it will really help many people wanting a in depth explanation.

[@MrSinavai]

Hi Mr Garcia, thanks for the valuable lesson on batteries. One question. What's the lifespan of a 18650 cell?

[@jehugarcia]

Around 1000 cycles

[@djruido1]

Dude you are so inspirational to me I'm starting to watch all your videos and I just barely order things to build my batterie packs. 👍🏼👍🏼

[@afreemanreigns]

Dogs rule lol. One of my favorite channels, and this is a simple but yet very informative video.

[@philipholwerda4347]

Thanks for the informative video! So what do I need to buy to make a charger for 18v 18amph battery? (I'M trying to charge 2 m18 9ah milwalkee batteries in parallel without using the milwalkee single battery charger)

[@joshuab2450]

Hey great video. I need to charge a 10 cell 18650 battery pack. How can I modify or use a cheap 24 volt laptop charger that pushes 6 amps to charge the pack. The pack already has a BMS so i dont have to worry about overcharging.... any ideas?!

[@dimyttt1780]

BEST VIDEO EVER . THANK YOU . YUO ARE A BEAUTIFUL HUMAN BEING :)

[@MrGunningpeter]

Hi , Can a adjustable power supply be connected directly to solar panels and then to battery bank? great vids ,.. thanks

[@deepwinter77]

Thanks man I never understood Constant current constant voltage properly before this was really well explained.

[@hansolo3482]

How about charging a 3s or 4s battery pack using a desktop computer PSU? They're relatively cheap when on sale ($20-$30) and the 12v rail produces 35 amps. I figured you could use a bunch of imax b6 or another balance charger and connect them all in parallel with that 12v line. I've seen your open source balance charger but would like to know more about it.

[@positivevibesdrumming5186]

I have a question. Was looking for a video on direction in how to use a 1s to 6s TB6 Hobby charger/ Balancer to balance a 60v 40AH Lithium Ion battery pack in my Electric scooter. Is there an adapter I need that will support a 16s? Do i have to break my battery down into 3 sections? Do i need to buy a different, more expensive balance charger?? Is there a way without doing any of the mentioned above?? Your videos are very descriptive, so I chose to ask you this question. Thank you, Anyone.... for a response.

[@rajeshkanna6596]

Great man!! I need some suggestions, As I'm building a motorcycle with a 72V BLDC motor. How much voltage is enough for battery pack? I'm also using a DC-DC Converter.

[@rajeshkanna6596]

And I'm using battery cell array consisting of 300 cells which is 3.7V and 2.6amps. I couldn't decide whether arrange it mostly in series and increase its voltage or arrange it in parallel and increase its amps?

[@danholt2451]

jehugarcia, YOU HAVE A GIFT FOR TEACHING!

[@kevinomeara2182]

I am using chev. Volt batteries to power my golf cars. I would like to use the chargers that come with the cars .Is this power supply that you are talking about the way to keep from over charging my battery? We are using 2. 48 volt packs wired parallel And then to the car. My charger can put out about 20amp at 57 volts, and the goes down as the batteries go up. If this is the way to go ,do you have specific power supply you would recommend for this application.

[@Kronos0415]

VERY Informative! I'm planning to convert my NiCd batteries for my old Milwaukee 6024 drill. Thinking, 6 in series will give me a total of 21Ah with a max of 18-20v through a voltage regulator and a low threshold cut off circuit around 3.4 before they become unstable. Possibly may use a thermistor and voltage display panel(just for the curious folks). What do you think? May even be able to squeeze more in the old case and bring the Ah up. Thanks.

[@mosfet500]

Hi Jehu, Thank you for the video, lots of fun! I understand the principle of slowly charging batteries for safety but I'm not sure about your charging. How are you regulating charging current which is a very important thing to do? Also have you checked individual cells to see if they balance out to relatively the same final voltage? How does Tesla, for example, charge a string of series batteries, is there concern for individual battery hogging? Also do they current limit? Thanks for your time, Rob

[@garyfox9607]

Do you have a video on how to build a 12v lithium battery pack to replace a 12v sla battery in a battery booster? I have a couple boosters with dead batteries and a couple dozen 18650 cells laying around. Thanks.

[@giotinez]

Nice video my knowledge is nada, now I'm starting to understand something (series and parallel). Do you have a video showing the samba construction ?

[@nemisis010]

Dam, im just getting into this sort of thing and the first bit of this video was enormously helpful, you have yourself another subscriber.

[@kirkhaynes5452]

I bought China 18650 5000aH only because i was able to get them for .40 cents each. I know they are not 5000ah but the work pretty good. I made a 6s 22c battery and I had no powering a 3000w inverter and running a skilsaw off of it problem. If they are actually 1.5 aH are they still a good battery?

[@Middle-Eastt]

Exactly what I was searching for 🙏🙏🙏🇳🇬

[@jcinewilliams8819]

Wanted to know how would I charge a 12v 15a lithium battery?

[@KoRtExXx]

Can i charge lead acid battery with that step up/down converter, set to 14.1v?

[@CasperFaarlund]

I think so, but check amp ratings first.

[@mhpreach]

I have 2 lifePO4 12v 8Ah I bought the first of this month. I bought a charge you have to set type of battery number of cells, voltage, etc. I tried to see the charger work. When I hook either battery up and try to start the charge I get a cell warning on both and no charge. My other charger gives me a cell balance problem. What do you think? I just got one of the Miady 20ah batteries today. The charger is at my office so haven’t had a chance to try it with either charger.

[@The.2.Minute-Man]

Hi im just starting out with the Lithium Batteries and solar thing A big thanks for you're time and knowledge great info and easy to follow

[@theengineer4050]

Nice Video, just a small correction: LiPo batteries are called LiPo not because they have a Polymere Casing, but because they contain an Electrolyte based on Polymeres, instead of a classical liquid Electrolyte found for example in your 18650 cylindrical batteries. I study that stuff at university.

[@coolmill7955]

I started pulling my hair out when he said 4.2 × 2 is 7.4.... twice!! Twice??

[@allexandruprroca6713]

ohh shiiitt , nooooooooooo , i lived my whole life thinking that 2 18650 bateries equals 8.4 v , damnnn , i lived in a lie :)))))))

[@isaacfragmatic4651]

I would like to ask. Normally 18650 is max at 4.2 volts.and now i got bms for 26s config. Now how can i under volt them charging them at 4volts. Should i supply 102v and bms will balance them at 4v each cell or some cell will be 4.2 and some cell are lower.?

[@timpin6317]

I may be mistaken but don't these li-ion cells reach capacity at 4.2V? The nominal voltage is only 3.7V.

[@melcuadernotv4258]

That's cool sir. It doesn't need bms, again its practical your doing great...

[@renatosantosRDS]

hi Jehu! help me out. If i have a battery pack of 3s33p around of 50ah, what is the max amp i can put to it? and send a voltage of 11.1. thanks in advance. And your channel is awesome

[@tiborkiss9186]

Hi, thank you for your video. I have a similar situation and a question on battery charging. I plan to charge my 72v 100AH Li-ion battery bank using a diesel generator which provides a regulated DC 72v 70A. Can I connect it directly to my battery bank, or do i need to buy some kind of a charge controller? If yes, would a solar charge controller would do the job, or I need some other controller? best regards!

[@thewolf6691]

well out of all the random things there you did show us power supplies but I was just kind of wondering what about regular old batteries... like an Energizer lithium that says not rechargeable is there a way to stick charge back into that

[@jehugarcia]

No, only rechargeables

[@beneby4923]

love your channel - really helping me learn on my current build !

[@samuraijaydee]

Thanks man. This was really interesting and straight forward!

[@trevorjames5493]

I have a e-bike battery it’s lithium ion it has 36 cells in it they’re packed in groups of six I believe one of the groups of six got disconnected, the weld connection broke so that group of six is lower voltage than the rest now the entire thing won't charge can I simply just re-weld it to the rest of them and charge it back up to normal or do I have to take them out separately to charge them up fully to match and then reconnect them??

[@Nolucklynx]

hey..a thought...like an alternator on regular car, would having a solar panels, and a windmill system embedded in the car help to recharge batteries while on the move?

[@jehugarcia]

No, but I could help very slowly recharge while parked

[@onegreenev]

What charger are you now using for your Bus? You say you use one of those power regulators for charging your 12 volt battery. I don't see where these are able to take in your pack voltage then derate to 12 volts? I see they take 120 AC volts. Do they also take 120 DC volts that you can then derate to 12 volts?

[@MasterYota1]

The battery guru. Thanks a bunch for the videos they are kick ass.

[@starshipduck]

Well you forgot to mention that impedance does increase if you actually left the charger permanently connected to the battery as you said. Now sure how familiar you are with gauging and impedance track. I use to work for TI in the BMS group.

[@MrBrymstond]

For your 12v Samba You have 3 batteries in a series and 33x3 wired in parallel to get the most Ah, correct? Then you wire the positive on the series to the positive on the 33 cell in parallel. Then you wire the negative to on the series the negative on the 33 cell in parallel, correct???

[@skillzorskillsson8228]

Its pretty good explained but a few details is missing... What about if my output is 16V and my batteries that are connected in series ends up on 16,8V? Can that be any dangerous? Or does it just mean that the batteries will never be fully charged? Or what actually happens? And what about amps? Does that even matter at all? Or is it only the volt that i should care about??? Please, either reply to this thread or make a new video and explain more details... I have a bunch of batteries that looks like those small green batteries that you just showed. I got them from a laptop battery but im not sure if its same voltage in my battery as in your battery. The voltage is not displayed on the battery itself... So is it same voltage for all batteries that looks like this? Or how does that work? How do i know how much voltage my battery will need?

[@junyline8564]

Thanks for your great postings. Im in Australia. I’m going to install 12v 240v 3000w Inverter with 12v 100ah Lithium Battery in my car. I’m trying to find a way to charge the Lithium Battery from 12v (120w) Lighter Port on dashboard directly in my car without connecting with my car battery if possible. Can you tell me what kind of stuffs that i need to buy from like Amazon?

[@to0kold]

is it possible to charge a 7.4v (18650 x 2 series) DIY battery with a standard 5V USB charger? Im trying to make a portable powered 12v fan run off my 7.4v DIY battery but can't seem to figure out how I can charge the pack through USB as id like to 3d print a box and keep everything enclosed in it (Battery, 2s board, fan, USB charge port and anything else needed). THANKS FOR ANY INFO!

[@nandapradhan2875]

Hii, can you please help me for making a 18650 cell battery pack. I am little confused about the right bms and about chargeing them.

[@GlaucusBlue]

any chance of a video on choosing a BMS and what to look out for, what you need or don't need. great informative videos as ever.

[@jehugarcia]

+GlaucusBlue I'm the wrong guy for bms talk, all I know is that I've never used one and I don't feel I need one

[@danerodrigez7135]

It's been a year, did you see any difference in voltage and amperage since then?

[@jomtrader]

Hi, I have one question, I made 5 cells in parallel and 3 groups in series to be 12v pack and I agree with you to be not use the BMS to charge my pack so should I charge it with 12.2v cv/cc power supply or separate to 3 of 4.2v cv/cc power supply ? thank you.

[@JS7457]

You need a proper charger to charge 18650 in series or BOOM. Don't follow his vid

[@adityavishnuvardhan744]

hiii jahu... i need a battery of power 1kw... can u pls tell me the arrangement and the num of batteries required and about the other accessories or equipment i required

[@radiok2ua]

4:25: Dog's like, "C'mon, man, you said we were going to the park. Let's go!"

[@ZaiFuchigami]

So... If I want to charge 3 cells connected in series and another 3 cells (same series connection) with the 2 groups connected in parallel, and if each cell can except 1.5 amps, how many amps would I need to charge all 6 cells?

[@JS7457]

3A. but don't follow his video because he doesnt even use a constant current regulator

[@superakikupang6506]

I want to ask you about the differences between BMS BÀLANCE AND ENHANCE

[@Maximchik520]

As i saw in your video about the tesla wall, u used different batteries in it, so does it metter when they are connected in series or parallel for charging them and will it help the batteries to due quicklier?

[@isaacfragmatic4651]

I would like to ask. Normally 18650 is max at 4.2 volts.and now i got bms for 26s config. Now how can i under volt them charging them at 4volts. Should i supply 102v and bms will balance them at 4v each cell or some cell will be 4.2 and some cell are lower

[@Andres186000]

Some of the batteries will take way longer than they should to charge, because the bms isn't smart enough to realize it isn't going to be able to top out the batteries at 4. 2 so you may actually be running more cycles on the batteries

[@kyoki859638]

hey I was wanting to do a whole house off the grid solar project and have my batteries made from 18650 cells and have 200 cell 12v modules series up to 48 and into a inverter to my circuit breaker box. from there have it connected to the internal grid. but id also like to have enough redundancy so that I can take a certain # of modules and put them into my Nissan/Datsun 720 and have that converted to a single warp 11. any advice would be great and any old parts that would be cheapen the project,

[@marktheunitedstatescitezen185]

In my 48v battery-bank I’m using 3.2v I have 13 PCs at 280Ah and I’ve got 4 PCs 3.2v at 200Ah can I run in parallel 2 of the 3.2v 200Ah = 3.2v 400Ah can I use 2 - 3.2v 400Ah in my battery bank of 280Ah & if so the best place to put the ? As the the main - & + or as the Batteries 7 & 8 in the middle of the bank ? But their 120Ah over the 280Ah is it better for all the life to just use the 3.2v 200Ah as is ? So the 280Ah are only 80Ah more ?

[@dpos89]

Hi jehugarcia: I am getting things together for a powerwall as in my area in Michigan I lose power in the home 2-6 times a year. I want a way to charge the pack and would like your recommendations on a way to charge it. Solar is not in the near future due to cost and efficiency here. What I would like to do if possible is run a small gasoline engine/alternator combo but have read this may be a problem getting them topped off. Can I power a solar charger with the engine /alt that may be the answer? I would really appreciate it if you could give me your recommendations for a solution to this question. I thought I saw a video of an earlier Samba trip your took and used a similar charger but didn't see what I could do to assemble one. Thank you for your solutions and videos answered on the tube. Of course I would need details as this stuff is all new to me.

[@fklotaloi]

Hello Garcia,Could pls show us how to charge 18650 with buck converter specially emphasising on current control , like CC , CV etc issues. If u make a separate vid on it, wld be so grateful. Thanks for yr videos .:-)

[@binarumah]

For the last two years you did not do balance charging? What about the frequency of charging&discharging? If the drift is so small as what you measured, then no need to concern on the balance charging. Actually I'm planning to built lithium pack for my ebike. This balance charging thingy + BMS keep bugging my planning. Glad to hear from you that after two years minor drift on the voltage.

[@justbanter8727]

+Luqman Radzuan here's a BMS I just bought for my Battery Build www.ebay.co.uk/itm/151987351304?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT just remember to match the number of Balance Leads with the Number of Cells you are using i.e. I'm using 13 cells (48V) so mine has 14 Balance Leads - there are lots of pics showing how to hook the various types up (*some might even have just 13 Leads!) www.google.co.uk/search?q=13s+bms&espv=2&biw=1360&bih=637&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjbjuC706PMAhWlIsAKHW67D8YQsAQIIw#tbm=isch&tbs=rimg%3ACVdwAYsyZro_1IjjjCzYTapkviqyt1UGZrK2wBGAnWbpXC1CcW6bJnC5eWDJkDbQNkcxK9aBZEB1w_1dHLv9_1RUve2fSoSCeMLNhNqmS-KES2tXDIv2kCoKhIJrK3VQZmsrbARDLEtTPSYwWwqEgkEYCdZulcLUBFE6_1aTMQp2NioSCZxbpsmcLl5YEW_122t8QN9CfKhIJMmQNtA2RzEoRqQliqdY39E0qEgn1oFkQHXD90RFIWwvuTvVd9CoSCcu_139FS97Z9Ec2EI54KvHpq&q=13s%20bms&imgrc=_ p.s. just be sure the Board you pick can cope with the Amps, they can range from 10A to 60A or more, also remember the board will make sure the batteries deplete at the same rate i.e. keeps them balanced while 'Discharging' as Motor runs (equally as important as Balance Charging)

[@binarumah]

The_ Pentaquark. Tq for da info. I'm still sourcing the cells.it's challenging to get them around here.

[@justbanter8727]

Luqman Radzuan yw. I got lucky some months back when I sourced a huge lot of Old Laptop Batteries (eBay auction) - most (98%) were in good shape; Most people don't realise that when the Battery Packs fail it's more likely than not to be the BMS Board that goes wonky, and that the batteries themselves can usually be nursed into good shape with a Cheap Lithium Charger like an iMax B6. * or even one of these if you have the patience to resuscitate cells individually www.ebay.co.uk/itm/5V-Micro-USB-1A-18650-Lithium-Battery-Charger-Board-With-Protection-Arduino-RPi-/301908233617?hash=item464b220d91:g:yuAAAOSwxcRW9Eui

[@justbanter8727]

Luqman Radzuan just a heads up - if you do manage to get your hands on some old cells and they are below 3V (safety cut-off limit) then a lithium Charger can be set to 'Charge Nimh Battery' for a short while until the cell is above 3V and then it will Charge as normal on the 'Lithium/Lipo' Setting. Sometimes you need to do that when the Voltage of the cell is too low as the Charger will refuse to Charge it in the Normal Lithium /Lipo Setting if the Voltage is too low. p.s. I found that those cheap small single cell boards (the one in that link) will often ignore the initial Low Voltage and help to restore normal voltage EVEN IF the cell Voltage has dropped too low - which is handy to know :)

[@mrbricolage803]

Hi friend, greetings from Morocco, I have a 12 volt drill with lithium battery, I have put a (BMS), and I want to know how I can charge it I do not have a lithium charger but I have laptop chargers I do not know how to do it thank you I wish you best

[@gregoryschift9324]

How much voltage is your battery supplier for the samba and how much voltage the motor works with? I have the same question for the amps as well... pls answer me them.

[@luisfernandes4145]

Can you change a modern car (whith electronics, traction control, etc) into an fully electric, or is too complicate? Thank You for your attention.

[@asc556]

Hi. I would like to know if you wanna balance that pack how you do that? with bottom or with top balance?

[@mark8664]

So where do you get your batteries and what's a good price for the 18650's?

[@iliketobuildstuff7013]

this is a great video I have had a usable understanding of this concept before but not the total application of it till now. Thanks (i am recommending this video to my old high school tech teacher lol

[@thinkfx3078]

Hey man thanks for great content man just took up an interest in batteries an your video are dd best on KZbin you got my subscription

[@GMComputers4u2]

Ok I’m in the middle of a project and have a question... my battery’s are 3.7v 5800mAh x6 .. I have a 6s pack with a 6s 15a BMS protection board to power my project... so I have a total of 22.2v... now here is my question... I would like to add a charging port and make it a Micro USB plug .... I was thanking of using a TP4056 4.2v 3A charger... would that work ??

[@abnerflor]

How you keep your batteries in that 2.5 - 4.2v without a bms.?

[@OntarioMiner]

Whats the easiest way to test capacity of multiple 18650 cells at the same time. The Imax B6 unit will take forever to do all my cells as it only does one at a time. Any Ideas. Thanks for the overview, Great Video!

[@jehugarcia]

+Eric Scherzinger multiple Imax B6 chargers, or HBPowerwall uses a charger that does multiple cells, maybe he can chime in with details on charger

[@EngineeringNibbles]

if you're willing to build a charger with an arduino yourself ( ie soldering a bit ) then I have schematics, it's about 10€ for a charger that can charge 4 of them

[@antonnpn9063]

Opus bt c3100 I am just finished with checking 104 cells took me a Month.

[@OntarioMiner]

+BillTheBox sounds great could you post a link. Maybe others can use it too. I have three arduino nano's coming in the mail.

[@EngineeringNibbles]

+Eric Scherzinger I'll explain it and post a small paint schematic as my main pc is dead : You will need holder for the 18650's, mosfet ( IRF3205 or IRF540N or anything like it ) 10w 1.8 ohm resistor small LED ( not essential ) MCP73811 ( one per cell ) Arduino Nano a 5V source to charge and power the arduino ( NOTE : this is used as Vref so if it's not actually 5V get a regulator to offer a 5v reference for the arduino ) You charge up to 4.2V, you discharge down to 3.2V measuring capacity, then you recharge to a holding voltage of 4.0 or 4.15V to store them, then after a week measure aggain to see if voltage fell ( this part you do by hand ) Because it's programmable you can change the voltages and even the current by changing the resistor. You discharge at 2a because it weeds out more of the bad cells, and it gives you a realistic look at the capacity. Now : I need to find that schematic, but I see that somebody did something pretty similar : www.instructables.com/id/Automatic-18650-Analyzer/

[@bthatguy1181]

If I had a lead acid battery pack (an inexpensive scooter) in 36v, does the same apply when it comes down to charging?

[@joeventura1]

I learned something today! Well done!

[@ColinMitchell124]

new here and like what I am seeing. you are an inspiring creator. thank you for sharing your talents.

[@darinmbicknell]

PARK! Let's go to the PARK! Nice vid... good coverage of the basics of charging cells and packs. Thanks. 4.2 + 4.2 = 8.6. Edit needed you said 7.6. Love the short commercials. Nice & short not obtrusive.

[@HBPowerwall]

+Darin Bicknell You beat me :)

[@darinmbicknell]

+HBPowerwall FAST I AM! Hey I am not finished yet... only 8 minutes in right now.

[@HBPowerwall]

+Darin Bicknell grin

[@Oneupthesleevecustoms]

8.4 mate ;)

[@iamaseem6908]

Are you using fresh batteries for your power wall(or can i use laptop (recycled) battery for powerwall)

[@Romit277]

How to solder or weld lifepo4 32650 battery. Your information will be very helpful for my work. Thank you

[@IscleGaming]

How to charge lithium batteries: Step 1: Get a dog.

[@Nordic_Mechanic]

+IscleGaming | ZefaCraft Step 3: Profit $$$

[@yoyoclockEbay]

What the hell is step 2 then?

[@dantevortex]

Step 2: You insert the lithium cells you want to charge into the dog (insertion slot is located under the tail). And then you wait.

[@deonjaithu2713]

IscleGaming | ZefaCraft

[@CripSkillz]

How can you actually accurately test each cell from on 3 cell balance connection, your series of cells that's low could possibly contain 1 or 2 cells that are below 3v and you would not be able to tell. And that where the danger comes in.. Or let me know if I'm wrong. Thx

[@Danijel9616]

greetings, one question,i make battery for elektrobike from old batteries in laptops,i produce battery 36v 10A and i dont have BMS on that battery,can i charge that battery with tipical (Chinese)charger for that battery(42v 2A) without fear that battery will explode(because there is no BMS on it)?i.e.will charger stop charging when the battery is full? Excuse on my bad English

[@We_Reddit]

9:51 so you charge at 12V, but at what amps? Seems using 0.5-1.0 amps would be painfully slow... What's the recommended ratio of charging amp to total Ah/capacity?

[@We_Reddit]

Or do you just do, cell x .5 amps? So if you have 20 cells in parallel, you can use up to 20 x .5 amps = 10 amps? I guess that makes sense.

[@ikegel1923]

yes

[@kenkhan678]

charging in parallel is a bad idea. how do you know that the current is shared equally? i suppose each individual current could be monitored

[@New777World]

Niceeeeeeee! this is very cool insight. I would never thought you would charge your battery pack of the samba electric with such small charger and powered by 99 cells

[@jehugarcia]

+Isaac mondragon Well, that just runs the 12v systems. Radio, headlights, fans stuff like that. The traction pack is much bigger, around 44kWh. Over 5k 18650 cells

[@JoseGarcia-px9xj]

so how many modules if around 600 watts do you have. So you charge each module individually or you have a bigger charger. When your module is fully charge is around 12.3 V, when is discharge is around 9 is this right

[@gphilipc2031]

Jehu...I recently purchased a popular line trimmer (weed whacker) from HD. April 2016...by August 2016 the 40 volt Li battery pack failed. The manufacturer is sending a new battery but it's going to take up to 3 weeks. I would charge the battery fully then go use the trimmer til it quit after abut 45 to 50 minutes of use. Am I doing this wrong? Should I use it say for a half hr and then recharge it before it "quits" ?

[@fullboostturbo1]

Hi Philip, by all means its better to recharge a lithium before it dies right out. I have 2 Makita Lithium batteries whom so many people have complained about, yet mine are still going strong 5 years later. The main reason for them lasting so long is that I only let them get about 3/4 empty maximum before I recharge them, and even if I do not use them at all I still put them in the charger every 3-4 weeks for a top up of any low cells.

[@gphilipc2031]

fullboostturbo1 Thanks FBT1...I'm doing that now...going to 3/4 down then recharging. I am now on the 3rd battery. They sent #3 along with a charger after I complained that the second battery would not charge right out of the box. Now I have two chargers and three batteries. I need to figure out if I can possibly make one working battery out of the two defective batteries. This would give me a backup and extend my tool use time.

[@fullboostturbo1]

G Philip C Hi again mate, yeah usually its just one cell that loses voltage past it recommended lowest voltage cut off point, which in turn stops the rest of the cells from charging up. Usually it will be the first cell as it used for the pre-checks by the tool and before charging is attempted by a charger. But this may not be the situation on all occasions, as sometimes cells do malfunction no matter what placement they are in. If you confident enough to open one of the batteries if possible without damaging the case to badly, and if it uses 18650 cells as most do then just use a voltage meter to find the crook battery, and replace it with a new one as they are cheap as chips these days on ebay. No matter what cells it uses you should be able to find replacement ones pretty easily online. Almost forgot you will have to have some soldering experience to replace the cells usually. Have a good one champ let me know how you go....

[@freetrailer4poor]

If you tear them apart they probably have the cells above in them. But, it would take a lot of work to turn 2 into 1. there should be a law passed requiring all batteries to be held in by springs. It would help in recycling and reuse.