Leakage current in charger body

Started by vishalrao, August 27, 2012, 03:44:40 PM

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ragav_krish

You cannot solder the wire on the ground pin. wrap it tite and slip in a small piece of heatshrink for contact.
I'd reccomend you run a temporary ground spike if you live in the ground or first floor. a simple method for temp earth is to run a wire from the chassis to a metal tumbler filled with a little water and placed on the floor :P

Consider using insulating tape on the parts where you can feel the shock ..

vishalrao

That's wonderful tip (heat sink) {:)}

Regarding temporary ground spike, I live in the tenth floor, so that's not possible  :giggle:

girishsarwal

since you live in apartments, the builder should have provided adequate earthing. its a regulatory requirement and its much easier as they anyhow have to excavate almost half the depth for laying the foundation. You need to run the chassis to the earth leg. 10v p.d is on the higher side but is generally tolerable, esp in apt where there can be multiple sources of leakage.

- run a green wire from the metal chassis to the earth pin and twist it around the length of the main wire, insulate and hold using insulation tape. (see photo).

- open the plastic casing and run the earth wire to the chassis inside the charger

OR

- you can also consider using a bike battery/ups battery as a dc source as long as you have means to charge the battery when it drains. These batteries easily provide 5A/7A current and can be easily carried to the field for portable power esp. when NiCd's drop.

@sandeeppande - sir, I think ragav posted those instructions for the converison of an smps
gs

ragav_krish

another Idea for you is to use a OLD UPS and unplug the battery terminals. A quick check with a multimeter can tell you the current these things provide. I have a few recycled, they seem to work happily and put out far less noise compared to SMPS supplies due to the linear PS in them.

I also reccomend the motorcycle battery. You can get a 9Ah for about  :Rs: 1500. Get the maintainance free one and you have a nice portable P/S

You can use the charger to charge the motorcycle battery later on :)

I'd still say go for the old smps/ups technique.

cheers!

vishalrao

Thanks girishsarwal for the earthing tip but I finally went through the PC SMPS route (new one). Couldn't agree more with Sandeeppande:

Quote from: Sandeeppande on August 28, 2012, 11:31:13 AM
( i bought a new one frankly as even the cost was low and charm of building one myself was mine).

There are no issues with the charger now and I think I can use this SMPS in future with other chargers too.

Thank you all, especially ragav_krish for pointing me to the SMPS method.

Cheers!

Sandeeppande

Can you reiterate....please... didnt understood your disagreement..was SMPS costly solution?

vishalrao

Quote from: Sandeeppande on August 31, 2012, 02:04:16 PM
Can you reiterate....please... didnt understood your disagreement..was SMPS costly solution?

http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/I+couldn%27t+agree+more

Actually I meant I 100% agree with you when you said: "i bought a new one frankly as even the cost was low and charm of building one myself was mine"

ragav_krish

Glad to know it works well. For a LiPo safe charging box, use a metal fuse box. it is fireproof and can also be used to keep your lipos safe and locked up.

Sandeeppande


vishalrao

Quote from: ragav_krish on August 31, 2012, 03:19:26 PM
Glad to know it works well. For a LiPo safe charging box, use a metal fuse box. it is fireproof and can also be used to keep your lipos safe and locked up.

Thanks again ragav_krish! Is it readily available in electrical shops? Sizes? Pic would be appreciated.

ragav_krish

here are some pics. The box is 9 1/2 in lenght, 4 1/2 in wide and about 4 in deep.

The box is used to hold a Highcurrent ceramic fuse(Old type) in motor rooms. You ca buy one from any electrical shop, but I suggest you look into your nearest salvage yard/motor room. Ive seen smaller ones, use what you can find. A friend suggested lining it with foam to offer shock protection, but can be a problem in case your LiPo burns out.

Notice the provision for a lock on the box. Comes in handy when you''ve got curious kids or pets around the house.

Hope it helps

vishalrao

Thanks a lot! Will have to get my home ministry approval before getting this as my house is already loaded with RC stuff  :giggle: Had to create a new cupboard just to keep my RC things  ;D

ragav_krish

Quote from: vishalrao on August 31, 2012, 04:05:20 PM
Thanks a lot! Will have to get my home ministry approval before getting this as my house is already loaded with RC stuff  :giggle: Had to create a new cupboard just to keep my RC things  ;D

LOL.

Im lucky I dont have to seek authorization from any ministry for now. The trick is to make it look a lot cheaper than what it actually costs.

I suggest you look into PVC sintex cabinets. Dont cost a lot, but does the job.

vishalrao

It's not the cost but the space that counts! Else they go to the Scrap dealer (Raddhi).

ragav_krish

 {:)}

You are right. Im also running into space constraints and am constantly trying to adapt to  the teachings of japanese interior design. Sometimes the solution to a problem is to KISS(keep it simple, stupid!) from the start


vishalrao

I have a question and would be grateful if anybody could answer. The charger says 11-18V DC (input). What difference would it make if I put in 11V or 18V? I mean do I need to input 18V if I'm charging 5S battery?

ragav_krish

No. You dont need 18V to charge a 5S. The Input range is specified to fit the P/S section of the charger. The Power supply on the LiPo board works fine between these voltages.Too low or too high and the MCU cuts out .

You should be fine using a a car battery to charge any specified LiPo on the field. Wouldnt it be lame if your charger couldnt charge a 5S in your car,but can do so comfortably with a laptop charger?

cheers!

vishalrao