Battery heater per DJI

[dirtybum]

I just read DJI's latest newsletter concerning flying in cold weather and they recommend a battery heater. What are you guys using in that situation? I got buddies that use them for the inspire, but I don't know of one for the PIII. And some other RC heaters I've seen usually go to 12 V

 

[kaybee1]

I feel like if the battery comes from a warm environment (house, warm car, etc), it very quickly becomes its own heater and never falls much below it's original, warm ambient temp. If left outside overnight, that's a different story.

 

[ParsnipHysorter]

I feel like if the battery comes from a warm environment (house, warm car, etc), it very quickly becomes its own heater and never falls much below it's original, warm ambient temp. If left outside overnight, that's a different story.

Indeed. I have done a number of flights recently at -10 F and the batteries still come out of the P3 warm to the touch. Looking at the battery temperature graph their internal temperature still climbs steadily over time during the flight just like they do in warmer conditions. For my flights I have brought them outside from a warm house however; if I were in a situation where they were cold starting out I would think it would be wise to warm them first, even if its in a warm pocket for awhile.

 

[N8ture]

Was in Montana flying over 6500 feet at -12 - -14 and just kept the spare batteries in my pocket with a hand warmer.
Flew all three of my batteries without issue although my fingers were pretty cold since I flew barehanded to feel the sticks.
Just put them in my other parka pocket to warm up for a few seconds and let my P3P hover for a minute

 

[dirtybum]

I agree with everything so far I was just on the topic out there. Battery in the pocket with a hand warmer works for me too. I've flown in 0° for miles

 

[Donw35]

Good to know, I am going to my sisters house over the holidays and want to fly if possible, the outside temp wont be below 30 and I will keep the battery in the house, anything else I should know when flying in the cold ?

Thanks

 

[ParsnipHysorter]

Good to know, I am going to my sisters house over the holidays and want to fly if possible, the outside temp wont be below 30 and I will keep the battery in the house, anything else I should know when flying in the cold ?

Thanks

Not really; as many have mentioned including myself these seem to fly just fine in the cold, even in subzero temperatures. You may have slightly reduced endurance versus flying in warm temperatures but I don't think you'll even notice, especially if you start with a room-temperature battery. In my flights at -10 F I estimate my flight time was reduced by only about 5% compared to similar flight at 50-60 F. Happy flying.

 

[UgashikBob]

I agree with previous posts regarding below zero or near zero (F) flights. Other than cold fingers the only problem I've seen is ice fog. Had two very close calls with heavy icing during ice fog. My advice is don't fly in it as it happens very quickly.

 

[shockwave199]

You may get a message that the imu is warming up if you have the bird outside for even a few minutes before taking off. It senses the cold pretty quickly. It happened to me one night and temperature was only in the 40's. It took upwards of a minute to clear. Not a huge deal if you're not under pressure to take off. But what I did was on the next cold 30° night I put the bird out for 20 minutes and then brought it in and immediately did an imu calibration - the cold calibration as it's referred to. That ended imu warm up delays. I did that because I don't stop flying during the winter. There's some awesome days to film and I throughly enjoy the absence of people out there when it's cold.

To donw35-

Enjoy your flights but remember the golden rule, problems always seem to happen when you're showing off for others. I can't tell you how often I read that and it's happened to me. All good alone, glitches when showing off flight for others. Be aware and don't get distracted by others while flying. Don't feel the need to try things you haven't done just because someone asks. Fly within your comfort zone, even a bit more conservative perhaps and all should be fine.

 

[Donw35]

To donw35-

Enjoy your flights but remember the golden rule, problems always seem to happen when you're showing off for others. I can't tell you how often I read that and it's happened to me. All good alone, glitches when showing off flight for others. Be aware and don't get distracted by others while flying. Don't feel the need to try things you haven't done just because someone asks. Fly within your comfort zone, even a bit more conservative perhaps and all should be fine.[/QUOTE]

Good advise, more than likely I will be flying in the morning when its the most calm and everyone is still in bed

 

[ParsnipHysorter]

You may get a message that the imu is warming up if you have the bird outside for even a few minutes before taking off. It senses the cold pretty quickly. It happened to me one night and temperature was only in the 40's. It took upwards of a minute to clear. Not a huge deal if you're not under pressure to take off. But what I did was on the next cold 30° night I put the bird out for 20 minutes and then brought it in and immediately did an imu calibration - the cold calibration as it's referred to. That ended imu warm up delays. I did that because I don't stop flying during the winter. There's some awesome days to film and I throughly enjoy the absence of people out there when it's cold.

So funny. I started getting the "IMU preheating" message back in October. And since then its been before every flight, if the P3 is cold-starting anyway. I thought this new, strange message was just something following a firmware upgrade... but guess it was because winter had arrived! Lol. Doh. Well it'll be April before it even warms up above freezing again so its here to stay. Like you said it only takes a minute or so to clear, which has been my experience even at -10 F.

 

[videcom]

To donw35-

Enjoy your flights but remember the golden rule, problems always seem to happen when you're showing off for others. I can't tell you how often I read that and it's happened to me. All good alone, glitches when showing off flight for others. Be aware and don't get distracted by others while flying. Don't feel the need to try things you haven't done just because someone asks. Fly within your comfort zone, even a bit more conservative perhaps and all should be fine.

Good advise, more than likely I will be flying in the morning when its the most calm and everyone is stiff in bed[/QUOTE]
Haha, I can remember when I used to be stiff in bed in the mornings

 

[Donw35]

 

[happydays]

Good to know, I am going to my sisters house over the holidays and want to fly if possible, the outside temp wont be below 30 and I will keep the battery in the house, anything else I should know when flying in the cold ?

Thanks

Wear a hat and gloves.

 

[yawnalot29]

Yeah, gets pretty cold here in southern California. Sometimes it gets down to mid 60 when I fly. I usually just stay indoor and not fl if it gets below 65 to be on the safe side.

Yeah, so i know what you guys mean.

 

[BigAl07]

When I am going to be outside flying in cooler/cold weather I have several different techniques.

A) I always keep my batteries in living space so they stay relatively warm (or cool in the summer) 24/7. If I'm just going for a quick flight at home I'll just toss the battery in and fly.
B) If I'm going to be outside for a few minutes flying a couple of batteries I keep the 2nd battery in a pocket so it stays relatively warm.
C) If I'm flying away from home or going to be outside for more than a couple of batteries I keep all of them in a small personal cooler with a hand warmer inside. This keeps the chill off the batteries until they can get into the aircraft and come up to "Operational" temps.
D) On cold days when I'm at work I do as above but I also bring my whole carrying case inside so that everything is warm in case I have to go fly in an urgent way. The cold aircraft takes a few minutes to warm up from very cold conditions and the camera lens will fog over in a heartbeat. Also I don't like for any of my sensitive electronics to stay out in freezing temps over night. I tend to error on the side of caution but it's worked well for me for many years now.

YMMV though.