Flying in heat

[ChadCloses]

Does anyone have an opinion on when it's to hot to fly outside? It's 95° today, and no that is not an exaggeration! But in the summer it gets up to 112-115°. Would you take your drone out when it's over 90°? And if you did would you cut the time you use your batteries to in half and let the drone fool down before using the next battery?

 

[Rayray]

Ha ha. That's what you get for living in Death Valley (JOKE).

Back in July-August I flew mine in 100F weather, but I did not push the drone, and waited 5 or 10 minutes before flying another battery. The drone top and the batteries when removed were often at 130. Tested with temp gun.

I believe Yuneec says it will operate in 120F, but as for me I ain't gonna do it.

 

[ChadCloses]

Ha ha. That's what you get for living in Death Valley (JOKE).

Back in July-August I flew mine in 100F weather, but I did not push the drone, and waited 5 or 10 minutes before flying another battery. The drone top and the batteries when removed were often at 130. Tested with temp gun.

I believe Yuneec says it will operate in 120F, but as for me I ain't gonna do it.

Yeah I'm flying on the side of caution for awhile and I'm not putting myself in any precarious positions. Think I'll schedules twilight and early morning shoots during the summer when it's that hot I'm not going to want to be out there either.

 

[PatR]

Try to keep the batteries cool when they aren't being flown. A Styrofoam cooler beats a hot car or table in the sun by a long shot. If the H is left standing in the sun, lay a white or light colored cloth over the body. Don't lay it over the props since the weight of the towel might deform hot props over time. We learned that the hard way with clear model aircraft canopies.

 

[ChadCloses]

Ok I'll use that as standard practice going forward. Thanks for the advice!!

 

[ArnhemAnt]

I live and fly in an area that has a temp range from 68F to around 114F, depending on the time of year. In the warmer times, I take a little more notice of how and where my batteries and my H are stored, although it can be pretty hard to get away from the heat.
Over the time I have owned the H, I have not noticed any dramatic effects when flying in the warmer temp ranges.
As others have said above, do your best to keep things out of direct sunlight and cover your cases (batteries and UAV) to try and protect them from the direct sun when they aren't in use.

 

[Hunter_Michael]

Last Summer I flew mine alot in 95+ temps. After each flight I would remove the battery right after each flight to ensure faster heat dissipation. I would feel the top of the H and if it was hot I would let it sit awhile to cool in the shade. In hot hot weather I never ran any more than two batteries thru it without letting it sit awhile just to be on the cautious side. However you need to find that comfort zone for yourself. Extreme heat can cause issues with electronics so being a little conservative is always a good plan.

 

[FlushVision]

Where I live, in the North West of England, a typical high summer temperature on a good day would be in the low to mid 70s f and the outside temperature seldom gets above 80f. On very rare occasions it may struggle up to 90f, but that sort of temperature would make front page news. With that said, it is true to say that I'm not used to heat and I would typically stay indoors on hot days.

It follows, then, that unless I'm doing a commercial job, I would not fly any of my aircraft on what passes as a hot day in Northern England. But If I do have a job on that I can't put off for a cooler day, I would try to complete the task as quickly as possible and if I have to use multiple batteries I would give the H breathing time between batteries. Have a cigarette between flights, say. An interesting side note, though, is that if I'm using one of my Phantoms for the job instead of the H, I wouldn't feel the needed to pause between flights or limit flight time. White against black. In my book one of the few flight advantages that the Phantom has over the H

I'm more likely to fly in freezing weather than warm weather, so issues with cold batteries is more important to me.

 

[Rayray]

An interesting side note, though, is that if I'm using one of my Phantoms for the job instead of the H, I wouldn't feel the needed to pause between flights or limit flight time. White against black. In my book one of the few flight advantages that the Phantom has over the H

Absolutely no need to pause the TH in 90f weather.

 

[THoff]

I wonder what can be done to make the TH more suitable for operation in hot climates though. The color of the fuselage is far from ideal because it absorbs a great deal of energy in the form of infrared radiation. Reflecting direct sunlight from the top of the TH would help keep the electronics and battery cool, but metallic paint or foil would also degrade the GPS signal.

Rubber on the other hand has a negligible effect on GPS signals, so a thin coat of white sprayed-on Plasti-Dip might be a good solution. It would also lend some protection from minor scratches to the coated surface, and it isn't permanent and can be removed quite easily from non-porous surfaces.

 

[FlushVision]

Absolutely no need to pause the TH in 90f weather.

I understand that, Rayray. The fact that I would pause between flights while using the H in what I see as hot weather is probably more to do with being just a little over cautious and maybe the excuse to have a relaxing cigarette before the next flight. As I pointed out in my previous post, I myself (never mind the drone) doesn't do well in warm weather, so from a personal comfort point of view, I would tend to avoid flying in warm weather anyway if I can put it off to another day. (and to be honest, in the North of England I would seldom have to wait long )

 

[PatR]

Don't accept a job in Kuwait

 

[recharged95]

Sitting on the ground + thermal runaway is more of concern. This is what I found when we used to test APMs in EAFB/Muroch dry lake bed at 102+. Our issues were more related to drones sitting on the ground for 15min to the point our PLA materials warped, lipos balloon or IMU faults. Upon take off, the baro would show lower alt or not stabilize (slowly rise while sitting still).

Once in the air, you'll get airflow and be fine. It will be much cooler in the air and way more stable [thermally] than on the ground. So basically watch your ground temps (vehicle at 85F on takeoff would be my limit).

 

[PatR]

Don't tell anyone, but Predators used to have a problem over heating systems when they were kept sitting too long on the ramp in 120* weather. Taxied out only to get towed back. Most consumer electronics use components good only to to between 40C and 60C. Only the really good stuff gets the 60C components.

 

[Jester]

Absolutely no need to pause the TH in 90f weather.

RayRay, You'd be the perfect person to ask a question I've been wondering since only recently moving to East Texas a couple months ago.
Is humidity a concern of yours here? I can't help but think that even on a cooler humid day, the heat in the H could draw in some serious moisture that may not become apparent at first, but may over time, start to have ill effects on the electronics so I've been a little concerned about it. I know my beautiful delicate skin has benefited from it, but I just can't do a thing with my hair. That's for a different forum though. I'll stick to the H for my question to you, or any others that live in a more humid climate than I'm used to.
Thanks in advance.