How do I operate my Suprabeam light at low temperatures?

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When operating a battery driven lamp at lower temperatures there are some aspects that are important to be aware of to get the best performance out of the lamp.

General considerations

At low temperatures most materials change characteristics.

Mechanical parts move differently due to harder rubber or lubrications losing viscosity

Thermoplastic materials can become more fragile and easier to be damaged or break

Electronics parts and components mostly keep performance and behaviour

LED performance remains only little changed as they heat up fast

Most battery types, including rechargeable Lithium-Ion batteries heavily change

performance and behaviour at temperatures below 0°C.

 

Lithium-Ion batteries – charging

WARNING: Low temperatures seriously affect the charging of a battery.

Do not charge a lithium battery at temperatures below 0°C or above +45°C!

Charging at lower temperature will permanent damage the battery and can cause safety risk.

For best charging time and lifetime it is recommended to charge the battery between 10°C to 30°C only.

 

Lithium-Ion batteries – discharging

General

The performance and capacity of a Li-Ion battery drops fast at lower temperatures!

Voltage example:

Switching on a lamp with high discharge at 25°C creates a voltage drop from 4,2V to 3,9V.

Switching on a lamp with high discharge at 0° C creates a voltage drop from 4,2V to 3,5V.

 

Current example:

A Li-Ion battery at 25°C is capable of providing 3.0C (9A from a 3000 mAh battery = 33W)

A Li-Ion battery at 0°C is only capable of providing 1.0C (3A from a 3000 mAh battery = 11W)

A Li-Ion battery at -20°C is only capable of providing 0.2C (0.6A from a 3000 mAh battery = 2.2W)

 

Battery capacity:

The overall capacity of a battery is also reduced due to the lower efficiency in the chemistry of the cell.

The capacity of a cell is rated as 100% based on temperature of 25°C.
The capacity of a cell is reduced to 50-70% at a temperature of -20°C.

Lamp operation at low temperature

Obviously, low temperatures reduce the performance of a Li-Ion battery and this has a direct visual effect on the performance of the Li-Ion battery powered lamp – and cell phone or Electrical Vehicle for that matter.

This reduction will be experienced as lower light output intensity and less total light output.

It is not due to a defect to the lamp and/or the battery that the output and runtime from a lamp is reduced at low temperatures – it is the law of nature.

Recommendations for low temperature operation

To get the best possible experience with a lamp at low temperature a few simple things that can be followed:

Store in a warm pocket when not used

It is recommended to store a lamp in your pocket so it can be warmed by the body temperature. Remember to set it in Transport Lock, if available.

Turn on at low output mode

If turning a lamp on at low temperatures, it is recommended to turn it on with a low light output. The battery will gain inner temperature, and this will allow it to operate at higher output after a short time. Starting at too high output can cause the lamp to turn off.

Insulate the battery

To keep the battery warm to gain performance it can be insulated. Wrap a clothing or gloves around the tube where the battery is positioned.

Take care not to block the light beam as that can cause overheating.

Keep battery charged

Keep the battery at a high charging stage, to keep the voltage as high as possible

Product specifications

We must note that all Product Specifications and Performance data are based on a surrounding temperature of 25°C.

Low, and High temperature operation can, dependent on the product, effect these specification and performance data.

It cannot only affect data as described above, but also change mechanical aspects i.e. IP classification and drop resistance.

2020-02-17T14:30:59+00:00February 17th, 2020|
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