I have a total of 5 batteries and 3outof5 are swollen. Normal use normal charging and never keep fully charged when not using for long periods.  This is ridiculous. At $80+ a pop this isn’t a cheap problem .looks if we’re paying a premium for DJI drone  BATTERIES  looks to me we would get more life from them than 8-10 month or do I need a reality check?

DJI THIS IS BULL $HT!


Ps I’m having the same issue with my phantom 4 pro batteries as well. 3 our of 6 are seriously swollen. That $150+ a pop!

Have you flown in really hot areas, or days?

Like the USA ?lol the whole USA is HOT!  Sorry if it’s that hot to make batteries swell then we’re in for some serious climate issues. I’m in fla.  

I have read where  I’m not the only one dealing with this issue and I suspect we will hear more people with this issue in near future as the first few batches when the Mavic air was released were not fully checked or tested. But who am I and what do I know/

Of my 3 batteries in a year and a half, not a single swollen one. You do not charge the batteries after the flight when they are still hot?

Hi noflyzone69, sorry for the troubles with the batteries, batteries work via an electrochemical process and anything that may alter this process such as over-discharging, crashes, water damage, etc. can result in a swollen battery. Presently, this is a common issue with all batteries. Your batteries have been over 6 months right?

Fickle things ... Lipos.

As others have mentioned (as has DJI), humidity and heat are mostly culprits for battery damage.

Usual things apply, don't store fully charged, dont completely discharge, dont charge a hot battery immediately after a flight etc etc etc.

It could be battery problem or how the charging is done. I live in Ghana - West Africa and with the type of our weather here, I haven't had any issue with my Mavic Air's battery.

I live in Israel which can get very hot in summer. I have flown my Spark in all kinds of environments here, including the Arava Desert on a pretty hot day, in direct sunlight, and I have had no issue with my batteries.

*DM* Posted at 8-5 23:45
Fickle things ... Lipos.

As others have mentioned (as has DJI), humidity and heat are mostly culprits for battery damage.

When they say "store" how long do they mean.  

DAFlys Posted at 8-6 00:08
When they say "store" how long do they mean.

Although they have a safety margin built in (obviously) it is never optimal to fully charge or discharge Lipos. My Dell XPS laptop, for example, has several charging options. The one recommended for prolonged battery life is to charge when it reaches 40% and stop at 80%.

So with Drone batteries I usually charge the day prior to flying to 3/4 or so and then fully charge on the day so it doesnt take to long.

I fly to around 20 to 25% then store them at that. I use 3 batteries, that gives me around an hour flying. If I had to do more I'd buy additional ones.

They have an automated discharge rate which can be changed (see manual) so even if you store at full charge they will start to slowly discharge after some days but I wouldnt do that too often.

Consult the operating manual as to maximum battery operating temperature. I think its around 40o celsius. Bearing in mind that on a hot sunny day this could probably be easily exceeded.

PS. I am no battery expert. It's simply how I look after mine.

Others will have different advise.

Pretty much what Mindy said, Batteries shouldn't be charged or used in excessive heat, you shouldn't over-discharge them(Let them drop to 0%), if they have taken crash damage or water damage, this can only increase the chances that your battery will swell. Battery age can also be a factor, but this isn't generally the main cause unless a battery is very old and far outside it's warranty period. You can get the battery serial number checked, or check your receipt and see if your inside 6 months, if so DJI should give you warranty on it, assuming there's no damage/water damage.

Supposedly leaving batteries in storage with over 80% charge is also a factor, this shouldn't matter too much though as DJI batteries discharge themselves to around 70% during storage.

Major cause of swollen batteries (leaving out physical impact/damage) is over discharging, which can be aggravated by high/hot environments.

I just noticed swelling in one of mine (1 of 3) but I've had it over 2 years  

noflyzone69 Posted at 8-5 21:39
I have read where  I’m not the only one dealing with this issue and I suspect we will hear more people with this issue in near future as the first few batches when the Mavic air was released were not fully checked or tested. But who am I and what do I know/

The Mavic Air has been available about a year and a half now, and there are no widespread reports of battery problems. As others have indicated, based on the symptoms and your own comments, it sounds like your batteries were exposed to high temperatures for a long period of time, such as by being left in a car.

*DM* Posted at 8-5 23:45
Fickle things ... Lipos.

As others have mentioned (as has DJI), humidity and heat are mostly culprits for battery damage.

In general they are (fickle), yes, but these "intelligent" batteries aren't easily damaged. They won't allow you to overcharge them, to charge them while they're hot, or to over-discharge them, and of course they'll self-discharge as necessary to reach the long-term storage "sweet spot".

About the only "easy" way to damage them is to store them fully discharged for a long time, subject them to strong impact forces (e.g., dropping them from a significant height onto a hard surface), or -- as probably happened here -- allow them to be exposed to high temperatures for an extended period of time.

Temperamental things for sure these batteries, I found this very helpful...

I also recently noticed a swollen battery that was never let in hot conditions for any length of time. It had just been flown in fairly hot temperatures (~90F) though. I don't understand the comments about charging when hot or overcharging. It seems to me that the circuitry in the batteries doesn't allow either to occur.

I have 3 Mavic Pro batteries that I've had for 3 years. I fly them down to about 20% and recharge them immediately after use. During the months when I can't fly due to weather, I fully charge them about once a month (the auto discharge is set to 10 days). I know this is all contrary to public opinion, but I've not had any problem with them and they are still giving me excellent flight times with no indication of any swelling. I know flyers that toss their batteries around like they are indestructible and they seem to always be dealing with swollen battery packs. I think this has more to do with battery problems than anything else IMHO.

Chris_J03 Posted at 8-5 21:30
Have you flown in really hot areas, or days?

I fly in southwestern part of the U.S. and it reaches up to 115 degrees fahrenheit where temperatures can stay above triple digits throughout the day...DJI should reduce the 104 degree operating condition high end of their estimate as my new batteries become swollen so soon into flying..

David Martin Graff Posted at 8-25 21:45
I fly in southwestern part of the U.S. and it reaches up to 115 degrees fahrenheit where temperatures can stay above triple digits throughout the day...DJI should reduce the 104 degree operating condition high end of their estimate as my new batteries become swollen so soon into flying..

"DJI should reduce the 104 degree operating condition high end of their estimate"...

Let's see, if the upper limit of operational temps of the Mavic battery is 104F, and you're going out in
115F temps, then there's your problem.

Flycaster Posted at 8-26 11:25
"DJI should reduce the 104 degree operating condition high end of their estimate"...

Let's see, if the upper limit of operational temps of the Mavic battery is 104F, and you're going out in

Of course I'm not flying when the temperature is 115 degrees in the middle of the day, but I do fly when the temperature is between 100-104 degrees and I have a tool that measures temperature on the surface of the ground. I just state the temperatures reach that high because it is good to know as a data point, but of course my drones are not exposed to any excessive weather conditions aside than what is stated as a range in the operating temperature suitable to fly your DJI drones. With that said, I've experienced severe effects of the heat affecting the batteries and internal electronics of the drone. The only drone batteries that have not been affected are the Spark batteries, my guess is because the batteries are located on the rear of the aircraft and the sun doesn't reflect as strong as they do on batteries top located on the drone?? Mavic batteries do not do well in the strong sun...

all lipo's are temperamental and are very picky with how they are stored and treated, specially "long term".

i believe 6 months is too short of a warranty period and that DJI should invest in 3 layers of warranty because most places batteries are covered fairly well. let me list how i think DJI should handle warrenty on batteries which maybe most helpful to people:

1.  standard 6 months how they currently do it, full exchange program, minimal questions asked beyond prove to me your battery is broken with a picture or two and send it in.

2.  1 year  (additional 6 months over standard) which partial coverage/discount, send in battery and get "upto" 50% off new battery if it is faulty battery not a cause of your own mishandling or replace it with a "renewed/refurbished" battery (passing quality battery that isn't new) at smaller cost, if it is a issue with mishandling, standard core cost towards a new/refurbished battery from dji.

3.  anything beyond 1 year or very high cycle count = recycle / core cost reimbursement towards a new/refurb battery (only, credit isnt applied to other product)

--core cost being the raw cost of the material makes up the battery being claimed..
these are general terms most places do with batteries here in the US.  this helps as even a small insentive offered when exchangign a battery can encourage people to replace poor condition batteries, cuts down on waste and possible crashes as well...   and unlike common beleif battries can be refurbished to a degree, recover chemicals and materials and rebuild batteries and cut down on costs, some batteries nothing actually chemically or physical broken about the cells just need repacking.  

Dirty Bird Posted at 8-14 03:43
I have 7 Mavic Pro batteries.  3 are almost 3 years old.  The other 4 are about 2 years old.  I run them pretty hard, generally discharging to under 15%.  I recharge batteries fully after use, charge monthly in the rare event I don't fly, & have self-discharge set for 3 days.  They are stored inside at normal room temperature.  All are still performing well, with very little reduction in flight time compared to when they were new.  No signs of swelling in any pack.

How do you adjust the # of days before self discharge starts?

Stryker03 Posted at 8-26 14:49
How do you adjust the # of days before self discharge starts?

It's available for a Mavic Pro battery under the Battery "tab" of the DJI Go 4 app when the aircraft is connected, but isn't configurable with the newer models like the Mavic Air or Mavic 2.

I live in NY state and have had 2 batteries swell when flying while over 85 outside. I also think it's BS but part of the game the batteries don't like to get hot! you can set Mavic Pro batteries to discharge after a certain day in the settings Im sure all the newer DJI products you can adjust that as well.

Gimpy Posted at 8-26 15:05
It's available for a Mavic Pro battery under the Battery "tab" of the DJI Go 4 app when the aircraft is connected, but isn't configurable with the newer models like the Mavic Air or Mavic 2.

Just my luck. I have a Mavic 2 Pro

Charge them every time after a flight! Don't let them stay discharged. I guess this is a common mistake that many could do.

So then how can DJI say you can get up to 30 minutes flight time out of these batteries if you have to land at 20%???

Taking a different road here. Often batteries are swollen when over charged. Could the charger you are using put out to high of voltage? Are you using the stock charger...if not check the output of the charger.
The drone and the charging circuitry works to control the charging rate and later there is a stepped discharge rate.

The batteries do not stand up to what DJI claim I have had only 90 flights on all 3 of my batteries are they badly swollen
And yes they have not been abused and followed all the norms of handling Lipo Batteries
I have been handling Lipo for years as a RC pilot  and can say DJI have to be the worst.
Maybe DJI should be reported to Consumer affairs in Australia as the batteries should last as they claim and would be covered at the law

I also have 4 batteries and all of which are swollen. I’m also getting weak transmission signal and losing video transmission within 20m. I suspect the equipment has been designed to have a shelf life of 2 years. If you don’t crash the AC you’ll need to buy a new one wether you want to or not.

Same experience here, with the battery that came with my Phantom 4 still working after dozens of flights and both replacements dead, with visible cracks at the LED display.  $300+ worth of VERY disappointed.