Lithium batteries in the cold

[adulbrich 5,000+ posts]

My bike wasn't starting the other day. It was cranking sluggish. It was getting fuel though, because I could smell it out the exhaust. Figured it just wasn't cranking strong enough. Tried pop starting it and it still wouldn't go. Even tried jump starting it.

I got a new battery a couple months ago, but was able to pop start it when I had the old shitty battery. I pulled the battery and charged it overnight in my kitchen on a smart charger at 5 amps max. The next day it said fully charged, and I reinstalled the battery. Still wouldn't start, so I figured it didn't have spark, or the timing could have gotten messed up.

I took my bike to the local Honda dealer for diagnosis yesterday. I called the shop today to see if they figured out what the problem was. The tech said that lithium batteries act weird in the cold.

Obviously, all batteries crank less in the cold. From what I understand, this is due to the fact that chemical reactions take place slower at low temperatures, and batteries are essentially chemical storage for electricity. At least this is how my Chem 167 teacher explained it. That's also why Alkaline batteries last longer if you keep them in the freezer. They self-discharge slower. my boss at the battery shop always said "The cold doesn't kill batteries. Heat kills batteries. You just notice your battery is dying more in the winter than the summer."

Anyone using lithium for audio notice decreased performance in the cold?

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[wew lad 5,000+ posts]

No... but I use lithium batteries for just about everything I do at work. There's a big difference between taking them outside when its cold and putting a constant drain on it (causes it to heat itself) and leaving lithium batteries outside for short burst use at low temperatures. You could start that bike with a tiny lithium battery provided it has the appropriate C rating and it only goes outside when you're using it for cranking.

It's going to have to be oversized if you want a set up where you can leave it alone, or it will need to stay on a trickle charger.

easy fix: don't drive a bike when it's this cold out

 

[audiobaun 5,000+ posts]

Id throw an AGM on it and call it a day

 

[staan]

plus it sounds like it wouldn't push start cause you flooded it(smelling fuel out the exhaust). Maybe it worked on the old battery cause you knew it was having trouble and didn't push a bunch of fuel through it before trying.

 

[hispls 5,000+ posts]

I've had issues with Lithium drill batteries left outside overnight that I've tried to take in the woods to tap trees.... single digit days teens below nights and they were always super weak. I did put a Lithium in my 4 wheeler this year and haven't yet had any issues starting, but it hasn't really been proper cold yet.

 

[Popwarhomie 5,000+ posts]

Had a lithium in my 4 wheeler and never had an issue.

 

[Papermaker85 5,000+ posts]

how cold is it? **** it snowed here two days ago. about 30. lol that ain't could enough i thought you where in Florida?

 

[Popwarhomie 5,000+ posts]

Its 34*F here in Florida right now. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/suicide.gif.a649d21efc0d1fd4890a6428166586c1.gif

 

[wew lad 5,000+ posts]

it's in the 20s, maybe the 10s overnight

 

[shizzzon 10+ year member]

We are working on full on thermal management for lithium since nobody else seems to want to do it.

We have a full temp chart from the manufacturer of our cells which show performance degradation and immediate fail points based on temperature.

Quick tip- if the cell temp of a lithium cell drops below 32F and it is hit with a charge (even from alternator) greater than 0.02C.. expect permanent damage to a % of it's capacity for the rest of it's life.

Lithium starts to degrade around 60F and falling. Most wont notice in that range if they have an alternator tied to it. We are more worried about people's pack not getting damaged when the vehicle is on under frigid temps plus performance will get a massive boost in competition by managing the temps and keeping the cells warm, but not too warm.

 

[Darth_Immitis]

I vape and my lithium batteries do not like the cold.