LiPo dischargers worth it?

[The Bean]

Should I get a LiPo discharger?

A lot of LiPo chargers have a storage mode option, and that will (dis)charge a LiPo to 3.8V per cell. But this is very slow if the LiPo needs to be discharged, especialy at higher cell counts. LiPo dischargers do the same (only the discharging) but was faster. For example: the iDST FD-100 can discharge a LiPo at 6A/80W. Your LiPo-charger can't.

So here's my question: are they worth it? Should I just get a good LiPo charger with storage mode, or should I get a cheaper charger and a discharger?

1: If I buy a charger with storage mode, I will get the SkyRC D100 V2 (€105) dual charger.

2: If I buy a cheaper dual charger without storage mode, but with a discharger, I'd get the iSDT FD-100 discharger (€35) with a cheaper dual charger (I don't know wich one).

What should I go for? Opt. 1 or 2?

[Charger Man]

I have the fd-100 and fd-200. Both excellent dischargers. I also have a couple icharger x6’s. They are capable of discharging but like you said at a very slow pace. And using a charger as a discharger makes it very warm and can reduce the lifetime of the charger. So for that reason I use a separate discharger just for that very purpose.


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[Calebs0615]

If it was me id think about what my cost would be. Like how much it is to buy a charger with a storage mode, or buying one without storage mode and having to buy a discharger and or a monitor so you dont discharge too much.

I woukd pick the cheaper of the two. Unless its a close call. Say 20$ or something. Than it would be just a preference thing for me.

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[zedorda]

I believe the question is about volume and budget. If you have several batteries that you use and store. Then yes get a discharger but if you only use a few batteries then no. What "several" and "few" mean is based on what your budget is. I am not poor but I am cheap so my setup is on the inexpensive side for discharging.



I'm abit more picky with my chargers. But this setup is also expandable by adding more bulbs and daisy chaining more of the black boxes.

[Panther6834]

How about getting a good charger AND a discharger?

While chargers have "discharging" ability, the reason they have to do it so s-l-o-w-l-y is because they're not designed to dissipate large quantities of heat. There's nothing wrong with using a charger to put a partially-used battery to 'storage' level...but, if you've got any unused, fully-charged (or close to fully-charged) batteries, using the charger to put them to 'storage' level makes the charger work extra hard (and could, potentially, shorten the life of the charger). That's where a discharger comes into play, as they ARE designed to handle higher heat levels...plus, they're pre-programmed to discharge to storage level (typically 3.80-3.85V/cell).

My suggestion/recommendation would be to get yourself a good, high-quality charger (my primary is an iCharger 406 Duo, with a Hitec X2 AC Black as my 'backup'...also used when I need to charge 4 batteries simultaneously), AND get a discharger. I typically use my discharger to get unused packs to my discharger's pre-programmed 3.84-3.85V/cell level...then, I connect the packs to my iCharger to not only bring them (safely) down to 3.80V/cell, but to also keep the cells balanced while doing so (while most dischargers do a good job of keeping the cells fairly-well balanced, I prefer to keep mine...even when put to 'storage' level...as close to "perfectly balanced" as possible).


~ More peace, love, laughter, & kindness would make the world a MUCH better place

[Calebs0615]

I believe the question is about volume and budget. If you have several batteries that you use and store. Then yes get a discharger but if you only use a few batteries then no. What "several" and "few" mean is based on what your budget is. I am not poor but I am cheap so my setup is on the inexpensive side for discharging.



I'm abit more picky with my chargers.

That looks like quite a unit. Forgive me as Im not familiar with dischargers at all... Do they all look like that?

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[zedorda]

That looks like quite a unit. Forgive me as Im not familiar with dischargers at all... Do they all look like that?

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No not all but with this setup I have a high-end balance control board (blue box)with a separate load working directly off the batteries. Most just stuff all this into one box with the load being just a bank of resistors making heat. This way I can replace any part that goes bad without replacing the whole thing.

[Calebs0615]

No not all but with this setup I have a high-end balance control board (blue box)with a separate load working directly off the batteries. Most just stuff all this into one box with the load being just a bank of resistors making heat. This way I can replace any part that goes bad without replacing the whole thing.

Thank you. Thats seriously cool. It seems simple, yet effective and efficient at the same time. Thanks for the explanation.

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[The Bean]

If it was me id think about what my cost would be. Like how much it is to buy a charger with a storage mode, or buying one without storage mode and having to buy a discharger and or a monitor so you dont discharge too much.

I woukd pick the cheaper of the two. Unless its a close call. Say 20$ or something. Than it would be just a preference thing for me.

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Personaly, I think +$35 for way faster discharging is worth it, but I came here for more info, as I only knew these things exist since a couple of houres ago.

[Calebs0615]

Personaly, I think +$35 for way faster discharging is worth it, but I zeker here for more info, as I only knew these things exist since a couple of houres ago.

Yeah i mean i use the traxxas ezpeak plus and it works fine for me. I was just throwing out ideas.

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[The Bean]

How about getting a good charger AND a discharger?

My suggestion/recommendation would be to get yourself a good, high-quality charger (my primary is an iCharger 406 Duo, with a Hitec X2 AC Black as my 'backup'...also used when I need to charge 4 batteries simultaneously), AND get a discharger. I typically use my discharger to get unused packs to my discharger's pre-programmed 3.84-3.85V/cell level...then, I connect the packs to my iCharger to not only bring them (safely) down to 3.80V/cell, but to also keep the cells balanced while doing so (while most dischargers do a good job of keeping the cells fairly-well balanced, I prefer to keep mine...even when put to 'storage' level...as close to "perfectly balanced" as possible).


~ More peace, love, laughter, & kindness would make the world a MUCH better place

I was thinking about the D100, as I’ve asked about it before on this forum, and I was told it is a good charger.

And, thanks for the tip about ‘rebalancing’.

So, I should get (for example) the SkyRC D100 V2 + the iSDT FD-100 discharger?

[Panther6834]

I was thinking about the D100, as I’ve asked about it before on this forum, and I was told it is a good charger.

And, thanks for the tip about ‘rebalancing’.

So, I should get (for example) the SkyRC D100 V2 + the iSDT FD-100 discharger?

Personally, I have no experience work either of those two. However, the SkyRC D100 appears to be identical to the Hitec X2 AC (Horizon Hobby also sells their version of this same charger, under their Dynamite brand...it's sold by multiple companies, under different brand/model names), so you shouldn't have any problems with it. As for the FD-100, I've read plenty of food things about it, so it, too, should be a good choice.


~ More peace, love, laughter, & kindness would make the world a MUCH better place

[Nighti]

It highly depends on your use case. I'm using a storage mode to store my LiPos for a season where I'm not driving. This happens once maybe twice a year. It doesn't really matter to me if it takes longer as I don't have to charge anything else in the meantime.

The only benefit in faster LiPo discharging is time. If that's not an issue for you, then I don't see reason for a separate device.

[The Bean]

I don't want to leave LiPo's (dis)charging overnight, and leaving them unbalanced isn't the best idea, so it would make sence form a safety standpoint.

[Nighti]

I don't want to leave LiPo's (dis)charging overnight, and leaving them unbalanced isn't the best idea, so it would make sence form a safety standpoint.

In this case I would do it during daytime. Turn it off during night and continue next day. There is no harm to leave it unbalanced as long as you don't use it.

[GotNoRice]

It's never really been a big deal for me to just use the storage mode on my chargers to discharge my batteries. My main charger is about 10 years old now so it has obviously not harmed the charger too bad. Some of my big 4s packs can take upwards of 6 hours to go into storage if they are fully charged, but I have 3 chargers now so it helps spread things out a bit when I have multiple packs to put into storage.

[radio uncontrol]

^ +1 with GotNo

I use a color coded outlet box with multiple chargers also with individual switch for each outlet..keeps things simple..
LHS always has a great price on completer packs so it's more advantageous for me just to get a completer pack instead of searching out a single battery pack

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[The Bean]

It's never really been a big deal for me to just use the storage mode on my chargers to discharge my batteries. My main charger is about 10 years old now so it has obviously not harmed the charger too bad. Some of my big 4s packs can take upwards of 6 hours to go into storage if they are fully charged, but I have 3 chargers now so it helps spread things out a bit when I have multiple packs to put into storage.

So it will save me money and time if i buy a discharger? I’m not going to spend hinderde of $ on chargers

[GotNoRice]

So it will save me money and time if i buy a discharger? I’m not going to spend hinderde of $ on chargers

Well you'll have to decide what your priorities are. I'm usually not in a rush when I am putting my batteries into storage, because that's something I do after I use my trucks. On the other hand, having multiple chargers is extremely convenient because it allows me to charge multiple packs simultaneously. I'm usually charging my packs before I use my trucks, when time does matter.

Although my main charger is an authentic model, for my 2nd charger I took the chance and bought a $20 B6 clone. It worked fine and so I bought a 3rd for another $20. A discharger probably costs more than I paid for my chargers.

[radio uncontrol]

I don't see where anyone was requesting you spend hundreds on new chargers..you posted a question asking for input and that's what some of the forum members did.. I found the quickest way to discharge any of my batteries is to put it in the vehicle and use for 30-40 minutes and then what little bit of discharging needs to be done after that a regular charger can handle the rest of it without issue..Boom! That doesn't cost anything. I typically don't have fully charged batteries lying around that need immediate discharge.
Honestly I only answered because it was posted in a Slash forum..there is a lipo battery forum and even a charger forum further down the menu that would probably get a more direct response and more targeted info to your question.
So many variables to your question to give a single answer...some think a Hoss is worth the $469 msrp and some will refuse to pay that..any discharger you acquire will only be one that you are willing to spend what you think is fair.
It's like giving relationship advice...people are going to do what they want to do..


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[The Bean]

I’ll just get the SlyRC D100 charger, and if I have problems with waiting too long for discharing, I’ll get the discharger. I thought ‘hundreds of dollars’ for chargers because I saw 4 Traxxas chargers, wich cost A LOT.

I waan thinking a discharger could be needed, because I have a 8500mAh LiPo, wich I have never fully emptied, so I end up discharging it to storage mode. Every time I go out with friends, all their RC’s are empty or broken before I even get that thing half empty

[GotNoRice]

I have a 8500mAh LiPo, wich I have never fully emptied, so I end up discharging it to storage mode. Every time I go out with friends, all their RC’s are empty or broken before I even get that thing half empty

Packs that large are usually pretty heavy. If you are never using the entire capacity, you might look at getting a smaller pack for your typical usage and saving your big pack for backup / special usage. Lighten the weight of your vehicle a bit.

[The Bean]

I’m probably selling a lot of my rc stuff when I’m moving to the US. I’ll get a 6400 or 5200 mAh SMC there. When I bought that LiPo’ I thought: bigger is better. But bigger is not better, if it’s to big, like with this battterie. Also, the 6400 mAh version was barely any cheaper, so ‘why not’ I thought. Now I know why not.

[olds97_lss]

I believe the question is about volume and budget. If you have several batteries that you use and store. Then yes get a discharger but if you only use a few batteries then no. What "several" and "few" mean is based on what your budget is. I am not poor but I am cheap so my setup is on the inexpensive side for discharging.



I'm abit more picky with my chargers. But this setup is also expandable by adding more bulbs and daisy chaining more of the black boxes.

What's the black box? Something you made or something you bought? If you bought it, got a link?

I recently just wired 4 brake bulbs together (both filaments) to drain packs to throw them away. Was surprised how fast they will pull a 7200mah+ 3S pack down.

So far, this is the only discharger I've run across that balances the cells as it discharges:
https://www.amazon.com/Discharger-In.../dp/B07ZD2D8YW

[zedorda]

What's the black box? Something you made or something you bought? If you bought it, got a link?

I recently just wired 4 brake bulbs together (both filaments) to drain packs to throw them away. Was surprised how fast they will pull a 7200mah+ 3S pack down.

So far, this is the only discharger I've run across that balances the cells as it discharges:
https://www.amazon.com/Discharger-In.../dp/B07ZD2D8YW

I found this kit on Amazon back in 2017 for $29. I have seen it in parts on ebay.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[olds97_lss]

I found this kit on Amazon back in 2017 for $29. I have seen it in parts on ebay.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Just ordered one from China... should be here by Christmas. lol!

Looking at the little bulb holders, I should be able to use similar brake bulbs for auto and use both filaments, will likely be more than 150W, will see how it does when I get it. Make a little stand for it, put a splitter on the jst connector and add a fan to push some of the heat away... amusing winter project.

[zedorda]

The base my bulbs are in was a test tube stand. I stuffed pennies in the lower holes to give it weight. Then I stripped the wire from a few twist ties to hold the sockets in place which are metal and get really hot after just a minute or so.

[Panther6834]

Just ordered one from China... should be here by Christmas. lol!

Christmas 2020? Or 2021?


~ More peace, love, laughter, & kindness would make the world a MUCH better place

[olds97_lss]

Christmas 2020? Or 2021?


~ More peace, love, laughter, & kindness would make the world a MUCH better place

Yes? Likely one of them! lol!

[monkeyracing]

Check out some of Nick Adams videos on YouTube. Very educational. https://youtu.be/ses7Jnq6bcQ

[zedorda]

Wow the batteries were cookin at 56C. Can't say I would ever suggest that.

[grizzly03]

Check out some of Nick Adams videos on YouTube. Very educational. https://youtu.be/ses7Jnq6bcQ

Not something I would recommend for someone new. If you weren't paying attention or knew what you are doing, you could easily ruin a battery quick. Nothing that would stop it from draining a battery past safe limits.

Wow the batteries were cookin at 56C. Can't say I would ever suggest that.

That is warm!

[Nighti]

Check out some of Nick Adams videos on YouTube. Very educational. https://youtu.be/ses7Jnq6bcQ

No control of current flow, no control of each cell, pretty high discharge rate. This is a way to shorten a live of your expensive battery and even risk accidents during discharging.

[monkeyracing]

Alright, not his best video, but the balance leads can be connected and safety maintained.