Lipo bags

SCAPBT · Jun 28, 2016

Hello all,
Can anyone point me into the direction of the most economical(cheapest),lipo battery bags? All advice /suggestions are appreciated. What are y'all using? Links are appreciated too.
Thanx

DroneClone · Jun 28, 2016

Waste of money in my imagination!, If you are worried, buy a $2 ammo can at Army Surplus!

WanderLust68 · Jun 28, 2016

I asked the same question a different thread, the suggestion I went with was:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00T01LLP8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

SCAPBT · Jun 28, 2016

DroneClone said:
Waste of money in my imagination!, If you are worried, buy a $2 ammo can at Army Surplus!

I ask strictly for traveling(airlines) purposes. Other than that they seem fine in the open in my house on the granite countertop.

Paladin · Jun 29, 2016

DroneClone said:
Waste of money in my imagination!, If you are worried, buy a $2 ammo can at Army Surplus!

Have to disagree there Drone. I bought 4 of them, one for each battery. I know the odds are extremely low that you will ever have issues with these batteries but those odds are NOT zero! i

i

You buy home owners insurance with fire protection for the same reason. It is insurance for that rare time that something does occur.

Lipos's are not normal batteries. They store a lot of energy and release it quickly. They are prone to damage and get cranky if not charged and stored properly.

Honestly with the plastic shell on the H batteries and with normal care I doubt anyone will have a problem but what if you do? What if you get that rare bad cell that causes a chain reaction? I would rather store them in these bags that may help the fire stay within the bag. If it does catch on fire unprotected it could burn the other items in the case like the drone or worse get out of the case and maybe cause a fire in the house.

Ammo crates are great but are those really best for lipos? You are putting a possible huge release of fire in an enclosed metal container that could explode like a grande. You have to vent the crate and put some fire resistant material in it etc... if you use one of those. They are cool though and I like them.

I think if vented properly ammo crates would be great for charging but I will store mine in my case in lipo bags.

I also wanted something to store them in in my case and an ammo crate is obviously not good for that. i

i

Sparkorc · Jun 29, 2016

I would have to agree with Paladin whilst I have both 50cal ammo box and lipo safe bags, I mainly use lipo safe bags but be warned all lipo safe bags are not the same there are a lot of cheap knock of bag about which still burst into flames, ammo box is ok if you drill some small holes around the top sides or lid to let the explosive gasses should a lipo burst into flames, but when I use my ammo box in the car I still put them in a lipo bag then put them in the ammo box kinda double insurance whilst traveling, I also use a disused wood burning stove which is still connected to stainless steel chimney for storing my lipos but they are also still in safe bags.

Good genuine safe lipo bag test.

Knock off safe lipo bag test.

Extensive tests on different lipo containment and different lipo sizes this is a eye opener if you watch all the tests, its not recommended to store large lipo's in safe bags just watch and see the results, its certainly made me think.

Edit - My findings now after watching the complete video it seems for large lipos the ammo box used as described is the safest bet.

SCAPBT · Jun 29, 2016

WanderLust68 said:
I asked the same question a different thread, the suggestion I went with was:

Amazon.com: Teenitor® Fireproof Explosionproof Lipo Battery Safe Bag Lipo Battery Guard Safe Bag Pouch Sack for Charge & Storage 185x75x60mm Large size: Toys & Games

Appreciate that how is the quality? Does the actual fabric flake off?

Paladin · Jun 29, 2016

SCAPBT said:
Appreciate that how is the quality? Does the actual fabric flake off?

I was the one who recommended those. I got them from Amazon and read comments etc... they have a 4.5 star rating but of course how many are promotions etc, I have no idea. I based my decision on that though.

They seem okay, no flaking or anything yet but I only had them a month. They have not been exposed to the sun or anything.
I have no idea how well they would work if put to the test. I would think if they

All I can do is hope they are okay, others seemed to like them so I bought them. i

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QuadBart · Jun 30, 2016

I've posted this before, and now have more data regarding lipo fires. I've been running Lipos in R/C since they first came out for R/C cars. Raced locally and nationally. In all those years i've personally only seen 1 lipo fire. It was during charging. Father and son who did not charge their lipo correctly.

I recently visited my LHS that runs an indoor R/C track and we got on the subject of lipos fires. The shop has been around since the late 80s. They have seen a few. Far, few and inbetween. To the best of their recollection, less than a dozen fires. ALL during charging or just shortly after charging.

Even videos referenced above ignited these fires during charging.

My point is, lipos are pretty safe, the problem comes during charging. IF using a lipo bag makes you feel safer, DO it.
But don't feel or fear that Lipos will just spontaneously combust just sitting there long after they have been charged.

I don't use a lipo bag, never have, never will. I've never had a problem. I use a quality charger and monitor the charging of my batteries. I have fire extinguishers around my house. I DO charge in an area that should a fire start, no serious damage will occur.

And rough handling/transportation? Off/road R/C cars really take a beating and that transfers to the batteries and other components, no issues there. I've taken my Phantom many times in its backpack stored in a metal topbox on my motorcycle on dirt roads, trails with washboard, and all kinds of surface irregularities that even made me feel like I'd been riding on a jack hammer, and the batteries were fine..

I'm not trying to argue with the pro-lipo bag crowd, or say they are a waste of money, do it if it makes you feel safer, just like one of the above posts states, its like insurance. You can't put a price on peace-of-mind.

But I don't think people should feel its an absolute necessity, or it absolves them from monitoring their batteries during charging, or that lipos are timebombs just waiting to explode in flames.

RinZ · Jul 1, 2016

DroneClone said:
Waste of money in my imagination!, If you are worried, buy a $2 ammo can at Army Surplus!

So it's not needed? I'm new to this matter, the H batteries don't look like they're gonna leak

QuadBart · Jul 1, 2016

IMO, no, they are not needed, especially if you follow some simple/basic rules regarding proper "use" and care of lipo batteries.

What typically happens to a lipo if not properly cared for, is they will swell, split the case, and in the process, a cell or more will die. At that point, dispose of the battery properly. A quality charger won't charge a bad battery. But people will start pushing buttons on the charger trying to force the battery to take a charge. Thats when problems occur. I know of a couple settings on high-end chargers that will force a charge on a lipo cause you bypass the "smarts" in the charger. not a good thing...

The plastic case just protects the battery from outside damage. The case will split if the pack swells due to improper care.

RinZ said:
So it's not needed? I'm new to this matter, they H batteries don't look like they're gonna leak

RinZ · Jul 1, 2016

QuadBart said:
IMO, no, they are not needed, especially if you follow some simple/basic rules regarding proper "use" and care of lipo batteries.

What typically happens to a lipo if not properly cared for, is they will swell, split the case, and in the process, a cell or more will die. At that point, dispose of the battery properly. A quality charger won't charge a bad battery. But people will start pushing buttons on the charger trying to force the battery to take a charge. Thats when problems occur. I know of a couple settings on high-end chargers that will force a charge on a lipo cause you bypass the "smarts" in the charger. not a good thing...

The plastic case just protects the battery from outside damage. The case will split if the pack swells due to improper care.

ok thanks

Paladin · Jul 1, 2016

I am not disputing anything Quad said. However I will still use them. I ask one question? Do you have homeowners insurance? Would you even if you did not have to from a mortgage company? If you say yes then you want it just in case something happens right, no matter how low the odds!

Same for lipo bags. I don't care if anyone else have been using them for 100 years and never had an issue, it just takes that one time when you do. Lots of videos on YouTube about people who did burn their homes or cars down. Not all were charging them at the time. So again the odds are very low but not zero!

BTW I am in no way saying everyone should use them, who am I to tell anyone that?
All I am saying is it is a small bit of insurance, and we are not talking a ton of money here. Why not use them? What does it hurt to store them in a bag? At under $8 per bag that is pretty cheap insurance. I got 4 of them, one for each battery.

Now with that said I admit I am unsure how well these bags would work if pressed into it . Fire may still spew out the top through the Velcro, unsure.

Still it just makes me feel better that is all. i

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WanderLust68 · Jul 1, 2016

I bought my lipo bags for two purposes...safe storage (just in case) and for airline travel (not required but again...just in case)

LooseSid · Jul 1, 2016

WanderLust68 said:
I bought my lipo bags for two purposes...safe storage (just in case) and for airline travel (not required but again...just in case)

The airline I'm flying with on Monday have told me my batteries must be in LiPo bags.

Sparkorc · Jul 1, 2016

The way I see it they are better than nothing at all at the very least a good quality bag will slow things down in any event of a battery failure, I agree that over the years since their invention I have been using them without any incidents at all, whilst I agree that most incidents you come across are during the charging period, but this is certainly not all of the incidents that have occurred, some have just burst into flames possibly due to receiving some prior damage or mishandling at some point, that's one reason I would always advocate checking your battery thoroughly for any signs of damage and then only charge it up outside away from anything flammable particularly if you quad or Hex has been involved in a crash.

SCAPBT · Jul 7, 2016

LooseSid said:
The airline I'm flying with on Monday have told me my batteries must be in LiPo bags.

See this is what I was talking about? What airline? I just kinda thought you had to have them if flying?

BobW55 · Jul 15, 2016

That's why I like my Hitec charger, I have the external temperature probe on it.
If my battery temp increases by 3 degrees it shuts off. I have never felt my batteries get even remotely warm while charging, and I have a fire safe location at home.
Maybe charging them in the field a lipo bag could be a disaster stopper.
Now traveling, yes I can see the need for them.
Just be careful what you buy. As the old saying goes, "You get what you paid for"
Ask 100 people, and you will get 100 different answers. You're the pilot, do what you think is safest.