The capacity of your rechargeable LiPo Battery will gradually decrease over time and as it's used (charged/discharged). It will need to be replaced when it reaches 80% capacity. Charge cycles are only one factor that determines when it's time to replace the battery. See: Life Expectancy of the Home original 11.1V battery
How you charge, use, and store the battery plays a significantly larger part in the battery's overall life expectancy. Heat, over-discharging, over-charging can all result in your battery swelling, failing to charge, or failing to discharge (meaning it won't work) and cannot be restored. Improper use is not covered under warranty.
The 3 cell 11.1v original Home battery
It will need to be replaced if the battery has been damaged, or begins to swell, or become misshaped - it should be kept in the fireproof bag and away from anything flammable until it can be disposed of properly.
Some reasons to replace the battery include:
- If it's swollen or damaged
- If the outside wrapper is torn, damaged, or missing
- If the battery was subjected to temperatures over 170ºF for more than 2 hours
- If the battery was used in an unbalanced state and refuses to recharge
- If the battery minimum voltage dropped below 9.6v
- If the maximum voltage ever went over 12.6 volts
- If the battery was left on the charger for an extended period time and then fails to recharge
- You experience a decline in performance
- Failure to charge
- Failure to work, even if the charger shows all three green lights
- If the battery was stored for an extended period time and was not recharged and discharged every 3 months
- If the battery has been charged/discharged around 150-250 times
- If the maximum capacity has declined to 80% of the original capacity - 10.08v
IMPORTANT: Leaving the LiPo battery plugged into the main drive unit when not in use is not recommended. The battery may continue to drain - and if the voltage drops below the minimum voltage this will permanently damage the battery. This would not be covered under warranty, so to protect your investment ALWAYS disconnect the battery plug from the drive when not in use.
IMPORTANT: charge to the maximum capacity before use every time to assure proper balance of all cells inside the battery.
If the battery is used before it indicates the battery is fully charged - this may permanently damage the battery causing it to stop taking or holding a charge. The battery might also swell and become a fire or explosion hazard.
Notes:
You can stop charging before it reaches full and continue charging later - as long as you don't USE it until it has been fully charged.
If your battery swells, fails to charge or hold a charge - the battery needs to be replaced. Please dispose of the batteries responsibly. Dispose of LiPo Battery Responsibly
CAUTION: The battery should always be allowed to come to room-temperature before charging. Charging a hot or cold battery might delay charging or damage the battery. For best results, charge the battery at temperatures between 50º and 80ºF (10º-30ºC).
Disclaimer
The advice given above is general in nature and you are responsible for the safety of your batteries. SwiftPaws is not responsible for any direct, indirect, special, or consequential damages and personal injuries, including that to life, and health, resulting from the customer’s application and use of batteries sold by SwiftPaws.com.