Small charging issue with my 800

[HighVDI]

After about two dozen charges on my equinox I noticed today that my battery is charging and seems to have the same battery life but the green blinking light doesn't seem to go solid to indicate a full charge.

Any thoughts on this?

Thanks, John.

 

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[Hal2k]

Just a thought and this should make no difference. What type charger are you using? I know if you use one of the cell phone charger cubes it takes longer to get a full charge or at least it seems that way. Have thought that is something happen to the battery if MineLab would ask if one has been using their charger if you sent in for warranty, they say nothing in their manual that you can't use one of the cheap cubes. I do know they do indicate you should use a I think it says charger that is rated for 1.7 ma ( I think that is correct).

 

[smokeythecat]

Call Minelab and see what they have to say. Others have had battery issues. Minelab would have a better idea if it were the battery or the charger itself. The charger itself probably won't make much of a difference.

 

[Echoplex]

What are the typical circumstances of your charges? Do you charge after the battery is completely drained or after partial drains? If the latter, a near-complete discharge (until the battery indicator flashes) followed by an uninterrupted full charge with an in-spec charger can sometimes recalibrate the power gauge with lithium ion batteries. You might try doing that if you haven't had a full discharge yet. It is usually recommended to do this after about every 30 charges (assuming they were partial drains). With Lithium-ion batteries in general, it is not a good idea to have frequent complete discharges. They tend to perform and last longer with partial drains. I know this is not ideal for detectorists, but it is a consideration of these types of batteries.

Also, is your charger up to spec?

With all the detectorists running their batteries dead over and over, I suspect ML will be selling a lot off their proprietary replacement battery.

 

[HighVDI]

What are the typical circumstances of your charges? Do you charge after the battery is completely drained or after partial drains? If the latter, a near-complete discharge (until the battery indicator flashes) followed by an uninterrupted full charge with an in-spec charger can sometimes recalibrate the power gauge with lithium ion batteries. You might try doing that if you haven't had a full discharge yet. It is usually recommended to do this after about every 30 charges (assuming they were partial drains). With Lithium-ion batteries in general, it is not a good idea to have frequent complete discharges. They tend to perform and last longer with partial drains. I know this is not ideal for detectorists, but it is a consideration of these types of batteries.

Also, is your charger up to spec?

With all the detectorists running their batteries dead over and over, I suspect ML will be selling a lot off their proprietary replacement battery.

This is a very good point and one I've considered. I'm probably close to that 30 charges too.

 

[fuceye]

equinox's bat should be good for 500 charges (approx 2 years of use).....after that it will degrade. still waiting to see if the battery protection is on the battery side or the board side....

just ordered this battery charger for my eq.

its the Fenix are-x11.pumps out 2a@ 5v and is 3500mah. just the right size to top up the eq and headset. also 1/2 the size and weight
of what I was using. and if I need to I can change out the batteries with my flashlights to compensate for heavy use.....

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[HighVDI]

equinox's bat should be good for 500 charges (approx 2 years of use).....after that it will degrade. still waiting to see if the battery protection is on the battery side or the board side....

just ordered this battery charger for my eq.

its the Fenix are-x11.pumps out 2a@ 5v and is 3500mah. just the right size to top up the eq and headset. also 1/2 the size and weight
of what I was using. and if I need to I can change out the batteries with my flashlights to compensate for heavy use.....

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Yeah, I just wonder if the whole "reset" thing is true. After my hunt tomorrow evening I'll let the machine run out of batt. during the night and then see if it does something different. It actually did show a solid green charged light but it took another couple hours to get there.

 

[Normsel]

I run my battery pretty low and when I charge it usually takes close to 4 hours but I just plug it in and don't even look at it for at least 4 hours or more.

 

[HighVDI]

I run my battery pretty low and when I charge it usually takes close to 4 hours but I just plug it in and don't even look at it for at least 4 hours or more.

Kinda like that pot of water that won't boil until you walk away....; )

 

[fuceye]

Yeah, I just wonder if the whole "reset" thing is true. After my hunt tomorrow evening I'll let the machine run out of batt. during the night and then see if it does something different. It actually did show a solid green charged light but it took another couple hours to get there.

it all comes down to this. will the product perform as the manual states.They clam the right to make changes as required and update the manual as needed.

for me...the green light flashes when charging, turns solid green when full, then turns off.(it turns off because I choose a power supply that senses no load
scenario and shuts down automatically ) heat can effect a lipo battery pdq. do you leave your detector in the hot trunk of you car...or hunt in sub zero temps?
same with charging environments if to hot or cold the charger (internal charger in the equinox) will shut down to protect battery/minelab warranty.

 

[HighVDI]

it all comes down to this. will the product perform as the manual states.They clam the right to make changes as required and update the manual as needed.

for me...the green light flashes when charging, turns solid green when full, then turns off.(it turns off because I choose a power supply that senses no load
scenario and shuts down automatically ) heat can effect a lipo battery pdq. do you leave your detector in the hot trunk of you car...or hunt in sub zero temps?
same with charging environments if to hot or cold the charger (internal charger in the equinox) will shut down to protect battery/minelab warranty.

I can say I've never left it in an area with extreme temps for any period of time. I've hunted in a VERY light rain....more of a sprinkle. Next time I'll try a different outlet/charger location and see what happens. That is, after I run the battery down fully. Should take another two hunts.

 

[fuceye]

I can say I've never left it in an area with extreme temps for any period of time. I've hunted in a VERY light rain....more of a sprinkle. Next time I'll try a different outlet/charger location and see what happens. That is, after I run the battery down fully. Should take another two hunts.

just leave it on....it should run down and shut off when empty...this is a safe option according to the manual. the equinox is protected from over discharge and will not harm the battery.

​

 

[HighVDI]

Just wanted to make it clear that it was NOT an issue with my machine it is an outlet problem! Tried two other outlets and it charged right up.