I'm about to order an Iris+ and will get an extra 5100 Mah LiPo battery. Can anyone recommend a car charger for this battery? Also, is there such an animal as a dual charger that will work off AC and in a car? Didn't see any chargers at all on 3D Robotics' website. If I flew the Iris around for, say, 12-15 minutes, how long would it take to recharge the battery? I've been putting this off for over a year and really need to order this thing because I need to get some sleep!
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The best battery charger that I have used is bestek 400w power inverter. The tool can help me charge camera battery outside in safe way. So here I have acquired how to use 400w power inverter from bestek. Simply to connect with car cigarette lighter charger outlet. Maybe you can catch more detail information on bestekmall. Hope this point is useful to you. Have a nice day.
Thanks again.
This is just one users experience, but word to the wise, I've had experience with three if the ECO-6 chargers from HK and they seem to work OK (just) at lower charger current levels around 2-4 amps, however all three units I've had experience with have failed in the same way above 5 Amps charge current. The capacitor across the main source, a 2200uF 25v, blows it's top! While it is relatively easily replaced, it's not worth the trouble. I use a Triton2 EQ when I need higher charge current up to 6S, or my preferred charger is a Hitec X4 Plus AC/DC for when I need to charge more than one battery at a time. These are both arguably high end chargers you would pay a premium for, however you won't likely outgrow their capabilities anytime soon, nor would you need to be overly concerned about failure. We rely heavily on the condition of our batteries, especially with multicopters. Invest in a good quality charger and you won't regret it.
The Celectra Joe linked to looks like a good unit as well, and more affordable to start with if your on a budget.
I don't have any personal experience with the IRIS, however the listed flight time of 16-22 minutes seems to suggest that at 12-15 minutes you would be nearly exhausted. 3DR doesn't list a charging current recommendation so I would assume it to be a 1C rate, therefore charging should take about an hour give or take.
Regards,
Nathaniel ~KD2DEY
BTW Never charge your battery IN your car. You shouldn't charge them in you house either for that matter. LiPo fires are a very real concern. If you ever experience one it is a terrifying thing. I am fortunate in that the club field I use has heavily invested in a solar charging system with a large bank of deep cycle 12 volt storage batteries that supply plenty of capacity for our active contingent of electric modelers. I only charge my batteries at the field in the open with an extinguisher handy.
Thank-you for this post Nathaniel! Very informative! I've been looking for a better charger for my Iris+ batteries. The stock charger is just so slow!
Your post is now a few months old. Would you change your recommendations in any way? I am on a budget and so I am looking at that Celectra 80W AC/DC Multi-Chemistry Battery Charger.
My opinion hasn't changed much, except that I might tone down my opinion that you "won't likely outgrow their capabilities". The longer I'm in this hobby the more I realize you can't keep ahead of the technology.
You could spend a bunch of money on a charger today believing it will cover your future needs only to discover you have needs you didn't know about!
Regards,
Nathaniel ~KD2DEY
Thank-you!
I have been using this for 2 years no- no problems at all with mine.
http://www.e-fliterc.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=EFLC3025
Joe
Could you use a parallel charging board with this?
Are they recommended?
I've only used it once but I have a HobbyKing ECO-6 charger in my car just in case I need to charge a battery while out in the field. A lot of chargers come with alligator clips for 12V input which I connected directly to the battery in my car. I'm actually thinking of getting a second car battery just for charging so there's no chance of draining the main battery. I'd assume you could get a connector for the cigarette lighter as well. The charger only charges one battery so I bought a parallel charging board as well. Technically, not the best way to charge multiple batteries but it appeared to work fine the time I used it to charge two 4000mw 6S batteries. Took about 45 mins to charge them although they were probably only about 70% discharged. All up it was a fairly inexpensive way to ensure I could charge the batteries if need be. Of course, just buying a few more batteries is a lot less hassle and probably as cost effective.