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Phantom 4 Pro in light rain for 1 minutes...
8099 16 2018-12-30
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Filip Kyzek
lvl.4
Czechia
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Hello! So I was flying right now Phantom 4 Pro and it started to rain so It was in like really light rain for about 1 minute and as soon as it landed i took a something to dry it, including the gimbal. And I started the motors to blow off and dry the gimbal, and my question is, will it be okay? I mean the gimbal. I tried it and it is fine but, nothing can happen right?
2018-12-30
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solentlife
Captain
Flight distance : 1087530 ft
Latvia
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Light rain is not a problem if you do not fly too long ... if it was just a minute or so ... sounds like you felt rain and immediately came home ... that's fine.

I made over 10min flight in sleet couple days ago .. and I have been caught in rain before ... never had any problems from it.

What I do is give a wipe down and leave AC out to air in the room ... I do not put straight back in bag as that has no air movement to allow any moisture to dissipate.

Nigel
2018-12-30
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ALABAMA
Captain
Flight distance : 10442687 ft
United States
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Good idea to give it a good drying  with a hair dryer.
2018-12-30
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BagoDJIoperator84
Captain
Flight distance : 1077608 ft
United States
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You shouldnt have any problems, if it was a heavy downpour, i would be worried.
2018-12-30
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DJI Natalia
Administrator

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Hi, thanks for bringing this to our attention. I suggest you have it a good dry and check all the parts before you turn it on. Please landed the Aircraft immediately is there is a sudden rain to avoid any issue. Please fly with caution. Should you have other concern, please let us know. Thank you.
2018-12-30
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solentlife
Captain
Flight distance : 1087530 ft
Latvia
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I for one do not advise using a Hair Dryer ... I prefer natural ventilation and dissipation.

Why ? Using a Hair Dryer does three things .......... creates hot moist air from a combination of its own hot air and the water its supposed to displace ... forces it into all areas .... and of course eventually dries the article. But only after driving all that moisture around inside trying to find a way out !!

If the water had not got to gear - the Hair Dryer most certainly will do it.

That's my opinion anyway.

Nigel
2018-12-30
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Filip Kyzek
lvl.4
Czechia
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solentlife Posted at 12-30 08:42
Light rain is not a problem if you do not fly too long ... if it was just a minute or so ... sounds like you felt rain and immediately came home ... that's fine.

I made over 10min flight in sleet couple days ago .. and I have been caught in rain before ... never had any problems from it.

Yes I put it into dry room and it seems fine. This is so stressful! I never been so fast! I felt i few drops of rain and I was only 200 meters away so I put it into Sport mode and landed so fast I don't even know how I did it!
2018-12-30
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solentlife
Captain
Flight distance : 1087530 ft
Latvia
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Honest ... a little bit of light rain will not hurt it ... but don't make a habit of flying in the rain !

Mines been in light rain and snowfall so many times I've lost count ...
It is seawater and river water that has crud in it that are the real killers ...

Nigel
2018-12-30
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Anthony8858
Second Officer
Flight distance : 9711 ft
United States
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This may ease your anxiety a bit..
Maybe invest in a "wetsuit" ?

https://www.riseabove.com.au/pha ... ji-phantom-4-series

2018-12-30
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solentlife
Captain
Flight distance : 1087530 ft
Latvia
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Please not that again ...

We had a long thread on here a while back that basically showed it for what it was ... and the vendor left in a huff. He then posted utter rubbish on PhantomPilots that got myself and a few others bans ... for daring to voice the obvious flaws in the product.
It was when he claimed that the 'suit' made Hand Catching the safest and best form of landing - that all hell broke loose !! I am still suffering ban from it now.

Think on it ... if the suit only covers the solid areas without vents ... how can it be truly effective ? If it did seal up the AC and make it capable of all-weather use - then it would not be long before batterys and electronics would say enough of this no venting heat !!
You only have to watch the video and listen to the commentary ... 1. The water is dripping of the Gimbal and Camera as well as the shell  ... no mention of that ... 2. The sealing of the battery - given that the battery faces REARWARDS - of course as he says - flying INTO the rain means no water in the battery ... actually without their sealing - you should not get water in your battery flying forward anyway !!
Those are only TWO examples ....

Sorry to be so dismissive of the product - but it really is a 'snake-oil' product. What is that they say .... "Fool and his money" ....

Who is going to want to fly in rain anyway ? I have been caught in light rain and snow ... but not intentionally. Light rain - even a sudden heavy downpour will not cause damage as long as you land and get the AC out of the weather and dry out. No need for gimmick rubbish.

Nigel
2018-12-31
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Bashy
Captain
Flight distance : 2354357 ft
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United Kingdom
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I read somewhere you should let electronics air dry and that includes no rice...

As for the light rain, unlikely be any issues but the thing you need to be aware of is that inside the drone and battery is a moisture strip that turns pink when any moisture hits it, unlikely in your case but bear it in mind cause if it goes pink  and you are in warranty period, it will not be honoured
2018-12-31
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solentlife
Captain
Flight distance : 1087530 ft
Latvia
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Bashy Posted at 2018-12-31 21:22
I read somewhere you should let electronics air dry and that includes no rice...

As for the light rain, unlikely be any issues but the thing you need to be aware of is that inside the drone and battery is a moisture strip that turns pink when any moisture hits it, unlikely in your case but bear it in mind cause if it goes pink  and you are in warranty period, it will not be honoured

I asked the DJI people over here ages ago about this when I first learnt of it and they replied that the strip is indicative of use but does not automatically void warranty. It is part of the evaluation and not the decider.

Nigel
2019-1-1
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Manxmann
Captain
Flight distance : 1178793 ft
Australia
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Flying in rain ?  Not for me even if there is a slight risk of getting wet.......  but then we are spoiled climate wise in that direction - but we pay for it in other ways.
2019-1-1
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solentlife
Captain
Flight distance : 1087530 ft
Latvia
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Living where I do and also back when in UK ... getting caught out in a shower is not unusual...

As they say in UK .... you can have all seasons in one day !

Nigel
2019-1-1
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Cetacean
Captain
Flight distance : 2528264 ft
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United States
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Aloha Filip,

     A rain event is an indication that you have to cut your flight short.  Get your bird back to the home point ASAP and use the rest of the battery to idle the props in a protected area.  If you can stop the props for just long enough to wipe off the body and camera, do so.  If not, run the props until someone can bring you a soft, dry cloth, then stop the props and wipe the Phantom and then restart the Phantom and run down the rest of the battery until it reaches your planned battery level for the flight.

     The P4 series has interior fans that will circulate any moisture until it can get back out the ports and vents.  The props and the interior fan combine to "average out" the moisture collected in the rain.  The heat generated by the flight works to reduce the moisture average towards the humidity level of the air around the P4.  The heat will actually increase the dryness around the P4 and help in the process.

     Only keep the props stopped and turn off the Phantom if water is pouring out of the bird!  (I have never heard of that bad a rain event.)

     The P4 was designed to improve survivability in humid and rainy environments.  The series is not water proof by any stretch but it is resistant to the excessive moisture effects of rain.  Look at the vent placement and compare that placement to a P3 Series Phantom.  The placement works to keep the rain water out of the inside of the Phantom.  But, even my P3 Pro had very little problem with rain and the vents would allow some water inside.

     The rice option is for a water immersion incident.  Even then, never put the Phantom directly in rice because the dust will screw things up.  Always have the rice in a fabric bag.  The tighter the weave, the better (like sleeping sheets).  This is also true for any electronic device that gets wet.

     I know an DJI Obsidian customer that has a chronic problem with excessive humidity on the lens of his camera.  Way too often, he has to unscrew the lens and wipe off the condensation.  The problem could be even due to the dark color of the Phantom in our humid environment, but then one would think that the Mavics might also have a similar problem.  Hard to get a nice image with moisture on the lens.

     Rain, fog and snow are challenges for you to understand as someone who flies DJI products.  We have to understand concentrated moisture like we have to understand gravity and other aspects of how we fly our Phantoms.

     Hope this helps!

Aloha and Drone On!
2019-1-1
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Filip Kyzek
lvl.4
Czechia
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Anthony8858 Posted at 2018-12-30 14:37
This may ease your anxiety a bit..
Maybe invest in a "wetsuit" ?

Hello! Have you tried it? My only question is, what about the gimbal and camera?
2019-1-5
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Anthony8858
Second Officer
Flight distance : 9711 ft
United States
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Filip Kyzek Posted at 1-5 13:31
Hello! Have you tried it? My only question is, what about the gimbal and camera?

I haven't tried it, only offered as a solution after seeing someone else offer on another site.
After looking at it closer, I can't imagine how this can fully protect the drone, camera and gimbal
2019-1-5
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