I didn't think it was possible

[Geo-TH,In]

I didn't think it was possible to charge Li cells that have sat for years in an unheated pole barn and they measured ZERO volts.

Too early to tell, but a few cells have charged to 4.2 volts.

I took two old 18v lithium batters apart yesterday. I have no clue how long they will hold the charge. I have no clue how many amp hrs they will hold.

I didn't think it was possible to charge a Li cell that was completely dead.

 

[buickanddeere]

The trouble starts with lithium batteries . When attempting to charge or discharge while the electrolyte and plates are near or below the freezing point .

 

[M-MAN]

I wonder if it will make them more susceptible to boom like lead acid ones? I've brought back nicads and they were fine but lithium isn't supposed to be as friendly.

 

[Geo-TH,In]

I put a light bulb in an Igloo cooler in the pole barn to keep
my cordless batteries warm during the winter. I charge them
inside the cooler.

These batteries, old 18v Li, have been exposed to hot and cold
temps for years and no charge. I realize 18v Li has the same
number of cells as the 20 v Li.

I had the junk batteries in a box I was going to take to Battery
plus to recycle.
I decided to see if I could charge them 2 cells at a time.
The charger would talk to some cells and some it wouldn't.

I soldered two charged Li cells in series, making about 8.4v. I
shocked the pair of cells that wouldn't take a charge and now
the charger is charging.

I wonder if there is a way to bring EV batteries back to good
health.
I had 2 old 20v dewalt batteries the dewalt charger wouldn't
talk to.

I took the batteries apart and charged each pair of cells
independently.

They are as good as new and they talk to the dewalt charger.

I'm still learning. I never expected to bring totally dead
batteries back to health.

 

[John T]

Based on my experience and what I've learned about lithium cells, I'm NOT surprised (certainly is possible) they could be revived even after discharge and long idle periods given the correct charging procedure to bring them back to life. Some (not all perhaps) can sit discharged when cold just NOT charged at low temps.

John T a lover of new battery technology and user of Lithium Iron Phosphate LiFePo4 batteries, they have come a LONG way the past 10 years..

 

[Hemmjo]

I discovered after dealing numerous with failed battery packs for rechargeable tools that most of the time, there is only one in the pack that is keeping it from recharging. Typically the pack has been run too low,, one of the cells went to near zero charge. Then the charger does not recognize the pack and will not attempt to charge it.

As others have have noted, if you jump that cell with a little charge, it will come back to life.

Now, much to the annoyance of my wife, I always harvest the cells from rechargeable devices. Most use Li-ion cells.

I purchased an inexpensive OPUS BT-C3100 charger to test and keep cells charged. It cost less that 16 packs of AA alkaline cells. I have 2 trail cams that each burn through 8 cells in a little more than 2 weeks.

8 AA cells provide 12 volts. 3 Li-ion cells provide 12volts (nominal). I put 2, 3 cell strings together to last longer. The camera shuts down when voltage drops to 8 volts or 2.6 per cell which is close to the correct minimum for a Li-ion cell

The charger has some nice features.

From the link provided;

*Modes: Charge, Discharge, Test, Quick Test and Refresh
*Output Current up to 1A x 4 channels (selectable 200mA, 300mA, 500mA, 700mA, 1000mA) or 2A x 2 channels
*Backlit digital display showing battery voltage, charge/discharge current, charging time, battery capacity, etc.
*The quick test mode tests the battery impedance
*The charger integrates the minus delta voltage for NiCd or NiMh battery charging termination, and for Li-ion batteries charging to 4.2V with pre-selected current

Li ion charger

 

[Geo-TH,In]

I discovered after dealing numerous with failed battery packs for rechargeable tools that most of the time, there is only one in the pack that is keeping it from recharging.

I discovered 2 of my 20v dewalt battery packs got down to 18v the charger wouldn't charge.
My cells were not even close to zero.

Bigger question, can EV batteries be reconditioned?

 

[Dingo3]

I watch a few trail cam videos on YouTube. One guy from Florida leaves his cameras out for over a month, sometimes much more. He usually has plenty of time left on the batteries. I use the same camera made by (endorsed) by Browning. I leave mine out for weeks at a time in extreme weather and usually have at least 80% of battery life left and it will last many more sessions before it needs new ones. Double A alkaline.

 

[Dingo3]

I just looked at my camera. Although I have not used it in a while it saw heavy use last spring and summer. I was trying to get a pic of a black fox I saw on my property. Saw everything else but no black fox. It is at 85% and has cheap Kirkland batteries in it.

 

[Hemmjo]

When I have mine set to take still photos the 8 AA batteries do last well over a month. But if I have it set to take 30 second video, when it is dark the infrared LED's burn up batteries a lot more quickly. Especially if there is a lot of wind creating movement in the background. I catch a lot more activity with video than I do with still pics.

 

[Hemmjo]

Maybe not reconditioned but rebuilt. They most certainly get bad cells also. Depending on the design the ones with cylindrical cells can have 5,000-9,000 individual cells. Odds are pretty good some will go bad.

I have only read about it. Even a dead one is too expensive for me to mess around with.
EV Battery Rebuilding.

 

[Dingo3]

Mine is usually set on 1-2 min. video. Except when its windy then I switch to photo.
As you stated a windy day will greatly shorten the battery life but I still get really good life out of the batteries. So far Im very impressed with this camera. I basically bought it because of the guy on YouTube. He uses the same one and always has it on video. Its a Browning model BTC-8A SpecOps and Ive had it for several years. Unfortunately it is made in China.