Making my batteries last longer

[Rustydiver]

New 4s 5000a batteries today and yesterday on my f550 got about 6 mins out off them landing with about 35/40% left.
Now I know it';s cold in fact it was bloody freezing in a windy field, I';m new to this as is the batteries.
I know After a few charging cycles and warmer weather will see a longer fly time what else is there I can do.
Me thinks it';s a bit I';ve driving the more I do it the steadier I I become on the controll, the hex handles great in gps mode. Is there any tweaks I can give naza.

[Friskle]

Lipos generally do not like the cold, they do not discharge power as good when very cold, which is one reason many store them in cool places or even the fridge, as it makes the compound less active.

Flying in the cold you need to try and keep them warm, some use heat pads in a box, some just in the pockets.

[Beaver2206]

Sounds daft, but are you monitoring them via a small lipo alarm?  If so, what do have it set to go off at? 

I';ve found 3.4v best for me as I sometimes got an early warning when it was set higher (3.6v).  After doing this, flight times on my 650 have gone from 5 minutes to 8 minutes.

[Rustydiver]

I';ve got one to fit will try it out on the next flight.
I get a bit confused with all this volts? I';ve got a black hand held one I land have a test to see % and it tells me the volts. I';ll take off if there is much power left. The more I fly the more ill gauge how long I can stay up. Got my timer set to 5 mins to be on the safe side.
It';s surprising how long 5 mins is when looking up concentrating.

[Hands0n]

It is certainly worth getting one of those cheap LiPo alarms and fitting it to the battery';s balance lead to monitor. As Beaver2206 says, setting it to go off around 3.4-3.5 volts will typically give you about 60 seconds of power left to get it back on the ground safely.

If you are using the Naza';s own voltage monitoring then you will have to calibrate the FC';s voltage sensor to be fully accurate.  Don';t set the voltages to high or it will simply land once its had enough, and that could be anywhere at all and completely out of your control  

My own preference is a LiPo alarm and the voltage sensor turned off.  That way it can scream at me when its getting to the point I should be getting down and I can bring it back under my control to land it where I want.  Not in the middle of the duck pond

[Rustydiver]

I';ve switched the naza one off because I was using 3&4s the 4 being 5000a and the 3 being 4000a batteries it';s kept on telling me that the 3s battery was flat plus I found going between the two the centre off gravity was off the 3s a lot lighter was making it lean foward on take off. I';ve got the 4s ones spot on now so I';ve got 3 more off them. They are hard cased ones.

[flybywire]

I';ve switched the naza one off because I was using 3&4s the 4 being 5000a and the 3 being 4000a batteries it';s kept on telling me that the 3s battery was flat plus I found going between the two the centre off gravity was off the 3s a lot lighter was making it lean foward on take off. I';ve got the 4s ones spot on now so I';ve got 3 more off them. They are hard cased ones.

Does the hard case add much weight RD?  I only ask, as I have a 550 hex clone, similar to yours, and I get anywhere around 12-15 minutes from my Zippy compact 4 cell 5000 mAh lipo';s (depending on how brave I';m feeling! ;-))  That';s with a gopro mounted on a piece of Delrin on the underside.  I must get the AUW sometime.
BTW, I usually fly my lipo';s to 20% remaining.  Your flight times seem to be well down?
As for voltage monitoring, as I fly fpv I have an OSD to tell me what I have left, but I know my batteries well enough now to be able to time them from my Tx.  I have also used radio telemetry, but as I say, as I fly fpv 99% of the time, it';s not very useful removing the goggles to check the Tx for time left, as you can imagine!

Edit: Forgot to mention, last few flights were at about 2 degrees C, so not particularly warm either!

[Rustydiver]

Will weigh mine when I get out to the garage later.
Whats the weight off people 4s 5000a batteries to compare mines not a compact baby.

[flybywire]

I haven';t weighed it, but the HK site is saying 488g.  I';ll stick it on my scales sometime.

[Rustydiver]

I haven';t weighed it, but the HK site is saying 488g.  I';ll stick it on my scales sometime.

Thanks i was going by HKs site and the hardcore was lighter than normal ones which seemed daft.

[Rustydiver]

Holy cow just weighed mine and they are 526g. 

[Beaver2206]

Holy cow just weighed mine and they are 526g. 

[flybywire]

Lol!  That was me last week when somebody told me John Lennon had died!

[flybywire]

I'll get me coat...

[Rustydiver]

Bye bye. 
Weigh your battery on the way out.

[flybywire]

Bye bye. 
Weigh your battery on the way out.

Things I do for this forum, mutter mutter, out in the cold and the dark to the garage...mutter...grumble...
Nearest I can make out on my super-massive highly accurate kitchen scales, is 440 grams, which is even lighter!



All you really need to know, they';re yellow and full of Zippy goodness.. 

[Rustydiver]

86g in it not a lot then. Being mines in hard case.

What was the oringal question Weve waffled a lot since then. 

[flybywire]

86g in it not a lot then. Being mines in hard case.

What was the oringal question Weve waffled a lot since then. 

Flight times?  Oh yes, fly them 80% discharged, by your own estimates you should get at least 10-12 mins.

[Rustydiver]

Just got to get to know the batteries and keep adding a minute to see what it comes down with % wise.

And as my mate keeps telling me to caress the controls.

[flybywire]

Just got to get to know the batteries and keep adding a minute to see what it comes down with % wise.

And as my mate keeps telling me to caress the controls.

Yes, RD, it really is about getting to know your lipo times through your own experience, flying wise, and trusting in your own knowledge.  I';ve always been overcautious with lipo';s, except for my 250, which I fly till it drops! 
I';m uber cautious with my AP rig, not quite so with my others, but I still want to get back in one piece, and dumping a nice frame 200m short of home is never a good way of ending a flying session.
I';m obviously using an osd, but DJI';s osd';s are a tad basic with their current display, voltage is not the best gauge of capacity remaining, as it will drop suddenly when put under load, i.e returning home into a hard wind, your voltage may well drop below the ';safety margin'; but will not do any damage in the long run.
A blended approach is always best here, mAh remaining from osd, timer on Tx (set a couple of minutes below) telemetry etc etc.  I don';t like low voltage alarms, they will just confuse things by giving false positives.