Another suggestion is go to your local hardware store and get hand warmers. They are chemical patches that you put in your gloves to keep your hands warm. They are thin, and can be applied to your batteries the way the battery patches for the Inspire 1 battery patches work.  They don't add a lot of weight if you decide to keep them on during flight.

solowfr Posted at 2015-12-14 07:19
Another suggestion is go to your local hardware store and get hand warmers. They are chemical patche ...

sounds like a great idea

Just flew for 10 minutes in -20 deg C. No issues, only my frozen hands.Another reason it was a short flight other than the cold it was an helicopter flying around. Prety low too.
In the middle of nowhere. Imagine that.

Great info! I flew the other night when the ground temp was 28°F. (-5°C) I'm sure that between windchill and elevation the bird temp was around -15°F  I experienced sudden battery warnings that were brief and intermittent. Sure would be awesome to have a wind and temp sensor on the bird that would feed into telemetry.

Hi folks. First post here.
Just wanted to report on my recent flights. Got the Phantom 3 Pro a month ago.
Here in Quebec, Canada, winter is cold. I had some reservations on how much practice I'd be able to get before spring is back...

I've been flying in -15C to +5C, often with 10-20km/h winds, with GREAT success and no big problem. Awesome machine.
I do keep my spare batteries in my pockets. I get about 15min flying time before landing with 30%-35% power left. Fine with me. I use 3 batteries, last FW installed.
Only bug is intermittent video signal loss, even when close.  One way to regain it is to shut down controller and restart, then regain control of the bird if it has started it's RTH process.
I've tried different channels, and AUTO of course, and am not in excessive interference zone. But that's not the point of my post anyway.
Here's a link to a small edited video...

Great Stuff

here in the US you can find those "hand warmer" packets pretty cheap, sometimes you can find a pack of them at the dollar store.  They work great to warm up batteries or any other device.

dewayt@gmail.co Posted at 2016-1-22 08:13
here in the US you can find those "hand warmer" packets pretty cheap, sometimes you can find a pack  ...

I remember sbd was sharing a link with those warmers  on e-bay, also cant find it now

http://www.ebay.com/itm/LITTLE-H ... :g:Hm4AAOSwYHxWJ-HO

theres a link to enough to last someone a whole winter... only need one per battery should be able to get it up to at least 70 F if you wrap it up good enough.
Have always used these to warm hands at football games, hunting, etc.. literally endless uses for these.

I just got my Phantom 3 Pro and now starting ,, But I have been flying Choppers for many years (Align-450-500-600) When I fly my chopper in Winter (Northern WI) I put my chopper out side for at least a 1/2 hour to get all the electronics to out side temps (the Gyro is the most sensitive to changing temps)  ,,, keeping the battery's inside house, the car , or inside pocket of my jacket to keep them warm

When I am ready to fly install the battery just before flying ,,  but understand battery only last 50-75% as if flying in Summer ,, coldest I fly in would be about -5F

DJI-Dave Posted at 2015-11-19 11:22
Here is the final product from the video above for those of you that enjoyed that video like I did.
...

Video is private.

jredford Posted at 2016-3-30 13:42
Video is private.

Not sure why it went private. It was not my video.


Dave

I live in Alaska and this is information I can use- thanks very much.

Morgan

Great info, I have been putting this to use flying my Mavic in Alaska the last few weeks. It has worked great and handled the 30-35 F temps no problem.

Good info.....thanks for the post :-)

Good info.....thanks for the post :-)

My Inspire 1 Pro can do this?{:4_181:} How many drones they'd lost? Just kidding.
Last New Year night I've shot firewoks at -15C only

thank you for the information

Nice to see this thread brought back to the top.  Winter is here for many users and the tips are applicable always.

So this is a topic I am seriously concerned about. I will be in a boat along the coast of Antarctica for about 1 month from the end of December to January. My plan is to bring the Mavic along (assuming I get it in time) While this thread seems to address the Inspire, I would rather not travel with mine, as I am very limited in the amount of gear I can bring, and I will be shooting a documentary and can't afford any extra weight. What are some good recommendations for the Mavic? The battery is not rated for the same temps as the Inspire, which has me greatly concerned. I plan on keeping the batteries warm and fully charged before each flight, but am mostly concerned about what happens between loading it into the Mavic and getting it in the air. Anybody have a good solution for insulating the battery while on the drone? Would strapping a small heat pack to the top of the battery help?
My only saving grace is that it will be summer in Antarctica, which means the temps should not get much below 15-20F.... at least according to my research. But I need to be prepared for virtually any conditions.

DJI-Patrick Posted at 2015-11-11 16:25
Nice sharing ! Tim !  This is really useful when winter is comming to most of countries in the world ...

not to nitpick but winter is only coming to half the world ;)
Although technically you may be correct.  I haven't counted the "number" of countries above the equator vs the number of them below it.

I put the batteries in my pants.  It isn't comfortable, but it keeps them warm and the women sure like it.  TMI?

Thx for the post! There have been quite a few discussions with the winter approaching, nice to see something from DJI!

So... it is impossible to take my Mavic to Everest Base Camp in spring?

So good to understand this cold weather effect. I use a gel pack that is preheated in the microwave.

I understand the batteries will discharge faster when cold. And caution should be taken. But what about the mechanical workings. Motors. Props. Yesterday was -5. Will the motor bearings keep lubricated enough to prevent burn out. Will the props break or crack because lack of flexibility. It is only 15 minutes at a time. I always hoover for a minute before flying away. Even when it is warmer. I asked tech support and they said it should NEVER be flown outside of the temperatures in the book.

coasteraddict Posted at 2015-12-10 09:03
I plan to do aerial footage in mountain areas near Gatlinburg, TN, in late January or early February. I already ordered a battery heater and have some stickers. Is it fair to say that both can work in conjunction? Once I put the stickers on, should I ever remove them? Are they to only be used during the colder weather? Also, does anybody know about how long the battery will drain when using the battery heater?

It won't be a pretty sight now after the fires..    I live in Johnson City, TN just northeast of Gatlinburg.
My Inspire is in Florida getting repaired or I would have drove down there and offered to fly recon missions into that mess when it was on fire. That said, as soon as i get my craft back I plan myself to go down there to take a look at the mess and unfortunate destruction. best wishes!!

fanse4c1a834 Posted at 2016-12-17 17:15
It won't be a pretty sight now after the fires..    I live in Johnson City, TN just northeast of Gatlinburg.
My Inspire is in Florida getting repaired or I would have drove down there and offered to fly recon missions into that mess when it was on fire. That said, as soon as i get my craft back I plan myself to go down there to take a look at the mess and unfortunate destruction. best wishes!!

My bad. I just noticed the date of your post. Guess you got the good shots in then.

Seems like some folks in here need to reread the already available cold weather battery operation info, that is readily found...

http://forum.dji.com/thread-66030-1-1.html
There are already numerous posts with all the relative helpful genuine, you know, stuff regarding the battery.

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