Capacitor V Lithium jump starter?
Submitted: Wednesday, Feb 17, 2021 at 18:27
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Joe G2
Anyone have any opinions on the pros and cons of each type. Ideally i would like to be able to start a TD 100 series.
Cheers,
Joe.
Reply By: Member - PhilD_NT - Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 01:40
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 01:40
I actually have a Repco capacitor jump starter and have used it twice, once on a quite dead
Ranger 3.2 litre diesel and on a Falcon 6cyl ute. Worked both times.
I do have a secondary battery in the
Ranger in
the tub and have it with a larger Anderson plug for a set of custom jump leads but had trouble with the other end clamps so tried the Repco unit.
As to Lithium jump starters I have a concern with them. Recently went to use one I had in the shed to see if it was in need of recharging as it had been sitting there unused for about a year. Opened the storage case it came in and immediately noticed that the main case had split at the seem. Opened it up and the battery had swelled up quite a bit. In light of the disastrous Samsung mobiles a few years ago, at what point is it likely that this could explode or catch fire and maybe consideration needs to be made towards safely storing them in vehicles etc. No idea where I bought it and where it was made it anymore so can't chase them up over it.
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Follow Up By: Member - McLaren3030 - Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 07:30
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 07:30
Phill, was it Lithium Ion, or Lithium Iron Phosphate? Two different types of battery. The ones in the Samsung and other products that exploded or caught fire particularly during charging were Lithium Ion.
Macca.
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Follow Up By: RMD - Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 10:37
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 10:37
Phil D
That is why I mentioned the periodic charging / maintenance charge of any such device so it is ready to go. No good leaving to fully discharge over a year and then expecting miracles from it.
Cheers
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Follow Up By: Member - PhilD_NT - Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 21:49
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 21:49
Macca, there's no info on the battery pack to stipulate what it is. The swelling though was somewhere between 50 to 100% in thickness I would guess.
This is somewhat similar to a laptop I have. Luckily it was only 2 years in to the 4 year warranty and was repaired here at
home. The battery had swelled up and distorted the keyboard and surrounding case. As the repair was done in front of me it was amazing how little spare room there was to allow for battery swelling. From memory this was one issue noted in the Samsung case but whether that was the sole cause we may not have heard the full story.
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Follow Up By: Member - PhilD_NT - Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 22:05
Friday, Feb 19, 2021 at 22:05
RMD, since the swelling happened while just in storage it's that that concerns me as to safety in an enclosed, or dangerous area. At what point in swelling could it cause a short circuit in the device and potential fire.
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Follow Up By: RMD - Saturday, Feb 20, 2021 at 12:01
Saturday, Feb 20, 2021 at 12:01
PhilD NT
I suppose the quality of the internal battery has something to do with it too. Probably
breakdown of insulation layers between cells. Some Radio Control Lithium batteries have been known to do the same, ie, swell and catch fire. Most don't of course. We have no control over the quality of internals when buying. Danger in most device in some way or another. Any swelling of batteries indicates all is not
well.
The capacitor ones can deliver high output but very short duration. I haven't seen a capacitor one crank an engine or for how many compressions, but I imagine it isn't for long. Quite a task, cold engine, flat battery and glow plugs too. Hmmmm.
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Follow Up By: Member - PhilD_NT - Sunday, Feb 21, 2021 at 01:29
Sunday, Feb 21, 2021 at 01:29
RMD, when I did use it on the
Ranger I did notice how much lower it dropped the battery in charging itself and was surprised it still worked. Yes it would only do it once I guess but you can take it to an alternate battery and charge it up there, like my secondary battery in
the tub. Anyway, I've since fixed the issue with my jumper leads to use from the secondary battery that stopped the clamps opening enough to clamp to the main battery so that is my primary choice to jump start. Just nice to have an extra backup that's both light weight and small(ish).
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