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Ahoy Capt's
This past Dive Tribe meet, the discussion turned to the unintended fireworks display at SubFest 2022. A LiPo(s) cooked off during a charge evolution. Someone else here can give the exact details of the event as I was across the pond and was privy mostly to the sound of the event. Thankfully no one was hurt other than perhaps some underwear changing, and of course being who we are had a good laugh afterwards.
That lead to the discussion regarding the safe practice and storage of the ubiquitous LiPo.
Capt Martin explained has an ammo can with a 1" [25mm] hole drilled in it (correct me if I'm wrong Bob) to not only pass the charging wire through, but to vent gasses should there be meltdown of the precious "reactor" charging within. Excellent idea for the charging station! I would also add a rubber grommet to prevent chafing of the charge wires if he hadn't already.
We also discussed the needs of LONG TERM storage, and that you should charge your LiPo's to that level. Also we discussed what might happen should one cook off in a sealed container, which Capt Gaito reminded us is essentially it's own "domain" sealed from the outside world. Whether or not this can is designed to protect what's in it (the Ammo) or the items outside it (people) should it fail, I don't know, but I don't wish to learn unintentionally.
Now I have an Ammo Can for LONG TERM Storage of said LiPo's. Keeping it separate from the "Nuclear Refueling" unit, I don't want a chain reaction occurring between the charging LiPo's and others next to it. Most likely the charging phase (or discharge) holds the higher risk of one defecating on itself. Engineers always state the greatest risk occurs when something changes "state". Charging/Discharging, accelerating/decelerating, getting to orbit/de-orbiting.
Of course you can have a single can to serve the purpose of charging, storage, and travel. But they're inexpensive enough to have dedicated uses. I don't want to empty out all my LiPo's when I charge, or take ALL of the them to the lake. Your need's, desire, and moods may differ.
Actually I don't use a charging can, but rather an old pot donated by way of upside my head by the ex wife. Don't ask, it pleases me that use this pot. Anyway, for my storage can, I did the following after our discussion.
First I completely removed the Gasket as was suggested, I did not like that as the latch was too loose for my comfort. So I reinstalled part of the gasket in the following manner....
I cut the four corners ~ 1" [25mm] from each comer, and reinstalled the longer midsections on all four sides. This will allow the lid to space properly off the can, provide the compression effect of the gasket to the ensuring the latch holds properly, all the while allowing unwanted gas to escape at the four corners.
The piece by the latch side, wasn't held in very well by that angled sheet metal. So I used my Arbor press to persuade it to do so by forcing down the angled sheet metal some more. The other 3 pieces held fine.
This of course is the "50 Cal" Metal Ammo Can from Harbor Freight.
Thanks to the Dive Tribe Meet for the inspiration, and the brainstorming afterwards with Capt Gaito to work out the kinks.
If you're not a Member of the Dive Tribe, or you are but don't attend the bi-weekly meets, you're not availing yourself to this precious resource of collaboration. From Grand Exalted Poobah, to a noob, we all have something to offer. I wish we had this 30 years ago rather than waiting months for a newsletter.
I'm sure others have their own take on this approach...
Let's see it here!
This past Dive Tribe meet, the discussion turned to the unintended fireworks display at SubFest 2022. A LiPo(s) cooked off during a charge evolution. Someone else here can give the exact details of the event as I was across the pond and was privy mostly to the sound of the event. Thankfully no one was hurt other than perhaps some underwear changing, and of course being who we are had a good laugh afterwards.
That lead to the discussion regarding the safe practice and storage of the ubiquitous LiPo.
Capt Martin explained has an ammo can with a 1" [25mm] hole drilled in it (correct me if I'm wrong Bob) to not only pass the charging wire through, but to vent gasses should there be meltdown of the precious "reactor" charging within. Excellent idea for the charging station! I would also add a rubber grommet to prevent chafing of the charge wires if he hadn't already.
We also discussed the needs of LONG TERM storage, and that you should charge your LiPo's to that level. Also we discussed what might happen should one cook off in a sealed container, which Capt Gaito reminded us is essentially it's own "domain" sealed from the outside world. Whether or not this can is designed to protect what's in it (the Ammo) or the items outside it (people) should it fail, I don't know, but I don't wish to learn unintentionally.
Now I have an Ammo Can for LONG TERM Storage of said LiPo's. Keeping it separate from the "Nuclear Refueling" unit, I don't want a chain reaction occurring between the charging LiPo's and others next to it. Most likely the charging phase (or discharge) holds the higher risk of one defecating on itself. Engineers always state the greatest risk occurs when something changes "state". Charging/Discharging, accelerating/decelerating, getting to orbit/de-orbiting.
Of course you can have a single can to serve the purpose of charging, storage, and travel. But they're inexpensive enough to have dedicated uses. I don't want to empty out all my LiPo's when I charge, or take ALL of the them to the lake. Your need's, desire, and moods may differ.
Actually I don't use a charging can, but rather an old pot donated by way of upside my head by the ex wife. Don't ask, it pleases me that use this pot. Anyway, for my storage can, I did the following after our discussion.
First I completely removed the Gasket as was suggested, I did not like that as the latch was too loose for my comfort. So I reinstalled part of the gasket in the following manner....
I cut the four corners ~ 1" [25mm] from each comer, and reinstalled the longer midsections on all four sides. This will allow the lid to space properly off the can, provide the compression effect of the gasket to the ensuring the latch holds properly, all the while allowing unwanted gas to escape at the four corners.
The piece by the latch side, wasn't held in very well by that angled sheet metal. So I used my Arbor press to persuade it to do so by forcing down the angled sheet metal some more. The other 3 pieces held fine.
This of course is the "50 Cal" Metal Ammo Can from Harbor Freight.
Thanks to the Dive Tribe Meet for the inspiration, and the brainstorming afterwards with Capt Gaito to work out the kinks.
If you're not a Member of the Dive Tribe, or you are but don't attend the bi-weekly meets, you're not availing yourself to this precious resource of collaboration. From Grand Exalted Poobah, to a noob, we all have something to offer. I wish we had this 30 years ago rather than waiting months for a newsletter.
I'm sure others have their own take on this approach...
Let's see it here!