Brrr! Advice for Flying a Drone in Cold Weather: Taking Care…

Brrr! This winter has been particularly chilly, and it’s no shock that lots of you have got been reaching out to us with questions on greatest practices for flying a drone in chilly climate.

Battery care is the most important issue when flying in the chilly, nevertheless it’s additionally necessary to care for your self. Below are some key items of recommendation for easy methods to be sure to’re able to fly this winter.


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Before we dive in, it’s necessary to notice that it’s merely riskier to fly your drone in chilly climate than heat climate.

Why? Because LiPo batteries don’t work nicely in chilly climate. The colder it’s, the shorter your battery life will likely be as a result of slowing down of the chemical exercise throughout the battery.

This is to not say you shouldn’t fly in any respect when it’s chilly out, however simply that it’s best to go into a chilly climate flight having taken the right precautions, and realizing that it’s riskier than it could be if the climate was heat.

Taking Care of Your Batteries

What is a LiPo battery?

Most quadcopters use lithium-polymer, or LiPo, batteries.

LiPo batteries are excellent for conditions the place weight issues—like flying a drone!— as a result of they weigh 20% lower than cylindrical NIMH cells of the identical capability. They even have larger capacities than different kinds of batteries, which suggests they’re extra highly effective, and so they have larger discharge charges, so that they pack extra of a punch.

On the opposite hand, they’re fairly delicate. Overcharging LiPo batteries will be hazardous, and even result in the battery catching on hearth. Remember when the Samsung Galaxy was banned from airplanes not too way back as a result of their batteries have been spontaneously burning up? Well, that’s as a result of the Galaxy makes use of Lithium Ion batteries, which have excessive power densities and value lower than LiPo batteries, however depend on related expertise.

From Wikipedia:

LiPo batteries work on the precept of intercalation and de-intercalation of lithium ions from a optimistic electrode materials and a adverse electrode materials, with the liquid electrolyte offering a conductive medium. 

Say what? OK, the science behind how LiPo batteries work could also be a little jargon-heavy, however the backside line is that they depend on chemical reactions which might be delicate to the climate. So chilly issues, and warmth does too.

But don’t fear—your LiPo batteries needs to be nice if cared for correctly.

In chilly climate the chemical reactions that enable LiPo batteries to work decelerate, which lowers their total capability. Where a totally charged LiPo battery might present 20-25 minutes of flight time in hotter climate (59°F or above), in colder climate flight time might drop to 10-15 minutes or decrease.

Here are some issues to maintain in thoughts concerning your LiPo batteries when flying in the chilly:

Pay consideration to the temperature.

As famous above, LiPo batteries don’t work nicely in chilly climate.

The colder it’s, the shorter your battery life will likely be as a result of slowing down of the chemical exercise throughout the battery. You’ll begin to see decreased efficiency at 59°F (15°C) or colder.

If it’s beneath 14°F (-10°C), LiPo utilization just isn’t really helpful in any respect (i.e., no flying!), since your battery might trigger your drone to immediately fail with out warning in these temperatures.

In speaking to our CEO Alan Perlman, he advised me that he took off in 20° climate with a totally charged battery, and after simply 2-Three minutes his battery had dropped to 79%. He flew for about 10 minutes in complete and landed simply nice with battery to spare, nevertheless it was fascinating to see that rapid drop after take off.

Battery storage is essential.

The following is excerpted from a Drone Pilot Ground School lecture on caring for LiPo batteries:

Temperature issues. Always retailer your LiPo batteries in a cool, dry place. Shoot for room temperature. Do not retailer them in a sizzling storage or in a fridge. Even although a chilly battery has much less chemical reactions happening, and this could extend its lifespan, taking a battery out from a chilly fridge could cause condensation to happen on the within of the battery, which will be very harmful. And whereas chilly will be damaging, so can warmth. The hotter your batteries get, the shorter their lifespan will likely be. Never cost a battery that’s nonetheless heat from utilization, and by no means use a battery that’s nonetheless heat from charging.

Here are a few extra suggestions for storage:

  • Make positive to disconnect the batteries once you’re not utilizing them, and retailer them in a fireproof container.
  • Don’t story batteries in excessive chilly or warmth, together with daylight. The excellent temperature vary for storage is 14°F  to 113°F.
  • If storing for a lengthy time frame with none use (i.e., a number of months or extra), excellent temperature vary is 73°F to 82°F.
  • Don’t retailer unfastened batteries collectively. This might result in the terminals touching, which could trigger a quick circuit.

Bottom line, be considerate not nearly what you do proper earlier than you fly (which we’ll get into beneath) but additionally about the way you care for and preserve your batteries between flights.

For extra recommendation on storage and charging, take a look at this thread on the UAV Coach group discussion board.

Warm your batteries.

It’s a good thought to heat your batteries earlier than flying. The goal temperature needs to be about 75°F (25°C).

We advocate utilizing a battery heater like this one we discovered on Amazon:

drone-battery-warmer

If you don’t have a battery heater, hand heaters will be an OK various for warming your batteries (although not excellent).

But be warned—don’t ever put hand heaters in direct contact along with your batteries. Make positive to cowl your batteries in one thing that can defend them from the warmth the heaters delay, like a shirt, towel, or another form of materials.

Keep your flights shorter than regular.

Because the chilly climate will shorten your battery life, be sure to keep away from flying for very lengthy.

To allow shorter flights, be sure to plan forward and know precisely what you need to shoot. This means you possibly can go up, get your shot, and get down with out risking a crash on account of battery failure.

An excellent rule of thumb is that the colder it’s, the shorter your flight needs to be. Alan was capable of fly for 10 minutes in 20° climate, however we’ve had another pilots inform us they solely danger 30-60 seconds at a time once they fly in 20° climate (in addition to preliminary hovering).

Don’t be afraid to experiment a little and see what flight occasions appear to work greatest for you and the precise temperatures you’re flying in—however keep in mind, the shorter the higher.

Taking Care of Yourself

Keep your fingers heat

Frozen thumbs will be simply as dangerous for a secure flight as frozen batteries. Remember that it’s not simply your drone you need to care for, however the pilot as nicely—that means, your self in fact. 🙂

We advocate shopping for gloves made simply for flying in the winter, which can assist you to maintain your fingers heat but additionally preserve sufficient sensitivity for flying.

Alternately, you should purchase a transmitter glove just like the one bought by Amazon pictured beneath. Yes, it seems a little humorous, however weigh that towards preserving your fingers toasty and limber whereas preserving your thousand-dollar drone up in the air. Seems like a small value to pay.

drone-transmitter-glove

Hover your drone for round 30-45 seconds earlier than flying.

Hovering is yet another means to assist your batteries heat up earlier than flying. Here is what Mad_Angler1 wrote on our group discussion board concerning how lengthy it took to warmth up his Mavic’s batteries whereas hovering:

On the battery the Mavic received’t arm when the pack temperature is beneath 15C, excellent temp is 20-30c and principally should you take off between 15c and 20c then simply hover a minute or two till it will get to 20. It received’t take lengthy. 

Hovering is nice for your batteries, nevertheless it additionally permits you a few moments to examine in with your self, and see the way you’re doing as a pilot flying in chilly situations.

Do you have got sufficient feeling in your fingers to fly competently? Are you assured which you could management your drone in these situations? Hovering presents a good alternative for ensuring you’re able to fly.

drone-cold-weather-flying
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Still have questions on flying in the chilly? Post them to our group discussion board, the place you possibly can join with different drone pilots who may have the ability to assist.

Zacc Dukowitz

Director of Marketing

Zacc Dukowitz is the Director of Marketing for UAV Coach. A author with skilled expertise in training expertise and digital advertising, Zacc is keen about reporting on the drone trade at a time when UAVs may also help us reside higher lives. Zacc additionally holds the rank of nidan in Aikido, a Japanese martial artwork, and is a broadly printed fiction author. Zacc has an MFA from the University of Florida and a BA from St. John’s College. Follow @zaccdukowitz or take a look at zaccdukowitz.com to learn his work.

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