Hi All,

There was some super-light rain here the other day (we call it spitting) and I really wanted to fly my Mavic Air 2 but daren't just in case.  Why isn't there some lightweight waterproof cover which wraps around the main body to protect the battery of these things or why don't DJI make their consumer drones waterproof?  Most high end mobile phones are waterproof these days.

Is the Mavic Pro or Phantom 4 Pro waterproof?

What level do you have to go to before you can fly in the rain - obviously for working drones you need to be able to fly in most weather.

Just some thoughts from a new owner - many thanks!

Is the Mavic Pro or Phantom 4 Pro waterproof
DJI don't make any waterproof drones.

What level do you have to go to before you can fly in the rain - obviously for working drones you need to be able to fly in most weather.
Obviously?
Professional users don't fly in all weather.
They fly when conditions are good and they have too much respect for their equipment than to fly it in the rain.
For drones that work, you don't want to fly them in the rain at all.

Do you have any idea what a single raindrop on the lens does for your images?
Most people would have the good sense to go indoors rather than stand in the rain flying a drone.

Take this one:

Labroides Posted at 6-13 04:48
Is the Mavic Pro or Phantom 4 Pro waterproof
DJI don't make any waterproof drones.

Really?  I would have thought all-weather drones could come in quite handy for many uses - finding little children, locating insurgents in theatres of war, agriculture, disaster relief etc etc etc.
As for the camera, I have cameras around my house (outside).  They could either be covered up (and not used) or, could there be a way to cover them up and still use them?

Surely they are not all fair-weather jobs?

DaMa Posted at 6-13 05:03
Take this one: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwc1G_V1x-c

lol

See, will definitely try this with my new Air 2 tomorrow!

The Matrice 300 RTK has a protection rating of IP45. However, the protection rating is not permanently effective and may decrease due to wear and tear. Do not fly in rain heavier than 100mm/24h.

MATRICE 200 SERIES  IP Rating        IP43

Mavic Pro official page has the question in FAQ - the answer is No.

Can't find any mention of IP rating or waterproof on the Inspire range.

Here you go:
https://mavicpilots.com/threads/new-product-release-air-2-wet-suits-neon-color-fly-in-the-rain.89687/page-3#post-1025678

InvisibleName 7 Posted at 6-13 10:31
Here you go:
https://mavicpilots.com/threads/new-product-release-air-2-wet-suits-neon-color-fly-in-the-rain.89687/page-3#post-1025678

You sir, are a total legend!  

AndyVirt Posted at 6-13 11:01
You sir, are a total legend!

Glad to be of service!

https://www.phantomrain.org/

Labroides Posted at 6-13 04:48
Is the Mavic Pro or Phantom 4 Pro waterproof
DJI don't make any waterproof drones.

"Most people would have the good sense to go indoors rather than stand in the rain flying a drone."

Guess these guys are not like "most people". I certainly am not ;-)

Launching is the easy part! Is it just me or did the prop cut the sleeve of the rain gear of the guy who caught the Phantom?

Honestly, that was pretty irresponsible. The drone easily could have hit one of the crew members in the head or face.

MisterFrag Posted at 6-13 14:38
Launching is the easy part! Is it just me or did the prop cut the sleeve of the rain gear of the guy who caught the Phantom?

Honestly, that was pretty irresponsible. The drone easily could have hit one of the crew members in the head or face.

Have you not seen all the videos about the ocean racers doing this every day? Every crew uses these to film their boats.

There is one simple answer, cooling. As the DJI designs get smaller, cooling the electronics is getting harder. As soon as you start adding sealing for water-proofing, you reduce air flow that is vital for cooling, and the addition of seals also adds weight. It is fine for 'trick' drones to be waterproof, but in truth they are gimmicks.

AndyVirt Posted at 6-13 11:01
You sir, are a total legend!

If you think one of those would magically make your drone waterproof ......
Don't be conned.

GaryDoug Posted at 6-13 14:49
Have you not seen all the videos about the ocean racers doing this every day? Every crew uses these to film their boats.

Have you not seen all the videos about the ocean racers doing this every day? Every crew uses these to film their boats.
They are great videos and show what an experienced flyer can do in extreme situations.
But you wouldn't want to buy a used Phantom from him after just one flight like that.
For those guys, the drones are disposable.

AndyVirt Posted at 6-13 07:16
Really?  I would have thought all-weather drones could come in quite handy for many uses - finding little children, locating insurgents in theatres of war, agriculture, disaster relief etc etc etc.
As for the camera, I have cameras around my house (outside).  They could either be covered up (and not used) or, could there be a way to cover them up and still use them?

Surely they are not all fair-weather jobs?
Your imagination exceeds your practical experience.
Pretty well all commercial jobs are fair-weather jobs.
You cannot get good images with raindrops on your camera lens so it's very difficult to produce anything that your client would want.
Add the high potential for damaging your equipment and you won't find many professional users wanting to fly in the rain anyway.

drones could come in quite handy for many uses - finding little  children, locating insurgents in theatres of war, agriculture, disaster  relief etc etc etc.
And those exciting and imaginary flights would still be almost all be done in fair weather.

Labroides Posted at 6-13 17:20
Surely they are not all fair-weather jobs?
Your imagination exceeds your practical experience.
Pretty well all commercial jobs are fair-weather jobs.

I think you missed his point. You probably don't want to have to wait for fair weather in those situations. "Sorry parents, we don't want to get our toy wet while searching for your child. Come back tomorrow....maybe"

Labroides Posted at 6-13 17:13
If you think one of those would magically make your drone waterproof ......
Don't be conned.

Waterproof no, rainproof maybe.

AndyVirt Posted at 6-13 07:16
Really?  I would have thought all-weather drones could come in quite handy for many uses - finding little children, locating insurgents in theatres of war, agriculture, disaster relief etc etc etc.
As for the camera, I have cameras around my house (outside).  They could either be covered up (and not used) or, could there be a way to cover them up and still use them?

They have drones, for such "ideas":

GaryDoug Posted at 6-13 18:07
I think you missed his point. You probably don't want to have to wait for fair weather in those situations. "Sorry parents, we don't want to get our toy wet while searching for your child. Come back tomorrow....maybe"

You probably don't want to have to wait for fair weather in those situations. "Sorry parents, we don't want to get our toy wet while searching for your child. Come back tomorrow....maybe"
I got his point.
But of his examples, there aren't many that necessarily involve flying in rain anyway.


finding little children
A great dramatic example but children get lost in fine weather a lot more often than in the rain.
Drones are of limited use in such searches anyway because they can't see under cover in forest etc.
You'd want a specialised drone with infrared camera.
When you find someone with that equipment, ask him if he wants to fly in the rain.

locating insurgents in theatres of war
I would leave that to the military and whatever equipment they have


agriculture
I doubt any agricultureal drone operators would be at all interested in flying in the rain.
They aren't going to get clear images and won't want to risk their gear
Come back tomorrow when it's not raining.

disaster relief
You won't be able to help much flying your drone during a hurricane or while the flood rain is still coming down.
Wait till after the rain and perhaps you can achieve something.

The OP has a romantic notion of heroic drone pilots doing brave workin the rain.
Our drones just aren't very useful in the rain and 99.999% of commercial drone work is nowhere near as dramatic as he imagines.
And it's not always raining when and if that exciting stuff might happen.

GaryDoug Posted at 6-13 18:12
Waterproof no, rainproof maybe.

That product isn't worth the price since it really does nothing for the drone.
The guy that sells it isn't a reliable source of information.

Maybe someone has already tried something like this? Surely can be found in Down Under and US as well...

https://www.wet-protect.de/e-nau ... -flasche-1000ml-1l/

There are drones that aim towards that market, DJI may be a professional drone manufacturer that aims and have a share in the professionall drone market.
There are search and rescue drones that are dust and rain proof.

https://heighttech.nl/g2-2/?gclid=CjwKCAjwlZf3BRABEiwA8Q0qq7sOkmHv6-_ihbDXgcEfpYo-VYYpsr3y0B2_uwlsNPODc8dwiYM-nRoCFw4QAvD_BwE

https://www.dolphindrones.co.uk/search-rescue/

If you are looking for those drones in that market DJI is not the manufacturer you should go to.

Labroides Posted at 6-13 19:11
You probably don't want to have to wait for fair weather in those situations. "Sorry parents, we don't want to get our toy wet while searching for your child. Come back tomorrow....maybe"
I got his point.
But of his examples, there aren't many that necessarily involve flying in rain anyway.

I'm sorry Labroides but you're now just attempting to "win" an argument.  There is no need.


I thank everybody for their responses - i've got plenty of information.

As i said in my first post, i won't fly my beautiful drone even when it's the lightest drizzle but just like mobile phones which are now rain proof, i'm pretty sure those of us living in wet countries will be able to fly every day in years to come.   

Aloha Andy,

     As Labroides and Geebax noted there are many markets for drones and there are many drones for each market.  Buy what you need from the appropriate market.

     The P4 series was originally designed to be water resistant and the P4 series work very well in that respect.  But DJI learned quite quickly that their customers were eager to crash their drones into the water and take off again like a much cheaper Mariner Drone.  So early on, DJI stopped noting that their drones are water resistant.  I have had my P4s fly back many times in the jungle in the rain.  But then, as noted by Labroides, I had to really dry them out each time - and this was fresh water.

     In GaryDoug's linked video of the ocean racer launching a P4 Pro under storm conditions, the P4 water resistance stands out.  And as Labroides notes, that drone is soon to be toast - but then these guys throw away much more expensive stuff regularly.  But what a video!  Well worth $1500.

     As Geebax noted, the big problem for increased water resistance, up to and including waterproof, is the heat generated by the electronics.  Look at the P3 series design and then look at the P4 design and you can easily see why the P4 series design is more water resistant.  Yet each design gives adequate ventilation for the electronics.  That is the priority!

     So, as I noted at the beginning, yes there are drones that can fly in water resistant conditions.  Buy what you need from the appropriate market.  In that respect, more was noted about some DJI products.  Well worth checking out.  But DJI does make a Search and Rescue series of Mavics.  They are the Mavic 2 Enterprise series.  As Labroides noted, these drones have FLIR (Infrared) video and much, much more.

     Everybody makes their point in addressing your thread issues.  Remember that drone use is still in its infancy.  More and more drones are being developed every day.  Do your research.  Most often, it is not that there is not a product that does what you want but that you have not found the product that does what you want.

     Take care and be safe!

Aloha and Drone On!

AndyVirt Posted at 6-14 01:34
I'm sorry Labroides but you're now just attempting to "win" an argument.  There is no need.

What your looking for is a specialised drone. Yes new matrice but you need to shell out €25k or more. Most of what you said you would or could do is pointless with a Mavic Air2. So are you willing to pay an extra €1k to seal up your Mavic Air2. I’m always amazed at some people who buy a drone for less than €800 and think they bought a Sikorsky Helicopter. None of the wetsuits guarantees to be fully waterproof, so would you pay a couple hundred quid and risk your now €1k drone by using a suit the manufacturer won’t offer full guarantee.

AndyVirt Posted at 6-14 01:34
I'm sorry Labroides but you're now just attempting to "win" an argument.  There is no need.

I'm sorry Labroides but you're now just attempting to "win" an argument.  There is no need.
Actually I was attempting to give you accurate information, but it seems that you're resistant to that.
Enjoy your fantasies of flying in the rain searching for lost children.

Some of these arguments are just all wet ;-)

Well, this is embarrassing.
I did some late-night research into potential waterproofing options and browsed Amazon to see if any of them were available from there. I thought I had added this particular one to my shopping list but must have managed to use "By Now" instead. Imagine my surprise when this showed up a few minutes ago.
I have no intention of flying in the rain or in other forms of precipitation, but I like the peace of mind that comes from knowing that a little bit of water incursion wouldn't hurt. MG Chemicals has several products that could be used, the two that seemed suitable are silicone and acrylic-based. To me it seemed that the silicone-based product would probably retain more heat, so I figured the acrylic-based product would be better suited.

This is not an urgent project for me (remember I wasn't even planning on doing this), but I guess I'm going to watch the iFixIt video to see how to disassemble the Mavic Air 2 without destroying it so I can apply this stuff. I will not be doing any testing of the results, I'm just hoping that the product delivers some protection.

One area that would still be at risk are the batteries with the power button on top. I suppose I could get one of those wetsuit things and combine it with the internal waterproofing I am going to do.

MisterFrag Posted at 6-16 08:17
Well, this is embarrassing.
I did some late-night research into potential waterproofing options and browsed Amazon to see if any of them were available from there. I thought I had added this particular one to my shopping list but must have managed to use "By Now" instead. Imagine my surprise when this showed up a few minutes ago.
I have no intention of flying in the rain or in other forms of precipitation, but I like the peace of mind that comes from knowing that a little bit of water incursion wouldn't hurt. MG Chemicals has several products that could be used, the two that seemed suitable are silicone and acrylic-based. To me it seemed that the silicone-based product would probably retain more heat, so I figured the acrylic-based product would be better suited.

If you don’t test it how do you know is any good, you also should know your warranty will be void, so hopefully over the next 2 years you don’t need it, I’m also certain this could be the same for care refresh.

I did see positive reports from people using the stuff with drones and RC equipment, and it is a respected company making products primarily for industrial applications. I trust the stuff does what it says.

I’m located in Southern California and our biggest weather problem is that we don’t get enough rain. I will probably never get a chance to try this and sticking the MA2 under a faucet or in the shower is more of a torture test than I had in mind.

Hello there AndyVirt. Thank you for reaching out and for the inquiry. The DJI Mavic Pro and the DJI Phantom 4 Pro are not waterproof. Please do not fly your DJI drones it in the rain. In addition using 3rd part accessories as waterproofing for the said drones might affect the performance of the said drone when flying and might lead to an unwanted incident and can void the warrant as well. Thank you and fly safe always.

Imagine if all International airports shut down due to moist weather.  

Labroides Posted at 2020-6-13 04:48
Is the Mavic Pro or Phantom 4 Pro waterproof
DJI don't make any waterproof drones.

Dji does make water resistant drones and the reason somebody would want to fly in light rain or snow is for emergency search and rescue operations.

Christian J Blumer Posted at 8-8 10:48
Dji does make water resistant drones and the reason somebody would want to fly in light rain or snow is for emergency search and rescue operations.

And for that they are far more likely to use more expensive drones designed for those conditions.

the camera is air sealed,the motors are rain proofed. the problem is the gaps between parts. If you cover those gaps with water proof tapes, then you're free to go. for the mavic air 2, it means that you have to cover the battery seat and battery button.this can give your drone enough protection to fly in the rain. but its not waterproof

GaryDoug Posted at 2020-6-13 14:30
"Most people would have the good sense to go indoors rather than stand in the rain flying a drone."

Guess these guys are not like "most people". I certainly am not ;-)

That's awesome. Thanks for posting !

I have flow many times in the equivalent of spittle or drizzle.  No negative impact.  This has happened on the coast by the ocean during the winter and fall mid flight and was an unforeseen weather change.

Drones are typically not sealed like a phone.  This is due to the interchangeable battery and heat ventilation.  

On MavicPilots forum there is a habitual spammer called PhantomRain that sells neoprene skins for the situation you described and jumps in on every post possible.  Not only do theses skins alter the takeoff weight which is detectable by DJI and voids the drones warrantee but it also traps heat.  

I once, called them a habitual spammer on the forum and got my account suspended for 24 hours.  I reach out to the moderators and was told they are an authorized retailer and I was disparaging their reputation.  A few days later I saw him spam again and pointed out the heat and takeoff weight along with the voiding the warranty.  He gain reported me and I got a 10 day suspension.  I abandoned the forum altogether and started using this one DJI.

I don't really care about voiding the warranty by the increasing the takeoff weight but trapping heat which is designed to vent through the plastic and gaps could be catastrophic or permanently damage the drone.  

FriedChicken_II Posted at 8-8 17:59
......the camera is air sealed,the mot.........

Are you certain of that?

The reason I ask, I have a M2Z that spent some time in the sea, there was sediment inside the camera case and, I think, water marks in the sensor. I suspect the leakage paths are around the filter, the rear cover and any cable ways.