Top RC LiPo Charger Tips & What to Avoid

LiPo batteries are fantastic; they have a lot of power for their weight and size, which makes them ideal for R/C. However, they require charging. To assist you in prolonging the life of your LiPos and charging them securely, we're providing some LiPo charger advice. LiPo batteries are widely used in the hobby of radio control. They are utilized in many different applications, including as transmitter batteries and receiver batteries for nitro cars. While some of these suggestions are applicable to smaller batteries used in secondary applications, the majority of them are relevant to LiPo batteries. So, how is a LiPo battery charged?

Tip 1 – Always Charge at 1C Charge Rate

The most important piece of advice regarding LiPo battery charging is all about heat: for optimal health and long-term performance, charge your LiPo battery at a pace of 1C. IfIf you're not familiar with the meaning of a 1C charging rate, it has to do with the amount of amps used to charge the LiPo battery. What is the ideal amp for charging a LiPo battery?

At a 1C charge rate, a 4600mAh battery would require 4.6 charging amps. However, sure batteries charge at 2C, so a 4600mAh battery at a 2C rate would produce 9.2 amps.

The battery would be charged twice as quickly with a 2C charge rate as it would at a 1C charge rate. The maximum charge rate of some LiPo batteries can be extremely high, such as 10C. Therefore, that would have a ridiculously high charge rate of 46 amps for a 4600mAh LiPo! High-end race-grade or competition battery packs are typically the only ones with high charging rates. This specific pack can withstand 10C. Be cautious because no one is informing you that the battery cells will become hotter the higher the amperage you charge it at. The LiPo battery will deteriorate by the extreme heat produced by highly high charge rates, which essentially scorches the battery from the inside out. Now, it doesn't matter if you're a racer who purchases new LiPo batteries each season. (For this reason, you should never buy secondhand LiPo.) However, charging at a 1C charge rate will aid you if you're a basher or if you want your LiPo batteries to last for many years. Additionally, you should never charge your LiPo batteries faster than the maximum pace advised by the battery manufacturer.

Tip 2 – Let the Battery Cool Down

The second piece of advice is straightforward: let your battery cool down after using it and before charging it again. LiPos generate heat during operation, and charging a hot LiPo will increase its temperature. In addition to causing it to swell or puff up, this can impair your battery's long-term performance. Therefore, allowing your LiPo to cool down after usage and before charging it again can help prolong its lifespan and performance.

Tip 3 – Use the Memory Profiles

One of our favourite tips is number three, which is to use your LiPo charger's "save profile memory" if it has one. This enables you to store all of the charger's parameters, including your battery's cell count, simulated capacity, and charge rate. For those like us who have a variety of batteries or battery kinds, a profile is helpful. We've added profiles for both balanced charge and storage charge for our most popular LiPo batteries because we use two, three, four, and six cells, and it saves a ton of time.

Tip 4 – Always Storage Charge

Is it safe to store LiPo batteries? Yes, and our fourth piece of advice is simple and secure: always store your batteries after using them. Why would you do this, then? Yes, there are some advantages. It improves the long-term health and performance of your battery, to start. For LiPo batteries, a cell voltage of 3.7 to 3.8 volts is ideal. However, the battery is depleted beyond that voltage when you use it in your car.

For instance, at 3.2 volts, your car's ESC switches off the LiPo battery. Although that voltage is perfectly acceptable, 3.2 volts is not a suitable voltage to store your battery if you have finished using your LiPo and won't be using it for any time. However, the charger will charge your battery to 3.7 to 3.8 volts when it is in storage mode. Reducing the amount of time needed to charge a battery is the second advantage of stored charging. Once more, though, this is because you have already fully charged the battery to its ideal storage capacity.

Tip 5 – Monitor Cell Voltages

Our second piece of advice is to keep an eye on your cell voltages while using a conventional four-button charger. To see the voltage of each cell, press one of those buttons to bring up a separate display. To make sure everything is good and there are no problems, we'll leave it on this screen while we charge in order to see the cell voltages. If there are any problems, the display screen will show them. You may view your cell voltages with Traxxas LIVE chargers by pairing your LiPo charger with the EZ Peak app on a smartphone.

Tip 6 – Always Balance Charge

Developing the sixth habit is a terrific method to maintain the health of your batteries. Additionally, always balance charge LiPo batteries. The primary advantages of balancing charging are the maintenance of cell balance, the preservation of battery health, and the reduction of fire hazards. Another benefit is that it shortens the charge time because your charger doesn't have to spend as much time rebalancing those cells. Some people only sometimes balance charging their batteries, which causes the cells to fall out of balance.

The following time, they balance the charge, and this procedure causes a problem. Because the charger must rebalance those cells at a very slow charge rate, it will take a long time. It is simply safer and smarter to have your cells balanced at all times, as this will reduce the time it takes to finish the balancing charge process. The more unbalanced those cells are, the longer it will take to rebalance them.

Tip 7 – Use a Bat-Safe Charge Box

The most crucial thing you can do when charging your LiPos is to utilize a bat-safe charge box, which is covered in this tip on battery charging safety. Although it is uncommon, LiPos can catch fire for a number of reasons. Although the numerous LiPo charger bags that come in various colours and sizes are passable, they are by no means the ideal option. Therefore, one of these bat-safe charge cases is the perfect option for charging a LiPo battery.

It's very easy to use a bat-safe box; simply place your battery inside, insert your charge leads through the small rubber slot, plug it into your battery using the charger outside the box, latch up the box, and charge. These boxes have vent holes to allow a compromised battery to ventilate because there will be a lot of pressure built up during a fire, and it needs to vent out for the box to stay shut. Some people use ammo boxes to prevent their LiPos from exploding, which is fine, but if there is a fire inside the box and it's not ventilated, the box will get red-hot, burning anything underneath it. For this reason, a bat-safe box is the best way to safely charge your LiPo battery. Additionally, you can store the LiPos inside the box when not using it for charging.

Tip 8 – Use Bands to Stay Organized

Our final piece of advice is to utilize bands to keep everything tidy. When we have a lot of batteries that need to be charged, we like to use bands. We simply place them aside after sliding them over our charged batteries. These specific bands are glue bands for ten-scale on-road tires. They are affordable, simple to use, and effective. Having a visual indication to quickly and simply identify which batteries require charging is the objective here.