Melted my Paraboard

[hidiver808]

So I'm plugging in my batteries (three 6s lipos) to run a storage discharge on them. As I'm plugging them in, I see a little puff of smoke and smell something burning. Turns out the insulation & the copper "tracks", on my paraboard melted.

I had just finished charging a 3300mAh batt at 6.6amps and forgot to put it back up to 30amps. Would that have caused the paraboard to fry as I plugged in all three batts?

Any suggestions on what might have happened? How can I prevent it from happening again?

[dtabuenc]

Usually this is because of plugging in backwards on one of the batteries (either the main lead or the parallel lead). Was the parallel board plugged in to the charger at the time? If it wasn't then the plugs could touch each other and short. There is a more expensive parallel board that will help prevent this things from happening, I ended up getting one of these after burning several wire leads and melting connectors (all my fault):

http://www.progressiverc.com/fma-mul...xh-t-plug.html

Originally Posted by hidiver808

So I'm plugging in my batteries (three 6s lipos) to run a storage discharge on them. As I'm plugging them in, I see a little puff of smoke and smell something burning. Turns out the insulation & the copper "tracks", on my paraboard melted.

I had just finished charging a 3300mAh batt at 6.6amps and forgot to put it back up to 30amps. Would that have caused the paraboard to fry as I plugged in all three batts?

Any suggestions on what might have happened? How can I prevent it from happening again?

[fastflyer20]

If only one or two traces are melted, you may be able to repair with jumper wires.

The board from Progressive looks nice, but is a bit pricey.

[dtabuenc]

Yeah, I only got it after accidentally burning out a few batteries/boards. If you are careful enough I guess you don't need it, but I thought I was careful, but guess just not enough.

Originally Posted by fastflyer20

If only one or two traces are melted, you may be able to repair with jumper wires.

The board from Progressive looks nice, but is a bit pricey.

[DominicD]

+1 one on getting the MPA.

[hidiver808]

Originally Posted by dtabuenc

Usually this is because of plugging in backwards on one of the batteries (either the main lead or the parallel lead). Was the parallel board plugged in to the charger at the time? If it wasn't then the plugs could touch each other and short. There is a more expensive parallel board that will help prevent this things from happening, I ended up getting one of these after burning several wire leads and melting connectors (all my fault):

http://www.progressiverc.com/fma-mul...xh-t-plug.html

The charger (iCharger 3010B) and the paralboard have been permanently plugged together since the day I bought them. I have a little charging station setup and they dont ever come apart. As for the batteries....both the main lead and the balance connectors are keyed so I couldn't have put them in the wrong way. Prior to this incident I've charged my batts on dozens of occasions without incident.

The only thing I did differently was that the charger was setup to charge the 3300mAh batt that I had just finished charging (set to 6.6amps). Normally, when I charge or discharge all three batts, I crank up the amps to the full 30amps. Could that have been the problem?

[hidiver808]

Originally Posted by fastflyer20

If only one or two traces are melted, you may be able to repair with jumper wires.

The board from Progressive looks nice, but is a bit pricey.

Any suggestion on what gauge the wire jumpers would need to be? Solid copper or braided?

[fastflyer20]

Since they are balance leads, you can use a multi-strand wire from a dead servo or servo extension. I was able to easily solder to the copper foil on the two ends.

[hidiver808]

Awesome! Thanks for the help I'll give it a try.

[dtabuenc]

Nah, shouldn't be a problem unless you are actually running the charger while doing this. It could just have been a short inside the board or something. One other incident I had myself is plugging in a 6s battery with a 3s accidentally, or maybe even plugging a fully charged battery with a discharged one (to a lesser extent). Other than that, if it can't be explained another way I'd be careful to keep using that board. Maybe send it in or get a new one.

Originally Posted by hidiver808

The charger (iCharger 3010B) and the paralboard have been permanently plugged together since the day I bought them. I have a little charging station setup and they dont ever come apart. As for the batteries....both the main lead and the balance connectors are keyed so I couldn't have put them in the wrong way. Prior to this incident I've charged my batts on dozens of occasions without incident.

The only thing I did differently was that the charger was setup to charge the 3300mAh batt that I had just finished charging (set to 6.6amps). Normally, when I charge or discharge all three batts, I crank up the amps to the full 30amps. Could that have been the problem?

[seanh]

I would plan on getting a new board. You can keep the one you have and repair it but you'll need to find the source of the failure before you use it again. The last thing you want to do is repair it only to find that you didn't resolve the problem.

[don-dadda]

+1

It's not worth the risk of burning down your house to save $20.

[hidiver808]

That’s exactly what I was thinking. I still have not determined the original problem. I have already repaired the break by soldering wires on but what’s to prevent it from happening again? I figure those little copper strips will act like a fuse and burn up again if there is still a problem.

I did a VERY closely monitored charge last night and then a discharge. The repair seems to have worked and the charge/discharge went without incident. I still don't trust it though.

Good news, Dale from EPBuddy says they will be coming out with a board with fuses on it. I hope it will be cheaper than the one suggested by a previous post.

[CeeveeSiN]

Originally Posted by hidiver808

That’s exactly what I was thinking. I still have not determined the original problem. I have already repaired the break by soldering wires on but what’s to prevent it from happening again? I figure those little copper strips will act like a fuse and burn up again if there is still a problem.

I did a VERY closely monitored charge last night and then a discharge. The repair seems to have worked and the charge/discharge went without incident. I still don't trust it though.

Good news, Dale from EPBuddy says they will be coming out with a board with fuses on it. I hope it will be cheaper than the one suggested by a previous post.

Oh that is good news! competition is a great thing sometimes!

I love my Paraboard but do wish it would do sustained 40A like the FMA and have fuses at all points.

[DominicD]

Originally Posted by hidiver808

That’s exactly what I was thinking. I still have not determined the original problem. I have already repaired the break by soldering wires on but what’s to prevent it from happening again? I figure those little copper strips will act like a fuse and burn up again if there is still a problem.

I did a VERY closely monitored charge last night and then a discharge. The repair seems to have worked and the charge/discharge went without incident. I still don't trust it though.

Good news, Dale from EPBuddy says they will be coming out with a board with fuses on it. I hope it will be cheaper than the one suggested by a previous post.

If you get a chance look at the MPA board up close, I don't really see how anyone could make this board any cheaper.

[hidiver808]

Originally Posted by DominicD

If you get a chance look at the MPA board up close, I don't really see how anyone could make this board any cheaper.

Oh I agree with you...it’s a great looking board. I'm sure its worth every penny but I'm a cop...I have to live off of peanuts and spend money wisely. I see nothing wrong with comparison shopping. If the board from EPBuddy isn't better or significantly cheaper, I will end up splurging on the MPA board.

It will be worth the peace of mind.

The other problem is that I only see it in a T plug. I use XT60 plugs.

[dtabuenc]

Use little adapters to convert the plugs from the board to whatever different plugs you use. I also find it useful to have extenders for the balancer leads, this makes it easier to plug in a lot of batteries without getting all crowded and keeping the wires neat.

Originally Posted by hidiver808

Oh I agree with you...it’s a great looking board. I'm sure its worth every penny but I'm a cop...I have to live off of peanuts and spend money wisely. I see nothing wrong with comparison shopping. If the board from EPBuddy isn't better or significantly cheaper, I will end up splurging on the MPA board.

It will be worth the peace of mind.

The other problem is that I only see it in a T plug. I use XT60 plugs.

[CeeveeSiN]

Originally Posted by hidiver808

Oh I agree with you...it’s a great looking board. I'm sure its worth every penny but I'm a cop...I have to live off of peanuts and spend money wisely. I see nothing wrong with comparison shopping. If the board from EPBuddy isn't better or significantly cheaper, I will end up splurging on the MPA board.

It will be worth the peace of mind.

The other problem is that I only see it in a T plug. I use XT60 plugs.

Yup adapters.. I always get deans on the boards but have adapters to everything basically

[shadco]

I spent a couple hour the other day twisting up my adaptors.

Well worth the time.

[southwind]

I did this to my hobbyking board, the right side burnt but i still use the left side with no problems (can only para charge 3 batteries now).