Battery charge time

[kain128]

Hey Guys,

I have a G&P 9.6v 1700 mAh battery and I have this charger http://shop.ehobbyasia.com/bb-batter...y-charger.html

My question is, how long should it take to charge the above mentioned battery with this charger??

Thanks.

[Ricochet]

A couple of my friends have that same charger, and I haven't been overly impressed with it. At a fast charge from dead it's been usually 20 - 45 minutes. Battery dependent of course. The only good thing about it is the cycle charge, but the Venom line seems to be more sturdy and dependable. We also found that after some time the batteries would not charge properly on it. Either not at all, or not a full charge. We have has a few brought back to life by higher end chargers with a cycle, or chargers with a force feed. But two of those exact chargers and several different types of batteries later doesn't lie. Don't get me wrong it does work. But long term dependability isn't there. A 9.6v 1700mah battery is going to charge in the 35 - 45 min range, with that charger.

[slink182]

Charge time will depend on how you setup the charging cycle. You'll need to define the voltage of the battery and amperage that you want to charge at. Most people charge at a rate of 20-50% the battery's mAh rating - i.e., for your 1700 mAh battery, the voltage would be set to 9.6 V, and charge rate would be between 350-850 mAh (or more likely 300-800 mAh as most chargers won't set in 50 mAh increments). The total charge time (in hours) would then be your battery's mAh divided by your charging rate.

More information on batteries and charging methods can be had at Battery University (http://batteryuniversity.com/).

[CDN_Stalker]

Set it at as low an output as you can, it's best for the battery. Time duration, depends on two things, the output amperage of your charger setting, and the mAh of your battery. So if the lowest output of your charger is 1.7 amps, then it'd take 1 hour to charge that 1700mAh battery. If 1A is the setting, it'd take 1.7hours. 500mA output, 1.7A/0.5A = 3.4 hours.

Pretty easy overall.

[kain128]

Thanks for the info guys.

One final question, how long usually will a battery like this hold its charge, if not being used?

[slink182]

Depends on the type of battery. A typical NiMH battery can self-discharge up to 10% of capacity on its first day, and up to 1% per day afterwards at room temperature. This is why most players charge their batteries the day before a game.

I can't really comment on LiPo batteries, other than they can hold their charge at near capacity for several months.