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Do Lipo Batteries In Metal Detectors Last Longer If Broken In Slowly?


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1 minute ago, PimentoUK said:

If you want to extend longevity, a good method is to limit the maximum charging voltage to 4.1V or 4.0V. But how you do that when it's inside the detector is another matter.

I'm only interested in avoiding damaging the battery. Especially on the first few charges.

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This MD-Arena teardown shows the Simplex has a foil-pouch LiPo size 804060 ( that's 8mm x 40mm x 60mm ), with nominal capacity 2300 mAh.
There's a possibility you could obtain a cell with slightly higher capacity ( 2400mAh ) in this size, if squeezing an extra half-hour run-time is helpful.

https://md-arena.com/razborka-nokta-simplex-plus-foto-otchet-chto-vnutri-metalloiskatelya

 

 

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Thanks Chase for the info.

As for detectors with built in batteries I wouldn't worry about it too much. Use the machine, and if in the next few years replace the battery or have the mfg replace the battery. Look at how often you charge your phone and how long those last and compare that to the far fewer charge cycles your detector will go through. If it means anything I have many many recharges on my AA lithiums and have had them for a few years now. They still run strong.

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Most likely there is nothing to worry about with break in. If that was the case the manufacturer would have instructions on break in. When I changed the battery on my phone I had read about break in and running the battery to 0 etc to calibrate. Manufacturer instructions said nothing about it so I ran the phone with new batter as is. Just charged it up and ran it. Had no issues.

So my guess with detectors is if there is a need to break the battery in they either do it at the factory or it isn't necessary.

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4 hours ago, Tahoegold said:

It's about the break in not the longevity I'm interested in. I just don't want to break the battery right off the bat.

Well as others have said in this thread, you are unlikely to break the battery out of the gate if you simply follow the manufacturers instructions on charging and usage.  Breaking-in the battery is not for preventing damage so much as to optimize capacity (run time).  Short term damage can only really occur if you charge the battery under freezing conditions, allow it to overheat, or discharge it to the point of zeroing out the terminal voltage (the latter two issues being practically impossible to achieve because of the built-in charge control and protection features of the battery controller chip supplied by the detector manufacturer).  Even if you treated it like your NiCads, the protection circuit would prevent significant damage and all you would be doing is slightly reducing the usable lifetime of the battery by at most a few months or weeks depending on how frequently you use your detector.  Usable battery lifetime is determined by the cumulative full range charge/discharge cycles available until the battery capacity at full charge degrades to less than 80% of its rated capacity.  So the goal is to limit the cumulative full range charge-discharge cycles as much as possible, but of course you also need to utilize the detector and hope that you can get several hours of usage out of a single charge so your ability to fully control charge-discharge cycles is limited by how frequently you use the detector and how long you typically use the detector on a given outing.  Under normal to light usage the battery should last 5 to 7 years or more, if properly maintained.  3 to 5 years under heavy usage.

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Thanks! Good to know! I want to reiterate, I have no experience with Lipo batteries and was on track to damage mine if it wasn't for this info. I would have fully charged and stored for the winter. Only after first charging and discharging completely for 3-4 times. Well, I know better now!

So, I'm still going to break in with the slow discharge and recharge with rest periods about 3-4 times then store it at 40%. I think it could be that it's regulated via a program or something internal. I just need something to do! Ha! 

Then, I'm going to just use it and now I know not to charge in sub freezing temps too. Of which I have here and I do hunt sled hills. So, missed that ding too. And, sometimes I travel to the desert. There it's 100°F most if the summer. That too is a bad temp to charge. Missed that ding as well.

   So, I think I have the best practices down now and I am once again grateful for this forum. There's an amazing amount of experts here. 

Thank you all! TG

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I think that all this work to take care of your battery probably doesn't change the amount of time or performance through the life of the battery anyway. Nobody has mentioned any performance or longevity % difference in these procedures. I'm not going to obsess over a battery that I can replace. I just use a commercial battery charger/conditioner or the factory battery advice and never noticed any problems with batteries. My 5 year old chromebook battery stays plugged in 24/7 and still has a 10 hr battery life. Damn my lawnmower battery lasted 10 years without any maintenance. IMHO have fun with your metal detector find cool stuff. 

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1 hour ago, Johnnysalami1957 said:

I think that all this work to take care of your battery probably doesn't change the amount of time or performance through the life of the battery anyway. Nobody has mentioned any performance or longevity % difference in these procedures. I'm not going to obsess over a battery that I can replace. I just use a commercial battery charger/conditioner or the factory battery advice and never noticed any problems with batteries. My 5 year old chromebook battery stays plugged in 24/7 and still has a 10 hr battery life. Damn my lawnmower battery lasted 10 years without any maintenance. IMHO have fun with your metal detector find cool stuff. 

I think my battery will last much longer because of the info here. My original plan was to fully charge and fully discharge 3-4 times. Then fully charge and store. Neither of those processes are recomended by the Lipo manufacturers. In fact, storing at full charge definitely damages the battery and shortens the life.

   I also live in a place that has sub zero temps and above 95°F temps in which I may have decided to charge the battery. That would have damaged the battery as well, which would shorten the life.

    Maybe, after reading all this info, the title shoud say, what would SHORTEN the life of a Lipo battery during the first few charges. Or at any time.

    I had no knowledge of these things and found out I probably would have done some damage. I grateful to know better now!

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